LUKE MAILE

A sturdy pair of goggles was mandatory attire Sunday in Cleveland's clubhouse, where impromptu showers of Champagne and beer broke out inside a thick haze of cigar smoke. The Guardians, baseball's youngest team, finished an unexpected run to the top of the AL Central. Rookie Steven Kwan hit a grand slam and drove in a season-high five runs as the Guardians clinched a division championship no one thought possible six months ago with a 10-4 win over the Texas Rangers.

The Cleveland Guardians clinched their first AL Central title since 2018 when the second-place Chicago White Sox lost to the Detroit Tigers 4-1.

Angels star Mike Trout’s streak of consecutive games hitting a home run ended at seven, one shy of the major league record, and the AL Central-leading Cleveland Guardians beat Los Angeles 3-1.

Some Yankees fans in the right-field bleachers pelted Cleveland outfielders with bottles, cans and debris in a chaotic scene moments after Isiah Kiner-Falefa and pinch-hitter Gleyber Torres got RBI hits with two outs in the ninth inning to lift New York to a 5-4 win.

José Ramírez hit a grand slam and drove in six runs, remarkable rookie Steven Kwan reached base three more times and the Cleveland Guardians spoiled Cincinnati’s home opener by beating the Reds 10-5.

Bobby Witt Jr. capped his highly anticipated big league debut with his first hit, a go-ahead double with two outs in the eighth inning, sending the Kansas City Royals to a 3-1 victory over the rechristened Cleveland Guardians.

After two difficult years, Terry Francona finally feels like himself.

Daniel Vogelbach delivered a pinch-hit grand slam off Alex Reyes to cap a five-run rally in the ninth inning that gave the Milwaukee Brewers a 6-5 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals.

Adrian Houser pitched his first pro shutout, throwing a crisp three-hitter that led the Milwaukee Brewers over the St. Louis Cardinals 4-0.

Jace Peterson hit a go-ahead single in the seventh, Lorenzo Cain homered for a second straight game and the Milwaukee Brewers knocked the San Francisco Giants out of the top spot in the National League for the first time in more than three months.

Members of the Cleveland Indians line up for the national anthem before an exhibition baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates in Pittsburgh, Saturday, July 18, 2020. Musgrove struck out five against one hit and one walk in his final tune-up before things start to count. HERE AND THEREChristian Arroyo hit a two-run double in the eighth to spark Cleveland's rally from a 3-0 deficit. ... Zach Plesac allowed two runs on six hits with no walks and six strikeouts in five innings for the Indians. ... Guillermo Heredia, who will start in right field for the Pirates while starter Gregory Polanco recovers from the novel coronavirus, drove in two runs for Pittsburgh.