Guardians beat Angels 4-2 for 5th straight win
Cleveland's fifth win in a row moved it to 66-66 and into the third AL Wild Card spot, with Austin Hedges and Parker Messick doing the damage in a 4-2 win over the Angels.
Hedges' homer backs Messick's six innings
Angels4-2Cleveland beat the Los Angeles Angels 4-2 on August 24 for its fifth straight win. Austin Hedges went 1-for-4 with a home run and 2 RBI, and Parker Messick worked six innings, allowing three hits and one earned run with a walk and four strikeouts.
Colin Holderman closed it out of the bullpen, striking out three in a hitless, walk-free inning of relief.
Guardians hold the third wild card spot
| AL Wild Card | W | L | Pct | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Yankees | 74 | 56 | .569 | +9.0 |
 Red Sox | 72 | 59 | .550 | +6.5 |
 Guardians | 66 | 66 | .500 | — |
 Astros | 65 | 66 | .496 | 0.5 |
 Twins | 64 | 68 | .485 | 2.0 |
 Blue Jays | 64 | 68 | .485 | 2.0 |
 Orioles | 63 | 68 | .481 | 2.5 |
 Mariners | 63 | 69 | .477 | 3.0 |
The five-game run has Cleveland to 66-66 and holding the third and final AL Wild Card spot, with an elimination number of 29. Houston sits a half-game back at 65-66 with an elimination number of 31, while Minnesota and Toronto are both two back at 64-68, with elimination numbers of 27 and 17 respectively.
New York and Boston lead the wild card group at 74-56 and 72-59, nine and 6.5 games up on Cleveland.
Upcoming
Gavin Williams (12-7, 3.72 ERA) starts for Cleveland as the Guardians are in Los Angeles tonight. His last start came against San Francisco, when he went 5.2 innings with 11 strikeouts and two earned runs on 96 pitches in a win. The Angels counter with Walbert Ureña (8-9, 2.80 ERA), who lost his last outing against Houston after 5.0 innings, three earned runs and seven strikeouts.
Cleveland is the favorite tonight, and the total points to a low-scoring game — a read that lines up with Ureña's ERA and Williams' strikeout stuff, even with the Angels working to slow down a club that's won five straight.