Yee-haw! Rangers pound Indians

Associated Press

CLEVELAND

It was easy to see why Texas manager Ron Washington was in a good mood Friday night.

The Rangers’ 11-2 win over the Cleveland Indians was a team effort from top to bottom.

Alexi Ogando won his sixth game without a loss and Josh Hamilton and Nelson Cruz homered in a five-run seventh inning, sparking the Rangers to their ninth win in 12 games. The defending AL champions, who pounded out 19 hits, are 14-8 since May 10.

“I like what Ogando did,” Washington said. “I like what our offense did. We had balance throughout the lineup and we made all the defensive plays.”

The victory continued the Rangers’ dominance of the Indians over the last three seasons. Texas has beaten Cleveland 14 times in the last 17 games between the teams and has won nine of 10 at Progressive Field, including the first two games of this series.

“It’s one of those baseball things,” Washington said. “The past couple of years they’ve been young. Now those kids are becoming stars. The past two nights we’ve played some good baseball. I just hope we can continue it because at any moment they can rise up.”

The Indians have the best record in the American League, but are 13-14 since May 3 and have lost four straight at home. Despite the fact his team has lost seven of 10, Indians manager Manny Acta isn’t ready to panic.

“I feel good,” he said. “We’re going through a rough spot like everybody else. I’m very thankful we still haven’t gone through one of those long stretches like everyone else, and we want to keep it that way.”

Ogando (6-0) held the Indians to one run and four hits in eight innings. He has allowed two runs or fewer in nine of his 11 starts while pitching at least six innings in each outing.