Cliff Lee Wins 15th, Cleveland Continues its Dominance of the Rays 5-2

Cliff Lee may not have pitched one of his better games of the season, but he fought through it and still ended up picking up his 15^th win of the season in a 5-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays.

Lee went seven innings, giving up eight hits and two runs, combined with two walks and a pair of strikeouts in the win. 

The Indians won their fifth straight against Tampa Bay and are 5-0 on the season versus the AL-East leading Rays. 

While Lee did not have his best stuff, Rafael Perez pitched two innings of lights-out ball, picking up the save and propelling Lee into a tie for the highest win total to date in the Majors with Arizona’s Brandon Webb.  Webb’s Diamond Backs sit atop the NL West at 58-54, while the Indians are mired in last place in the AL Central at 49-62, making Lee’s 15 almost a third of the Tribe’s total victories.

Lee didn’t look like a guy gunning for his 15th victory from the get-go.  He bailed himself out of a two-on one out situation in the first.  In the second, Tampa Bay loaded up the bases before Lee escaped with another zero, making his first two innings somewhat shaky.

Meanwhile, the Indians scored in the top of the second with Jhonny Peralta singling and Kelly Shoppach doubling him home, making it 1-0 Tribe.

In the third, Asdrubal Cabrera hit a 2-2 pitch from Matt Garza over the right field fence, making it 2-0.

Tampa Bay scored both their runs in the bottom of the fourth.  Willy Aybar opened the fifth with a single.  After a pair of fly-outs, Gabe Gross doubled to left, moving Aybar to third in the process.  Akinori Iwamura singled both runners home, tying up the game at two all.

The Indians matched the two run outburst with one of their own in the top of the fifth.  Franklin Gutierrez started the inning off with a single.  After a Cabrera strikeout and a Grady Sizemore fly-out, David Dellucci delivered a two-out home-run, his tenth on the season and second in the last two outings, staking the Indians to a 4-2 lead.

Lee struggled through the seventh, allowing a pair of singles to Iwamura and Upton.  Edwardo Mujica started warming up in the Indians bullpen, but Lee got himself out of the game with a popout, a flyout, and a groundout, preserving the lead. 

The Indians added an insurance run in the top of the eighth when Peralta drew a free pass, stole second, and moved over to third on the throwing error by catcher Navarro.  Shoppach singled him home.

Rafael Perez entered in the eighth, striking out two and not allowing a hit in two innings of relief.  He picked up his second save of the season.

The Indians and Rays meet for the second of their three game series on Tuesday with a 7:10 game time. Fausto Carmona (5-3, 4.19 ERA) goes up against Edwin Jackson (7-7, 4.20 ERA).