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Indians turn to Tomlin in battle with Orioles

Jul 15, 2011 - 2:50 PM (Sports Network) - Cleveland Indians starter Josh Tomlin will try to keep his unbeaten streak intact tonight in the second test of a four-game series against the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards.

Tomlin is 3-0 with a 3.00 earned run average in his last five starts and is coming off a no-decision versus Toronto. In a 5-4 loss to the Blue Jays at Progressive Field last Saturday, Tomlin was reached for four runs -- three earned -- and seven hits in six innings.

The right-hander is 10-4 in 18 starts this season to go along with a 3.81 ERA, and will face Baltimore for the first time since an 8-3 win on April 16 in Cleveland. Tomlin allowed two hits in six innings of that one to improve to 1-1 in two career starts against the Orioles.

Justin Masterson was the beneficiary of an 8-4 outburst in Thursday's series opener, as he earned the win despite surrendering four runs and eight hits in six innings. Masterson also fanned eight batters and walked one.

Carlos Santana belted a two-run homer and drove in three runs, while Asdrubal Cabrera added a solo home run and finished the game 2-for-5 with two RBI for the Indians, who are tied with Detroit atop the AL Central standings and ended a three-game losing streak. The Tribe have won seven of 12 games overall.

"The way things are going this is probably going to go all the way down to the end because we play amongst ourselves for the last month and a half," Indians manager Manny Acta said.

Acta's club will also visit Minnesota for four games on this eight-game trek.

Meanwhile, the Orioles are mired in an eight-game slide and have lost 13 of 14 games. They opened a 10-game homestand versus the Indians, Red Sox and Angels on a poor note last night, as Jeremy Guthrie fell to 3-13 on the season after he allowed six runs and five hits in five innings of work.

"Things aren't going right for any of us right now," said Guthrie. "It's been a tough stretch for us lately and we just have to get things back to the way they should be."

Nick Markakis hit a two-run single and Craig Tatum was 2-for-4 with a run scored for the Orioles, who have dropped four in a row at home. Markakis is one hit away for 1,000 in his career and has a hit in 28 of his past 30 games. O's veteran slugger Vladimir Guerrero was out of Thursday's lineup due to a sore right hand and could be back tonight. Guerrero was hit on the hand by a pitch Sunday.

Baltimore will have manager Buck Showalter back in the dugout after he served a one-game suspension for his role in a bench-clearing fracas against Boston on July 8 at Fenway Park.

Jake Arrieta hopes to welcome back Showalter with a win when he takes the mound Friday night. Arrieta is aiming for his 10th win of the campaign, but has dropped two straight and three of his last four starts. In a 10-4 loss at Boston on July 7, Arrieta gave up five runs -- four earned -- and six hits in 4 1/3 innings. He walked four and struck out just one batter.

Arrieta, a right-hander, is 5-2 in nine starts at Camden Yards this season and will face Cleveland for only the second time in his career. Arrieta barely defeated the Tribe in a 14-8 road victory last August 10, when he was hit for six runs, five of which were earned, and six hits in six innings.

Cleveland swept a three-game home series versus Baltimore from April 15-17 and has won five straight and 14 of the previous 20 meetings between the teams.