CLEVELAND -- Having entered this series trailing by four games in the American League Central with five to play this weekend against the division-leading Guardians, the task was simple for the Twins: Win, however possible, to keep the playoffs within reach.

Instead, as has often been the case, Cleveland was the team that found a way late in Friday’s game.

The late-inning bullpen struggles against the Guardians have come in all manner of shapes and sizes this season for the Twins, and Friday’s 4-3 loss in the series opener at Progressive Field saw another of those painful Cleveland comebacks, this one completed by a two-base wild pitch that led to the go-ahead run scoring against Twins bullpen ace Jhoan Duran in the eighth inning.

The Guardians turned a three-run deficit into a one-run lead against a trio of the Twins’ best relievers -- Caleb Thielbar, Griffin Jax and Duran -- to win their sixth straight head-to-head matchup over the Twins. Of Minnesota’s 10 losses to Cleveland this season, Friday night marked the seventh in which the bullpen allowed the winning run to score in the seventh inning or later.

“But when you feel like you can make the plays and you can make a few better pitches and you’re right where you need to be and we don’t do it, it is frustrating,” manager Rocco Baldelli said.

The result secured the head-to-head tiebreaker between the teams in favor of the Guardians, who claimed their 10th victory over the Twins among 19 total matchups. There will be no tiebreaking Game 163s this year -- though the possibility that the Twins can force a tie became even more remote with Friday’s loss, which pushed Minnesota back to a five-game deficit behind Cleveland in the AL Central with four head-to-head matchups remaining.

“I still feel good [about the season],” Duran said through interpreter Elvis Martinez. “It’s not a lot of them, but we still have some games. We just have to go out there and execute and play good baseball the rest of the season. Today wasn’t the last game of the season.”

As much as the Twins can still project outward optimism, the numbers speak for themselves. If the Twins can win the remaining four games in this series -- including a doubleheader on Saturday in which Minnesota will have to stretch a heavily used bullpen -- they can leave Cleveland with a one-game deficit. Going 3-1 in the remaining games would put them three games back after this series; going 2-2 would leave them with this same five-game deficit, with no head-to-head matchups remaining.

With all that in mind, the Twins’ margin for error entering this series was slim to none -- but still, error opened the door for the Guardians’ surge.

After five shutout innings of one-hit ball from Bailey Ober in a return from a groin injury that marked his first MLB appearance since June 1, the Twins had no choice but to turn the 3-0 lead over to their bullpen due to the right-hander’s buildup from injury. After a scoreless sixth from Michael Fulmer, the seventh opened with Thielbar throwing for a third day in a row and an errant throw from second baseman Nick Gordon, putting the leadoff runner on.

A single from Owen Miller followed, and an RBI knock by Myles Straw and a two-run, two-out single by Amed Rosario tied the game at 3 with a trio of unearned runs.

In the eighth, the Twins turned to Duran, who had allowed one run since the All-Star break -- and following consecutive singles from Josh Naylor and Oscar Gonzalez to open the frame, a 1-1 curveball to Andrés Giménez bounced off the dirt and high up into the air. Catcher Gary Sánchez spun in place, unable to find the ball -- and in the meantime, pinch-runner Ernie Clement scored from second base.

“We needed to really play an incredibly crisp, solid all-around game to get where we needed to be,” Baldelli said. “It wasn't crisp enough.”

Things won’t get easier. Entering Saturday’s doubleheader, four of the Twins’ five leverage relievers -- Fulmer, Duran, Jax and Thielbar -- will have pitched the last two days, with Thielbar having pitched in three straight. Gordon exited Friday’s game with a bruised left big toe after fouling a pitch off his foot in the eighth. Jorge Polanco was pulled early from a rehab game in Triple-A and is not expected to be an option for the Twins on Saturday.

Saturday will be a crucial day -- but, then again, every day is from here on out.