SteemSports Presenter:
SteemSports Editor:
Mookie Betts wasn’t the only American League slugger to blast three home runs on Wednesday afternoon. Indians’ designated hitter Edwin Encarnacion also accomplished the impressive feat in a 12-4 rout of the Rangers.
Encarnacion victimized Rangers’ starter Matt Moore in the first inning, blasting a three-run homer to increase the Tribe’s early lead to 4-0. He was right back at it in the second inning, launching another Moore offering for a two-run shot to center that upped the Indians’ edge to 9-1. That was after Jason Kipnis clubbed a two-run shot of his own earlier in the frame.
The Indians continued their impressive power display in the eighth inning, where Francisco Lindor clubbed a solo homer off of Jesse Chavez. Encarnacion then stepped to the plate and crushed his third home run of the game, a no-doubter to left field that capped off the damage in the ballgame.
He finished the day 3-for-5 with six RBI. It was a very much-needed strong effort from Encarnacion, who even with the strong game is hitting just .191/.264/.445 with nine homers and 16 RBI on the season.
Francisco Lindor went 3-for-5 and scored three runs. His solo homer in the eighth was his fifth of the season. Jason Kipnis went 2-for-4 with a pair of runs scored and three RBI. His two-run blast was his first home run of the season.
On the mound, Corey Kluber earned his fifth victory of the season, limiting the Rangers to three runs on six hits over his seven frames. He racked up six strikeouts on the afternoon and didn’t walk a batter. He has been stellar again this season, compiling a 2.41 ERA, 0.78 WHIP and 53/9 K/BB ratio over 52 ⅓ innings in his seven starts.
It wasn’t pretty on the other side. Rangers’ starter Matt Moore allowed 10 runs on 11 hits over his four innings. He sports a cringe-inducing 7.67 ERA and 1.91 WHIP on the season and could be out of a job soon. Even those in the shallowest of AL-only leagues should avoid the veteran left-hander.
On offense, Joey Gallo continued his power barrage, blasting his 10th home run of the season in a losing effort. While the power has been nice, he’s hitting just .225/.306/.508 with his 10 homers and 22 RBI.
Nomar Mazara also left the yard for the Rangers, clubbing his fifth home run. Juan Centeno got in on the fun as well with a solo shot, his first of the year.
With the win, the Indians improved to 16-13 and still sit three games ahead of the Tigers in the American League Central. On the losing side of the ledger, the disappointing Rangers fall to 12-20 on the season. They were supposed to compete in the American League West this season, but they sit in the cellar of the division and are 8 ½ games back of the Astros.
