Andres Gimenez hits grand slam, Josh Naylor hits go-ahead homer as Guardians defeat A's
OAKLAND, Calif. — Andrés Giménez hit his first career grand slam, Josh Naylor’s two-run home run capped a four-run seventh inning and the Guardians rallied to beat the Oakland Athletics 9-8 Friday night, snapping a seven-game losing streak.
Naylor’s home run off Domingo Acevedo (0-1) came after the Guardians opened the seventh with three consecutive doubles, including José Ramírez’s two-run hit.
Ramírez also homered in his 1,000th career game with Cleveland, which won for the first time since completing a sweep of the Chicago White Sox on April 21.
Sheldon Neuse had three hits and three RBIs for the A's. Sean Murphy added a three-run homer as the A’s failed to hold leads of 4-1 and 8-5 in a game in which ace Frankie Montas struggled.
Montas allowed five runs in five innings and walked four — matching the total from his first four starts this season.
Trevor Stephan (2-0) pitched two scoreless innings for the win. Emmanuel Clase overcame Kevin Smith’s leadoff double in the ninth and picked up his third save.
Giménez and Myles Straw each had three hits for the Guardians.
Murphy’s three-run home run off Guardians starter Aaron Civale in the first snapped a 2-for-19 slump for the A’s catcher.
Civale struggled through another rough outing, allowing six runs in four innings. The right-hander has given up 15 earned runs in his past 11 innings — a 12.27 ERA in that span.
Giménez crushed a 3-2 pitch from Montas in the third inning after the A’s pitcher gave up a leadoff single and back-to-back walks.
Honoring Fosse
Former A’s catcher and longtime broadcaster Ray Fosse, who passed away in October, was honored during a pregame ceremony when the team unveiled a large, yellow RAY logo with a microphone on the outfield wall in left-center field.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cleveland Guardians rally past Oakland Athletics
