12-20-2019, 06:20 AM
BALTIMORE -- Corey Kluber had command of his pitches, worked the strike zone effectively and regularly got ahead in the count. Ubaldo Jimenez was pretty much the opposite of that in a miserable performance against his former team. Kluber struck out nine in seven innings, and the Cleveland Indians beat Jimenez and the Baltimore Orioles 9-0 Saturday for their fifth win in six games. Carlos Santana homered and walked three times for the Indians, who took control with a five-run fifth and pulled away by scoring four in the seventh. Kluber (5-3) became the first pitcher in the majors this season to have five straight outings with at least eight strikeouts. He gave up five hits, walked two and did not allow a runner past second base. "Aside from throwing a lot of strikes, the biggest thing is working inside and outside," Kluber said. "I think the key is just working ahead. Getting ahead early and staying ahead in the count and not really letting them get comfortable up there." Kluber is 3-0 with a 2.02 ERA and 48 strikeouts in five starts this month. In this one, the right-hander dominated an offence that had produced 38 runs and 62 hits in its previous five games. "Our game and our league, being able to be consistent is such a huge factor in becoming a really good major-league pitcher or player," Indians manager Terry Francona said. "Thats what Klubes is doing. ... This is not like a shock or a big surprise. This has been coming." Jimenez (2-6) matched zeroes with Kluber until the fifth inning, when the first-year Oriole was pulled without getting an out. Jimenez tied two undesirable season highs, giving up five runs and walking five, in four-plus innings. "It looked like I was just missing a little bit of the strike zone," the right-hander said. "Im not that far away, but Im missing. Im falling behind in the count, getting myself into trouble. Today was walking the leadoff guy." Manager Buck Showalter suggested that Jimenez didnt get strike calls from home plate umpire Rob Drake on close pitches, and Jimenez agreed. "I think I threw a lot of good pitches, but I dont know the umpire. He didnt like it," the pitcher said. "Theres nothing I can do right now." Jimenez spent 2 1/2 seasons with Cleveland before signing a $50 million, four-year contract with Baltimore in February. "I didnt even think about who I was facing," he said. "When you get to the mound you are trying to get everybody out, it doesnt matter who it is. You have to do your job." Jimenez struck out three and walked three in the first two innings, keeping the Indians hitless but using 52 pitches to do so. "We got his pitch count up a little bit," Indians shortstop Justin Sellers said. "He got a little tired and he started leaving balls out over the plate." Jimenez faced the minimum six batters over the next two innings, allowing an infield single to Michael Bourn before getting Michael Brantley to hit into a double play. Then came the fifth inning, when seven batters reached before Baltimore got an out. A walk, two singles and a throwing error by second baseman Jonathan Schoop produced the games first run, and a single by Mike Aviles made it 2-0 and chased Jimenez. T.J. McFarland entered with the bases loaded and hit Brantley with a pitch to force in a run, and Lonnie Chisenhall followed with an RBI single. The final run of the inning scored on a double-play grounder. In the seventh, Brantley singled and Chisenhall doubled before Ryan Raburn hit a two-run double. One out later, Santana hit reliever Brad Brachs first pitch over the right-field wall. NOTES: Before the game, the Orioles acquired C Nick Hundley (and cash considerations) from San Diego for LHP Troy Patton. Baltimore also recalled INF Steve Lombardozzi from Triple-A Norfolk. ... Orioles 3B Manny Machado missed a second straight game with a strained groin, but manager Buck Showalter said Machado was available if needed. ... Clevelands Asdrubal Cabrera and Nick Swisher were both rested for a second consecutive game because of sore knees. ... Trevor Bauer (1-1, 2.25 ERA) goes for Cleveland in the series finale against Baltimores Miguel Gonzalez (2-3, 4.53). ... Brantley threw out Steve Clevenger trying to stretch a single for his major league high sixth outfield assist. Brantley also extended his hitting streak to 10 games. ... Baltimore fell to 5-12 in day games, the worst record in the big leagues. Oilers Jerseys 2020 . -- Among the 31 players at the Montreal Canadiens rookie camp, none feels closer to cracking the NHL roster than right winger Aaron Palushaj. Stitched Oilers Jerseys . First, Ivan Nova decided to have season-ending Tommy John elbow surgery. Then Michael Pineda was suspended for 10 games for using pine tar. https://www.cheapoilers.com/ .28 for a combined time of 1:14.70, also an Olympic record. Lee won the gold medal, defending her title from the Vancouver Games. Oilers Jerseys 2021 . -- The Vancouver Whitecaps remained unbeaten with a scoreless draw at the New England Revolution on Saturday. Edmonton Oilers Gear . "It was awesome," he said. Coming off an ugly three-game sweep at the hands of the Yankees, Toronto found itself in a deep hole early after the Reds put an eight spot up on starter Liam Hendriks (six runs in 1 2/3 innings pitched) and Todd Redmond in the second.VERO BEACH, Fla. -- Chad Johnson made a sharp cut to free himself from a defender, and then hauled in a pass at the 53-yard line. Yes, the 53. Football is going to be a little different now for the former NFL star. The receiver who once changed his last name to Ochocinco might be hearing a lot of "O Canada" this summer, and he insists hes humbled for that opportunity. Johnson was on the field with the Montreal Alouettes of the CFL on Tuesday for the start of their three-day minicamp, and theres a very realistic chance that he will be with them when their season starts for real in June. "Its just football. Its football," Johnson said. "Its not about Montreal. Its about the opportunity to be able to play football again, something I love." Its something he lost two years ago. Johnson last appeared in an NFL game during the 2011 season with New England. He was in training camp with the Miami Dolphins -- his hometown team -- the following summer, but his contract was terminated one day after he was charged with misdemeanour domestic battery. A plea deal was eventually worked out, but after a probation violation Johnson wound up going to jail for a few days anyway after a judge objected to the way he slapped his attorney on the backside in celebration. He hasnt played since. "A horrible mistake," Johnson said. "A dream of mine since I was 4 years old was taken from me, rightfully so, by my wrongdoings and I just want to get back to doing something that I love to do, regardless of where it is. Montreal, flag football, back in the street the way I grew up . I just want to play football." The Alouettes have a history of not judging players by their checkered pasts, as evidenced by how they once gave former Nebraska running back Lawrence Phillips a chance on what became a Grey Cup-winning team in Montreal. "Its all business," Alouettes general manager Jim Popp said. "Its real. Hes in great shape. He wants to play and well see how things are." Popp shrugged off the notion that Johnsons presence is a publicity stunt. "None of you would know it was here unless it got tweeted out," Popp said.dddddddddddd And Twitter does play quite a role in this story, since Johnson -- one of the worlds most popular athletes when it comes to social media -- used the power of his 3.6 million followers to help get the Alouettes attention. "Power of Twitter," Johnson said, grinning. The Alouettes were working out at Dodgertown, where some schoolkids were playing baseball on a nearby field. When their game ended, about a dozen of them came over to the football field to chant "Oc-ho-cin-co!" repeatedly. Some fans wearing his old Cincinnati Bengals jerseys watched, as did a couple in Patriots colours. "Like a kid again," Johnson said. He showed Tuesday that he can still run routes, and right there is why Montreal is eager to take a closer look. The CFL game is very much passing-friendly, and that can be at least partially attributed to several rule deviations from the NFL game. Teams in the CFL have only three downs to gain 10 yards instead of four. The field is 10 yards longer from goal line to goal line, is about 10 yards wider, and the end zones are 20 yards deep -- twice as long as those used in high school, college and pro play in the U.S. Montreal quarterback Troy Smith, the former Ohio State standout, said most people dont realize how much talent is in the CFL. And he believes Johnson can make an impact. "I know hes going to bring some fun and excitement to the team," Smith said. In short, even though theres 12 players on the field per team instead of 11, theres plenty of room for offences to manoeuvr. And in Canada, receivers cant be blocked or jammed unless theyre within a yard of the line of scrimmage. Of course, if Johnson heads to the CFL, he wont be exactly getting rich. The salary cap in the CFL is $4.4 million per team -- Johnson has had years where hes made about twice that much by himself. The average salary is around $85,000. "I dont even need a check," Johnson said. "Didnt I give it all away for 12 years straight? Think about it. Did I ever care about money when I played throughout my career? Still dont. I want to have fun. I want to enjoy the game. Thats it." ' ' '