Royals Pitching Staff Perfect Medicine For Indians' Offense

Indians Vs. Royals Final Score: Cleveland Offense Explodes For 13 Runs In Blowout

Cleveland batters were absolutely locked-in at the plate on Sunday afternoon as the Indians shelled Kansas City pitching en route to a dominant 13-7 victory that completed a three-game sweep.

All nine Cleveland starters recorded a hit, and combined to tally 15 for the day. Instead of tacking on runs here and there however, the Indians utilized three big innings to mount their lead. After pouring in six runs in the third and then four more in the fifth to break the game open, Cleveland capped it all off with back-to-back home runs off the bats of Casey Kotchman and Jason Kipnis to further pad its lead.

Pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez picked up his first win of 2012, but was largely erratic, scattering nine hits with four earned runs in just five innings on the mound. Jimenez labored through his time in the game, and left it with an inordinately-high 112 pitches due to poor command.

The win not only moves Cleveland to an even 4-4 on the year, but also marked the third consecutive game where the Indians have scored at least eight runs. And with 32 runs scored during this three-game sweep of the Royals, Cleveland's offensive question marks heading into the year are beginning to fade away.

The Indians will travel out West to Safeco Field for a three-game series with Seattle on Tuesday.

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Indians Vs. Royals Score Update: Cleveland Pours It On, Holds 10-4 Lead After Five

A three-game win streak is well within reach for the Cleveland Indians on Sunday, and a pair of offense-fueled innings is the main reason. After scoring a half dozen runs in the third, the Indians added four more in the fifth inning to leap out to a 10-4 advantage on Kansas City with the game heading to the sixth.

Cleveland starter Ubaldo Jimenez, despite not posting impressive numbers (5.0 IP, 9 H, 4 ER, 3 BB), is in line for the win thanks to his team's offensive explosion in the middle innings. Jimenez needed 112 pitches to make it through five innings however, and isn't expected to see the mound to begin the sixth.

Michael Brantley, Travis Hafner and Casey Kotchman all have recorded two-hit games thus far for the Indians, as Cleveland will look to build its lead down the stretch against a shaky Kansas City bullpen.

For more on the Indians, head over to Let's Go Tribe. For more MLB coverage, check out Baseball Nation.

Indians Vs. Royals Score Update: Duncan's 3-Run Blast Puts Cleveland Ahead 6-3 In 3rd Inning

The Cleveland Indians opened Sunday's game in an early 3-0 hole after some minor struggles by starting pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez, but rallied back for a six-run third inning to grab a 6-3 advantage over Kansas City.

The catalyst for the rally was a familiar face in outfielder Shin-Soo Choo, who drove in a pair of runs with his second double of the season. Choo was the hero in Saturday's game with a double of the game-winning variety in the 10th inning. Shelley Duncan, who is batting .320 on the season, hit his second home run of the season with a three-run bomb off pitcher Luis Mendoza after Choo's clutch hit to break the game open.

Jimenez, who has thrown 57 pitches and yielded five hits and three earned runs in 2.0 innings pitched, has struggled to command his pitches, and will have to thank his offense for bailing him out of an early hole. Jimenez gave up just one hit in seven innings against Toronto in his first start of the season last week.

For more on the Indians, head over to Let's Go Tribe. For more MLB coverage, check out Baseball Nation.

Indians Vs. Royals: Cleveland Tries To Complete Sweep In Kansas City

The Cleveland Indians (3-4) look to build a little momentum with a series sweep of the Kansas City Royals (3-5) when the two teams close out their three-game set on Sunday afternoon.

The Indians survived a wild Saturday evening game needing an extra inning to secure an 11-9 win that saw the benches clear twice and three players get ejected. Between all of the runs, the ejections and extra innings, both teams combined to use 15 pitchers, with seventh Cleveland pitcher, Jairo Asencio earning the win.

Cleveland looks to right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez to complete the sweep, hoping he can build on his impressive season debut. Jimenez had a hard-luck no decision in a game Cleveland eventually lost in extra innings. But Jimenez did his part, giving up just one hit and two runs in seven innings.

Kansas City counters with right-hander Luis Mendoza who had no luck in his first start of the season, losing a 1-0 game after pitching into the sixth inning. The Indiana will try to keep their offense rolling to offer Jimenez some run support. So far the Tribe has homered in every game this season.

The games is scheduled to start at 2:10 p.m. ET and will be televised on Sportstime Ohio.

For more on the Indians, check out Let's Go Tribe. For more MLB coverage, be sure to head over to Baseball Nation.

Indians Vs. Royals Final Score: Cleveland Escapes In Extra Innings, 11-9

In quite possibly the most unpredictable game of the 2012 baseball season, the Cleveland Indians outlasted the Kansas City Royals 11-9 in 10 innings to pick up their second straight victory and move to 3-4 on the year.

The biggest story of the game came in the third inning, when the opposing benches cleared twice, as Cleveland manager Manny Acta, third baseman Jack Hannahan and starting pitcher Jeanmar Gomez were each ejected from the game in a wild sequence.

Cleveland led 9-2 heading into the bottom of the sixth before collapsing down the stretch to force extra innings. Outfielder Shin-Soo Choo hit a two-run double in the top of the tenth off Kansas City's Greg Holland to give the Indians an 11-9 advantage, and closer Chris Perez came in to work a 1-2-3 bottom half for the save.

While the talk over the next day will almost assuredly focus on the altercations on the field, the Indians showed a good deal of mettle by hanging on for the win after they appeared to be losing control of the game. Even on a day when their starter was kicked out of the game after just 20 pitches, it's a promising sign that the Indians were able to scrap together a victory considering the circumstances.

For more on the Indians, check out Let's Go Tribe. For more MLB coverage, be sure to head over to Baseball Nation.

Indians Vs. Royals: Acta, Hannahan, Gomez Ejected After Wild 3rd Inning

The Cleveland Indians opened up an early lead and chased Kansas City pitcher Jonathan Sanchez from the mound after just 2.2 innings pitched, but because of a wild inning, will now be forced to play without three vital cogs for the remainder of the night.

Cleveland manager Manny Acta, third baseman Jack Hannahan and starting pitcher Jenmar Gomez were each tossed from the game by umpire Gary Darling in the bottom of the third inning after Gomez hit Kansas City third baseman Mike Moustakas with a pitch. Gomez left the game without yielding a hit and throwing just 20 pitches.

The altercation on the field came a mere minutes after the Indians knocked home five runs in the the top half of the inning and forced Sanchez to the bench. Designated hitter Jose Lopez was the catalyst, and plated a pair of runs on a double in just his second game in the starting lineup this season. With Gomez forced to the locker room, Cleveland is hoping that last year's 12-game winner Josh Tomlin will be able to protect a slight lead into the middle innings.

For more on the Indians, check out Let's Go Tribe. For more MLB coverage, head over to Baseball Nation.

Indians Vs. Royals: Cleveland Tries For Two In A Row Against Kansas City

The Cleveland Indians (2-4) ruined the home opener for the Kansas City Royals (3-4) on Friday night and now the Indians will try to win consecutive games for the first time so far this season when the two teams meet in the middle game of their three-game weekend series at Kauffman Stadium.

Cleveland scored all of the runs they would need in the top of the first on Friday night as they knocked the ball all over the park to score seven runs en route to the 8-3 win. Right-hander Jeanmar Gomez will take the hill for Cleveland in his first start of the season after earning the fifth spot in the pitching rotation coming out of spring training. So far this season, Gomez has three strikeouts in just two innings of relief work.

Kansas City will counter with left-hander Jonathan Sanchez who is 1-0 after giving up two runs in five innings to the Los Angeles Angels last Sunday. The struggling Cleveland offense will try to build on their strong start to the series as they enter the game with left fielder Shelley Duncan leading the team in hitting with just a .300 batting average and .917 OPS.

The first pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET and the game will be televised on Sportstime Ohio.

For more on the Cleveland Indians, check out Let's Go Tribe. For more on the Kansas City Royals, head over to Royals Review. You can also check out SB Nation's Baseball Nation.

Indians Vs. Royals: Cleveland Plates 7 Runs in First Innings, Wins 8-3

The Cleveland Indians pushed across seven runs in the first inning and Derek Lowe allowed three runs in six and 2/3 innings and won his second consecutive start for Cleveland (2-4) Friday against the Kansas City Royals (3-4).

Royals starter Luke Hochevar got tagged for nine hits and seven runs in four innings. Everett Teaford pitched the next four innings, allowing just one run and no hits.

Michael Brantley, Asdrubal Cabrera and Shin Soo Choo each had two hits for the Indians. Brantley had both hits in the first inning, while Cabrera hit his second home run of the season in the ninth inning.

Game 2 of the series is Saturday night at 7 p.m. EST. Jeanmar Gomez gets the nod for Cleveland, while Jonathan Sanchez (1-0, 3.60 ERA) will pitch for Kansas City.

For more on the Cleveland Indians, check out Let's Go Tribe. For more on the Kansas City Royals, head over to Royals Review.

Indians Vs. Royals: Cleveland Starts Series Against Kansas City In Royals Home Opener

The Cleveland Indians open up their next series against the Kansas City Royals on Friday, the game being the Royals home opener.