Reyes hits 3-run homer, leads Indians to win vs. Royals

Cheslor Cuthbert of the Royals reacts after hitting a double during the sixth inning of Saturday night's game against the Indians in Cleveland.
Cheslor Cuthbert of the Royals reacts after hitting a double during the sixth inning of Saturday night's game against the Indians in Cleveland.

CLEVELAND - Franmil Reyes had his biggest hit with the Cleveland Indians.

Yet Reyes and his teammates weren't in the mood to celebrate Saturday's victory against Kansas City because it might have come with a significant loss.

Reyes hit a three-run homer that helped Cleveland to a 4-2 victory against the Royals in a game in which Indians third baseman Jose Ramirez left early with a right wrist injury.

Ramirez, a two-time All-Star, exited in the first inning after fouling off a pitch and underwent an MRI to determine the severity of his condition. The Indians initially termed it "discomfort" and will update his status today.

"We're really sad because Jose is a happy guy and you guys know that we definitely need him," said Reyes, who hit 27 of his 30 homers with San Diego before being acquired in a July 31 trade.

"We need his defense, we need his offense, and he's a great guy. It seemed like he was in a lot of pain. We don't know what's going to happen, but I hope everything is good."

Cleveland manager Terry Francona said Ramirez has been dealing with a sore wrist, but the injury occurred in a different area of the joint. The 26-year-old was not wearing a protective brace in the clubhouse and did not speak with the media.

"We took him over to get imaged and we want everybody to see (the results), just to make sure that we get the proper read on it," Francona said. "We don't know a ton yet."

Ramirez is batting .254 with 20 homers and 75 RBI in 126 games. Utilityman Mike Freeman replaced him and had two hits and an RBI, while infielder Yu Chang was pulled from the lineup at Triple-A Columbus in preparation for a call-up.

"To be honest, I was a little panicked when it happened," Freeman said. "You certainly never want to see a guy like Jose get hurt under any circumstances."

With the win, the Indians moved ahead of Tampa Bay into one of the two AL wild-card spots.

Mike Clevinger (9-2) struck out eight and allowed one run in 5 innings, improving to 4-0 at home this year. The right-hander is 9-0 with a 1.93 ERA in 14 career outings against the Royals.

Brad Hand worked a scoreless ninth for his 31st save. It was his second save in as many nights after three straight blown saves.

Royals right-hander Glenn Sparkman (3-9) gave up four runs in 4 innings, extending his winless streak to seven starts. Kansas City is a season-worst 40 games under .500.

Royals third baseman Cheslor Cuthbert doubled in the sixth to end a 0-for-40 slump that dropped his average from .293 to .253. His previous hit was a two-run homer Aug. 8 at Detroit.

"It was good to see him get a hit and get that behind him," Royals manager Ned Yost said.

Cuthbert walked in the fourth and scored Kansas City's first run on a Meibrys Viloria double.

Notes: Royals LHP Danny Duffy (left hamstring strain) will make one rehab start today for Double-A Northwest Arkansas before rejoining Kansas City's rotation. "It's just to get his feet back under him in a competitive situation," Yost said. Royals LHP Eric Skoglund will makes his first appearance in the majors since Sept. 30, 2018 this afternoon. He went 2-4 with a 6.14 ERA in 11 starts for Triple-A Omaha. Indians RHP Shane Bieber (12-6, 3.26 ERA) has lost consecutive starts for the first time this season. He is 3-0 in four career starts against the Royals.