CLEVELAND — The Guardians escaped Minnesota with a split and the division lead intact, and they'll now turn their attention to the Chicago Cubs for a short homestand.
Ben Lively will take the mound Monday night opposite Shota Imanaga for the Cubs. Guardians manager Stephen Vogt revealed before Monday's game that Matthew Boyd will make his Guardians debut Tuesday night.
Check back here for live score updates, analysis and highlights throughout Monday night's game.
Emmanuel Clase earned his league-leading 36th save in the ninth inning, and the Guardians just barely survived the Cubs' comeback attempt with a 9-8 win Monday night at Progressive Field.
The Guardians have now won three consecutive games.
Just as the Guardians lost the lead, they're reclaimed it in the eighth inning.
Jose Ramirez opened with a double, advanced to third on a single from pinch-hitter Will Brennan and then scored on Josh Naylor's single to left field, giving Cleveland a 9-8 lead.
The Guardians led 8-3 in the sixth inning. The Cubs have already tied it, and Chicago has the go-ahead run 90 feet away.
The Guardians turned to Nick Sandlin to try to stop the bleeding, but the Cubs' onslaught has continued.
A double by Patrick Wisdom put two runners in scoring position, and Seiya Sezuki hit a fly ball to center field deep enough to score a run and tie it 8-8 in the eighth inning.
Sandlin later struck out Parades to end the inning, but the damage had been done.
Scott Barlow and the Guardians' bullpen couldn't' escape the seventh inning. With two outs, the Cubs rallied to bring home four runs, cutting the Guardians' lead to 8-7.
Nico Hoerner singled home a run and Dansby Swanson eventually cleared the bases with a three-run triple, all with two outs in the inning.
Two of the runs were credited to Tim Herrin, and the other two to Barlow.
This wasn't the best timing for a short outing from Ben Lively (3 2/3 innings) or a rough night for the Guardians bullpen after playing four games in three days in Minnesota.
It's the Jhonkensy Noel game.
Noel just blasted his second home run of the night, this one a solo shot to the bleacher seats in left field.
Noel now has a diving catch in right field, two home runs and four RBIs tonight.
Austin Hedges singled and Steven Kwan followed with a no-doubt, two-run home run to right field, and the Guardians now lead 6-3. That was Kwan's 13th home run of the season in what has been a power surge for him and others in the Cleveland lineup .
After a quiet start, the Guardians have jumped all over Imanaga the last couple innings.
David Fry later added an RBI double to make it 7-3.
Jhonkensy Noel is doing it all for the Guardians tonight.
After making a full-out diving catch to save at least one run earlier in the game, Noel just launched a three-run home run to the Home Run Porch to give Cleveland their first lead of the night, 4-3, in the fourth inning.
That was Noel's seventh home run, and his OPS is now .845. The Guardians recently discussed his next-level power and what it adds to their lineup.
The Guardians are on the board.
In the fourth, with two runners on, Josh Naylor lined a ball into right field to cut the Cubs' lead to 3-1.
Big Christmas made a big play in right field.
With Pedro Avila on the mound and two runners on base, Jhonkensy Noel made a diving catch in which he lost his hat to surely save a run for the Guardians, who still trail 3-0.
Pete Crowe-Armstrong added a solo home run off of Ben Lively, extending the Cubs' lead to 3-0 in the fourth inning.
Though, it's not his birthday.
Miguel Amaya secured the game's first hit with a weak tapper down the third-base line that just barely stayed fair, and he was followed by Ian Happ, who hit the opposite of a weak tapper — a 429-foot home run that gives the Cubs a 2-0 lead in the third inning.
Today is also Happ's 30th birthday.
Both Ben Lively and Shota Imanaga are through the first two innings without a hit allowed.
Lively was helped out by Andres Gimenez, who made a sliding stop to rob Cody Bellinger of a hit.
Below is some pregame information
Cade Smith among the league's top relievers as a rookie in 2024
Cade Smith has been a massive factor in the Guardians building the league's top bullpen this season .
Along those lines, the Guardians figuring out their starting rotation is their No. 1 priority in an effort to not overwork that bullpen.
Guardians name CC Sabathia to team Hall-of-Fame
CC Sabathia is now in the Guardians' Hall-of-Fame, and he offered a two-part message to Cleveland fans .
Jose Ramirez passes Albert Belle for second place on Guardians all-time home run ranks
Jose Ramirez made history this week by taking sole possession of second place on Cleveland's franchise home run list — and he passed some serious names in Cleveland baseball history along the way .
Grading the Guardians' trades at the 2024 deadline
Here's a breakdown and some grades on the Guardians' deadline moves .
Alex Cobb traded to Cleveland Guardians
The Guardians addressed their pitching depth issues by dealing for right-hander Alex Cobb from the San Francisco Giants .
Guardians clubhouse reacts to Lane Thomas trade
The Guardians were thrilled (and in a way, relieved) to see Lane Thomas added to the roster .
Jackson grad Dillon Dingler makes MLB debut against Guardians
Jackson High School graduate Dillon Dingler made his major league debut Monday, and he got his big moment in the seventh inning .
Guardians No. 1 overall draft pick Travis Bazzana meets Jose Ramirez, wants to grow the game in Australia
It all finally sank in for Travis Bazzana , the top overall draft pick in the draft, when he stepped onto the field at Progressive Field and met Jose Ramirez and others.
Cleveland Guardians schedule
Major League Baseball released the 2025 schedules .
2024 National Sports Card Convention comes to Cleveland
The National Sports Card Convention was in Cleveland recently. We broke down how we'd spend $100 , ranked the most mind-blowing items we could find and listed the top collectibles for under $50 .
The game will be televised on Bally Sports. It'll be broadcast on the radio by WTAM (1100-AM) and WMMS (100.7-FM).
The Guardians have a quick three-game homestand against the Cubs before going on the road for a six-game road trip against the Milwaukee Brewers and New York Yankees.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cleveland Guardians vs. Chicago Cubs recap; Guards survive wild rally by Cubs
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