He is the first visiting player to hit three home runs at Progressive Field since Dan Johnson of the White Sox on October 3, 2012. On Monday night, the Twins clobbered Danny Salazar for six runs and six hits in two innings.
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The Indians’ inability to beat the Twins is perplexing.
While the Indians got themselves to within two runs of the Twins with the six-run frame, Minnesota added some insurance in the top of the ninth inning. Cleveland starter Carlos Carrasco (7-5) gave up eight runs in the third and fourth innings, which put Cleveland into an 8-0 hole.
Kepler is hitting. 381 (16-for-42) with six home runs, 12 RBIs and 14 runs scored in his past 12 games.
The Cleveland Indians, with their newly-configured bullpen, will host the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday night in the second game of their four-game series. Now they’ve returned that honor to Texas, by pounding Indians pitching. “That’s too long, so we wanted to shake the rust off”. “I’m not that shook up about it”, Francona said. The Yankees snapped a four-game losing streak, and the Mets fell for the sixth time in eight games on their current homestand. Ryan Pressly (6-5) earned the win by tossing 1 1/3 innings.
Abad has a 2.65 ERA in 39 appearances for the Twins.
Twins: RHP Kyle Gibson went six innings and allowed two runs in his last start, a July 28 no-decision against Baltimore.
“I wasn’t trying for home runs”, he said.
Gibson retired Tyler Naquin and Carlos Perez on ground balls, with Abraham Almonte doubling in between.
James Shields (3-6) held the Tigers scoreless for the first four innings, then got hit hard in the fifth.
Encarnacion launched his 29th home run to lead off the fourth – a monstrous shot that bounced off the railroad tracks at Minute Maid Park before landing in left field.
“I think he’s been reluctant to let it loose because he’s anxious he’ll feel something in the elbow”, Francona said. “That turned out to be the case”.
Kepler got one more at bat, his sixth, in the ninth inning, against McAllister, and he singled. With one out in the first inning Mauer walked and Kepler hit the first of his three home runs, giving the Twins a 2-0 lead.
Reliever Carlos Villanueva (2-2) got the win despite allowing two runs in 2 2/3 innings. He landed on the disabled list with a lower back problem a few days later.
For the second straight night, the Twins chased a hard-throwing Indians starter in the early innings.
Cleveland Indians starting pitcher Danny Salazar delivers against the Minnesota Twins during the first inning of a baseball game, Monday, Aug. 1, 2016, in Cleveland.
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Brian Dozier started their rally with a two-run home run in the third. That gave Kepler 15 homers on the year and four in a span of seven at-bats. Jose Ramirez, who has played mostly left field and some third base this year, will replace Uribe as the everyday third baseman. Sano’s came after an intentional walk to Kepler, one of his career-high three walks.
