 |
Twins Take Down Tribe, Winning Streak
July 22, 2010 By Tony Mazur
|
The Indians were bound to lose at least one game in the second half, right?
After a franchise record six-game winning streak after the all-star break, the Indians ran out of steam on Wednesday as they lost to the Minnesota Twins, 6-0.
Jake Westbrook (L, 6-6) could not find a rhythm on the hill. Westbrook threw six innings, giving up four runs on six hits, striking out just one batter.
Westbrook has been rumored in some potential trades. Teams that have shown interest in the Indians’ ace are the New York Yankees and St. Louis Cardinals.
Indians pitchers had trouble finding the strike zone all day. Westbrook walked five, Hector Ambriz walked one, and Jess Todd gave two Twins a free pass.
Francisco Liriano (W, 8-7) has always had the Tribe’s number, as was the case on Wednesday. Liriano walked four, but he struck out eight and did not allow a run in seven innings.
The Indians threatened to push a run home with two outs in both the second and third innings. Shelley Duncan grounded into an inning-ending double play in the second, and Carlos Santana struck out with runners on the corners to end the third.
The Twins piled on Westbrook in the bottom of the third. With two on, Delmon Young doubled in an RBI, putting runners on second and third. Jason Kubel was intentionally walked, and Michael Cuddyer followed with an RBI single. Young was thrown out at the plate.
Jim Thome walked to load the bases again, and J.J. Hardy doubled to left to knock in two, giving the Twins a 4-0 lead.
The Indians threatened again in the fifth. Trevor Crowe walked, and Chris Gimenez blooped a double to center to give the Tribe a real chance to get a run with one out off Liriano. Asdrubal Cabrera walked to load the bases, but Jayson Nix grounded into a double play to end the rally.
Minnesota added some insurance as they took advantage of Todd. Though Todd struck out the side, he walked two in the inning, and with two outs, Young smacked a single to shortstop, driving in two which gave the Twins a commanding 6-0 lead.
Rookie reliever Anthony Slama made his major league debut, sporting stirrups and a mustache. He gave up one hit, but struck out two to shut down the Tribe and their winning streak.
The Indians have a travel day on Thursday as they get ready to take on the Tampa Bay Rays and the Yankees for a seven-game homestand.
