Tribe’s Hafner homers in win over Oakland

Associated Press

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After an extended outage, Travis Hafner may be getting his power back.

Hafner’s three-run homer onto a sidewalk beyond the right-field wall capped Cleveland’s eight-run second inning off Jason Jennings and lifted the Indians.

Hafner homered for the second time in three days, launching the type of deep shot the Indians hope to see from him during the regular season. Coming off shoulder surgery, Cleveland’s designated hitter hit just 16 homers last season — 26 fewer than his career high in 2006.

“We all felt that it was a matter of him being healthy and this was going to happen,” Indians manager Manny Acta said.

Cleveland’s Mitch Talbot improved his chances of making the rotation with 31‚Ñ3 scoreless innings. The right-hander has allowed just one run in 111‚Ñ3 innings this spring.

On Thursday, Hafner connected for his first homer — a towering shot to deep center. Hafner rarely pulled the ball last season, when he was unable to play more than three consecutive games while continuing to recover from surgery.

Hafner was able to get into more of a routine this winter, and he has been encouraged by how his shoulder feels and how his swing looks.

orioles 5, Pirates 2

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Orioles right-hander Brad Bergesen Bergesen fell behind by two runs in the first inning, but he retired the last 10 batters he faced.

Pirates starter Charlie Morton exited with two outs in the fifth and the game tied at 2 after Cesar Izturis’ grounder scored Nolan Reimold (Kennedy Catholic), who walked and moved up on Ty Wigginton’s double. Adam Jones reached on a throwing error by shortstop Bobby Crosby, and Baltimore took a lead that its bullpen protected the rest of the way.