Traber's sharp outing leads Tribe past Reds

The 23-year-old rookie left-hander tamed Cincinnati's bats for seven innings.
CLEVELAND (AP) -- Jody Gerut nearly did a cartwheel as he pulled into second base with an RBI double.
"I've never been so excited about a run before," Gerut said.
The offensively challenged Indians gave rookie Billy Traber enough support, and he pitched seven sharp innings as Cleveland snapped a three-game losing streak with a 3-0 win Friday night over the Cincinnati Reds.
Traber (3-4) allowed five hits in his longest career outing and earned his first win as a starter. The 23-year-old left-hander, who moved into the rotation in May when Jason Bere was lost for the season, walked one and struck out five.
"He hit my glove all night," catcher Tim Laker said. "Even when he was missing, he was just a hair off the plate."
David Riske worked the eighth and Danys Baez walked two in the ninth before striking out Jason LaRue for his 17th save, completing the combined six-hitter.
Avalanche of runs
The Indians, who scored just three runs while being swept three straight by Kansas City, scored three times in the seventh inning off Danny Graves (3-7).
The Reds dropped to 1-6 on a 12-game, 14-day trip that began with a three-game sweep in Arizona.
"It's frustrating," shortstop Barry Larkin said. "They just beat us and we didn't do much about it."
Following Thursday's 4-1 loss, Cleveland manager Eric Wedge was too upset with his team to scold the Indians about their lack of offense lately. So he held a pregame meeting Friday, and the Indians responded.
"It felt like we were feeling the weight of the universe with every swing we took," Gerut said. "Whenever you have team meetings before games about offense, you usually struggle. Tonight, we didn't."
Actually, the Indians did for six innings.
Graves limited Cleveland to two hits until the seventh, which Milton Bradley opened with a double and went to third on a wild pitch.
Key double
Gerut followed with an opposite-field double off the wall in left for the game's first run.
"I was so happy I got the ball in the air that I forgot to run," Gerut said. "I should have had a triple. I felt like that one run would be the only one."
He moved up anyway when second baseman Juan Castro threw away Ben Broussard's grounder for an error. Ricky Gutierrez brought in Gerut with a groundout, and was safe at second when the Reds couldn't turn the front end of a double play.
John McDonald then singled and Brandon Phillips made it 3-0 with an RBI single.
"One bad half-inning and that's the game," Graves said.
Until the seventh, the Indians had been unable to get any clutch hits lately. They went 3-for-6 in the inning with runners in scoring position after going 2-for-24 in the previous three games.
"We got the Royals out of town, so we knew we had a chance," Laker said.
Traber didn't allow a runner until Jose Guillen doubled with one out in the fourth. But he retired Ken Griffey Jr. and Austin Kearns on groundouts to end the threat.
With two on in the sixth, Traber got Guillen to pop out to right and struck out Griffey looking.
Traber downplayed what might have been his best outing in the majors.
"On paper, probably," he said. "But it's not about me, it's about we."
Traber gave up three hits in the seventh, but again emerged unscathed.
Kearns singled but was erased on a double-play comebacker. Sean Casey and Adam Dunn followed with singles, but Traber got LaRue to fly out to left.
Graves, who came up in the Indians' organization, gave up three runs and six hits in his return to the rotation.
The right-hander's two previous appearances were in relief.
Notes
Following the game, the Indians optioned catcher Josh Bard to Triple-A Buffalo and recalled catcher Victor Martinez, who was batting .437 in June.
Indians reliever Jason Boyd dropped his appeal of a three-game suspension and $1,500 fine for bumping umpire Dana DeMuth during an argument last weekend.
Boyd began serving the suspension Friday night and will miss the three-game inter-league series against the Reds. He's due to return Monday for a doubleheader at Kansas City.
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