CLEVELAND, Ohio — A rally has to start somewhere. Austin Hedges figured Wednesday’s comeback might as well start with him. Hedges laid down a perfect bunt along the third base line against New York starter Jose Quintana after Quintana had dominated the Guardians, holding them scoreless through 5 1/3 innings.
The bunt sparked Cleveland’s offense, and when all was said and done, Hedges and his teammates emerged with a 6-3 victory and a series sweep at Progressive Field, their first against the Mets. The Guardians moved to 33-17 and remained atop the American League Central Division, going a perfect 6-0 on their homestand against New York and Minnesota. Rookie outfielder Johnathan Rodriguez delivered an RBI single in the seventh off Mets reliever Reed Garrett (5-1) for his first big league hit.
The single to right scored David Fry with the go-ahead run, and the Guardians added a pair of runs in the eighth before handing things over to their bullpen. Cleveland relievers locked things down behind Hunter Gaddis and Sam Hentges with closer Emmanuel Clase unavailable after pitching three straight days. Gaddis (3-1) picked up the win with three strikeouts in 1 1/3 innings and Hentges struck out Jeff McNeil with the tying run in scoring position in the eighth before Cade Smith earned his first career save with a scoreless ninth.
Rodriguez, who was minutes away from boarding a flight to Omaha with Triple-A Columbus at the start of the week, instead capped the homestand in grand fa.
