Indians vs. Royals Score: First Major Bullpen Fail Leads To 3-2 Royals Victory

Sean O’Sullivan was still in the game for Kansas City starting the seventh inning, and was greeted by a single from Jack Hannahan — the Indians’ fifth hit of the game. Louis Coleman came on for the Royals — making his major league debut — ending O’Sullivan’s night.

Adam Everett struck out swinging, failing in this at-bat to move the runner, and Grady Sizemore flew out on the first pitch for the second out of the inning, followed by Asdrubal Cabrera fouling out to left, ending the frame.

One fantastic debut inning for the Royals’ Coleman: eight pitches, three outs.

Wilson Betemit singled leading off the Kansas City seventh. Now to see if Josh Tomlin could do what Coleman had done in the top of the inning and work through the baserunner.

And bingo! Kila Ka’aihue grounded into a second-to-short-to-first double play, and quickly two were down. Matt Treanor popped out, and Tomlin had posted seven zeroes in a row. With a six-pitch inning and a pitch-count of only 83, the thought of a complete game started to flit around the mind of Manny Acta, no doubt, though we would see if Acta would play it “by the book” and go set-up man/closer in the next two innings, all other things being equal.

Coleman retired Shin-Soo Choo to start the eighth, but then Carlos Santana doubled to left and Travis Hafner singled to left-center. Unfortunately Santana was thrown out at the plate for the second out, with Hafner taking second.

Michael Brantley was walked intentionally, setting up a force at third or second, and Matt LaPorta flied out to right, ending the inning.

Tomlin came out for the bottom of the eighth, and retired Alcides Escobar on a grounder to short, but walked Chris Getz on five pitches.

That was all for Tomlin after 91 pitches, and Tony Sipp — who was roughed up for three runs in 2/3 of an inning last night — came on to face Melky Cabrera.

Getz stole second, getting into scoring position, but Sipp — after falling behind Cabrera 3-1 — got Cabrera on a fly ball to right for the second out. Getz kept running though, and stole third with Alex Gordon at the plate. Sipp walked Gordon on four pitches, putting runners at the corners for Billy Butler.

That was enough for Manny Acta, and Vinnie Pestano came on with the tying runs on base and the go-ahead run at the plate.

Pestano walked Butler and suddenly the bases were loaded for Jeff Francoeur — who homered last night in the ninth inning.

Francoeur singled to short for the first Kansas City run of the night, and the go-ahead runs were in scoring position before — finally — the Indians got out of the inning when Wilson Betemit grounded out to first.

Three pitchers…one hit…three walks…two stolen bases…only one run. It is safe to say that the Tribe, albeit being scored on, dodged a major bullet in the eighth.

Hannahan grounded out to start the Cleveland ninth against new reliever Aaron Crow; Adam Everett popped out; but then Grady Sizemore collected his third hit of the night, doubling to right. However, Asdrubal Cabrera finished an 0-for-4 night by grounding out, and the bottom of the ninth was next with Cleveland holding the narrowest of leads.

Chris Perez came on looking for save number seven on the season.

Ka’aihue led off with a double, immediately putting the tying run in scoring position against Perez, who had yet to surrender a run all year. Mike Aviles pinch-ran, and pinch-hitter Mitch Maier singled to center, putting runners at the corners (and putting a sickening feeling in the stomach of a chronicler).

Then Perez induced a grounder that turned into an out at the plate as Hannahan cut down Aviles for the first out, leaving runners at first and second.

But then Perez walked Getz, loading the bases. Suddenly, in the past two innings, the Indians had forgotten how to throw strikes, it seemed. That brought Melky Cabrera to the plate.

And of course….of COURSE…Cabrera singled to left, and Maier and Escobar scored.

Ballgame.

Josh Tomlin deserved better than this, but it is what it is. Aaron Crow gets the win for the Royals, moving to 2-0, while Chris Perez takes the loss, his first decision of the season. Perez’s 0.00 ERA is gone….one might say it walked away.

Perez’s ERA is now 2.25. Hard to say what his psyche might be after this one. In fact, the same might be said of Tony Sipp, who was lit up in a meaningless performance last night and then tonight could not throw a strike when needed to help get the Tribe through the eighth. And of course we are not forgetting the walk and infield hit off of Vinnie Pestano in that tortuous inning.

With the loss, Kansas City once again creeps within a game of the Indians, who drop to 13-6. Cleveland heads to Minnesota now for three, while the pesky Royals head to Texas.

This one is going to sting for a while. Not much offense and not much pitching besides from Josh Tomlin, who remains 3-0, with an ERA that drops to 2.33 after giving up just one run in 7 1/3 innings…a run that might well have not scored, had the “relief” after him been able to consistently find the strike zone.

Goodnight everyone.

Tribe Scores Two In The Fifth, Leads 2-0 After Six In Kansas City

The fourth inning began with Shin-Soo Choo grounding out, then Carlos Santana drew a free pass. Travis Hafner struck out for the second time tonight, and Michael Brantley grounded out as Sean O’Sullivan continued breezing right along.

Billy Butler singled leading off the second but was thrown out trying to stretch the hit to a double. With two down Wilson Betemit collected Kansas City’s third hit, but Josh Tomlin induced a grounder from Kila Ka’aihue to end the inning.

Matt LaPorta singled leading off inning number five for the Tribe’s third hit, and Jack Hannahan drew a four-pitch walk, putting two on with nobody out for the Indians’ first legitimate threat of the night. Adam Everett laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt, moving both runners into scoring position and bringing Grady Sizemore to the plate.

Sizemore came through with an RBI single to shallow center — Hannahan holding at second in case the ball were caught — and the Indians led 1-0. Asdrubal Cabrera followed with a walk, loading the bases, still with only one out.

Batting .208, Shin-Soo Choo came to the plate and delivered a line drive to left that ended up being a force play at third, retiring Sizmore but giving the Indians their second run of the inning. Carlos Santana popped up for the final out of the frame, but halfway home, Cleveland led 2-0.

Needing to shut the Royals down after his team scored, Josh Tomlin did just that, setting Kansas City down in order in the fifth.

Exactly what a good starter does when his team takes the lead — nice job by Tomlin.

In the Indians’ sixth, Hafner popped out, Brantley was called out on strikes, and LaPorta grounded out and quickly, the Tribe was back out on defense.

O’Sullivan had thrown 91 pitches to this point. Would he come out for the seventh? We would have to see.

Melky Cabrera popped out leading off the K.C. sixth, but Alex Gordon doubled to right. Tomlin then got Billy Butler to ground to third, Gordon having to hold at second, and Jeff Francoeur was retired on a fly ball to center, and Tomlin was through six innings on only 77 pitches.

Deadlocked At 0-0 After Three As Josh Tomlin Looks Good Again

The only Indian who did not get a hit last night — Grady Sizemore — rectified that by leading off tonight’s game with a single, but Sean O’Sullivan got Asdrubal Cabrera to fly out, got Shin-Soo Choo to strike out on a foul tip and retired Carlos Santana to foul out on a pop up, stranding Sizemore at first.

After Josh Tomlin retired the Royals in the first with the only runner coming on a two-out hit batsman, Travis Hafner struck out swinging to start the Cleveland second. Michael Brantley was retired on a fly ball to left, and Matt LaPorta grounded out on the first pitch he saw from O’Sullivan for a rapid half-inning for the Kansas City defense.

Adam Everett booted a grounder at second to allow Jeff Francoeur to reach leading off the second, but Tomlin got Wilson Betemit to fly out, the runner holding. Tomlin then fanned Kila Ka’aihue for the second out, and got Matt Treanor to ground to short, negating any damage from the error and keeping the game deadlocked at 0-0 going to the third.

Jack Hannahan struck out leading off the third — O’Sullivan’s third K — then Adam Everett singled softly to right, but Sizemore struck out swinging for out number two. Asdrubal Cabrera grounded out to second, and O’Sullivan had worked through three innings on 44 pitches.

Tomlin opened the bottom of the third with his third strikeout, getting Alcides Escobar swinging, then got Chris Getz to line out to center. Melky Cabrera followed with a triple to left for the Royals’ first hit, but Alex Gordon grounded out to end the inning.

Breathing Room: Indians Attempt To Move Three Games Up In The Central vs. The Royals

After a much-needed come from behind victory last night over the Kansas City Royals, in a game which allowed the Indians to stay atop the AL Central all by themselves, Josh Tomlin will try to pitch Cleveland to a three-game lead — and win this series against the Royals 3-1 — tonight at 8:10 against Kansas City’s Sean O’Sullivan.

Tomlin has started three games and won them all, beating Boston, Seattle and Baltimore in succession. In those three games, Tomlin has worked 19 2/3 innings and has surrendered only six earned runs -- for an ERA of 2.75 -- and has allowed only 12 hits and six walks, for an average of less than a base-runner per inning.

In his last start, against the Orioles, Tomlin went six frames, allowing six hits and two runs in an 8-3 victory last Saturday at Progressive Field. In that game, Tomlin struck out four, and did not issue a walk.

Against Kansas City in his career, Tomlin has made three starts, going 2-1 with a high ERA of 5.68, but — like Justin Masterson has shown so far in 2011 — that was then and this is now.

The Royals’ O’Sullivan (1-1, 5.00 ERA) was very effective in his last start, going five scoreless innings in what turned out to be a shutout-by-committee, 7-0 over the Seattle Mariners. In that start, O’Sullivan allowed five hits, walked two and K’d four.

In his career to date — spanning 34 appearances, including 25 starts — O’Sullivan has a high ERA of 5.61 in 144 1/3 innings.

Included in those numbers have been two starts against the Tribe, in which O’Sullivan has gone 1-1 with a 6.30 ERA, and has surrendered seven earned runs in 10 innings of work.

The Indians are off to Minnesota after this game to take on the struggling Twins. With a record of 13-5, Cleveland is tied with the Colorado Rockies for the best record in the major leagues, and the Tribe has the best mark in the American League, one game better than the Angels, who are 12-6.

Indians vs. Royals Score: Tribe Comes From Behind, Then Holds Off Kansas City 7-5

Leading 4-2 heading to the seventh, there was not much room to breathe easy, so the Indians hoped to add to their lead heading into the last three innings.

Michael Brantley, who had ignited the rally in the sixth inning with the Tribe’s first hit, led off the seventh with a walk off of Luke Hochevar, who was still in the game for the Royals. Matt LaPorta followed with another walk, setting the Indians up with men on first and second and nobody down.

That was all for Hochevar, who was relieved by Tim Collins — the loser on Monday night — with Jack Hannahan coming to the plate.

After falling behind in the count 1-2, Hannahan came through with a double to right, and suddenly the Indians, who had looked dead in the water two innings earlier, led 6-2, still with nobody down in the seventh.

Grady Sizemore followed with a walk, putting two on again for Asdrubal Cabrera, who did his job, laying down a sacrifice bunt to put two men in scoring position. Shin-Soo Choo failed to take advantage, through, grounding out to first for the second out, and Carlos Santana walked, loading the bases for Travis Hafner and with a chance to really put this game almost out of reach.

After driving in a run in the fifth with a double, Hafner was unable to come through this time, as Collins caught him looking at strike three, but the Indians enjoyed a nice four-run lead heading to the seventh-inning stretch.

Justin Masterson tired in the seventh, walking Chris Getz and Melky Cabrera, and that nice lead suddenly looked to be in jeopardy. Rafael Perez came on for the Tribe.

Perez got Alex Gordon to fly out to left-center for the first out, and then Vinnie Pestano was called on to face Billy Butler. Butler flied deep to right for the second out, with Getz moving to third, but then Jeff Francoeur walked, and the bases were loaded for Mike Aviles.

Pestano completed a brilliant inning for the Indians’ relievers, striking out Aviles looking, and the lead remained at four.

Masterson’s line for the night, after a 32-pitch, two-run first inning? Six innings, six hits, five walks but only two runs allowed with three strikeouts. That is called battling. Masterson’s ERA after his night’s work stands at 1.71.

Orlando Cabrera led off the eighth with a hit off of Kanekoa Texeira, and with two outs, Jack Hannahan became the first Indian with two hits on the night with a single, but Grady Sizemore flied out deep to center, ending the inning with no damage from Cleveland.

Joe Smith came on for the Tribe in the home eighth and blew the Royals away one-two-three, with the final two outs coming on swinging strikeouts. Oh, it is good to have Smith (the winning pitcher on Monday night) back.

Asdrubal Cabrera singled off of Texeira leading off the Tribe’s ninth, and moved to second on a wild pitch. Shin-Soo Choo grounded out, with Cabrera going to third. Carlos Santana then came through with a single to center, giving the Indians a 7-2 lead. Travis Hafner followed with a single, moving Santana to third, with Hafner taking second on an error by right-fielder Francoeur. Orlando Cabrera grounded out for out number two (failing to get the runner in from third never feels good, even with a healthy ninth-inning lead), and after Brantley was intentionally walked, loading the bases, LaPorta popped out to end the inning with just the one run scoring.

But the Indians, who had not had even one base-runner through five innings, ended up with eleven hits. The only Tribesman who did not get at least one hit was Grady Sizemore, who went 0-for-4. Hannahan, Hafner and Asdrubal Cabrera each collected two hits for The Good Guys.

All in all a nice job of waking up when it was needed for Cleveland’s offense.

Tony Sipp came on in the bottom of the ninth and immediately did the one thing you don’t want to do — walked the lead-off hitter, Chris Getz. Melky Cabrera followed with an RBI double — the first run allowed by Sipp this year — but Sipp got Alex Gordon to ground out, Cabrera moving to third. Billy Butler worked the count full before popping out to short for the second out, and then…

Jeff Francoeur, down to his last strike, homered to left, and suddenly it was a 7-5 game, making that run in the top of the inning look good (and also showing why, even with a five-run lead, it would have been handy to get that runner in from third with less than two outs).

Chris Perez came on in what was now a save situation, and — finally — the Royals were put away when Mike Aviles grounded out to first.

A nervous ninth, but the Indians prevailed and are now 13-5, and once again lead Kansas City by two games.

Justin Masterson gets the win, moving to 4-0 on the season, while the loss goes to Luke Hochevar (2-2). Chris Perez gets his sixth save, facing -- and retiring -- one batter.

The Tribe will try to make it three-of-four in this series and to increase their lead to three games tomorrow night when Josh Tomlin goes for his fourth win of the season.

Indians Score Four In The Sixth, Lead 4-2 Going To The Seventh

Justin Masterson has shown me something tonight, although — to be fair — he has impressed throughout the entire season.

After allowing two runs and laboring through a long home half of the first inning, Masterson has shut down Kansas City through six innings, keeping the Indians in the game.

You can’t ask much more of a starter than to give a team a chance when he has had to battle adversity.

And in the sixth inning the Indians took advantage of that chance.

Meanwhile the Indians’ first 15 hitters were retired by Luke Hochevar before Michael Brantley finally broke the spell with a single leading off the sixth inning. Hochevar then balked Brantley to second, and Matt LaPorta came through with an RBI double, cutting the Royals’ lead to 2-1.

After Jack Hannahan grounded out to second, advancing LaPorta to third, Grady Sizemore jumped ahead in the count, 3-0, but Hochevar induced a ground-out to second, and LaPorta had to hold at third, leaving it up to Asdrubal Cabrera to try to drive in the tying run with two outs.

However, Hochevar made that a moot point when his second balk of the inning scored LaPorta, and pulled the Indians into a tie in the most unconventional way.

Asdrubal then singled in the infield (which, all things being equal, would have scored the run anyhow), and then Shin-Soo Choo delivered a double to center field, scoring Cabrera, with Choo taking third on the throw to the plate, giving the Indians the lead for the first time since Monday in the tenth inning.

Carlos Santana followed with a walk, putting runners at the corners for Travis Hafner. With two strikes on him, Hafner doubled to left, scoring Choo, and the Indians had increased their lead to 4-2, still leaving runners at second and third with the ninth batter of the inning — Orlando Cabrera — coming to the plate.

Orlando Cabrera finally ended the inning by striking out, but the Indians had put up four runs — three of which scored with two outs.

How many times has a pitcher had a perfect game going, or at least a no-no, and as soon as he has allowed a hit, the floodgates have opened? The sixth inning was yet another example of that.

Now could the Tribe slam the door on the Royals in the Kansas City sixth?

Masterson retired the first two Royals in the inning, but then gave up a single to Kila Ka’aihue that deflected off of Masterson, and followed that with a walk to Matt Treanor, putting the go-ahead runner at the plate for Kansas City in Alcides Escobar.

Masterson sealed the deal by getting Escobar to pop out, a great job of pitching after sitting for a long time in the top of the frame.

Royals Strike With Two In The First, Tribe Trails 2-0 Going To The Fourth

For much of this early season, and especially in their victories, the Indians have followed a pretty basic and successful formula: score early and sometimes often, rely on quality pitching to hold a lead, get the game to the late innings with the advantage, and let the bullpen put the game to bed.

Last night that formula was not in evidence, and this time the Tribe had to play catch-up almost from the beginning, before coming up short.

Tonight resembles last night. Not good news for the Indians if they hope to hold onto first place by themselves in the AL Central.

While the first nine Indians have gone quietly against Luke Hochevar, who has breezed through three innings with two strikeouts and on only 33 pitches, Justin Masterson labored through the first inning, throwing 32 pitches in that frame alone, and the Indians find themselves on the short end of a 2-0 deficit as we head to the fourth.

As the only salient inning was the Kansas City second, here is the story of how that pitch-marathon unfolded:

It began innocently enough, with a Chris Getz ground out, but Melky Cabrera walked and then Alex Gordon — who may have saved last night’s game with his glove — gave the Royals a quick lead with a triple. Billy Butler struck out for the second out of the inning, and if Masterson had retired the side then, it would have been a decent job of escaping.

Unfortunately, Jeff Francoeur drove Gordon in from third with a base hit, and although no more runs scored, Masterson was forced to make a lot more pitches, as another single and a walk loaded the bases before Matt Treanor popped out.

So we head to the fourth with the Indians needing to do something soon, as we cannot count on a comeback in the late innings two nights in a row — especially when last night’s comeback fell just short.

Justin Masterson Looks To Get Tribe Back In Winning Column Tonight

After a tough, tough loss to the Kansas City Royals last night in a game where the Indians fell behind 5-0, but which eventually ended with the Tribe down 5-4 and with the bases loaded in the ninth before Carlos Santana was called out on strikes, Cleveland will attempt to win their second in the first three games of a four-game series tonight at 8:10 Cleveland-time.

Needing a win to retain sole possession of first place in the Central Division, the Indians will send Justin Masterson (3-0, 1.33) to the mound.

Masterson has won each of his decisions this year, defeating — in order — Chicago, Seattle and Baltimore. In each of his starts, Masterson has given up just one run, and in 20 1/3 innings so far this season has surrendered 15 hits, walked only four and struck out 12.

In his last appearance — on Friday against the Orioles — Masterson went seven innings and surrendered only three hits in an 8-2 Tribe victory.

In ten career appearances against the Royals, Masterson is 1-2 with a 4.45 ERA in 30 1/3 innings of work.

The Royals will send Luke Hochevar (2-1, 4.21 ERA). Hochevar will be making his fifth start of the season, and is coming off of a brilliant performance against the Seattle Mariners on Friday.

In seven innings against the Mariners, Hochevar allowed only one hit, with two walks and four K’s, in a game that the Royals barely hung onto, winning 6-5. It was his second straight win, after having defeated Detroit on April 10. Hochevar has a no-decision against the White Sox, and lost his first game of the season on March 31 in the season opener against the Angels.

In his career, Hochevar — in eight starts against the Indians — is 3-5 with a 5.16 ERA. Hochevar has hurled 45 1/3 innings against the Tribe, allowing 48 hits, walking 16 and fanning 40, as well as surrendering eight long-balls.

The series will conclude tomorrow night with Josh Tomlin scheduled to get the start for Cleveland against Kansas City’s Sean O’Sullivan.

Indians vs. Royals Score: Tribe Rallies Late, But Comes Up One Run Short As Royals Win 5-4

Just when it looked as if the Indians might go quietly into the Missouri night, the Tribe mounted a rally in the seventh inning against Bruce Chen and the Royals.

With one out in the seventh, Orlando Cabrera and Austin Kearns singled, and Lou Marson drove both runners home with a double to right-center, cutting the Cleveland deficit to three, at 5-2.

Chen retired Adam Everett for out number two, but Michael Brantley singled, sending Marson to third, and suddenly you’re thinking “hey, Asdrubal Cabrera is going to represent the tying run”.

Um…not so fast.

Marson was cut down at the plate trying to score on Brantley’s hit, and thus the half-inning ended with the Indians still down by three, but at least having shown some signs of life.

Meanwhile Chad Durbin was doing precisely what a long-reliever has to do, and when he retired the Royals in order in the home half of the seventh, his line for the night showed 2 2/3 innings of perfect relief with two strikeouts.

Not too shabby for someone who was being thrown to the wolves six days ago on various websites.

Blake Wood came on in the eighth to replace Chen, who was brilliant before tiring in the seventh. Chen ended up surrendering two earned runs on six hits, walking three and fanning five in 102 pitches.

Wood retired Asdrubal Cabrera, but Shin-Soo Choo singled to center. Choo then put himself in scoring position with a steal of second. Carlos Santana came through with a run-scoring base-hit and suddenly the Tribe was down by only two, with Travis Hafner coming on to pinch-hit for Shelley Duncan.

Alas, Hafner struck out for the second out, bringing Orlando Cabrera to the plate. Cabrera fouled out to short right and Wood had minimized the damage, and the Tribe still found themselves down 5-3 going to the bottom of the eighth.

Justin Germano relieved Durbin and gave up a lead-off walk to Wilson Betemit, who was sacrificed to second by Kila Ka’aihue. Germano got Brayan Pena for the second out, and got out of the inning by inducing a ground out from Alcides Escobar.

So on to the ninth we went.

Royals’ closer Joakim Soria came on for the second straight night against the Tribe — having worked an inning on Monday with the game tied — and Austin Kearns reached on a throwing error by Kansas City third-baseman Betemit.

Lou Marson struck out for the first out of the inning, and Grady Sizemore came on to pinch-hit for Adam Everett. Sizemore made solid contact but lined out to left. where Alex Gordon made a diving catch, leaving Michael Brantley as the last Indians’ hope against Soria.

Brantley singled, and suddenly Asdrubal Cabrera came to bat with a chance to give the Tribe the lead with one big swing.

Cabrera, 0-for-4 on the night and down to his last strike, was hit by the pitch, loading the bases for Shin-Soo Choo and putting the tying runs in scoring position.

With Choo down to his final strike, and with Soria ahead in the count 1-2, Choo came all the way back to draw a base on balls, scoring Kearns and drawing the Tribe within one, and bringing Carlos Santana to the plate.

So agonizingly close. So close. But no cigar, as Santana fanned looking at three straight called strikes, giving the Indians exactly that agonizing loss that it looked like they might avoid tonight.

When all was said and done, Bruce Chen got the win, moving to 3-0 on the season, while Soria picked up a very shaky fifth save, although the run he surrendered in the ninth was unearned.

The losing pitcher was Jeanmar Gomez (0-1, 10.38 ERA).

In closing, it bears mentioning what a terrific job the Tribe's Chad Durbin and Justin Germano did out of the pen, in giving the Indians a chance to come back, a chance to make a game of it. In 3 2/3 innings, Durbin and Germano combined to allow just one walk while striking out two.

Something to hold onto until tomorrow night, when Justin Masterson will get the start for Cleveland, having to win to keep the Indians alone in first place.

Tonight's loss drops the Tribe to 12-5, while Kansas City moves to 11-6, and pulls within a game.

Kansas City Steadily Drawing Away; Indians Trail 5-0 Heading To The Seventh

As we moved into the middle innings tonight, Bruce Chen continued to shut the Indians down, surrendering a harmless two-out single to Shelley Duncan in the fourth but then getting Orlando Cabrera for the third out, and Jeanmar Gomez immediately got into trouble in the bottom half of the inning, giving up a lead-off single to Wilson Betemit.

Gomez bore down and got Kila Ka’aihue for the first out, and then — after Betemit stole second — Brayan Pena grounded out, with Betemit moving to third.

Unfortunately Gomez could not close the deal, as Alcides Escobar singled, putting Kansas City up 3-0. Escobar then stole second as the Royals, looking like a different team tonight, continued to keep up steady pressure on Gomez, who was able to escape any further damage in the frame.

Gomez was up to 73 pitches after four innings, and his main problem last year — tons of base-runners — is appearing again tonight, as Gomez had allowed seven runners in four innings.

It was time for the Tribe to begin coming back, or else this series was going to be tied heading to Wednesday.

Adam Everett drew a two-out walk in the sixth after Austin Kearns and Lou Marson had been quickly retired — Everett’s second free pass of the game — but Michael Brantley grounded out to second, and the game reached its mid-point with K.C. retaining its three-run lead.

Bruce Chen had tossed 77 pitches to this point, so he looked good to go at least seven — bad news for the Tribe, based on the way Chen was shutting them down to this point.

In the bottom of the fifth the Royals once again teed off on Gomez, with consecutive doubles from Melky Cabrera and Alex Godron immediately putting Kansas City up 4-0. Then Jeff Francoeur drove in a run with a one-out single, and that sound you may have heard was the plug being pulled and the water running out of the Tribe’s four-game winning streak.

A walk to Betemit followed, and Gomez was pulled in favor of Chad Durbin.

The kid gave it his best shot and did have those first two scoreless innings to maybe build on, but the bottom line is that this start was the Indians’ worst since the first two games of the season.

After Durbin was able to close out the inning without further scoring, Gomez’s final line for the night was: 4 1/3 innings, 9 hits, 5 runs (all earned) with two walks and three K’s.

Hey, you cannot win them all, and if it is meant for the Indians to lose tonight, better to lose a laugher — so to speak — than a heartbreaker, such as the Indians loss last Wednesday in Anaheim.

Two-Run Royals' Third Puts Kansas City Up 2-0 Going To The Fourth

In tonight’s game, the Indians went quietly in the first inning against Bruce Chen, and in the Kansas City half of the first, Jeanmar Gomez looked as if he might duplicate the feat, getting the first two Royals, one on strikes.

A base hit to Alex Gordon — who then stole second — and a walk to Billy Butler followed, but, with two outs, Gomez got out of trouble in his first inning of the season by getting Jeff Francoeur to ground back to the mound.

Carlos Santana led off the Tribe second with a walk, but Chen then retired the next three hitters, giving up a long fly ball out to Shelley Duncan for the first out, and the game moved to the bottom of the second with Chen having thrown only 21 pitches.

Jeanmar Gomez had a stronger second, retiring the side in order and recording his second strikeout. The only dark cloud on Gomez’s horizon at that point was having thrown 35 pitches in only two frames, a pace that would see him probably pulled after six innings.

Adam Everett walked with one out in the Indians’ third after Lou Marson was caught looking at a 3-2 pitch. Michael Brantley — batting lead-off tonight with Grady Sizemore not in the starting lineup — followed with a single in his second AB, for Cleveland’s first hit of the game. But Asdrubal Cabrera grounded into a double play to end the threat and the inning.

Alcides Escobar led off the Kansas City third with an infield single. Chris Getz then tripled to shallow right on a full count, and the Tribe was down 1-0, with a second run only 90 feet from home plate. Melky Cabrera got the run home with a ground out, and the Indians trailed by a pair.

Gomez got out of the inning without any more damage, surrendering a two-out single, and we head for the middle innings with the Tribe looking at their largest deficit of the series.

Can Jeanmar Gomez Step In And Join The Party?

The Indians, with a two-game lead over Kansas City, take on the Royals tonight in the second game of their four-game set, with Jeanmar Gomez slated to get the start for the Tribe in his first appearance of the season.

Gomez will be filling in for injured Mitch Talbot, and will be trying to give Cleveland a second straight victory over their nearest competitors — a win which would guarantee that the Tribe would leave K.C. in first place, no matter what would happen on Wednesday or Thursday.

Jeanmar was 4-5 last year with the Indians in his first major league action. In eleven games — all of which were starts — Gomez, in 57 2/3 innings, allowed 73 hits and 30 earned runs for an ERA of 4.68. He walked 22 and fanned 34, and his combined hit/walk total per inning of 1.67 was very high. That is a number he will be looking to — and will need to — cut down if he hopes to stick with the big club, especially when Talbot (who is on the DL with an elbow strain) comes back in a couple of weeks.

In three appearances against the Royals last year, Gomez went 1-1 with an ERA of 2.70 in 16 2/3 innings of work.

Kansas City will start Bruce Chen, a 33-year old left-hander who will be making his fourth appearance of the year. In his first start, against the Angels, Chen received a no-decision after allowing five runs in five innings, but in his last two starts, Chen has been nothing short of terrific.

In those two starts, covering 14 innings against Detroit and Seattle, Chen has not allowed a run and has held the opposition to nine hits, walking two and striking out eight. Chen was the winning pitcher in both games, giving him a 2-0 mark on the season and an ERA that has shrunk to 2.37.

This will be Chen’s 10th career appearance against Cleveland. In his previous nine games — five of which were starts — Chen is 3-2 against the Tribe, with a high ERA of 5.57.

Overall in his career, Chen is 50-50, with a career ERA of 4.59, so his good start to 2011 might be seen as an aberration.

Of course, last night’s Kansas City starter — Kyle Davies — came into the game with an ERA of 9.00 and, once he settled in, pitched very effectively for six innings, allowing only two runs. At this stage of the season it is hard to say what is an aberration; what is a good pitcher who had one or two bad games; and what might be a pitcher who has found the magic elixir of throwing strikes and keeping the ball on the ground.

In other words, anything goes against Chen, and the Indians would do well to not look too hard at their past achievements against him, and focus on trying to solve the Chen who has pretty much dominated his last two opponents.

Indians Vs. Royals Score: Tribe Uses Big 10th Inning To Beat Kansas City 7-3

In the tenth inning Tim Collins came on for Kansas City in relief of Joakim Soria and immediately walked Carlos Santana. Shelly Duncan then pinch-hit for Travis Buck and doubled to left, scoring Santana all the way from first and putting the Tribe ahead 4-3.

Orlando Cabrera could not get the runner to third, flying out to right center, but then Michael Brantley walked, putting two on with still only one out. Adam Everett came on for the Tribe to pinch-run for Duncan — becoming the Indians’ fourth designated hitter of the night.

Matt LaPorta grounded out, but Alcides Escobar’s error on the play allowed Everett to score from second, giving the Tribe a huge insurance run.

Then Jack Hannahan broke out with a double, scoring LaPorta all the way from first, and suddenly the Tribe led 6-3.

Grady Sizemore followed with an infield single and Hannahan scored as the Royals began to crumble, as the Cleveland lead stretched to 7-3. It was Sizemore’s third hit of the night, and left him with a .556 average in two games. Then Asdrubal Cabrera singled and runners were at the corners. Shin-Soo Choo, the ninth batter of the inning, struck out to end the outburst, but what was a tie game suddenly became a game wherein there was not a save situation entering the bottom of the tenth.

Justin Germano replaced Joe Smith in the bottom of the tenth and set the Royals down in order.

And the Indians improved to 12-4 and extended their lead to two games.

Joe Smith got the win for his first decision of the season, while Tim Collins (1-1) took the loss, as the Indians look to tomorrow night, when Jeanmar Gomez gets the start in place of Mitch Talbot. It will be Gomez’s first appearance of the season.

Quite A Battle In Missouri: Indians, Royals Deadlocked At 3-3 Heading For Extras

The Indians, as tonight’s game headed for the late innings, appeared to be playing another of Those Games.

The top of the seventh inning reminded one of the Wednesday loss to the Angels, with a golden opportunity not taken advantage of, even though the Tribe tied the game at 3-3.

Michael Brantley walked leading off, and went to third on pitcher Jeremy Jeffress’ throwing error. Matt LaPorta singled, and just like that the game was even. That was when things got frustrating.

LaPorta went to second on a wild pitch, but Jack Hannahan lined out to shallow left. But not to worry, as Grady Sizemore and Asdrubal Cabrera walked, loading the bases for Shin-Soo Choo and bringing Aaron Crow in from the bullpen for Kansas City.

Crow immediately fell behind 2-0 to Choo, and oh it looked like the Tribe was in business. But Crow came all the way back and got Choo on a called third strike for the second out.

And then, to add a drop more of frustration, Crow fell behind Carlos Santana 2-0 — and Santana popped out to left center to end the threat and adding three more to the Tribe’s left-on-base total, which after seven innings had reached seven LOB.

Carlos Carrasco came out for the bottom of the seventh and gave up a single to Wilson Betemit, who was sacrificed to second by Matt Treanor. That was all for Carrasco, and Vinnie Pestano came on for the Indians. Pestano got Alcides Escobar to ground out for the second out of the inning, moving Betemit to third. Pestano then struck out Mike Aviles to end a nervous half-inning, and the game moved to the eighth deadlocked at three — a brilliant job out of the pen by Pestano.

Carrasco thus ended his night with 6 1/3 innings pitched, having allowed three runs and seven hits, walking one and striking out four. Carrasco’s ERA dropped to 4.85, and while that is all well, fine and good, there was still a baseball game to try to win.

In the Indians’ eighth, Travis Hafner led off with a walk. Travis Buck pinch-ran (becoming the designated hitter) but was immediately erased on a force-play at second off the bat or Orlando Cabrera. Michael Brantley lined out to second for the second out, leaving it up to Matt LaPorta.

Orlando Cabrera moved to second on a wild pitch from Crow, yet again putting an Indian in scoring position, and LaPorta walked, putting two on, bringing Jack Hannahan to the plate.

Hannahan, batting .205 before this critical at-bat, struck out, ending the inning, ending the threat, and leaving Aaron Crow with an ERA of 0.00 after an inning-and-two-thirds of work tonight.

Rafael Perez came on to begin the bottom of the eighth, replacing Pestano, who certainly did his job tonight.

Perez fell behind Melky Cabrera, then came back to get Cabrera to pop out. Alex Gordon then reached on a throwing error on Tribe second-baseman Orlando Cabrera, and Perez walked Billy Butler, putting the go-ahead run in scoring position with one down.

A wild play ensued, on which Matt LaPorta threw in the dirt to second, with Gordon going to third and Butler to second, but Butler -- who had been called safe -- thought he had been out, never called time, and was tagged out after wandering off the bag and seemingly heading for the dugout, and became the second out of the inning.

Joe Smith relieved Rafael Perez and immediately loaded the bases with a walk to Jeff Francoeur, but got Wilson Betemit to foul out to third, and this game, which suddenly seemed to have the intensity and missed chances of a playoff game, headed to the ninth tied 3-3, after an inning in which the Tribe walked two, committed two errors — and kept the Royals off the board.

Kansas City closer Joakim Soria came on in the tie game and was greeted by a base hit from Grady Sizemore — Sizemore’s second hit of the ninth and fourth in two games since being activated.

Asdrubal Cabrera grounded into a force play at second, erasing Sizemore, and then Shin-Soo Choo grounded into a double play, and just like that, it was on to the bottom of the ninth.

Yes, truly resembling at this point the loss in Anaheim last Wednesday — which, coincidentally, was tied 3-3 after nine innings.

Joe Smith was still on the mound for the Tribe in the Royals’ ninth and set down K.C. one-two-three, and the game moved to extra innings.

Royals Use Four Straight Hits In Sixth To Take 3-2 Lead

Carlos Carrasco breezed through the first five inning tonight, allowing only two hits, but unfortunately, the Indians — after knocking Kyle Davies around a bit early — have gone into an offensive funk, and in the sixth inning it has come back to haunt the Tribe, who saw Kansas City string four hits in a row together in the sixth and now trail the Royals 3-2 heading for the seventh inning.

The Indians stranded a runner at second in both the fourth and the sixth frames, and in the bottom of the sixth, Mike Aviles led off with a shallow single, then scored on a short double to left from Melky Cabrera, tying the game at two.

Kansas City then took the lead on a base hit by Alex Gordon, scoring Cabrera and making it 3-2. Another shallow hit followed, putting runners at first and second, and here Carlos Carrasco cracked down, inducing a foul out to Kila Ka’aihue and getting Jeff Francoeur to hit into a double play to end the threat with the game still within reach.

The Indians have seven hits through six innings, and have left four on base. At present, Davies is the pitcher of record on the winning side, and as the seventh inning begins, Davies has been lifted in favor of Jeremy Jeffress.

Through six innings, Carrasco has allowed six hits, three earned runs, and has walked one and struck out four.

Indians Take Early Lead In Battle To Retain First Place

The Indians have had more scoring chances than the Kansas City Royals through the first three innings tonight, and have capitalized twice to hold a razor-thin 2-1 lead as the first game of this four-game set heads for the fourth inning in K.C.

The Indians wasted little time jumping out to a 1-0 lead. With two outs in the first, Shin-Soo Choo beat out an infield hit, stole second, and scored on a double from Carlos Santana. Travis Hafner struck out to end the inning for the Tribe.

Kansas City evened the score in the second inning when — with runners at second and third and one out — Wilson Betemit tied the game with a sacrifice fly.

The Indians immediately regained the lead in the third, but might have had more.

Grady Sizemore led off with a double and moved to third on a hit by Asdrubal Cabrera. Choo then lifted a sac fly to center, scoring Sizemore, but Cabrera was thrown out trying to reach second.

Through three innings Carlos Carrasco has allowed only one hit and one walk, and, of course, one run, while fanning three. Meanwhile, for the Royals, Kyle Davies, who came into the game with a 9.00 ERA, is hanging in there, albeit allowing five hits so far.

Kansas City, Here We Come: Tribe Opens Four-Game Set With Royals With AL Central Lead At Stake

After the first two games of the season, I have to admit that the second-last thing that I thought I would be doing on April 18 would be writing a preview for a series that is -- in effect -- a battle for first place between the Cleveland Indians and the Kansas City Royals. After the teams finished 4-5 in the division last year, having such a series after two-and-a-half weeks was probably about the last thing anyone thought would happen.

If that is the second-last thing I thought I would be doing today, what is the last, then?

That I would be saying that the Cleveland Indians have the best record in the American League heading into games of April 18.

Now the Tribe has a test in the midwest, taking on a Royals' team that has been every bit as surprising in the early going of 2011. Only yesterday did Kansas City lose their fifth game of the season, seeing a four-game winning streak snapped by the Seattle Mariners.

For the opener of these four games (which are all scheduled to start at 8:10), the Indians will send Carlos Carrasco to the hill seeking his second victory of the season.

Carrasco (1-1, 5.03) last pitched Wednesday in Anaheim, in a game the Tribe lost in 12 innings. Carrasco, of course, did not get a decision in that game, in which he gave up three runs on only five hits in seven innings, walking two and fanning five. It was the second straight strong start for Carrasco after a rough personal season-opener against Chicago. In his last two outings, Carrasco has allowed four runs and nine hits in 13 innings, with eleven strikeouts in that span. And like Fausto Carmona, Carrasco's ERA is on a steady decline. It would be nice to see that ERA sink to somewhere around 4.00 after tonight's game.

Kansas City will counter tonight with right-hander Kyle Davies, who has had a tough start to 2011. In three starts, covering 14 innings, Davies has allowed 23 hits and 14 earned runs for an ERA of 9.00. And with eight walks (to go along with nine K's), Davies has allowed 2.21 Walks/Hits per Inning Pitched -- a truly high number, and one which might have the Indians' hitters salivating as they look ahead to tonight.

For his career, Davies is 43-57, with a high ERA of 5.56 in 141 appearances. Davies began his career with the Atlanta Braves before heading to Kansas City in the middle of the 2007 season. In nine career appearances against the Indians, Davies is 3-5 with a 5.80 ERA.

Kansas City is hitting at a .275 clip on the season and is 7-3 at home. The Royals are off to their best start since 2003, while the Indians have not been this good this soon since 2002.

The Royals have a staff ERA through fifteen games of 3.70.

The Indians, on the other hand, have lowered their ERA to 3.16 -- this from a team whose ERA was 11.50 after two games. The Indians are hitting .265 as a team, and have clubbed 19 homers on the season.

The second game of this series will be tomorrow night, with Mitch Talbot originally scheduled to go for the Indians. But with Talbot having been placed on the DL, it is likely that Jeanmar Gomez will be recalled to make the start in Talbot's place. .