Martínez Bomb and a Wild Ninth Sink Minnesota, 5-2

Angel Martínez crushed a 445-foot home run to left center in the seventh inning that swung Minnesota's win probability from 69% to 32% in a single swing. Cleveland rode that momentum shift and a chaotic ninth to walk away with a 5-2 road win on September 12.

For six innings, Taj Bradley was the story nobody wanted to tell against him. The Minnesota starter allowed just 1 hit over 6.0 innings, striking out 6 — yet somehow walked 4 batters and left his team with a lead that felt fragile. Royce Lewis gave Bradley something to work with in the second, doubling to left to score Kody Clemens and put Minnesota up 1-0. That lead held until the seventh, when everything changed.

With Minnesota's win probability sitting at 69%, Martínez stepped in and ended the debate. He homered to left center — 445 feet — scoring Travis Bazzana and flipping the scoreboard to 2-1 Cleveland. The probability cratered to 32% on contact. Minnesota answered immediately: Culpepper singled to left to score Martin and knot it at 2-2, which looked like it might be enough to force a tense finish. It wasn't. Parker Messick had already done his job — 5.1 innings, 3 hits, 1 earned run, 5 strikeouts — and Hunter Gaddis and Cade Smith locked the door behind him, combining for 2.1 innings of scoreless relief.

The ninth inning is where Minnesota's night fully unraveled. A Minnesota reliever — Gómez — threw not one but two wild pitches, each one advancing Cleveland runners and ultimately letting Bazzana score to make it 3-2. Then Brayan Rocchio delivered the dagger: a double to center that scored both Genao and Martínez, pushing the final to 5-2. Martínez finished 2-for-4 with the homer, 2 RBI, and 2 runs scored. Bazzana went 2-for-2 and crossed the plate twice. Rocchio added 2 RBI on that one swing in the ninth. The story of the night was Cleveland's patience — they scratched and clawed against a dominant Bradley line, then blew the game open the moment Minnesota's bullpen lost the strike zone. That's a professional road win.