For the 2nd consecutive night, the Indians battled the defending American League champions before faltering as the 2 teams neared the finish line.
On Friday evening, a bullpen meltdown turned a close game into a laugher, and the Tribe was dealt a lopsided defeat.
Trailing 2-1 in the 7th inning, Justin Masterson issued a walk and allowed a bloop single following a routine groundout. Cleveland manager Manny Acta, sensing that his starter was beginning to waver, summoned Tony Sipp from the bullpen. The 1st batter Sipp faced was Josh Hamilton, and the fomer AL Most Valuable Player blasted a 3-run homer over the right field wall.
Because the 2 runners for which Masterson was responsible came around to score on Hamilton's home run, Masterson's final numbers were not as good as they could have been. Masterson yielded 4 tallies in 6 1/3 frames, and the loss was his 4th. At 1 point this season, Masterson was 5-0, but he has not earned a win since.
Nelson Cruz later added a 2-run blast, and the Rangers scored a grand total of 9 runs in the final 3 innings of play.
Alexi Ogando hurled 8 frames of 1-run baseball to earn the victory. Ogando remains unbeaten on the year at 6-0.
Asdrubal Cabrera's 11th homer, a solo shot in the 9th, made the outcome of the contest slightly more respectable.
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| Carlos Santana tags out Mike Napoli at the plate in the 2nd inning |
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