Cleveland @ Kansas City preview
Kauffman Stadium
Last Meeting ( Aug 17, 2010 ) Cleveland 1, Kansas City 2
When Joakim Soria gave up a leadoff single in the ninth inning and his team holding a one-run lead Tuesday night, it could have been white-knuckle time for the Kansas City Royals' closer.
Not for Soria, though. For in another lost season for the Royals, Soria has been unflinching in his role at the back end of Kansas City's bullpen.
He easily worked out of the mild jam Tuesday night, inducing a groundout before striking out Shin-Soo Choo and Travis Hafner - Cleveland's No. 3 and 4 hitters - to preserve the Royals' 2-1 victory over the Indians.
It was the 34th save in 36 chances this season for Soria, tying him for the American League lead. The 26-year-old right-hander has converted 27 consecutive save opportunities and his last blown save came more than three months ago on May 6.
Pretty fair numbers for a team that has posted just 50 wins on the season and escaped the cellar of the AL Central by virtue of the series-opening win over Cleveland.
The Royals will look to keep the Indians in their rear-view mirror when they send journeyman left-hander Bruce Chen to the mound Wednesday night in the second of the three-game series.
Chen (7-6), forced into the starting rotation due to injuries, has given Kansas City more than it could possibly have hoped for from a pitcher who has been with 10 different teams, was out of baseball in 2008 and was coming off a 1-6 season in 2009.
The Indians, on the other hand, have much higher expectations for tonight’s starter, Fausto Carmona (10-9).
A 19-game winner in 2007, Carmona has since struggled to find any consistency, winning eight and five games over the next two seasons.
The 26-year-old right-hander has shown flashes of brilliance this season, going 3-0 in his first four outings of the year and reeling off three straight wins in mid-July.
Yet in his last four starts, he is 1-3, allowing 17 runs and 37 hits in 23 innings. One positive for Carmona is that he is 5-2 lifetime against Kansas City in 12 appearances, including 10 starts.
Alex Gordon has been the Royals’ best hitter against Carmona, batting .500 (8-for-16), but the red-hot Yuniesky Betancourt is hitless in five at-bats against the Dominican righty.
Betancourt hit a solo homer – his fifth in nine games – in Tuesday’s win and is batting .412 (14-for-34) in his last 12 games.
Wilson Betemit also homered Tuesday, giving him eight hits in his last 17 at-bats.