Indians top Twins in second straight walk-off win 5-4; three takeaways

2. Allen stays ready

On Thursday morning, Greg Allen was officially recalled from Class Triple-A Columbus in place of Leonys Martin who was placed on the 10-day DL.

Despite the fact that Allen has been up and down with Cleveland this year (this is his fifth stint with the club), he proved once again that he has the ability to stay ready and come up with big plays at crucial moments in the game.

In the ninth inning, Allen got on base with a lead-off single and then stole second with Lindor batting. As the shortstop grounded out to Minnesota first baseman Miguel Sano, Allen made his way to third before being brought home by Brantley’s single. Without the stolen base, Allen may not have even been in scoring position for Brantley’s at-bat.

“That’s a big base to steal right there at that time,” Brantley said. “He’s a great kid with a great head on his shoulders. He understands that when he comes up here we expect him to do his best and he’s doing it day in and day out. He comes up here and gives it all his effort and he’s still learning and still asking the right questions and I think that’s what’s most important.”

Allen finished the game going 2-for-4 at the plate, along with scoring the winning run.

“I would hope that’s really good for his confidence,” Francona said. “He stepped right in and directly helped us win a game with his bat, with his legs, almost with his glove. That’s good, that was exciting.”

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