JACOBS FIELD Royals unload on Tribe pitchers

Matt Stairs drove in six runs as Kansas City's road loss streak ended.
CLEVELAND (AP) -- Tim Laker tipped his cap and strode to the dugout soaking in the applause.
At last, a reliever for the Cleveland Indians had held the Royals scoreless.
Too bad he's their backup catcher.
Matt Stairs hit a grand slam and matched a career-high with six RBIs as Kansas City ended a six-game road losing streak by roughing up the Indians 15-5 Tuesday night.
Stairs connected for his eighth career slam in the sixth inning, on the first pitch after Indians manager Eric Wedge had reliever Jeriome Robertson intentionally walk Juan Gonzalez.
"Ten times he throws that pitch, and I maybe hit it once," Stairs said. "But I guess I hit that one at the perfect time."
Huge lead
Stairs' shot gave the Royals an 11-4 lead. He hit an RBI double off Chad Durbin (1-2) during a five-run first and added a run-scoring grounder in the second.
Kansas City came in 0-6 on its first road trip of 2004. But the Royals roughed up Durbin and Robertson, who was recalled from the minors before the game when Jason Stanford went on the disabled list with a strained forearm.
Ken Harvey also homered for the Royals in their highest-scoring game against Cleveland since April 27, 1979.
"It wasn't a must-win ballgame," Royals manager Tony Pena said. "It was a must go out and play a good ballgame."
Cleveland's beleaguered and battered bullpen -- 1-6 with a 6.28 ERA -- hit a low point when Wedge brought in Laker, his second-string catcher, to pitch the ninth.
Adulation
After holding the Royals to one hit and scoreless, Laker took off his cap and held it high to salute the cheering crowd as he walked to the dugout.
"That was the best ovation of my career," said Laker, who held the Chicago White Sox without a run in a similar situation in 2001. "I was just hoping to keep my perfect ERA intact."
Wedge didn't want to bring in Laker, but with his relievers overworked already, he couldn't afford to use another one just to mop up.
"He told me I was going in to pitch and to find a glove," said Laker, who borrowed one from reliever Jack Cressend. "I was just laying it in there."
Pena, a former catcher, was impressed.
"Catchers can do it all," he said.
In his fourth start, the Royals' Brian Anderson (1-0) got something other than a no-decision. The left-hander allowed two earned runs and seven hits in six innings, becoming the first Royals starter to get a win this season.