Angel Martínez hit a pivotal two-run home run and delivered a ninth-inning double to spark the visiting Cleveland Guardians past the Minnesota Twins 5-2 on September 11, 2026, according to the Associated Press. The victory moved the Guardians two games ahead of Toronto in the race for the American League’s third and final wild-card spot.
Martínez and Late-Inning Offense Overcome Early Deficit
The Guardians struggled to generate offense early against Twins pitching at Target Field. According to the Associated Press, Minnesota starter Taj Bradley limited Cleveland to one hit and four walks while striking out six batters across six scoreless innings. Parker Messick pitched 5.1 innings for Cleveland, yielding three hits and one run with two walks and five strikeouts on 95 pitches, earning praise from manager Stephen Vogt.
“Parker was great again,” Vogt said. “Just continues to do what he does. They did a great job with him. They got his pitch count up. They made him really work.”
Minnesota struck first in the second inning via back-to-back hits, with a single by Kody Clemens and a double by Royce Lewis driving in the game’s opening run. The Guardians broke through in the seventh when Martínez launched his 15th home run of the season off a pitch that scored Travis Bazzana, giving Cleveland a 2-1 lead. Martínez spoke about his approach after the game.
“It feels good. It feels good, you know,” Martínez said. “Coming into that at-bat, I feel like the last few days I have been on it, but just missing it. The big leagues are hard, so I tried to keep my mind in the moment.”
Ninth-Inning Rally Secures Series Opener
The Twins responded in the bottom of the seventh when Kalen Culpepper hit an RBI single to tie the game at 2-2, according to the Associated Press. The score remained deadlocked until the ninth inning, when the Guardians mounted a rally against reliever Yoendrys Gómez.
Martínez hit a one-out double off Gómez to put runners in motion. Bazzana subsequently scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch, and shortstop Brayan Rocchio drove home two additional runs with a double to deep center field, stretching the lead to 5-2. Hunter Gaddis earned the win with 1.3 scoreless innings of relief, and Cade Smith closed out the bottom of the ninth to record his 36th save of the season.
Series Outlook and Upcoming Matchups
Following the September 11 victory, the Guardians continued their three-game series at Target Field on September 12. Cleveland planned to start right-hander Daniel Espino as an opener with an ERA of 2.70, followed by left-hander Joey Cantillo to pitch the bulk of the innings. The Twins countered with left-hander Connor Prielipp.
