GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: AL: CLEVELAND (67-54) at TAMPA BAY (46-75)

AL: CLEVELAND at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">AL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
CLEVELAND 0 3 0 0 1 1 1 2 0 8 15 0
TAMPA BAY 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 3 0 (BOT 9)

CURRENT PITCHERS: CLE - JENSEN LEWIS
TAM - BRIAN STOKES

DUE UP FOR TAMPA BAY: A IWAMURA (.286, 0-FOR-3)
C CRAWFORD (.317, 1-FOR-3)
B UPTON (.314, 0-FOR-2, BB)</div>

 

AL: CLEVELAND at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">CLEVELAND (8) VS TAMPA BAY (1) - MID 9TH - IN PROGRESS

CLEVELAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
K Lofton lf 4 0 2 1 0 0 2 .295
a-J Michaels ph-lf 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .269
C Blake 3b 5 0 1 2 0 2 3 .265
G Sizemore cf 5 1 2 1 0 1 1 .279
V Martinez c 5 0 1 0 0 0 1 .304
T Hafner dh 3 2 1 0 1 1 0 .254
c-C Gomez ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .307
R Garko 1b 4 1 3 1 0 0 1 .309
J Peralta ss 5 1 2 0 0 1 3 .275
T Nixon rf 3 0 1 0 0 1 4 .259
b-F Gutierrez ph-rf 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 .284
A Cabrera 2b 4 2 2 3 0 0 3 .263

Totals 40 8 15 8 2 8 21

a-struck out swinging for K Lofton in the 8th; b-walked for T Nixon in the
8th; c-struck out swinging for T Hafner in the 9th.

BATTING: 2B - R Garko 2 (23, J Hammel, J Switzer); A Cabrera (2, J Switzer). HR
- A Cabrera (1, 2nd inning off J Hammel 2 on, 2 Out), G Sizemore (21, 5th
inning off J Hammel 0 on, 1 Out). RBI - A Cabrera 3 (4), G Sizemore (67), K
Lofton (26), R Garko (46), C Blake 2 (58). 2-out RBI - A Cabrera 3, K Lofton, R
Garko, C Blake 2. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - K Lofton 1, C Blake
2. GIDP - J Peralta. Team LOB - 8.

FIELDING: DP: 2 (J Peralta-R Garko, C Blake-A Cabrera-R Garko).


TAMPA BAY ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
A Iwamura 3b 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 .286
C Crawford lf 3 0 1 0 0 1 0 .317
B Upton cf 2 1 0 0 1 0 1 .314
C Pena 1b 3 0 1 1 0 1 0 .263
D Young rf 3 0 0 0 0 1 1 .293
B Harris 2b 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 .293
J Gomes dh 2 0 0 0 1 1 1 .262
D Navarro c 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 .204
B Zobrist ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .155
a-J Wilson ph-ss 3 0 0 0 0 1 2 .266

Totals 25 1 3 1 2 6 7

a-grounded to shortstop for B Zobrist in the 3rd.

BATTING: 2B - C Pena (23, J Westbrook). RBI - C Pena (78). 2-out RBI - C Pena.
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - D Young 1. GIDP - J Wilson, B Upton.
Team LOB - 2.

FIELDING: Outfield assists - D Young (R Garko at 3rd base). DP: 1 (J Wilson-B
Harris-C Pena).


----------------------------------------------------
CLEVELAND - 030 011 120 -- 8
TAMPA BAY - 000 000 10 -- 1
----------------------------------------------------

CLEVELAND ip h r er bb so hr era
J Westbrook 7 2 1 1 2 4 0 4.75
J Lewis 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 2.70

TAMPA BAY ip h r er bb so hr era
J Hammel 5 8 4 4 0 4 2 6.70
J Salas 1 2 1 1 0 1 0 3.42
J Switzer 1 1/3 2 3 3 2 1 0 18.00
B Stokes 1 2/3 3 0 0 0 2 0 7.24

WP - J Salas. HBP - R Garko (by J Salas). Pitches-strikes: J Westbrook 89-56;
J Lewis 15-13; J Hammel 105-69; J Salas 25-16; J Switzer 29-15; B Stokes 38-25.
Ground balls-fly balls: J Westbrook 12-5; J Lewis 0-1; J Hammel 4-7; J Salas
0-2; J Switzer 0-2; B Stokes 3-0. Batters faced: J Westbrook 23; J Lewis 4; J
Hammel 23; J Salas 6; J Switzer 7; B Stokes 7.

UMPIRES: HP--Tom Hallion. 1B--Mike Estabrook. 2B--James Hoye. 3B--Phil Cuzzi.

Weather: INDOORS.</div>

 

AL: CLEVELAND at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">AL AT TAMPA BAY - PITCHING CHANGE
CLE: AARON FULTZ (3-2, 3.28) STARTING THE 9TH
CURRENT SCORE: CLEVELAND 8, TAMPA BAY 1

DUE UP FOR TAMPABAY: A IWAMURA (.286, 0-FOR-3)</div>

 

AL: CLEVELAND at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">AL AT TAMPA BAY - MID INNING UPDATE
PLAY: A Fultz relieved J Lewis.
SITUATION: 0 RUNS IN, NONE ON, 0 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: CLEVELAND 8
TAMPA BAY 1 BOTTOM, 9TH

DUE UP FOR TAMPA BAY: A Iwamura (.286, 0-FOR-3)</div>

 

AL: CLEVELAND at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">AL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
CLEVELAND 0 3 0 0 1 1 1 2 0 8 15 0
TAMPA BAY 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 3 0 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: CLE - JAKE WESTBROOK, JENSEN LEWIS (8TH), AARON FULTZ (9TH) AND
VICTOR MARTINEZ

TAM - JASON HAMMEL, JUAN SALAS (6TH), JON SWITZER
(7TH), BRIAN STOKES (8TH) AND DIONER NAVARRO

HOME RUNS: CLE - ASDRUBAL CABRERA (1) OFF JASON HAMMEL IN THE 2ND, 2 ON
GRADY SIZEMORE (21) OFF JASON HAMMEL IN THE 5TH, 0 ON

TAM - NONE</div>

 

AL: CLEVELAND at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">AL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
CLEVELAND 0 3 0 0 1 1 1 2 0 8 15 0
TAMPA BAY 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 3 0 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: CLE - JAKE WESTBROOK, JENSEN LEWIS (8TH), AARON FULTZ (9TH) AND
VICTOR MARTINEZ

TAM - JASON HAMMEL, JUAN SALAS (6TH), JON SWITZER
(7TH), BRIAN STOKES (8TH) AND DIONER NAVARRO


WP - JAKE WESTBROOK (4-7)
LP - JASON HAMMEL (1-3)
SAVE - NONE

HOME RUNS: CLE - ASDRUBAL CABRERA (1) OFF JASON HAMMEL IN THE 2ND, 2 ON
GRADY SIZEMORE (21) OFF JASON HAMMEL IN THE 5TH, 0 ON

TAM - NONE


TIME: 3:03 ATT: 24,397

PROBABLES: CLE - C.C. SABATHIA (14-6, 3.48)
TAM - JAMES SHIELDS (9-8, 4.22)</div>

 

AL: CLEVELAND at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">CLEVELAND (8) VS TAMPA BAY (1) - FINAL

CLEVELAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
K Lofton lf 4 0 2 1 0 0 2 .295
a-J Michaels ph-lf 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .269
C Blake 3b 5 0 1 2 0 2 3 .265
G Sizemore cf 5 1 2 1 0 1 1 .279
V Martinez c 5 0 1 0 0 0 1 .304
T Hafner dh 3 2 1 0 1 1 0 .254
c-C Gomez ph-dh 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .307
R Garko 1b 4 1 3 1 0 0 1 .309
J Peralta ss 5 1 2 0 0 1 3 .275
T Nixon rf 3 0 1 0 0 1 4 .259
b-F Gutierrez ph-rf 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 .284
A Cabrera 2b 4 2 2 3 0 0 3 .263

Totals 40 8 15 8 2 8 21

a-struck out swinging for K Lofton in the 8th; b-walked for T Nixon in the
8th; c-struck out swinging for T Hafner in the 9th.

BATTING: 2B - R Garko 2 (23, J Hammel, J Switzer); A Cabrera (2, J Switzer). HR
- A Cabrera (1, 2nd inning off J Hammel 2 on, 2 Out), G Sizemore (21, 5th
inning off J Hammel 0 on, 1 Out). RBI - A Cabrera 3 (4), G Sizemore (67), K
Lofton (26), R Garko (46), C Blake 2 (58). 2-out RBI - A Cabrera 3, K Lofton, R
Garko, C Blake 2. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - K Lofton 1, C Blake
2. GIDP - J Peralta. Team LOB - 8.

FIELDING: DP: 2 (J Peralta-R Garko, C Blake-A Cabrera-R Garko).


TAMPA BAY ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
A Iwamura 3b 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 .285
C Crawford lf 4 0 1 0 0 1 0 .316
B Upton cf 3 1 0 0 1 0 1 .313
C Pena 1b 3 0 1 1 0 1 0 .263
D Young rf 3 0 0 0 0 1 1 .293
B Harris 2b 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 .293
J Gomes dh 2 0 0 0 1 1 1 .262
D Navarro c 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 .204
B Zobrist ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .155
a-J Wilson ph-ss 3 0 0 0 0 1 2 .266

Totals 28 1 3 1 2 6 7

a-grounded to shortstop for B Zobrist in the 3rd.

BATTING: 2B - C Pena (23, J Westbrook). RBI - C Pena (78). 2-out RBI - C Pena.
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - D Young 1. GIDP - J Wilson, B Upton.
Team LOB - 2.

FIELDING: Outfield assists - D Young (R Garko at 3rd base). DP: 1 (J Wilson-B
Harris-C Pena).


----------------------------------------------------
CLEVELAND - 030 011 120 -- 8
TAMPA BAY - 000 000 100 -- 1
----------------------------------------------------

CLEVELAND ip h r er bb so hr era
J Westbrook (W, 4-7) 7 2 1 1 2 4 0 4.75
J Lewis 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 2.70
A Fultz 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 3.16

TAMPA BAY ip h r er bb so hr era
J Hammel (L, 1-3) 5 8 4 4 0 4 2 6.70
J Salas 1 2 1 1 0 1 0 3.42
J Switzer 1 1/3 2 3 3 2 1 0 18.00
B Stokes 1 2/3 3 0 0 0 2 0 7.24

WP - J Salas. HBP - R Garko (by J Salas). Pitches-strikes: J Westbrook 89-56;
J Lewis 15-13; A Fultz 9-7; J Hammel 105-69; J Salas 25-16; J Switzer 29-15; B
Stokes 38-25. Ground balls-fly balls: J Westbrook 12-5; J Lewis 0-1; A Fultz
1-2; J Hammel 4-7; J Salas 0-2; J Switzer 0-2; B Stokes 3-0. Batters faced: J
Westbrook 23; J Lewis 4; A Fultz 3; J Hammel 23; J Salas 6; J Switzer 7; B
Stokes 7.

UMPIRES: HP--Tom Hallion. 1B--Mike Estabrook. 2B--James Hoye. 3B--Phil Cuzzi.

T--3:03. Att--24,397.
Weather: INDOORS</div>

 

AL: CLEVELAND at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
AL
CLEVELAND 8
TAMPA BAY 1 FINAL</div>

 

AL: CLEVELAND at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CLEVELAND (8) AT TAMPA BAY (1) - HOW THEY SCORED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CLEVELAND 2ND: T Hafner singled to right center. R Garko flied out to
right. J Peralta singled to left, T Hafner to second. T Nixon struck out
swinging. A Cabrera homered to right, T Hafner and J Peralta scored. K Lofton
singled to left. C Blake flied out to center. (3 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors)
CLEVELAND 3, TAMPA BAY 0.

CLEVELAND 5TH: C Blake struck out looking. G Sizemore homered to right
center. V Martinez popped out to catcher. T Hafner struck out looking.
(1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 4, TAMPA BAY 0.

CLEVELAND 6TH: J Salas relieved J Hammel. R Garko hit by pitch. J Peralta
singled to right, R Garko to second. T Nixon flied out to left. A Cabrera
flied out to left. K Lofton singled to right, R Garko scored, J Peralta to
second, J Peralta to third advancing on throw. K Lofton to second on wild
pitch by J Salas. C Blake struck out looking. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors)
CLEVELAND 5, TAMPA BAY 0.

CLEVELAND 7TH: J Switzer relieved J Salas. G Sizemore struck out swinging.
V Martinez flied out to left. T Hafner walked. R Garko doubled to deep right
center, T Hafner scored, R Garko out at third attempting to advance on play.
(1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 6, TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 7TH: A Iwamura struck out swinging. C Crawford grounded out to
shortstop. B Upton walked. C Pena doubled to deep right, B Upton scored.
D Young grounded out to shortstop. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 6, TAMPA BAY 1.

CLEVELAND 8TH: J Peralta popped out to second. F Gutierrez hit for
T Nixon. F Gutierrez walked. A Cabrera doubled to left, F Gutierrez to third.
J Michaels hit for K Lofton. B Stokes relieved J Switzer. J Michaels struck out
swinging. C Blake singled to center, F Gutierrez and A Cabrera scored.
G Sizemore bunt grounded out to pitcher. (2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 8,
TAMPA BAY 1.</div>

 

Indians defeat Devil Rays for seventh consecutive time

<h3>CLEVELAND 8, TAMPA BAY 1</h3>By Brett McMurphy
PA Sportsticker Contributing Writer


ST. PETERSBURG, Florida (Ticker) - Jake Westbrook helped theCleveland Indians continue their dominance over Tampa Bay DevilRays on Saturday.


Westbrook pitched seven strong innings as the Indians belted out15 hits en route to an 8-1 victory over the Devil Rays.

Asdrubal Cabrera and Grady Sizemore each had two hits and a homerun for Indians, who defeated the Devil Rays for the seventhconsecutive time and 14th out of their last 15 meetings datingback to last season.


Westbrook (4-7), who won for the third time in his last fourstarts, did not allow a hit until Carl Crawford singled with oneout in the fourth. Backed by two double plays, the 29-year-oldsinkerballer faced the minimum through 6 2/3 innings beforeallowing a walk to B.J. Upton and an RBI double to Carlos Pena.

Westbrook, who entered with a 7.01 ERA away from Jacobs Field,yielded just two hits and two walks with four strikeouts.

After struggling to just one win through the first four monthsof the season, a span of 13 starts, the righthander is 3-1 witha 1.93 ERA in August.


Cabrera hit his first major league home run off Devil Raysstarter Jason Hammel (1-3) in the second inning to give theIndians an early 3-0 advantage.


Cabrera's three-run homer was more than enough offense against aDevil Rays team that was limited to one run or less for thefifth time in their last six games.


Sizemore added a solo shot in the fifth to extend Cleveland'slead to 4-0.


Aside from his three-run home run, Cabrera, who had his firstmajor league RBI Friday, had a double and scored two runs.

Lofton had an RBI single in the sixth and Ryan Garko drove adouble off the wall in right to give the Indians a 6-0 lead inthe seventh inning.


Casey Blake had a two-run single in the eighth frame to cap thescoring.


Hammel surrendered four runs and eight hits over five innings toremain winless in the first 15 career starts.


With their third consecutive win, the Indians moved 1 1/2 gamesahead of Detroit in the American League Central race. Duringits current winning streak, Cleveland allowed just five runs.

The Devil Rays fell a season-worst 30 games below .500.

 

AL: CLEVELAND at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CLEVELAND (8) AT TAMPA BAY (1) - EVENT LOG
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cleveland Starting Lineups -- K Lofton LF, C Blake 3B, G Sizemore CF,
V Martinez C, T Hafner DH, R Garko 1B, J Peralta SS, T Nixon RF, A Cabrera 2B,
J Westbrook RHP.

Tampa Bay Starting Lineups -- A Iwamura 3B, C Crawford LF, B Upton CF, C Pena 1B,
D Young RF, B Harris 2B, J Gomes DH, D Navarro C, B Zobrist SS, J Hammel RHP.

Umpires -- Tom Hallion (HP), Mike Estabrook (1B), James Hoye (2B), Phil Cuzzi (3B).

Gametime Weather: INDOORS.


CLEVELAND 1ST: K Lofton flied out to center. C Blake grounded out to
shortstop. G Sizemore singled to right center. V Martinez popped out to
shortstop. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 0, TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 1ST: A Iwamura grounded out to first. C Crawford struck out
swinging. B Upton grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
CLEVELAND 0, TAMPA BAY 0.

CLEVELAND 2ND: T Hafner singled to right center. R Garko flied out to
right. J Peralta singled to left, T Hafner to second. T Nixon struck out
swinging. A Cabrera homered to right, T Hafner and J Peralta scored. K Lofton
singled to left. C Blake flied out to center. (3 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors)
CLEVELAND 3, TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 2ND: C Pena flied out to left. D Young struck out swinging.
B Harris grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 3,
TAMPA BAY 0.

CLEVELAND 3RD: G Sizemore grounded out to second. V Martinez flied out to
right. T Hafner grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 3,
TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 3RD: J Gomes walked. D Navarro flied out to center. J Wilson
hit for B Zobrist. J Wilson inherited a 1-2 count. J Wilson grounded into double play, shortstop to first, J Gomes out at second.(0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 3,
TAMPA BAY 0.

CLEVELAND 4TH: J Wilson at shortstop. R Garko doubled to deep right.
J Peralta struck out swinging. T Nixon singled to center, R Garko to third.
A Cabrera grounded into fielder's choice to first, R Garko out at home, T Nixon
to second. K Lofton fouled out to left. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 3,
TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 4TH: A Iwamura flied out to center. C Crawford singled to
center. B Upton grounded into double play, third to second to first,
C Crawford out at second.(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 3, TAMPA BAY 0.

CLEVELAND 5TH: C Blake struck out looking. G Sizemore homered to right
center. V Martinez popped out to catcher. T Hafner struck out looking.
(1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 4, TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 5TH: C Pena struck out swinging. D Young grounded out to third.
B Harris grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 4, TAMPA BAY 0.

CLEVELAND 6TH: J Salas relieved J Hammel. R Garko hit by pitch. J Peralta
singled to right, R Garko to second. T Nixon flied out to left. A Cabrera
flied out to left. K Lofton singled to right, R Garko scored, J Peralta to
second, J Peralta to third advancing on throw. K Lofton to second on wild
pitch by J Salas. C Blake struck out looking. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors)
CLEVELAND 5, TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 6TH: J Gomes flied out to left. D Navarro flied out to left.
J Wilson grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 5, TAMPA BAY 0.

CLEVELAND 7TH: J Switzer relieved J Salas. G Sizemore struck out swinging.
V Martinez flied out to left. T Hafner walked. R Garko doubled to deep right
center, T Hafner scored, R Garko out at third attempting to advance on play.
(1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 6, TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 7TH: A Iwamura struck out swinging. C Crawford grounded out to
shortstop. B Upton walked. C Pena doubled to deep right, B Upton scored.
D Young grounded out to shortstop. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 6, TAMPA BAY 1.

CLEVELAND 8TH: J Peralta popped out to second. F Gutierrez hit for
T Nixon. F Gutierrez walked. A Cabrera doubled to left, F Gutierrez to third.
J Michaels hit for K Lofton. B Stokes relieved J Switzer. J Michaels struck out
swinging. C Blake singled to center, F Gutierrez and A Cabrera scored.
G Sizemore bunt grounded out to pitcher. (2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 8,
TAMPA BAY 1.

TAMPA BAY 8TH: J Michaels in left field. F Gutierrez in right field.
J Lewis relieved J Westbrook. B Harris singled to left. J Gomes struck out
swinging. D Navarro popped out to second. J Wilson struck out looking.
(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 8, TAMPA BAY 1.

CLEVELAND 9TH: V Martinez singled to right. C Gomez hit for T Hafner.
C Gomez struck out swinging. R Garko singled to right, V Martinez to second.
J Peralta grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, R Garko out at
second.(0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 8, TAMPA BAY 1.

TAMPA BAY 9TH: A Fultz relieved J Lewis. A Iwamura grounded out to first.
C Crawford flied out to left. B Upton flied out to right. (0 Runs, 0 Hits,
0 Errors) CLEVELAND 8, TAMPA BAY 1.</div>

 

Indians defeat Devil Rays for seventh consecutive time

<h3>CLEVELAND 8, TAMPA BAY 1</h3>By Brett McMurphy
PA Sportsticker Contributing Writer


ST. PETERSBURG, Florida (Ticker) -- Jake Westbrook helped theCleveland Indians continue their dominance over Tampa Bay DevilRays on Saturday.


Westbrook pitched seven strong innings as the Indians belted out15 hits en route to an 8-1 victory over the Devil Rays.

Asdrubal Cabrera and Grady Sizemore each had two hits and a homerun for Indians, who defeated the Devil Rays for the seventhconsecutive time and 14th out of their last 15 meetings datingback to last season.


"They're never easy," Cleveland manager Eric Wedge said. "TampaBay's an explosive team. We don't assume anything. Weanticipate it's going to a be a tough game, and there have beena lot of tight ones."


Westbrook (4-7), who won for the third time in his last fourstarts, did not allow a hit until Carl Crawford singled with oneout in the fourth. Backed by two double plays, the 29-year-oldsinkerballer faced the minimum through 6 2/3 innings beforeallowing a walk to B.J. Upton and an RBI double to Carlos Pena.

Westbrook, who entered with a 7.01 ERA away from Jacobs Field,yielded just two hits and two walks with four strikeouts.

After struggling to just one win through the first four monthsof the season, a span of 13 starts, the righthander is 3-1 witha 1.93 ERA in August.


"I feel I pitched well, the defense behind me played great,"Westbrook said. "I was getting ahead in the count and pitchingto contact. Every win counts and every win is a big one."

Cabrera hit his first major league home run off Devil Raysstarter Jason Hammel (1-3) in the second inning to give theIndians an early 3-0 advantage.


"That's my job," Cabrera said. "I'm glad to help my team. Iwas waiting for that pitch."


Cabrera's three-run homer was more than enough offense against aDevil Rays team that was limited to one run or less for thefifth time in their last six games.


"All I can say is, that happens sometimes," Crawford said."It's late August, maybe guys are a little tired right now.Westbrook kept the ball down tonight real good. We're justwaiting to catch that second wind."


Sizemore added a solo shot in the fifth to extend Cleveland'slead to 4-0.


Aside from his three-run home run, Cabrera, who had his firstmajor league RBI Friday, had a double and scored two runs.

Lofton had an RBI single in the sixth and Ryan Garko drove adouble off the wall in right to give the Indians a 6-0 lead inthe seventh inning.


Casey Blake had a two-run single in the eighth frame to cap thescoring.


Hammel surrendered four runs and eight hits over five innings toremain winless in the first 15 career starts.


"If you're going to get beat, get beat throwing in the zone,"Hammel said. "Half an inch here, half an inch there can make adifference."


With their third consecutive win, the Indians moved 1 1/2 gamesahead of Detroit in the American League Central race. Duringits current winning streak, Cleveland allowed just five runs.

The Devil Rays fell a season-worst 30 games below .500.

"Since (playing) Detroit, we haven't been doing very well,"Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon said. "I like the effort, we'rejust not hitting right now. We've run into a stretch wherewe're facing good pitching. But that's no excuse."