CLEVELAND _ There was a seemingly endless stream of runners left on base on Tuesday. And Brian Dozier was one of the reasons why.
Dozier flew out with two on in the fourth and struck out with a runner on third in the fifth. Cleveland grabbed a lead in the sixth inning, and a lead with that elite bullpen is about as insurmountable as anything in baseball.
But Dozier was given one more chance. And he atoned for earlier mistakes.
Bryan Shaw threw Dozier a 0-1 cut fastball with two on and one out in the eighth, and Dozier launched it into the seats in right field for a three-run homer to put the Twins ahead. Byron Buxton added an RBI single in the ninth, giving the Twins a 8-6 win over the Indians while reducing the magic number to clinch the second wild-card spot in the American League to one.
One, for their first postseason action since 2010.
Jason Castro singled with one out in the eighth and was replaced by pinch runner Niko Goodrum. Robbie Grossman singled, with Goodrum advancing to third. Zack Granite pinch ran for Grossman.
Dozier took a strike on the inner half of the plate for strike one, then punished the next pitch. The Twins dugout celebrated as Dozier threw his right fist into the air as he circled first base.
The Progressive Field crowd fell silent. The Indians were 29-2 over their previous 31 games. They were 40-2 when leading after seven innings. That was before Dozier struck the latest hit for the Twins wild card wishes.
Buxton stole a hit from Jason Kipnis in the bottom of the eighth with a diving catch before adding the RBI single.
The Indians are rampaging through Major League Baseball and will win the season series against the Twins this year _ they lead 10-7 with two games to play. But the Twins have been far from a pushover.
And the two playoff-minded teams traded blows once again on Tuesday, like they have most of the season.
The Twins twice jumped out to leads on a night in which starter Bartolo Colon left after one inning because of an illness. And the Indians answered both times.
The Twins took a 2-0 lead in the first when Dozier led off with a double and eventually scored on a ground out, then Rosario crushed a Josh Tomlin pitch into the seats in right. On cue, the Indians tied the game in the bottom off the inning on a two-run single by Edwin Encarnacion.
Rosario's two-run double in the third put the Twins ahead 4-2, but RBI singles by Encarnacion and Jay Bruce in the bottom of the inning re-tied the game.
The Twins will lament their inefficiencies in run scoring situations. They did get the leadoff runner on in the first and third innings, and both ended up scoring. But the Twins were 1 for 14 with runners in scoring position, unacceptable for a postseason team.
Dozier changed the Twins fortunes with one mighty swing. It was his 33rd home run of the season. It was also his 100th run scored. He's scored at least 100 runs in four consecutive seasons, the only player in the majors to do so during that time.
And Colon's illness led to a conga line of relievers to the mound. The Twins needed 10 pitchers to get through nine innings, setting a club record.
