CLEVELAND (AP) — The Cleveland Indians’ defense failed them in key early spots in last night’s Game 6 loss to the Chicago Cubs.
Indians manager Terry Francona says he had considered setting his lineup more for defense, including starting Rajai Davis in left, but decided against it, noting it was “kind of who we are.”
Last year, Kansas City’s Alcides Escobar drove the first pitch of the Series to the left-center warning track, where Mets center fielder Yoenis Cespedes and left fielder Michael Conforto came together. The ball ricocheted off one of Cespedes’ feet and rolled along the fence as Escobar sped around the bases with the second inside-the-park homer to lead off a Series game.
A year earlier, San Francisco center fielder Gregor Blanco allowed Alex Gordon’s two-out single to bounce past him for an error that put the potential tying run at third base with two outs in the ninth inning _ some questioned whether Royals third base coach Mike Jirschele should have waved Gordon home. Madison Bumgarner then retired Salvador Perez on a foulout, saving the Giants’ 3-2 win in Game 7.
