Cleveland Guardians vs. Pittsburgh Pirates; Guards win, Cobb takes perfect game into 7th

CLEVELAND — The reinforcements have arrived.

Roster expanded Sunday, allowing teams to carry 28 players, up from 26. The Guardians recalled first baseman Kyle Manzardo to provide some depth for the lineup and activated Alex Cobb (fingernail) from the injured list to start Sunday's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The Guardians, at 77-59, open Sunday with a 2.5-game lead in the American League Central over the Royals (and 3.5 games over the Twins).

Check back here for live score updates, highlights and analysis from Sunday afternoon's game.

Guardians beat the Pirates 6-1

The Guardians have beaten the Pirates 6-1. Tim Herrin pitched the ninth inning. The Guardians now begin a road trip.

Pirates reliever, Jackson High School grad Kyle Nicolas enters game against Guardians

Jackson High School graduate Kyle Nicolas, who won baseball and basketball state titles with the Polar Bears, entered the game for the Pirates at Progressive Field.

Nicolas retired Jhonkensy Noel on a lineout, walked Kyle Manzardo, allowed an RBI single to Lane Thomas and then ended the inning with a Brayan Rocchio lineout.

The Guardians now lead the Pirates 6-1.

Jose Ramirez hits solo home run, moves into 10th all-time on Cleveland's hits rankings

Jose Ramirez lined a solo home run down the left-field line to put the Guardians up 5-1 in the seventh, and that gives him sole possession of 10th place on the franchise's all-time hits list.

Guardians, Pirates update: Pittsburgh cuts into Cleveland lead in the 7th

With runners on the corners and Cade Smith on the mound, Austin Hedges tried to throw out Oneil Cruz as he tried to steal second base. The throw got away, Isiah Kiner-Falefa easily scored from third. It's 4-1 Guardians.

Alex Cobb loses perfect game, no-hitter bid in 7th inning

The perfect game and no-hitter bids are no more.

In the seventh inning, Isiah Kiner-Falefa lined a ball back to the mound, hitting Cobb. Cobb went down, and the ball rolled away from the mound, giving Kiner-Falefa a single. Cobb was checked out by trainers but remained in the game. In a way, losing a perfect game in such a fashion hurts twice.

Cobb then also gave up a single to Bryan Reynolds, and the Guardians are turning to the bullpen.

It was the longest no-hit bid by a Cleveland pitcher since Triston McKenzie on Aug. 15, 2021, in Detroit.

Kyle Manzardo hits second career home run

When Kyle Manzardo woke up this morning, he had never hit a home run in the major leagues. Now he has two.

Manzardo took Keller deep for the second time today, again to right-center field, for his second home run of the game. The Guardians are now up 4-0.

Alex Cobb has perfect game through six innings

Cobb has cruised through the Pirates' lineup twice now, sitting down 18 consecutive hitters today without allowing a baserunner. He's nine outs away from a perfect game. He has six strikeouts and has thrown 75 pitches. Cobb is returning from the injured list today, so it's unclear just how far he can go from a pitch-count perspective.

When was Cleveland's last perfect game or no-hitter?

The franchise's last no-hitter — and perfect game — was thrown by Len Barker on May 15, 1981, in a 3-0 win over the Toronto Blue Jays.

Alex Cobb perfect through five innings; no-hitter bid alive

Alex Cobb is more than halfway to a perfect game, sitting down the Pirates' first 15 hitters in order. He's also been efficient, throwing only 67 pitches to this point.

Kyle Manzardo hits first career home run

Kyle Manzardo was added to the expanded roster before Sunday's game, and he now has his first career home run, a slot shot in the fourth inning to right-center field that gives the Guardians a 3-0 lead.

Alex Cobb perfect through four innings against Pirates; No-hitter bid in play

Alex Cobb has been perfect through the first four innings, setting the first 12 hitters he's faced down in order, including three via strikeout.

Jhonkensy Noel RBI double extends Guardians lead

Jhonkensy Noel continues to hit baseballs really hard, to put it in the simplest of terms.

Noel drilled a ball down the left-field line that went for an RBI double, scoring Jose Ramirez from second base and giving the Guardians an early 2-0 lead.

Guardians, Pirates score: Andres Gimenez hits first-inning home run

It's been a bit of a slower offensive season for Andres Gimenez, who even in a slump provides quite a bit of value thanks to his elite defense at second base, but he drilled a solo home run off Mitch Keller in the first inning that has the Guardians up 1-0.

That's Gimenez's seventh home run of the season.

Below is some pregame information.

Jose Ramirez has 30/30 season in 2024

Jose Ramirez became the first Cleveland hitter in franchise history with multiple 30/30 seasons.

Watch: Machine Gun Kelly throws out first pitch at Guardians-Cubs game

MGK tossed the ceremonial first pitch, but he did so in an interesting manner that was anything but traditional.

Jhonkensy Noel's renewed approach on putting the ball in play has led to breakout 2024 season

Jhonkensy knows he has the power. It took a new focus on contact and mobility to lead to his great rookie season thus far.

Guardians name CC Sabathia to team Hall-of-Fame

CC Sabathia is now in the Guardians' Hall-of-Fame, and he offered a two-part message to Cleveland fans.

Guardians No. 1 overall draft pick Travis Bazzana meets Jose Ramirez, wants to grow the game in Australia

It all finally sank in for Travis Bazzana, the top overall draft pick in the draft, when he stepped onto the field at Progressive Field and met Jose Ramirez and others.

Cleveland Guardians 2025 schedule

Major League Baseball released the 2025 schedules.

2024 National Sports Card Convention comes to Cleveland

The National Sports Card Convention was in Cleveland recently. We broke down how we'd spend $100, ranked the most mind-blowing items we could find and listed the top collectibles for under $50.

How can I watch, listen or stream the Cleveland Guardians game today?

Today's game will be televised on Bally Sports and MLB Network (out-of-network). It'll be broadcast on the radio by WTAM (1100-AM) and WMMS (100.7-FM).

Guardians schedule

After facing the Pirates at home, the Guardians will go on the road for a nine-game road trip in Kansas City, Los Angeles to face the Dodgers and Chicago to play the White Sox.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cleveland Guardians score today vs. Pittsburgh Pirates