Home

  MLB - Wire  

Kansas City Royals (13-16) at Cleveland Indians (14-16), 1:05 p.m.

By Sports Network

The Sports Network

The Kansas City Royals and the Cleveland Indians close out a rain-shortened weekend series today as they jockey for position in the AL Central.

Cleveland is in third place with a 14-16 record, while Kansas City sits in last place at 13-16. Only two games separate the Royals from first-place Minnesota, however, as the Twins are the Central's lone club with a record over .500.

After the first game of this series was postponed due to rain on Friday, the teams hit the field on Saturday despite another rain delay.

Former No. 1 overall draft pick Luke Hochevar stifled the Indians for six innings yesterday, and Kansas City used a four-run seventh to overtake Cleveland, 4-2.

Fresh off his first major league win, Hochevar (2-1) allowed two runs on just three hits and four walks, while fanning six for Kansas City, which had dropped three of four. Joakim Soria recorded a 1-2-3 ninth for his seventh save of the season.

David DeJesus was 2-for-5 with a steal, a run scored and one batted in, while Mark Teahen roped three hits, and Billy Butler recorded the go-ahead RBI for the victors.

C.C. Sabathia (1-5), whose only victory this season came against the Royals on April 22, dropped another decision after being touched for four runs on 10 hits in 6 1/3 innings for the Indians, who had won seven of their last 10.

Grady Sizemore launched a solo home run, and David Dellucci recorded two of the Tribe's four hits.

Victor Martinez, 1-for-4, now has a 14-game hitting streak, tied for the longest in the AL this season

For Kansas City to have any chance of being competitive this season, Gil Meche has to pitch extremely well. That has simply not been the case thus far, as his high salary is hardly justified by a 1-4 record and a gaudy 7.22 ERA. Last Sunday, the righty permitted three earned runs on nine hits in 6 2/3 innings of a loss to Toronto.

Meche allowed eight earned runs on nine hits in only 3 1/3 innings in his first start against Cleveland this season. He is 2-7 lifetime against the Indians with a 6.10 ERA.

Lefty Aaron Laffey makes the start today in place of the injured Jake Westbrook. Laffey was outstanding for five innings against the Yankees on Monday and even retired 14 consecutive batters at one point. Unfortunately, an ugly sixth inning resulted in defeat.

Laffey is 2-1 lifetime against Kansas City with a 3.63 ERA.

Cleveland swept a three-game series from the Royals at Kauffman Stadium last month and has won nine of the last 12 meetings in this series. Kansas City lost six of nine matchups with the Tribe in Cleveland last season and is just 6-13 at Progressive Field since the start of the 2006 campaign.