The Sports Xchange
May 29, 2017
CLEVELAND -- Home runs by Austin Jackson, Carlos Santana and Edwin Encarnacion, and seven strong innings by Carlos Carrasco lifted the Cleveland Indians to a 5-3 victory over the Oakland A's on Monday at Progressive Field.
Oakland also hit three home runs, by Yonder Alonso, Ryon Healy and Khris Davis.
Carrasco (5-2) gave up two runs and four hits with seven strikeouts and one walk. Cody Allen pitched the ninth to pick up his 14th save.
A's starter Daniel Mengden (0-1) was called up from Triple-A Nashville to make the start, replacing Kendall Graveman, who was placed on the disabled list with a strained right shoulder.
Mengden was not in the game for long. In 3 1/3 innings, he gave up five runs and seven hits. That included giving up three home runs in the span of six batters.
Jackson led off the third inning with a home run, his third of the season, over the right field wall, giving Cleveland a 1-0 lead.
In the fourth, Mengden gave up home runs to the first two hitters of the inning. Santana hit a 3-1 pitch into the seats in right field for his sixth home run. Encarnacion then hit his 10th homer, a mammoth drive over the center field wall that was estimated at 451 feet, boosting the Indians' lead to 3-0.
Jose Ramirez followed Encarnacion's homer with a double into the left-center field gap. Yan Gomes singled, scoring Ramirez to make it 4-0.
Bradley Zimmer then hit a sharp grounder back to the mound that hit Mengden on the left ankle and ricocheted into left field. Gomes advanced to third and Zimmer hustled to second with a double. Ramirez scored on a sacrifice fly by Jackson.
Carrasco held Oakland scoreless on two hits through the first six innings, but in the seventh the A's hit back-to-back home runs to cut the Indians' lead to 5-2. Alonso hit his 14th homer into the seats in right field, and Healy belted his ninth home run, over the left field wall.
Davis hit his 16th home run, off Allen in the ninth, to account for Oakland's final run.
NOTES: In a ceremony before the game, Oakland OF Rajai Davis, whose game-tying home run off Chicago Cubs LHP Aroldis Chapman in the eighth inning of Game 7 of last year's World Series is one of the most famous homers in Indians history, was presented with his American League championship ring. ... A's 1B Yonder Alonso leads the majors with 10 home runs in May. Before this year, Alonso had never hit more than nine home runs in a season. ... The Indians have homered in 14 consecutive games. That is their longest such streak since they homered in 15 consecutive games in June and July 2007. ... RHP Cody Allen has 106 career saves and moved past Jose Mesa (104) into fourth place on the Cleveland franchise list.