Jose Ramirez hasn’t had a successful season by his lofty standards, but that doesn’t mean he can’t deliver a few special moments.
Fresh off recording his 1,000th career RBI, Ramirez will look to guide the host Cleveland Guardians (79-75) to a series win over the Athletics (61-93) on Saturday evening.
Ramirez, a seven-time All-Star, had an RBI single in the fourth inning and a solo homer in the sixth of Cleveland’s 5-3 victory to join Earl Averill (1,084) as the only players to reach 1,000 RBIs with the Cleveland franchise.
“I don’t play for numbers, but it’s good to see,” Ramirez said via an interpreter in a postgame interview.
One day after celebrating his 34th birthday, Ramirez launched his 12th homer of the season and first since Aug. 30. His second two-hit performance in a row lifted his batting average to .232.
Cleveland has won three games in a row and 18 of its last 27 to move atop the American League Central. The Guardians hold a one-game lead over the second-place Chicago White Sox (78-76), who squandered a six-run lead to drop an 11-8 decision to the Detroit Tigers on Friday.
“The whole team is focused on one thing, and it’s winning and trying to make it to the playoffs,” Ramirez said. “For us, to continue to do that and play hard, that’s our main goal.”
Brayan Rocchio ripped a two-run double in the fourth inning on Friday. He is batting .304 (14-for-46) with 15 RBIs over his past 14 games.
Rookie Travis Bazzana launched a go-ahead solo shot on Friday to give him 15 homers this season, joining Angel Martinez for the team lead.
The Guardians will turn to right-hander Tanner Bibee (6-15, 4.16 ERA) on Saturday against A’s left-hander Jacob Lopez (6-4, 5.02).
Bibee allowed two runs on four hits in 6 2/3 innings in a 9-2 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Sunday. He is 1-1 with a 5.09 ERA in three career appearances (all starts) against the Athletics.
Zack Gelof provided the lone bright spot for the A’s on Friday, belting a three-run homer in the first inning. The Athletics mustered just two other hits and fell to 0-4 on their final road trip of the season.
“Unfortunately, our offense couldn’t add on after a big hit by Zack,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay said.
The Athletics also have struggled in Cleveland, losing 12 of their last 14 games dating to the start of the 2022 season.
Lopez walked away with his second straight no-decision on Sunday despite yielding nine runs on 13 hits in 9 2/3 innings over his past two games. He also has struggled with the long ball, surrendering five homers in his last three outings.
Lopez was taken deep on two occasions in his lone career encounter against Cleveland on May 2. He allowed six runs on eight hits in 5 1/3 innings in a 14-6 setback.
–Field Level Media
