The Indians were a very frustrated baseball team. And today they were determined to not allow the Royals to steal another win.

Behind an absolutely SIZZLING Carlos Santana (3-3, with a pair of homers and 4 RBI) and Danny Salazar (7 INN/7 H/3 ER/7 SO), the Tribe cruised to a much-needed victory. Salazar was particularly effective with all of his pitches; mixing in his off-speed stuff with this electric fastball that touched 98 on the final pitch of his outing. After seeing Zach McAllister live on his fastball alone on Saturday, there was no doubt that Danny got the lesson; as most of the Royals hits were perfectly placed in spots that found grass.

After the Royals raced out to 2-0 lead, it was easy to expect the worst. I was in the fetal position. I was cursing the very existence of the Twins’ Eduardo Nunez, who’s infamous grab seemed to be the turning point down on this all-important road trip. But the Indians were undeterred.

Yan Gomes got the ball rolling against Kansas City’s Bruce Chen (5 INN/8 H/6 ER/1 SO/2 BB) in the third inning, and it would be the catalyst to four straight innings of at least one run. The big blow came when Carlos Santana would squeak a two-run homer past the right-field pole that capped off a four-run fifth inning that also featured RBI hits from Asdrubal Cabrera and Michael Brantley. The Tribe would open up a 5-2 lead.

A pair of struggling hitters also got in on the act as Ryan Raburn would spike a ball over the centerfield wall in the sixth making it 6-2 and ending Chen’s day. It is Raburn’s third on the year. And answering a Billy Butler RBI-double, Nick Swisher would snap an 0-for-Millenium (actually, 0-for-21) slump with his own RBI single in the seventh, making it 7-3.

The Tribe would put it to rest in the ninth when Santana socked his second two-run shot of the day, giving Carlos FIVE homers in the four-gamer, giving him 20 on the year. Gomes would follow immediately with his 14th on the season, closing out the scoring.

While the trip didn’t end anywhere as near as well as it started, the Tribe can get a chance to breathe on a better note as they head home for a meeting with Seattle.

A couple relevant footnotes:

The Blue Jays designated Esmil Rogers for assignment today. I think it’s safe to say the Jays would prefer a do-over on that one.

And remember the idiot who wrote this load of malarkey? That guy is a total buffoon and should be mocked and shunned and thrown out naked into the wild.

W: Danny Salazar (3-4); L: Bruce Chen (2-3)

1 Comment

  • Peter Bullock says:

    that was a rough road trip. I thought that the KC series was pivotal for
    their post season hopes. I felt one team would be a seller and the
    other could make a run. Unfortunately, I think the For Sale sign is in
    Cleveland.

    The defense in unbelievably bad. The offense is anemic
    and our starting pitching is now a weakness. I saw Masterson’s first
    rehab in Columbus. Light’s out the first inning. 10 straight balls to
    start the second inning. 93mph fast ball in the first, barely broke 90
    after as he tried to find the plate. His second rehab was much the same.
    I’m not counting on him to save the rotation. How many millions did he
    cost himself by turning down the Tribe’s offer?