Tribe edges Yanks in G1 for 6th straight win

NEW YORK -- Trevor Bauer hurled six sharp innings as the Indians extended their winning streak to six games on Wednesday afternoon, edging the Yankees, 2-1, in the first game of a doubleheader at Yankee Stadium.
Bauer limited New York to a run on four hits as he picked up his 14th victory, walking four and striking out four. The right-hander is undefeated in his last eight starts, going 7-0 with a 2.54 ERA over that span.
"It was a struggle," Bauer said. "I kind of got on a little bit of a roll there in the fourth and the fifth. I finally started being able to be aggressive in the strike zone. .... I'm definitely happy to be able to battle through it and get the team through six, save the bullpen a little bit and get a win."
Cleveland scored a pair of first-inning runs off Jaime García, with Francisco Lindor racing home on a Gary Sánchez passed ball and Yandy Díaz punching a run-scoring single.

"I felt pretty good," Garcia said. "I feel like for the most part, I was able to execute pitches and keep balls at the bottom of the strike zone and get a lot of ground balls, which is what I try to do most of the time. It wasn't good enough."
Garcia worked five-plus innings and Didi Gregorius had a third-inning RBI double for the Yankees, who have lost four of their last six games. Cleveland has allowed just nine runs over its six-game winning streak, and it has won 15 of 19 overall.

"That's the kind of game where if you don't make a play," Indians manager Terry Francona said, "we're probably either still playing or we lose. We scored two early and then hung on for dear life. But we played a good game."
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Something to 'Smile' about: Lindor turned in the defensive play of the afternoon in the third inning, diving to his right to smother a Sanchez grounder and making a long one-hop throw to first base that stole a hit. The play likely preserved Cleveland's lead, even though Gregorius raked a run-scoring double one batter later, as Bauer recovered to strike out Chase Headley to end the inning.

"That was great. It was a big play," Bauer said. "That situation, to get an out, I still hadn't quite locked in. I put some free baserunners on there, and he makes a big play to kind of bail me out of that. That inning looks a lot different if he doesn't."
It gets away: Yankees manager Joe Girardi has said that Sanchez's defense seems to have improved since he benched the catcher during a series at Cleveland earlier this month, but Sanchez's inability to handle a Garcia offering in the first inning resulted in his 13th passed ball of the season. Sanchez has allowed a combined 53 wild pitches and passed balls this season, the most in the Major Leagues.

 "My stuff sometimes moves," Garcia said. "That's the pitch I wanted to throw. All I know is if I was a catcher, I wouldn't want to catch me. Sometimes guys think I'm trying to cut it a little bit or throw something else. I feel like the catchers here have done an unbelievable job catching me."
QUOTABLE
"They just keep coming at you. It's the reason they are where they are. Their bullpen is tremendous. You say top to bottom. There is no bottom." --Francona, on the Yankees' bullpen
SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS
In a 2 2/3-inning relief appearance, Yankees right-hander Chad Green became the first pitcher in Major League history to strike out seven while facing no more than eight hitters. More >

UPON FURTHER REVIEW
Brett Gardner was credited with a hit-by-pitch in the first inning after a video review showed that a Bauer cutter clipped the leadoff batter's left shoe. The review took one minute and 19 seconds.

The Yankees also successfully challenged a tag play at second base in the sixth inning, completing a double play as Carlos Santana was ruled out on a steal attempt.

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