The Cleveland Guardians are edging ever closer to winning the AL Central for the first time since 2018, winning 8-2 on Wednesday night against division rivals Chicago to further solidify their grasp on the spot in the playoffs that comes along with it. Having won this outing, they now hold a six-game edge over the White Sox with just 13 games left to play for each team and only out more showdown between the pair.
That gives Chicago, as well as Minnesota who are a further three games back, very little realistic chance of catching up. Steven Kwon was the big hero for Cleveland in this road victory, smacking three hits with a homer while Triston McKenzie struck out 13 hitters in eight tremendous innings. Elsewhere, the San Diego Padres also got a sterling pitching performance as they defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 1-0 at home on Wednesday evening. Blake Snell went seven innings while giving up just two hits. Those came in the final frame he pitched, with Albert Pujols breaking up the no-hitter bid. Aaron Nola’s RBI single in the second, meanwhile, proved to be all the offense the Fathers needed as they won for the fifth consecutive time. As things sit, they are second in the NL Wild Card standing and have a 1.5 game lead over fourth place. It’s looking good for them, but there is still work to be done to clinch.
