Kwan, Bazzana and Adell powered Cleveland’s 9-2 answer game in Minnesota

Three swings started it, but the pressure never really let up

Cleveland’s day began with a simple message: Minnesota would be chasing. Kwan opened the scoring with a first-inning homer to right, and Adell added a solo shot in the third. When the Twins finally trimmed the deficit on Kody Clemens’ RBI double in the bottom half, the Guardians answered again in the fourth. Brayan Rocchio came home on Kwan’s double to right, and Bazzana followed with a run-scoring single that restored a three-run cushion at 4-1.

That pattern mattered as much as the raw power. Bazzana’s two-run homer in the sixth, with Rocchio aboard, pushed Cleveland to 6-1 and turned a competitive score into one with breathing room. By the end, Kwan had gone 3-for-4 with a homer, double, two runs and two RBI. Bazzana finished 2-for-4 with three RBI, a walk and two runs. Adell matched the extra-base impact with a homer, a ground-rule double, two RBI and two runs of his own.

What made the Guardians especially difficult to contain was that the damage did not come from one shape alone. They hit three home runs, yes, but they also stacked four doubles, drew four walks, stole two bases and kept placing runners on base until Minnesota’s pitching line bent. Nathaniel Lowe added two hits and a sacrifice fly, and Angel Martinez capped the ninth with an RBI double to center. Even on a nine-run afternoon, the one number Cleveland can still look at critically is 18 runners left on base. The offense was excellent, but it also left evidence that the score could have stretched even further.

Bibee handled the middle, and the bullpen closed the door

The Guardians did not need a perfect start from Bibee. They needed one that prevented Minnesota’s scattered offense from turning into a run of innings, and that is what they got. Bibee worked 6 2/3 innings, allowed four hits and two runs, walked two and struck out seven on 96 pitches. The Twins reached him twice on the scoreboard — Clemens’ double in the third and Trevor Larnach’s solo homer in the seventh — but there was never a crooked number attached to his outing.

After Larnach’s homer made it 6-2, Cleveland’s relief work finished the game with the kind of clean, compact line that preserves wins. Hunter Gaddis, Erik Sabrowski and Matt Festa combined for the final 2 1/3 innings, allowing two hits, no runs and no walks while striking out four. That finish matched the broader pitching story: Cleveland struck out 11 Minnesota hitters, issued only two walks and never let the Twins build sustained traffic despite 14 runners left on base.

Our take: this was the sort of pitching performance that pairs perfectly with a deep offensive day. Cleveland did not smother Minnesota with complete silence, but it controlled the game’s terms. Eleven strikeouts against two walks and six total hits allowed usually means the other side is surviving, not steering. If there is a modest correction to consider, it is simply this: the Guardians can make life easier on their staff by trimming the stray traffic that did appear before the seventh. One error and a couple of scattered openings did not cost them here, but cleaner innings would make a strong blueprint even sturdier.

For the Twins, the missed margin was everywhere

Minnesota’s pitching line tells the bigger story first. Joe Ryan lasted 4 innings and gave up seven hits, four runs and two home runs while striking out only one. Travis Adams covered 3 innings but was tagged for four hits and two runs, including Bazzana’s sixth-inning homer. Taylor Rogers and Tommy Nance handled the last two innings and were charged with three more runs. Altogether, Twins pitchers allowed 14 hits, four doubles, three home runs and four walks while recording only four strikeouts.

The offense had some useful pieces, but not nearly enough connected ones. Luke Keaschall collected two hits and scored once. Larnach went 2-for-3 with a homer, an RBI and a walk. Clemens drove in the other run with his double. Outside that trio, though, the lineup became too quiet for a game that demanded pressure. Brooks Lee, Ryan Jeffers, Walker Jenkins and Ryan Kreidler combined to go 0-for-15 with eight strikeouts, and the Twins finished with just six hits and two walks as a team.

Our take: the final score looks one-sided because Cleveland kept refusing to leave the door open. Minnesota got the game to 2-1, then watched it become 4-1. It got to 6-2, then gave up three more in the ninth. That repeated answer is what separates a close afternoon from a comfortable loss. For the Twins, the improvement path does not need a mystery diagnosis. The facts here are plain enough: too many extra-base hits allowed, too few missed bats on the mound, and too many empty plate appearances in the lineup for 14 stranded runners to become anything more than a frustrating footnote.

Scoring moments

1. 1st Inning

   Kwan homered to right (357 feet).

2. 3rd Inning

   Adell homered to left (451 feet).

3. 3rd Inning

   Clemens doubled to left, Keaschall scored.

4. 4th Inning

   Kwan doubled to right, Rocchio scored.

5. 4th Inning

   Bazzana singled to right, Kwan scored.

6. 6th Inning

   Bazzana homered to right center (395 feet), Rocchio scored.

7. 7th Inning

   Larnach homered to right (366 feet).

8. 9th Inning

   Adell hit a ground rule double, Halpin scored, Bazzana to third.

9. 9th Inning

   Lowe hit sacrifice fly to left, Bazzana scored, Adell to third.

10. 9th Inning

    Martínez doubled to center, Adell scored.