Indians' winning streak snapped at five

Mike Redmond grounds out to right field with bases loaded in sixth inning as Indians lose to Athletics, 3-0, Friday night.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The ball landed in the outfield grass with the bases loaded.

The crowd roared in anticipation of a run and a sixth-inning rally continuing.

Two problems: Indians catcher Mike Redmond did not hit it all that far, and he is speed-challenged.

Right fielder Ryan Sweeney, positioned like a rover in softball, threw out Redmond at first to thwart a potential rally in the sixth inning as the Athletics defeated the Tribe, 3-0, Friday night at Progressive Field.

The Indians (31-48) had their winning streak snapped at five.

The Athletics, led by lefty Gio Gonzalez, busted several other significant Tribe streaks.

Matt LaPorta went 1-for-3 with a walk but did not homer. He had gone deep the previous three games.

A Tribe loss meant its starter did not earn a victory for the first time in six games. Right-hander Mitch Talbot gave up three runs (two earned) on five hits in 5 1/3 innings.

But the Indians did extend their extra-base-hit streak to 28 games when Shin-Soo Choo doubled to left with two outs in the seventh.

Choo was the last batter to face Gonzalez, who allowed five hits.

Choo exited the game late. He might have jammed his wrist when he attempted to make a diving catch in the eighth.

Gonzalez carried a one-hitter into the sixth and led, 3-0.

Jhonny Peralta, Matt LaPorta and Jayson Nix singled with two outs to load the bases. Redmond hit a liner to right that dropped with plenty of room to spare, but Sweeney made the one-hop pick and threw out Redmond by a step.

Score it GO 9-3.

Redmond started at catcher and Carlos Santana at designated hitter.

The Tribe's only hit through five was an infield single by Nix in the fourth. Third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff dived to his left to smother the sharp grounder, hopped to his feet and threw wide of first. Daric Barton was forced to leave the bag to catch it. An on-target throw would have gotten Nix, but the effort Kouzmanoff had made to stop the ball gave official scorer Chuck Murr the leeway to rule hit.

Oakland took a 1-0 lead in the first.

Former Indian Coco Crisp led off with a seemingly innocuous grounder to short. Jason Donald mishandled it. Daric Barton singled, Crisp advancing to second. Former Indians prospect Kouzmanoff struck out swinging at a 76-mph pitch.

Kurt Suzuki ripped a one-hopper up the middle, where Donald laid out to snare the ball and flip to second baseman Jayson Nix. Suzuki barely beat the relay.

Mitch Talbot walked Sweeney to load the bases and Jack Cust to drive in a run. The fourth ball to Cust just missed off the outside corner.

Pitching coach Tim Belcher visited the mound. Talbot had thrown 27 pitches.

Talbot bowed his neck and retired Mark Ellis on a foul fly to right, Choo doing a good job of getting to the spot and setting himself at the railing.

Gonzalez walked back-to-back batters in the second and third innings. In the second, the wildness happened with two outs. Mike Redmond flied out. In the third, it happened with one out. Santana struck out looking and Austin Kearns flied out.

The Athletics knocked out Talbot in the sixth and surged ahead, 3-0.

With one out, Suzuki had an infield single to third. An exceptional play was required by Jhonny Peralta.

Suzuki moved to second on Sweeney's single. Cust walked for the third time, the fourth ball coming on Talbot's 99th pitch.

Ellis made him pay on No. 100, lining a two-run double to left-center for a 3-0 cushion. Talbot's fastball veered into Ellis's swing plane.

Tony Sipp relieved and eventually escaped a bases-loaded jam with a strikeout.