White Sox 1 - 2 Guardians
Final/10
  for this game

Indians try to right ship against Sale

Sep 5, 2014 - 3:03 PM (SportsNetwork.com) - When you're a team in need of a momentum swing, Chris Sale is among the last pitchers you want to see on an opposing mound.

Still, that's what the Cleveland Indians are up against on Friday night when they host the visiting Chicago White Sox in the opener of a three-game weekend series at Progressive Field.

The Indians are reeling after dropping three of four games to the Detroit Tigers, a team that they're chasing for the American League's second wild card spot. Cleveland reaches the weekend five games out of that spot.

"It's disappointing. We're down 4-0 before we can take a deep breath. And they battled back so hard to tie the game," manager Terry Francona said. "They'll be OK. After the tough loss the other night they came back. There was energy. There's nothing else to do. They'll come out and play."

Meeting Sale is no perfect follow-up, given that he's not lost a game on the road in 2014 and hasn't surrendering an earned run in his last 22 road innings over three starts. As a road pitcher, his earned run average is 1.40.

He defeated Detroit, 6-3, in his last start on Saturday, allowing three runs in the first inning and ultimately striking out 13 batters in seven innings.

Sale dropped four starts to Cleveland last season, but beat them, 9-6, in April of this year and threw three scoreless innings in late May before being pulled after a rain delay.

The Indians counter with rookie lefty T.J. House, who gave up a run and five hits in seven innings of a Sunday start against Kansas City that was suspended after 10 innings by rain.

Unlike Sale, his ERA at home -- 3.13 -- is more than a run lower than his road ERA. He gave up five runs in 4 2/3 innings to the White Sox on Tuesday in a game Cleveland eventually won, 8-6, and threw 6 1/3 innings of one-run ball against Chicago in May.

On Thursday in Cleveland, Eugenio Suarez entered the game as a pinch-runner in the 10th inning and delivered a go-ahead two-run single in the 11th as the Detroit Tigers beat the Indians, 11-4, to wrap up a four-game series.

Meanwhile, in Minnesota on Wednesday, Kennys Vargas homered and drove in three to help the Twins in an 11-4 rout of the White Sox.

John Danks (9-10) was tagged for seven runs on 11 hits over 4 2/3 frames in the loss.

"Every time I threw a fastball it seemed like they knew it was coming," Danks said. "It was just an all-around bad night."

Dayan Viciedo homered and knocked in three runs to highlight Chicago's offense.






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