Indians Vs. Blue Jays Final: Josh Tomlin Wins 7th Game As Tribe Outlasts Toronto 13-9

Toronto, ON (Sports Network) - Matt LaPorta hit a three-run homer and Asdrubal Cabrera added a career-high three doubles and drove in three, as the Cleveland Indians outslugged Toronto, 13-9, in the rubber match of a three-game set at Rogers Centre.

LaPorta finished 3-for-5 and Grady Sizemore had a three-run double for the Indians, who have won three of their last five. Cabrera went 4-for-6 and scored twice.

Backed by the heavy bats, Josh Tomlin (7-2) picked up the win despite allowing six runs on eight hits.

"It's nice to have that extra cushion," said Tomlin, who walked one and struck out seven in six innings.

Rajai Davis hit a three-run homer and knocked in four for Toronto, which has dropped two straight after winning the previous four. Jose Bautista had a two- run single in defeat.

Kyle Drabek (3-4), making his first career start against Cleveland, lasted only two-thirds of an inning. The young righty was raked for four runs on three hits and three walks, throwing 38 pitches -- 15 for strikes.

Cleveland batted around, putting up four runs in the first.

Consecutive doubles by Michael Brantley and Cabrera gave the Indians a 1-0 lead. After Drabek struck out Shin-Soo Choo, he walked the next two batters and Sizemore followed with a three-run double into the left-field gap. LaPorta then grounded out, but Jack Hannahan drew a free pass that ended Drabek's outing.

The Indians then blew the game open with an eight-run third after sending 13 men to the plate.

Travis Buck led off with a single and Carlos Santana drew a walk before coming around two batters later on LaPorta's homer to left-center that made it a 7-0 game, but Cleveland wasn't finished.

Hannahan doubled and crossed the plate on Adam Everett's base hit. Then later in the inning, Cabrera brought in two more with a double high off the left- field wall. Choo reached on a three-base error by center fielder Davis that scored another and Buck's pop up to shortstop was dropped by Yunel Escobar, bringing in the 12th run of the game.

Toronto got on the board with a three-spot in the fifth. Three straight triples by Eric Thames, Davis and Jayson Nix brought in a pair, and Corey Patterson's RBI single made it 12-3. It was the first time a team has hit three consecutive triples since Montreal accomplished the feat in 1981.

Brantley chased in a run in the sixth with a fielder's choice groundout and Davis answered with a three-run homer in the home half to get the Blue Jays within 13-6.

Toronto put runners on the corners with nobody out in the seventh, but Bautista grounded into a 5-4-3 double play to bring home another.

Bautista hit a two-run single in the ninth off Rafael Perez. Vinnie Pestano entered and retired the first two batters faced before issuing a walk to Edwin Encarnacion, but Thames then struck out to end the game.

"We continued to battle and give ourselves opportunities, but given the 12-run deficit that the first three innings had in store for us ... it was a huge hole to come back from," said Blue Jays manager John Farrell.

The Indians have won eight of their last 10 versus the Blue Jays and took two of three in the lone meeting at Rogers Centre last year...Escobar's 12- game hitting streak came to an end...Cleveland went 5-for-17 with runners in scoring position and stranded 11, while Toronto left seven men on base

Josh Tomlin Looks To Bring Tribe Home With 2 Straight Wins

The Indians wrap up their six game trip through the Realm of Artificial Turf on Wednesday night when they face the Toronto Blue Jays at the Rogers Centre, seeking to end their journey away from home at 3-3.

Last night the Indians got good pitching, some fine defense from Jack Hannahan, and a slew of extra-base hits in beating Toronto 6-3.

Josh Tomlin will look for more of the same tonight.

Tomlin (6-2, 2.74 ERA) is coming off of a loss in Tampa Bay last Friday, in a game wherein he surrendered 10 hits and four runs in six innings of a 5-0 Rays win. This will be only the second appearance of Tomlin’s career against the Blue Jays, against whom he has no record and a 1.69 in only 5.1 innings of work.

Josh will be opposed by the Blue Jays’ Kyle Drabek (3-3, 4.16 ERA), who is coming off of a no-decision in Toronto’s 4-2 win over the White Sox last Friday. In that one, Drabek worked 6.2 frames and allowed only two runs on three hits. Drabek did, however, issue five walks in that game to go with four strikeouts. The game tonight will mark Drabek's first-ever appearance against Cleveland.

For the season, in 62.2 innings, Drabek has the same total of free-passes as K’s — 42.

That, folks, is a lot of walks in slightly less than seven full games pitched, so it would behoove the Tribe to make Drabek work and to run up his pitch-count if at all possible.

Tomlin, conversely, in 65.2 innings, has issued only 10 walks, to go with 34 strikeouts.

On Thursday the Indians open a seven-game homestand, which begins with four against the Texas Rangers, starting Thursday night, and continues next vs. the Minnesota Twins.

It will be good to get back on natural grass and to be home. It would be even better to take the field tomorrow night at 33-20.

Indians Vs. Blue Jays Final: Clutch Hitting And A Solid Start Recipe For Tribe Win Over Jays, 6-3

Mitch Talbot bounced back in a big way tonight, the Indians’ bats came through with big hits when they were needed, and the Tribe evened the series with the Blue Jays with a 6-3 win over Toronto tonight at the Rogers Centre.

Talbot was a completely different pitcher than he was in his first start back from the DL, going 6.2 innings and allowing only one runon six hits with three walks and three K’s. Talbot improves to 2-1 and his ERA lowers to 4.50, as he stops the Blue Jays’ winning streak at four games.

Joe Smith came on in the seventh, when Toronto scored twice, and was touched for a run, although that run was unearned after an error on Orlando Cabrera. Vinnie Pestano came on in the eighth and struck out the side, while Tony Sipp was touched for a homer in the ninth off the bat of Yunel Escobar. After a long fly ball for the second out, Chris Perez came on and gave up a hit to Jose Bautista but closed things out in a non-save situation.

Brandon Morrow struck out nine in only five innings, but takes the loss after giving up all six Indians’ runs on nine hits. Morrow (2-3, 5.11 ERA) walked two.

Cleveland took a 1-0 lead in the second on consecutive lead-off doubles from Carlos Santana and Grady Sizemore, and added two more in the third when Michael Brantley tripled leading off and scored on an Asdrubal Cabrera base hit. Shin-Soo Choo singled Cabrera to second and both runners moved up on a wild pitch before Santana hit a sac fly, making it 3-0.

The Indians scored their final three runs in the fifth, all with two outs. First Travis Buck walked, and Santana drove Buck in with a double to right, with Santana taking third on the throw to the plate, which was dropped by the catcher when it looked as if Buck would easily be retired. It was Santana’s second RBI of the night. Sizemore then followed with his second RBI with a double, and Orlando Cabrera made it 6-0 with an RBI single.

That was all of the scoring for the Tribe, but it was more than enough on this night.

Although the Indians did not homer, and did fan 12 times, they were able to muster a triple and six doubles in a refreshing breakout for the offense.

Detroit came from behind to beat the Minnesota Twins tonight, 8-7, so the Indians' lead over the Tigers remains at five games.

Cleveland will try to win the rubber game of this three-game set on Wednesday at 7:07 when Josh Tomlin (6-2, 2.74 ERA) faces Toronto’s Kyle Drabek (3-3, 4.16 ERA).

Indians Need Offense To Wake Up For Mitch Talbot On Tuesday Night

After scoring exactly one run in their last two games, the Indians have become the personification of a team in the doldrums.

Tuesday night in Toronto, the Tribe will try to change all that and get back on the winning path against the Blue Jays, as Mitch Talbot also tries to bounce back from a personal nightmare against the Red Sox last week.

Talbot (1-1, 5.87 ERA) was rocked by Boston on the 25th in his return to live game action after a stint on the disabled list. In that game against the Sox, Talbot went only three innings, and allowed a whopping 12 hits and two walks, along with eight runs, while striking out only one, in a 14-2 loss.

Talbot will be making only his fourth appearance of the season, and the second in his career against Toronto. Mitch is 0-1 with a 5.63 ERA against the Jays in only eight innings of work. and in that brief span of innings has allowed three home runs.

On the mound for the Blue Jays tonight will be right-hander Brandon Morrow. Morrow is 2-2 in 2011 with a 4.38 ERA, and is what the Indians might be averse to seeing right now -- a strikeout pitcher. In only 39 innings this season, Morrow has fanned 48.

Morrow will be making his ninth career appearance against The Good Guys. Morrow has made two career starts against Cleveland, and overall is 1-2 with a 4.58 ERA in 17.2 innings.

Consistent with his ability to rack up K's, Morrow has struck out 24 Indians in that slightly-less-than two full games of pitching.

In his last appearance -- against the White Sox on the 26th -- Morrow went seven innings and allowed only one run on four hits, but received no decision in what was the last loss by Toronto.

This series will wrap up tomorrow evening, when Josh Tomlin will go for the Indians. It would be nice if Tomlin could be taking the mound trying for a series win for Cleveland.

Indians Vs. Blue Jays Final: Tribe Seeming To Flat-Line; Toronto Wins 11-1 On Complete Game By Jo-Jo Reyes

The Indians were thoroughly beat down in Toronto tonight, as the Blue Jays scored seven runs in the fourth inning on their way to an 11-1 rout of the floundering Tribe, whose lead over Detroit is down to five games.

Fausto Carmona made it through two scoreless innings, then gave up a two-run homer to Jayson Nix in the third to make it 2-0 Toronto.

Shelley Duncan launched a bomb to make it 2-1 in the top of the fourth, but then the wheels came off and this one was as good as over not even halfway through.

In the fourth, the Jays extended their lead to 4-1 on a two-run double by Rajai Davis. It became 6-1 when Orlando Cabrera misplayed a ground ball from Corey Patterson which allowed two runs to score. Jose Bautista doubled in two more runs, and yet another double, this one off the bat of J.P. Arencibia made it 9-1.

The Jays scored their final two runs in the fifth off of Chad Durbin on an RBI single from Yunel Escobar and a sac fly from Patterson.

Jo-Jo Reyes, who had not won since 2008, when he pitched for Atlanta, went the distance, giving up eight hits and the one run on the Duncan blast, while walking four and striking out four. Reyes (1-4, 4.15 ERA) needed 121 pitches for the complete game, but with a 10-run lead with four innings to go, the rest was pretty simple.

Carmona falls to 3-6 on the season, while his ERA balloons to 5.31. Carmona surrendered nine runs -- seven earned -- on nine hits with two walks and three K's in only four innings of work. Durbin worked two innings, allowing two runs, and Rafael Perez finished up with two scoreless innings.

The Indians will try to get their act together on Tuesday night at 7:07 when Mitch Talbot tries to improve on his dreadful performance against the Red Sox in his first game back from the disabled list on Wednesday, when he surrendered eight runs on 12 hits in only three innings.

Talbot will be opposed by Brandon Morrow (2-2).

Indians North Of The Border For Series With Toronto Beginning Monday Night

The Indians, still holding a six-game lead over the Detroit Tigers in the AL Central, are in Canada for the next three days to take on the Toronto Blue Jays, who are themselves moving up in the East. The Blue Jays are 27-26 and in fourth place, but are only three games from the top of their division.

Cleveland will send Fausto Carmona to the mound on Monday at 7:07 against Toronto's Jo-Jo Reyes. Reyes (0-4, 4.70 ERA) comes in with a career record of only 5-19, but has shown himself capable of a good performance as a starter, as evidenced by the seven scoreless innings he pitched against the Houston Astros on May 20 in a game in which he received no decision.

Reyes will be making his first career appearance against Cleveland.

For the Indians, Carmona (3-5, 4.73 ERA) has lost his last two starts, and has not won since May 3. In his last appearance Carmona was defeated by the Boston Red Sox. In that 4-2 loss last Tuesday, Carmona went eight innings and allowed four runs on only five hits, with a walk and seven K''s.

Carmona is undefeated in his career against Toronto. In five starts vs. the Blue Jays Fausto is 3-0 with a 3.21 ERA in 33.2 innings.

Toronto comes in batting .262 as a team, good for fourth in the Majors. The Blue Jays are led in all major offensive categories by Jose Bautista. Bautista is hitting .350 with 20 homers already, and 36 RBI.

The Tribe has slipped into a tie for sixth in hitting with a .259 average. Of players available for this series, Asdrubal Cabrera leads in major categories with a .302 batting average, 10 homers and 35 RBI.

The series will continue with games both Tuesday and Wednesday at 7:07 before the Indians come home on Thursday to begin a series with the defending American League champion Texas Rangers.