video thumbnail

CWS@CLE: Masterson gets double play to end inning

The Indians left Cleveland a week and a half ago sitting in last place in the American League Central, heading into an early nine-game road trip.

Maybe a bit of time away from home was all they needed.

Cleveland can move into first place on Sunday with a Detroit loss and a win over the A's, which would complete the Indians' first sweep in Oakland since April of 2000.

The Indians send Justin Masterson to the mound with a chance to finish their road trip with an 8-1 record. He'll be opposed by Oakland righty Tyson Ross, who will be celebrating his 25th birthday.

"I don't think you could plan it any better," said Indians manager Manny Acta. "I was envisioning playing over .500, since we didn't have a good homestand. But winning the three series is fantastic. One of them by a sweep. We're pretty happy with the way things have gone so far."

Cleveland has held the A's to four runs in the first two games of the series. To continue the solid pitching, Masterson will have to put a halt to his struggles in Oakland, where he has allowed 12 runs in 12 innings.

Masterson pitched very well in his first two starts of the season, but he was hit hard by Seattle his last time out, allowing eight runs in 3 2/3 innings.

Ross had a solid outing against the Angels after being recalled from Triple-A Sacramento, and he is looking to back that up with another strong performance on Sunday.

He allowed just two runs over six innings, striking out three and walking none. Ross had been struggling with his control and command, but he apparently worked things out while in the Minor Leagues.

"I think it was more of a mental adjustment, more so than anything physical," Ross said. "I just tried to attack the hitters more often earlier on in the counts, and just really let my movement take over and try to induce some ground balls."

He did just that on Tuesday, allowing 12 grounders and just one fly ball. The key, Ross said, was keeping it simple.

"Sometimes, I try to be too fine and make a perfect pitch, rather than a well-executed pitch," Ross said. "That's good enough."

Indians: Hannahan stays hot
With two more hits in Saturday's game against Oakland, Jack Hannahan continues to be a reliable presence toward the bottom of the Indians' batting order. He is hitting .342 this season, with 11 RBIs and a .922 OPS.

"He's very confident, right now," manager Manny Acta said. "Lefty, righty, it doesn't matter who's out there. He's giving us good at-bats."

• Cleveland has scored more than half of its runs this season with two outs. Of the 73 times the Indians have touched home, 37 have come with two down.

• The Indians are looking for their first sweep of the A's since they took a three-game set in Cleveland from May 13-15, 2008.

A's: Godfrey demoted, Figueroa debuts
The A's called up lefty reliever Pedro Figueroa on Saturday and, to clear room, optioned starter Graham Godfrey to Sacramento. The move came as a bit of a surprise for Godfrey, who is 0-3 with a 5.06 ERA in three starts and has walked seven batters in 16 innings.

"Even with the walks, I don't think I gave up a hit until the fourth inning [on Friday]," Godfrey said. "The stuff was there, and I think every outing there's been quite a few positives. It hasn't been anything that's been devastating, it's just a couple plays here and there, some bad luck, some timely hitting. It's just how it is. I look forward to helping the team out when the time comes."

The 26-year-old Figueroa made his big league debut with a scoreless ninth inning on Saturday. With Sacramento this season, he had worked seven scoreless innings.

• The 47 runs Oakland has scored this season are the fewest ever by an Oakland team through 16 games. The previous low was 50 in 1970.

• The A's have 13 home runs already this season. They did not hit their 13th home run until game No. 27 last year.

Worth noting
• Six of the last 14 meetings between Oakland and Cleveland have been decided by one run. The Indians have won all six.

• Indians closer Chris Perez lowered his ERA to 0.82 against the A's with his save on Saturday -- his sixth of the season and the sixth of his career against Oakland.

MLB.com Comments