Encarnacion’s blast boosts Tribe
CLEVELAND — The baseball disappeared into the second set of trees beyond the center-field fence, a towering, two-run shot that vaulted the Indians into the lead.
With some weight off his shoulders, Edwin Encarnacion could lift his right arm into that familiar position, the parrot pose. It prompted a sigh of relief from the slugger, his teammates and those in the stands who have watched Encarnacion struggle through the first two months of the season.
His 430-foot shot pushed Cleveland to a 7-3 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Friday night as a crowd of 30,043 watched the game inside the park while thousands more gathered between Progressive Field and Quicken Loans Arena for Game 4 of the NBA Finals.
If for only one night, the Indians' ideal formula unfolded. Corey Kluber recorded a quality start. The offense, punctuated by Encarnacion's power, provided enough production. And the bullpen, anchored by Andrew Miller and Cody Allen, put the finishing touches on the victory.
The White Sox scratched across three runs on seven hits against Kluber during the right-hander's six innings. It marked Kluber's second start since returning from a month-long stint on the disabled list because of a lower back strain.
The Indians backed him with a first-inning run, as Michael Brantley delivered an RBI single. Chicago struck for two in the third, though. Melky Cabrera and Todd Frazier contributed RBI singles, though Tribe center fielder Bradley Zimmer nailed Cabrera at the plate in between the run-scoring hits.
With Chicago ahead 3-2 in the fifth, White Sox starter Miguel Gonzalez issued a two-out walk to Carlos Santana. Encarnacion then launched an 0-1 offering toward Heritage Park for his 11th home run of the season. Encarnacion finished with a seasonhigh three hits.
The start of the game was delayed by 36 minutes because of rain.
Good news, bad news
Tyvis Powell, a native of Bedford who played football at Ohio State, tossed out the ceremonial first pitch, even though he was waived by the Browns on Friday afternoon.
Powell appeared in eight games for the Seahawks last season. The Browns had signed him in early February.