CLEVELAND, Ohio — The plan was for Jim Thome to stand at third base for one pitch in the ninth inning Sunday afternoon at Progressive Field. Manager Manny Acta cooked it up after a long and restless night Saturday.

The pitch was supposed to be wide. So wide there would be no chance a hitter would swing at it. So wide that there was no danger of it being implanted in Thome’s chest.

So much for plans big and small.

Thome, in the Indians’ 6-4 home finale loss to the Twins in 10 innings, pinch-hit in the eighth inning for Shelley Duncan and walked. The crowd of 22,539 cheered and gave him a standing ovation. They knew it was probably his last at-bat with the Indians and perhaps the last of his 21 seasons in the big leagues.

What they didn’t figure on was Thome staying in the game after the inning ended. When the ninth opened, side-armer Joe Smith was on the mound, Trevor Plouffe at the plate and No. 25 at third base.

Thome had not appeared at third since Sept. 29, 1996, when the Indians ended the season in Kansas City. But third base is where it all started for Thome and the Indians when he made his big-league debut Sept. 4, 1991. The move to first, his tumultuous exit to Philadelphia and the bad back which divorced him from all makes of baseball gloves were still years away.

To Acta’s way of thinking, it was perfect. If this really was the last game of Thome’s career, or at the very least his last go-around with the Indians, why not have him go out where it began. Complete the circle at the hot corner.

“I just thought it was proper that he end where he started,” said Acta.

But there was that little issue about the pitch.

“It was supposed to be way outside the batter’s box,” said Acta, “but Smitty has real good movement and it came back over for a strike.”

That’s one way of looking at it. Here’s another.

“I know Joe Smith was trying to give the hitter a pitch so he could hook a ball to Thome and give him a chance to make a play, but it didn’t happen,” said Duncan, who continued his hot September with a two-run homer.

Thome’s back is in such a state where he can play two, maybe three games in a row. Then he needs rest and all he’s doing is swinging a bat. So what would Thome have done if Plouffe had hammered a grounder at him instead of taking it for a strike?

“I would have made the play,” said Thome. He chuckled, but when the words left his mouth, he was serious. The kind of serious that comes from hitting 604 home runs.

“It was fun to be out there and it was a nice gesture,” said Thome, who used Jack Hannahan’s glove. “It felt good to be back out there. It felt like old times.”

The Indians have three games left against the AL Central-champion Tigers starting Monday at Comerica Park. They have two goals left — end with a winning record and in second place. They’ll have to take two out of three from Detroit to reach the first goal. Their magic number to clinch second over Chicago is one.

If they reach those goals or not, the off-season will be an interesting one for Thome. Does he stay or does he go?

“I still love to play,” said Thome. “Since I’ve been here for the last month, I’ve talked about [play or retire] a lot with you guys. I’d say the percentage of me coming back next year is higher than not. We’ll leave it at that.”

The Twins, who had lost eight straight to the Indians, won it with two runs in the 10th. Tony Sipp (6-3), who is going through a bout of first-batter blues, gave up a leadoff homer to Rene Tosoni and a two-out RBI single to Chris Parmelee to give the Indians a 44-37 record at home.

Duncan’s two-run homer in the third gave the Indians a 4-2 lead. Duncan hit .385 (5-for-13) with one homer and eight RBI in the series. He has seven homers and 22 RBI in September.

Fausto Carmona, in his last start of the season, couldn’t hold the lead. The Twins made it 4-3 an RBI grounder in the fourth and tied it on Plouffe’s homer in the sixth.

The Indians went 5-4 on this last homestand and ended the season series against the battered Twins at 11-7.

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CLEVELAND
– The Minnesota Twins began the season with aspirations of reaching the World Series.

With four games left in a nightmarish season, the only thing the two-time defending AL Central champions can look forward to is going home.

Saturday’s day-night doubleheader against Cleveland best sums up Minnesota’s season.

After losing the opener 8-2, the Twins took a 6-0 lead into the sixth inning of the second game, but watched the Indians score five times in the sixth and twice in the seventh to send Minnesota to a 7-6 loss.

The Twins (60-98) have lost 19 of 21 to reach the second-most losses since the team moved to Minnesota in 1961, ahead of only a 60-102 record in 1982. They have lost eight straight to the Indians.

“We ended up losing a ballgame we thought we had pretty handily and played pretty good,” manager Ron Gardenhire said. “It was another loss on a very long day.”

“It’s been a terrible year,” said reliever Matt Capps, who gave up Shelley Duncan’s two-run double in the seventh, the hit that put Cleveland ahead. “It hasn’t been a whole lot of fun.”

Drew Butera drove in three runs from the No. 9 spot in Minnesota’s order, helping the Twins build a 6-0 lead against Mitch Talbot, who was recalled from Triple-A Columbus for the start.

Scott Diamond took a three-hit shutout into the sixth, but allowed four more hits and four runs. Alex Burnett yielded two hits and one run before Jose Mijares (0-2) got out of the inning with a 6-5 lead.

Mijares came out for the seventh, but gave up singles to Jason Donald and Carlos Santana to start the inning. Mijares struck out Jim Thome, but Duncan lined Capps’ 3-2 pitch down the left-field line, scoring both runners.

It’s been a rough weekend for Capps. He came on in the ninth inning Friday of a 5-5 tie, but Santana homered on his first pitch.

“I made one pitch yesterday,” Capps said. “I felt good today. That last pitch to Duncan, it was over the middle of the plate and he hit it.”

“Diamond was going along really good,” Gardenhire said. “Everything he threw was up in the sixth inning and they started whacking him all over the place. He couldn’t stop the snowball from going downhill and everyone else added snow to it.”

“We were in a deep hole and had to crawl out,” Indians manager Manny Acta said. “Diamond threw strikes. He changed speeds and did a good job until we were able to get to him there in the sixth.”

Minnesota’s Danny Valencia and Denard Span were back in the lineup after missing one game. They were involved in a minor car accident on the way to the airport on Thursday, when Span drove into the back of Valencia’s car. Valencia played in both games while Span played in game one.

Michael Cuddyer, who injured his groin Friday night, was the DH in both games. Ben Revere extended his hitting streak to a career-high 12 games with hits in both games.

Francisco Liriano (9-10) gave up five runs and got only one out in Cleveland’s six-run sixth in the opener.

Duncan drove in three runs in each half of the doubleheader.

Two Cleveland rookies earned their first career wins. Left-hander Nick Hagadone (1-0) pitched an inning to get the victory in the second game. Right-hander Zach Putnam (1-0) struck out three over 1 1-3 innings in the opener.

Chris Perez pitched the ninth inning of the second game for his 36th save in 40 chances.

All-Star shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera left the second game in the sixth inning with what the team announced as a bruised right elbow. He was hit by a pitch Friday night.

Notes: Twins rookie 1B Chris Parmelee was 0 for 4 with four strikeouts in the opener. … Minnesota placed C Joe Mauer (pneumonia), 1B Justin Morneau (concussion symptoms) and IN Tsuyowshi Nishioka (strained oblique) on the disabled list. All the moves were retroactive to mid-September. … Cleveland closes its home season Sunday with RHP Fausto Carmona (7-15) opposing Twins RHP Liam Hendricks (0-2). … Indians INF Cord Phelps broke an 0-for-27 streak with a single in the second game. … Indians DH Jim Thome drew his 1,723rd walk, 10 behind Mickey Mantle for seventh on the career list. … The Indians honored broadcaster Mike Hegan for his 50 years in pro baseball. Hegan played 12 years in the majors and is in his 34th season at the microphone, the past 23 with Cleveland.

Read More: twins baseball, minnesota twins baseball, indians baseball, cleveland indians baseball, indians at twins, indians vs twins, twins indians score, twins indians recap, Grady Sizemore (CF – CLE), Jim Thome (DH – CLE), Joe Nathan (P – MIN), Kevin Slowey (P – MIN), Anthony Swarzak (P – MIN), Chris Perez (P – CLE), Trevor Plouffe (SS – MIN), Rene Tosoni (RF – MIN), Jeanmar Gomez (P – CLE), Lonnie Chisenhall (3B – CLE), Ben Revere (CF – MIN), Cleveland Indians, Minnesota Twins, Cleveland Indians at Minnesota Twins, Sep 16, 2011 7:10 PM CDT

The Minnesota Twins came up just short on Friday night at Target Field, as their late rally wasn’t enough to prevent a 7-6 loss to the Cleveland Indians. The loss was the sixth in a row for Minnesota, and marked their 90th loss of the 2011 season.

Cleveland got off to a fast start in this one against Twins’ starter Kevin Slowey, building a 5-0 lead after the first four innings and sending the Twins’ right-hander to the showers. However, the Twins kept chipping away at the lead, as a two-run error on Indians’ outfielder Grady Sizemore helped them cut the lead to 5-2. Cleveland added a run in the top of the sixth on a single by Lonnie Chisenhall, making the score 6-2, but the Twins added two more in the bottom of the seventh on a single by Ben Revere and a sacrifice fly by Trevor Plouffe to make the score 6-4.

The score stayed that way until the top of the ninth, when Jim Thome stepped to the plate. Thome, who had been dealt to the Indians by the Twins a few weeks ago, received a standing ovation before his first at-bat of the evening, and gave his fans something to remember in his last at-bat. Facing Twins’ reliever Joe Nathan, he blasted a solo home run into the right field seats to increase Cleveland’s lead to 7-4.

That run turned out to be huge for the Indians, as the Twins put together another rally in the bottom of the ninth, with an RBI groundout by Revere and a single by Plouffe cutting the deficit to 7-6. However, Indians’ closer Chris Perez struck out Rene Tosoni to end the game and send the Twins to defeat.

Ubaldo Jiminez was given credit for the victory for the Indians, while Kevin Slowey became the first Twins’ pitcher in 18 seasons to lose six consecutive starts, falling to 0-6 since his return to the Twins.

The Twins and Indians will continue their series on Saturday afternoon at Target Field, with first pitch scheduled for 12:10 PM Central time. The pitching match-up will see Indians’ right-hander Jeanmar Gomez (3-2, 3.95 ERA) battling it out against Twins’ right-hander Anthony Swarzak (3-6, 3.89 ERA).

After allowing two runs in the first inning, Scott Diamond shut down the streaking Detroit Tigers.
It turned out the damage was done.
Doug Fister pitched seven scoreless innings in another terrific start for Detroit, outdueling Diamond and leading the Tigers to a 2-1 win over the Minnesota Twins on Sunday.
Diamond (1-4) allowed two runs, one earned, and seven hits in six innings. The rookie left-hander struck out four, walked four and got little support from his offense.
“All I can do is keep pitching,” Diamond said. “I’m up here to succeed, and to pitch that well against a great offense like Detroit is going to give me a lot of confidence going forward.”
The AL Central-leading Tigers have won nine straight for the first time since 1984, when Detroit won the World Series.
Fister (8-13) allowed three hits, struck out five and walked two. Joaquin Benoit pitched the eighth, and Jose Valverde allowed a run in the ninth but held on for his 43rd save in 43 chances.
The Twins have lost eight of nine.
Detroit scored both of its runs in the first. Austin Jackson, Magglio Ordonez and Delmon Young started with consecutive singles for a 1-0 lead, then second baseman Matt Tolbert misplayed a potential double-play grounder by Miguel Cabrera for an error. Victor Martinez did bounce into a double play, but another run came home.
Martinez ended up hitting into four double plays, becoming the first player to do that since Joe Torre on July 21, 1975, for the New York Mets against Houston, according to STATS, LLC.
Martinez grounded into double plays in his first three at-bats, then came up with a man on first in the eighth and hit a line drive that was caught by Chris Parmelee, the first baseman. After diving toward first to make the catch, Parmelee simply reached out and touched the base to double off the runner.
“I felt like high-fiving Victor — he was making outs like crazy for us,” Twins manager Ron Gardenhire joked. “Apparently, it takes a great hitter to make eight outs in one game, because I’ve never seen anything like that. Even he looked like he was laughing after the line drive for the fourth one. If I were Victor, I’d probably go home and have a glass of … orange juice. Maybe even with something else in it.”
Valverde allowed a walk to Joe Mauer and a single to Luke Hughes to start the ninth. Parmelee flied out to shallow left, and pinch-hitter Jason Kubel drove in a run with a groundout to first, moving the tying run into scoring position.
When Rene Tosoni struck out swinging to end it, the always-demonstrative Valverde dropped briefly to a knee before getting up, pumping his fist.
“We got close in the ninth, but you need someone to put a good swing on the ball in that situation,” Gardenhire said. “We got a couple people on, and then we just couldn’t get one more big hit.”
Fister was acquired to give the Tigers more pitching depth, but he’s staked a legitimate claim to being Detroit’s second-best starter behind Justin Verlander. In his last five starts, he’s allowed three earned runs in 36 2-3 innings, striking out 36 and walking four.
Minnesota had runners on first and second with one out in the fifth, but shortstop Jhonny Peralta made a nice stop on Tolbert’s grounder for a force play at second. Fister struck out Drew Butera to end the threat.
The 6-foot-8 Fister also made a couple graceful defensive plays. The right-hander knocked down one comebacker with his glove hand, then scooped up the ball without breaking stride and threw to first for an out. He later jumped to catch a soft line drive up the middle.
“That’s something I take pride in, something I have fun with,” Fister said. “The best advice I ever got was: ‘Try and stay athletic and have some fun.’”
NOTES: The game was played in 2 hours, 19 minutes. … Minnesota INF Danny Valencia was scratched from the lineup with right shoulder soreness. … Ordonez extended his hitting streak to 11 games with a first-inning single. … The Tigers travel to Chicago for a three-game series with the White Sox. They’ll send Rick Porcello (13-8) to the mound Monday night against John Danks (6-11). … Minnesota’s next game is Tuesday night at Kansas City. Carl Pavano (8-11) will start for the Twins against Bruce Chen (10-7).

Jose Valverde dropped to one knee, then quickly stood up on his left foot, kicking his other leg high in the air and pumping his right fist.

Even by the big closer’s exuberant standards, this was a special celebration.

Valverde set a team record with his 43rd save, and the Detroit Tigers beat the Minnesota Twins 2-1 on Sunday for their ninth straight victory. The last time the Tigers won this many games in a row was 1984, when they went on to win the World Series.

“I’m happy,” Valverde said. “My team is in first place, and that’s what I want.”

The Tigers lead second-place Chicago by 10½ games in the AL Central, and their magic number is seven.

Doug Fister (8-13) pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits in another terrific start for the Tigers. He’s 5-1 since being acquired from Seattle on July 30.

Joaquin Benoit pitched the eighth, and Valverde allowed a run in the ninth but held on for his 43rd save in 43 chances. Valverde walked Joe Mauer and Luke Hughes singled to start the ninth. Chris Parmelee flied out to shallow left, and pinch-hitter Jason Kubel drove in a run with a groundout to first, moving the tying run into scoring position.

When Rene Tosoni struck out swinging to end it, the always-demonstrative Valverde began his latest celebration at the mound. Detroit’s Todd Jones had 42 saves in 2000.

“It’s good, but I want to go to the World Series, big celebration, and be the champion,” Valverde said.

Detroit scored both of its runs in the first. Delmon Young singled in Austin Jackson and Magglio Ordonez scored when Victor Martinez bounced into a double play. Second baseman Matt Tolbert made a key error on a potential double-play grounder by Miguel Cabrera.

Martinez ended up hitting into four double plays, becoming the first player to do that since Joe Torre on July 21, 1975, for the New York Mets against Houston, according to STATS, LLC.

Martinez grounded into double plays in his first three at-bats, then came up with a man on first in the eighth and hit a line drive that was caught by Parmelee, the first baseman. After diving toward first to make the catch, Parmelee simply reached out and touched the base to double off the runner.

“I felt like high-fiving Victor — he was making outs like crazy for us,” Twins manager Ron Gardenhire joked. “Apparently, it takes a great hitter to make eight outs in one game, because I’ve never seen anything like that. Even he looked like he was laughing after the line drive for the fourth one. If I were Victor, I’d probably go home and have a glass of … orange juice. Maybe even with something else in it.”

Minnesota starter Scott Diamond (1-4) allowed two runs, one earned, and seven hits in six innings. He struck out four and walked four.

The Twins have lost eight of nine.

Fister was acquired to give the Tigers more pitching depth, but he’s staked a legitimate claim to being Detroit’s second-best starter behind Justin Verlander. In his last five starts, he’s allowed three earned runs in 36 2-3 innings, striking out 36 and walking four.

Minnesota had runners on first and second with one out in the fifth, but shortstop Jhonny Peralta made a nice stop on Tolbert’s grounder for a force play at second. Fister struck out Drew Butera to end the threat.

Fister finished with five strikeouts and two walks.

The 6-foot-8 Fister also made a couple graceful defensive plays. The right-hander knocked down one comebacker with his glove hand, then scooped up the ball without breaking stride and threw to first for an out. He later jumped to catch a soft line drive up the middle.

“That’s something I take pride in, something I have fun with,” Fister said. “The best advice I ever got was: ‘Try and stay athletic and have some fun.’”

NOTES: The game was played in 2 hours, 19 minutes. … The Tigers and Detroit Lions won on the same day for the first time since Sept. 30, 2007. … Minnesota INF Danny Valencia was scratched from the lineup with right shoulder soreness. … Ordonez extended his hitting streak to 11 games with a first-inning single. … The Tigers travel to Chicago for a three-game series with the White Sox. They’ll send Rick Porcello (13-8) to the mound Monday night against John Danks (6-11). … Minnesota’s next game is Tuesday night at Kansas City. Carl Pavano (8-11) will start for the Twins against Bruce Chen (10-7).