California Dreaming: Daniel Johnson and Bradley Zimmer lead Cleveland Indians to 4-2 win over As

OAKLAND – Daniel Johnson and Bradley Zimmer celebrated an unforgettable homecoming this weekend at Oakland Coliseum.

The California natives produced an unexpected offense Sunday in front of family and friends to help the Indians beat the A’s, 4-2, to win two of three games this weekend. It was the Indians’ first victory against Oakland since 2017 and the first at the Coliseum since 2014.

Johnson, who used to ride BART from his hometown of Vallejo, Calif. To watch A’s game as a child, beat 10-game winner Chris Bassitt with two strikeouts in the seventh to break a tie 2-2. It was his first major league tour of his career. It was Johnson’s second hit of the game and the third in the series. Johnson started his day with a great diving grip just to finish second and put down a possible rally.

Zimmer is from La Jolla, California. The # 1 Indian pick in 2014 played his varsity baseball at the University of San Francisco, about a 30-minute BART ride from the Coliseum. In a surprise move on Sunday morning, manager Terry Francona moved Zimmer from the bottom of the roster to first place. He did it because he wanted to give utility man Ernie Clement at the start at second base and a day off to batter and second base Cesar Hernandez.

Clément’s last departure dates back to July 7 against the Rays.

Zimmer said the move surprised him.

“I wasn’t expecting it,” Zimmer said. “DeMarlo (Hale, bench coach) said you were good?” I said yes. Then he said to me: ‘Are you good to be this high?’ And I was like ‘What do you mean?’ And then he pointed to the composition and it was like ‘Let’s go, man!’ “

The move paid big dividends as Zimmer went 3-for-5 with a home run and three RBIs. It was Zimmer’s first three-hit game since April 24, 2018 and his first three-RBI game since July 25, 2017. Yes, it’s been a while.

“DeMarlo and I were talking Saturday night and again this morning,” Francona said. “You don’t know how the guys are going to get hits, but I thought it would be a good thing for Zim. We’ve already done it maybe once, a few times.

“I’ll tell you what, it’s a great way to start a game. Zim and Daniel Johnson, it was basically our attack. Both swung the bat very well.

Zimmer gave the Indians a 1-0 lead, sending the opening pitch of the game over the fence in the middle. It was his second home run of the season, with both coming in this series. The Indians have five starting homers this season – four by Hernandez and one by Zimmer.

While the movement with Zimmer was working, Clément made a bad throw at first base in the second set for a mistake. This allowed Jed Lowrie to score from second goal and tie the score at 1-1.

Zimmer, however, continued to push the offense. Johnson scored a single with a fifth out. Clement, looking for a hit, was sent off early but moved Johnson to second place. Zimmer, down in the 1-2 count, chose center fielder to score Johnson for a 2-1 lead.

It was Zimmer’s fourth hit and the third RBI in the series.

“I just feel comfortable and feel like I’m in a natural setup like I’ve always had,” Zimmers said of his position. “The position I was in was that allowed me to be successful at first, I’m starting to come back to it. I relax and get comfortable in the box again.”

Zach Plesac, for his second tenure since leaving the injured list, could not keep the lead. He had two strikeouts in the fifth after Ramon Laureano was hit in the third when he tried to stretch a starting double into a triple. But Plesac threw a 2-2 change to No.9 batter Seth Brown, who pushed him over the wall just for his 11th homerun to tie the game.

It was the 12th homerun that Plesac has allowed this season in 67 2/3 innings. In last year’s 60-game sprint, he allowed a 55 1/3 inning homerun. But that was about the only bad pitch Plesac (5-3, 4.19) made as he held down the A’s with two runs in six innings. This is his longest start since playing seven innings on May 12 against the Angels. It was also Plesac’s last victory.

“I thought he was really good,” Francona said. “He’s gotten pretty deep in the game. I hope every time he throws we can strengthen him a little bit more because he’s a strong and fit kid. Hopefully that starts to give us a guy that we know we can play deeper into. ”

The Indians were fortunate enough to add insurance points in the eighth when they charged in goals, but failed to score. Amed Rosario played a single against Jake Diekman. Rosario stole second place, but Diekman struck out Jose Ramirez on catches for the second in the set. Franmil Reyes was intentionally stepped in, but Diekman lost Bobby Bradley on a 3-1 pitch to charge the goals.

Sergio Romo relieved and pulled Roberto Perez out on strikes.

Zimmer added insurance in ninth with an RBI single to score Oscar Mercado in second. Mercado managed a two-goal throw error by third baseman Matt Chapman. The error ended Chapman’s 52-game error-free streak.

Bassitt (10-3, 3.31) lost for the first time since April 6, ending a 10-game winning streak. The streak covered 17 starts and was the fourth longest in Oakland history.

The Indians box ended the game with nine straight outs thanks to Nick Wittgren, Phil Maton and Bryan Shaw. Pitcher for the third day in a row, Shaw won his second save in 2021.

Following: The Indians open a three-game series against the Astros on Monday night at Minute Maid Park. JC Mejia (1-4, 7.42) will face Houston right-hander Zack Greinke (4-1, 3.49) at 8:10 pm Bally Sports Great Lake, WTAM, WMMS and Indian Radio Network will broadcast the game.

New Indian masks for sale: Here’s where you can purchase Cleveland Indian-themed face covers for coronavirus protection, including a single mask ($ 14.99) and a 3-pack ($ 24.99). All MLB profits are donated to charity.

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