Allen puts on show for streaking Indians

Indians 11, Reds 1

CINCINNATI — Greg Allen needed just two games in his latest tour with the Cleveland Indians to make a huge impact.

Recalled from the Clippers on Saturday for the third time this season, Allen homered and tripled among his careerhigh four hits and made a circus catch behind Trevor Bauer, who pitched seven solid innings, as the Indians remained baseball’s hottest team with an 11-1 rout of the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday.

“It wasn’t too bad,” said Allen, who made a leaping backhand catch of a drive by Jose Iglesias to the warning track in center field before bouncing into a bullpen fence in the second inning. “It was nice to get a win.”

“Boy, did he impact the game,” Indians manager Terry Francona said. “A great catch, four hits — it’s nice for the whole organization.”

Jake Bauers hit a two-run homer and Tyler Naquin and Jason Kipnis added solo shots, helping Cleveland to a season-high sixth straight win — the longest current streak in the majors.

The Indians tied their single-game season highs with 18 hits and nine extrabase hits while completing a two-game sweep in which they outscored the Reds by a combined 18-3.

Bauer (8-6) improved to 4-0 over his past six starts. He allowed one hit through the first four innings before Jose Peraza singled to lead off the fifth and scored on Josh Vanmeter’s pinch-hit double. Bauer bounced back to slip a called third strikes past the potential tying runs, Joey Votto and Eugenio Suarez.

“He battled his rear end off,” Francona said. “For four hits and (three) walks, it seemed like there was a lot of traffic. He got two huge strikeouts. That allowed us to add on.”

Bauer avoided damage again with two more strikeouts to end the sixth with runners on second and third. He allowed four hits with three walks and nine strikeouts. He also hit a batter. Four leadoff batters reached base against him.

“That puts you behind the eight-ball, but I was able to work out of it,” Bauer said. “I’m mostly happy to be healthy. I’ve felt like myself for the last three starts.”

Right fielder Yasiel Puig didn’t move as Naquin launched an 0-and-1 Tyler Mahle splitter deep into the right-field seats with two outs in the fourth inning for a 1-0 Indians lead.

Jose Ramirez contributed a sacrifice fly in the fifth before Bauers followed on the next pitch with his two-run shot off the batter’s eye in center field.

Mahle (2-9) needed 84 pitches to get two batters into the fifth inning. He allowed three runs, six hits and three walks while striking out seven.

Allen’s two-run blast and Kipnis’ homer both came in Cleveland’s six-run eighth against righthander Jimmy Herget, who was making his major-league debut.