Pinch hitter Bo Naylor clubbed a go-ahead three-run home run in the sixth inning, and the Cleveland Guardians rallied for a 5-4 home victory over the San Francisco Giants on Sunday. The American League Central-leading Guardians trailed 3-2 when Giants reliever Sean Hjelle (3-3) retired the first two batters of the sixth. Then Cleveland's Andres Gimenez reached on a soft liner that appeared to fool San Francisco shortstop Nick Ahmed, and Tyler Freeman followed with an infield single. Then Naylor, batting for Austin Hedges, sent a 2-2 pitch from Hjelle into the right field seats for Cleveland to pave the way for a second straight victory -- after losing six of nine -- and a series win. Carlos Carrasco allowed three runs and six hits in five innings, but Guardians relievers Cade Smith (4-1), Tim Herrin and Hunter Gaddis each pitched a perfect inning. Emmanuel Clase picked up his 27th save despite allowing a ninth-inning double to Matt Chapman, who eventually scored on Michael Conforto's grounder. The Giants were trying to win a fourth straight series. However, they failed to hold a 3-0 lead and settled for a 3-3 trip that began at Atlanta. San Francisco opened the scoring in the second when Patrick Bailey led off with a single. One out later, Conforto golfed a pitch from Carrasco well into the right field seats. The Giants added on in the third when Ahmed doubled off the 19-foot-high wall in left. He eventually scored via Heliot Ramos' two-out single up the middle. Making his third career start, San Francisco's Hayden Birdsong didn't allow a hit through the first three innings. Then Angel Martinez led off the fourth with a single and went to third on Jose Ramirez's ground-rule double. Josh Naylor followed with an RBI single, and Daniel Schneemann's run-scoring double made it 3-2. Birdsong, though, limited the damage in the fourth. He struck out Gimenez, got a grounder to third -- where Chapman threw Josh Naylor out at the plate -- and picked off Tyler Freeman at first for the frame's final out. The right-hander yielded five hits and two walks while striking out five in 4 2/3 innings. --Field Level Media
Jul 7, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians catcher Bo Naylor (23) celebrates his three-run, pinch-hit home run in the sixth inning against the San Francisco Giants at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports