Carlos Santana went 3-for-4 with three RBI and Josh Tomlin pitched well as the Cleveland Indians defeated the L.A. Angels, 9-2, Sunday. The Tribe swept the three-game series.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Carlos Santana went 3-for-4 with two sun-aided doubles and Abraham Almonte hit a grand slam as the Cleveland Indians defeated the Los Angeles Angels, 9-2, Sunday afternoon at Progressive Field. Tribe right-hander Josh Tomlin gave up two runs in seven-plus innings. Angels center fielder Mike Trout went 4-for-4 with one double and one triple.
Here is a capsule look at the game after a DVR review of the Fox SportsTime Ohio telecast:
Francona's Fun Bunch: Manager Terry Francona's Indians (63-66) have won five in a row and eight of 10. They remain on the fringe in the crowded race for the second AL wildcard but have gained fast on several teams, including the Angels.
Reeling: Los Angeles (65-65) has lost eight of 10.
Broom service x 2: The Tribe went 5-0 on a homestand that began with two against the Milwaukee Brewers.
They outscored the Brewers, 17-8, and the Angels, 20-6.
Progressive Field hit dogs: The Indians held a 10-9 advantage in hits. They have notched 10+ hits in 12 straight home games (10-2).
Rare air: Sunday's paid attendance was 22,328, which gave the organization three straight home crowds of 22,000+ for just the second time this season (May 22-24 vs. Reds, Tribe sweep).
Sirs Slam-A-Lot: Almonte's slam, off righty Jered Weaver with two outs in the fifth to make it 6-0, was the Tribe's second in two games. On Saturday night, Yan Gomes turned a 4-3 lead into 8-3 with an eighth-inning blast off former Indian Joe Smith.
The Land of the blinding sun: Who could have guessed that California's Angels would be victimized by the sun not once, but twice, in supposedly perpetually overcast Cleveland?
*Jason Kipnis led off the first inning with a double to right. After Francisco Lindor's sacrifice bunt, Brantley ripped an RBI double into the right-field corner (1-2 curve down and in/75 mph).
Brantley became the 10th player in franchise history with back-to-back seasons of 40+ doubles, the first since Travis Hafner in 2004-2005.
Carlos Santana, in a full count, sent one of his patented high-trajectory flies to the outfield. Trout was in position for a routine catch but lost track of the ball, which fell nearby for what reads in the box score as an RBI double for Santana.
Credit Tribe third-base coach Mike Sarbaugh for an aggressive pinwheel of Brantley. As Brantley narrowly beat the throw home, Santana alertly advanced to third. (Tailor needed: Brantley ripped his pant leg on slides into second and home.)
Weaver kept the score at 2-0 by retiring Lonnie Chisenhall on a grounder to pulled-in second baseman Grant Green and Giovanny Urshela on a foul pop to first.
*With none on and one out in the fifth, Brantley lined a full-count curve (65) to center for a single. Santana hit the first pitch high to right, where Kole Calhoun encountered the same glare issues as Trout. Brantley, who had been moving with the pitch, began to retreat to first, then changed direction again and reached third. Santana happily accepted his second gift double -- no apologies necessary.
The Angels decided to intentionally walk Chisenhall, who has been hot and whose career numbers against Weaver are good, in order to bring up the struggling Urshela. The move paid off in another foul pop to first.
But Weaver still had an out to record, and he needed to deal with (Honest) Abe Almonte.
Almonte took a strike and a ball. Weaver attempted to come under the hands with a fastball (80 -- yes, 80), but it didn't get in far enough and only dipped to thigh-high. Almonte's smash to deep right made it 6-0.
Center fielder Amonte finished 2-for-4. He is batting .270 (20-for-74) with 11 extra-base hits (five doubles, three triples, three homers) for the Indians since being lifted from San Diego for lefty reliever Marc Rzepczynski on July 31.
Meanwhile, in Atlanta, Michael Bourn is batting .104 (5-for-48) with one double since being traded by Cleveland along with Nick Swisher in early August.
Numbers lie: Weaver deserved much better than his line of 6 IP, 9 H, 8 R, 8 ER, 4 BB, 2 K.
Ask the Indians, especially their pitchers, if they care.
Little Cowboy locked in: Tomlin allowed six hits, walked none and struck out eight. He threw 69 of 96 pitches for strikes.
Tomlin's success revolved around his navigation of the first inning and, in the first and two other innings, his ability to handle future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols.
Pesky Calhoun led off the game with a first-pitch single to left-center. At least it was a single. On Saturday, Calhoun led off the game with a first-pitch homer against Corey Kluber.
Before an 0-1 pitch to Trout, Tomlin made a ridiculously good pickoff throw to erase Calhoun, who didn't even have that large of a lead. The play was bang-bang and seemingly too close to call on replay, so the Angels opted not to challenge. (If first-base umpire Vic Carapazza had ruled safe, the Indians probably would not have challenged, either.)
The play became enormous when Trout smoked a 3-2 cutter high off the center-field wall for a triple.
Pujols and his 554 career homers, including 34 this year, stepped in.
Tomlin, with the guts of a jewel thief, threw a first-pitch fastball (90) over the plate. It shocked Pujols so much that he swung and missed. Pujols fouled two fastballs, the second of which was a mistake over the plate. Catcher Roberto Perez visited the mound, undoubtedly with this message: "Don't do that again.''
Tomlin threw a wicked cutter down and away. Pujols flailed for the strikeout.
Good guy David Murphy lined to center, where Almonte made the catch on the edge of the track.
In an inning that easily could have gone haywire for the Tribe and set a bad tone for the game, Tomlin escaped with no runs allowed.
Trout led off the fourth with a single. The Angels trailed, 2-0.
Pujols took an 85-mph first pitch for a called strike. (It had the movement of a changeup, but finesse pitcher Tomlin couldn't possibly have opened with a changeup to the righty Pujols, could he? Even for Tomlin, that is beyond bold.) Tomlin threw a similar pitch (86) to the outer third and too-eager Pujols pulled off it and fouled. Tomlin shocked Pujols yet again, this time with an 0-2 fastball, and Pujols flied to left. Location -- inner half, below the knees -- was the key.
Murphy struck out swinging at a 1-2 cut piece. C.J. Cron lined a first-pitch fastball (89) to right, where Chisenhall made the catch.
Trout was stranded at first. Tomlin simply had refused to allow Trout to get a decent lead by throwing over repeatedly and by altering delivery times. The side benefit of the cat-and-mouse was to throw off the rhythm and timing of Pujols and Murphy.
Pujols's final at-bat against Tomlin occurred with one run in, Trout on second (after a double), and one out in the sixth. Pujols took a cutter down and away and swung through a cutter. Tomlin threw a fastball (89) off the outside corner at the knees, and Pujols shattered his bat while flying to center.
Murphy flied to left. The Angels trailed, 6-1.
Tomlin gave up a leadoff single to Kaleb Cowart in the eighth. Zach McAllister relieved. Later in the inning, Cowart scored on Trout's RBI single.
