Tribe drops finale vs. Twins, slide continues

This past Monday, the Indians were in a more comfortable position, sharing the lead in the American League Central with the White Sox and tied for the No. 2 seed in the postseason standings. Just six days later, the Tribe is now tied with the Yankees for the final two

This past Monday, the Indians were in a more comfortable position, sharing the lead in the American League Central with the White Sox and tied for the No. 2 seed in the postseason standings. Just six days later, the Tribe is now tied with the Yankees for the final two American League Wild Card spots (the Nos. 7 and 8 seeds) after going 0-6 in that span.

“Every team struggles,” Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor said on Friday. “It’s a question of, are you gonna struggle five games, 10 games, 15 games or 100 games? … We don’t have that many games to be struggling.”

Cleveland knew where it stood, and a three-game set against Minnesota wasn’t the best place to try to work through offensive woes. Although the Indians plated at least four runs in back-to-back games after being held to two over its previous three contests, they fell to the Twins, 7-5, on Sunday at Target Field. The Tribe’s six-game losing streak is its longest since July 2015.