MINNEAPOLIS — Pablo López grabbed the loose baseball and shoveled it to first baseman Kody Clemens in one motion, retiring Angel Martinez by a step. López briefly laid on the grass, face down and arms akimbo, as though dead.

Think of it as a metaphor for the Twins’ season.

López laughed as he got up, but the death-defying play did its damage. López left the game an inning later with tightness in his right forearm that the Twins said was a result of that dive. Forced to rely on their overburdened bullpen, the Twins eventually lost their third consecutive game, 6-2, to the Guardians at Target Field.

López gave up the first two of those runs in the first inning, when Cleveland catcher Bo Naylor looped a two-out line drive into right field, scoring Steven Kwan and Jose Ramirez. But López responded by allowing only a walk and a harmless two-out double over the rest of his outing.

Trouble is, his outing lasted only four innings, thanks to that diving play, which turned Angel Martínez’s hot grounder off López’s left heel into an out to lead off the third inning. Cody Laweryson and Kody Funderburk kept the Guardians scoreless until the eighth, but Cole Sands could not do the same.

With two out and nobody on, Ramirez smacked a Sands fastball the opposite way into the right-field corner for a double. It was also Ramirez’s 100th career hit at Target Field, which trails only Miguel Cabrera (115) and Salvador Perez (113) for hits by a visiting player.

The Twins intentionally walked Kyle Manzardo, a strategy that backfired when both runners stole bases and Naylor pulled a hard grounder into right field for his second two-run single of the game.

An inning later, back-to-back doubles by Kwan and Martínez off Michael Tonkin brought home two more runs, putting away their seventh victory over the Twins in 10 games this season. The Guardians’ eighth consecutive victory put them within 2 1/2 games of the Tigers for the AL Central lead with nine days remaining in the regular season, after Detroit lost its fourth game in a row earlier in the night.

The Twins, meanwhile, managed only six hits, five of them singles, and went 1 for 6 with runners in scoring position. They did put together enough offense to tie the score with a pair of runs in the sixth, but the Guardians, who have trimmed eight games this month off the Tigers’ lead for the AL Central title, didn’t allow a baserunner in the final three innings.

Austin Martin led off the Twins’ meager rally with a dribbler to the left side, and stood on second base after Guardians starter Parker Messick, now 4-0, picked it up, whirled and bounced a throw past Manzardo at first base. Luke Keaschall then doubled to right, though Martin, who tagged up thinking right fielder C.J. Kayfus would catch it, only reached third base.

But Messnick threw a wild pitch, allowing Martin to score. Matt Festa, no relation to the Twins’ David Festa, relieved Messnick and was greeted by Royce Lewis’ line drive to left field, a tying single. That, however was the Twins’ final hit of the night.

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