MINNEAPOLIS (AP) The Cleveland Indians have designated struggling reliever Dan Wheeler for assignment.

The Indians made the move on Monday, one day after Wheeler gave up six runs on five hits in one inning of a loss to the Boston Red Sox. The right-hander didn’t allow a run in seven of his first eight appearances for the Indians, but gave up nine runs in his last four outings. Wheeler had an 8.76 ERA in 12 1-3 innings.

The Indians purchased the contract of right-hander Jeremy Accardo from Triple-A Columbus to take Wheeler’s spot in the bullpen.

The 30-year-old Accardo had a 2.76 ERA in 16 1-3 innings of relief for the Clippers and was 4 for 4 in save chances.

BOSTON — For Josh Beckett and the Boston Red Sox, getting jeered at Fenway Park has become par for the course.

The embattled starter did nothing to help restore his reputation Thursday, getting booed off the field in the third inning of Boston’s 8-3 loss to the Cleveland Indians.

It was Boston’s 11th loss in its past 12 home games and it happened to come a day after word surfaced Beckett was playing golf last week a day after he was scratched from his scheduled start with a sore lat muscle in his back.

That angered Red Sox fans, who got in plenty of taunts before Beckett was pulled after 2 1/3 innings with Cleveland leading 7-1.

“I think it was directed at me,” Beckett said. “Smart fans.”

Beckett was unrepentant about his golf outing, saying what he does on his day off is his business. But what he failed to understand was fans were upset about him golfing when he supposedly was too sore to pitch rather than about him simply hitting the golf course on a normal off day.

Jack Hannahan hit a two-run home run and Jason Kipnis had a solo homer against Beckett (2-4), who allowed seven runs on seven hits and walked two.

“You never want to get booed at your home stadium,” said Indians left fielder Johnny Damon, a former Red Sox star familiar with being booed at Fenway Park. “He’s a great pitcher. (He) had a bad night. He helped bring another championship here, but as we all know that can get lost in time.”

Michael Brantley went 4-for-5 with two RBI for the Indians.

Derek Lowe (5-1) pitched six effective innings against his former team, allowing two runs and nine hits with one walk and three strikeouts. He was as solid as he needed to be with the Indians’ offense taking full advantage of Beckett’s struggles.

“He knows how to pitch with a lead,” Cleveland manager Manny Acta said. “He had a lot of traffic throughout his outing, but he always seemed to make that pitch when he had to.”

Dustin Pedroia extended his hitting streak to 11 with a leadoff homer in the seventh, cutting Cleveland’s lead to 7-3. But that did little to lift the somber mood. Boston, last in the AL East at 12-19, has lost eight of nine overall.

Beckett, who has a 5.97 ERA, was booed a few hours after manager Bobby Valentine downplayed the uproar regarding the pitcher’s golf outing.

In his postgame interview, Beckett grew terse each time his golf outing was mentioned.

“We get 18 off days a year,” he said. “I think we deserve a little bit of time to ourselves.”

Cleveland’s first home run was Hannahan’s two-run shot into the Boston bullpen, where a few relievers got up and started stretching their arms as it became apparent Beckett would not be out there long.

It got worse in the fourth when Kipnis led off with a homer, Asdrubal Cabrera singled and Travis Hafner walked. Beckett got a mock cheer when Carlos Santana flied out for the first out of the inning, but the boos came back when Shin-Soo Choo followed with a double.

Brantley was up next and one fan yelled “Fore” when he lined a foul ball down the right-field line, but all the chuckles subsided when Brantley doubled to left-center. It was the second consecutive double for the Indians, ending Beckett’s night.

Fans cheered when Valentine came out of the dugout and immediately signaled to the bullpen for left-hander Andrew Miller.

“It’s challenging every night,” Valentine said. “The guys are doing a great job and I tip my cap to them and the offense. We were a bloop away from getting back into this game four different times.”

There wasn’t much to cheer for again until Pedroia came up with the bases loaded and two outs in the eighth, but he popped out to second on the 41st pitch of the inning by Vinny Pestano.

BOSTON — Go ahead and say it. You know you can’t help yourself.

All together now: Josh Beckett must have had an early tee time today. Why else would he have left the mound at Fenway Park so early?

Then again, it may have had something to do with the Indians, who hit Beckett early and often Thursday night on the way to an 8-3 victory against the staggering Red Sox. The Indians have won seven of their past 11 games, while the Red Sox have lost nine of their past 11.

It was Beckett’s first start since April 29. He missed his last scheduled start because of a strained left latissimus muscle, but he reportedly was seen playing golf on an off day — the day after it was announced he had been scratched.

In Boston, when it comes to the Red Sox, there are no small stories. If Beckett was healthy enough to swing a golf club, Red Sox Nation wants to know how hurt he really was. Beckett wasn’t around to answer questions Wednesday because he flew from Kansas City to Boston ahead of the team to get ready to face the Indians.

After the game, Beckett told reporters he had no regrets about playing golf on his off day.

“My off day is my off day,” he said.

The Indians used seven hits, including homers by Jack Hannahan and Jason Kipnis, to drive Beckett from the mound with one out in the third inning. When Andrew Miller replaced Beckett, the Indians led, 7-1.

“It was very important to get him early,” said Indians manager Manny Acta. “He’s one of the best guys in the league. We’ve seen some games where we’ve been dominated by him.”

Casey Kotchman, after a walk by Shin-Soo Choo and a double by Michael Brantley, started the scoring in the second with a sacrifice fly. Hannahan, who missed Wednesday’s start against Chicago because of a sore left groin, hit a 2-2 pitch into the seats down the right-field line for a 3-0 lead.

Kipnis started a four-run third with a leadoff homer to right. It was his fourth homer at Fenway Park, even though he has played only 67 big-league games. Last year, Kipnis hit three homers in three straight games at Fenway.

Asked if Kipnis had a swing built for Fenway, Acta said, “I think Kipnis’ swing fits every ballpark in America.”

Asdrubal Cabrera followed Kipnis with a single, and Travis Hafner walked. Beckett retired Carlos Santana on a fly ball to center, but Choo and Brantley sent him to the showers with consecutive doubles. Choo scored Cabrera, and Brantley’s double scored Hafner and Choo.

“I really enjoyed watching our offense tonight,” said Derek Lowe, who went six innings for the win. “Anytime they give you a 7-1 lead after three innings, you can’t ask for anything more.”

Beckett (2-4, 5.97) was booed as he left the mound. He allowed seven runs on seven hits in 21/3 innings.

Lowe, who pitched for the Red Sox from 1997 through 2004, said he has seen the Fenway faithful much worse.

“In 2003, when I was closing here, I blew a three-run lead in literally 30 seconds,” Lowe said. “It happened to be the night they were giving out my posters. The posters turned into airplanes really fast.

“It was a 10-minute delay. Stop the game. I sat in the clubhouse until 2 a.m. I’d stick my head out to see if it was safe to come out, and they’d say, ‘I see you in there.’ ”

Lowe (5-1, 2.47) allowed two runs on nine hits and threw 107 pitches. It was just the second time the 38-year-old right-hander has faced Boston.

As usual, he kept the ball on the ground, recording 13 ground-ball outs. Hannahan, in particular, got a workout at third.

“Every time I looked over [at third], he was on his rump,” Lowe said of Hannahan.

“I told him I was going to try and get him some balls hit right at him.”

The Indians, who own the best road record in the American League at 10-3, dropped the Red Sox to 4-11 at home. Boston is in last place in the AL East.

Brantley led the Indians’ offense with the fourth four-hit game of his career. Cabrera, Hannahan and Kipnis added two hits each.

“Tonight, the offense was very good,” Acta said. “Michael Brantley had a very good game.

“It’s nice when you’re getting that from the bottom of your lineup.”

Brantley, Kotchman and Hannahan were a combined 6-for-11, with two doubles, one homer, five RBI and two runs.

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: phoynes@plaind.com, 216-999-5158

On Twitter: @hoynsie

The Boston Red Sox are ready to go against the Cleveland Indians, hoping for better results against the Indians than they’ve had against, well, pretty much anybody else so far this season.

We’ll keep you up to date on all the action as it goes down in Fenway Park.

Indians 8, Red Sox 3, Final — 12-19. Earlier this seemed like one of those games that might inspire some sort of response from the organization, like another late night press conference. But the fact that it all happened so early might mean just another night of silence.

Indians 8, Red Sox 3, Mid 9th — Alfredo Aceves gives up a meaningless run in a meaningless ninth. The Indians will have Nick Hagadone, former Red Sox prospect on the mount to finish the game off.

Indians 7, Red Sox 3, End 8th — Unfortunately, as great as Dustin Pedroia is, he can’t do everything. The Sox’ biggest chance of the night is snuffed out as, with the bases loaded, Pedroia chases ball four on a 3-1 count, popping up for the third out.

Indians 7, Red Sox 3, Mid 8th — Franklin Morales gets in some very undeserved trouble, as Casey Kotchman ends up fouling off an inside pitch as he tried to avoid getting hit…and then gets sent to first on a terrible call by the umpire. Still, Hannahan flies out, and Damon grounds out to end the threat. It’s unbelievable that the Sox are so bad given how well the bullpen has pitched of late.

Indians 7, Red Sox 3, End 7th — Dustin Pedroia gives Sox fans something to cheer about with an opposite field shot. He deserves a better team than this.

Indains 7, Red Sox 2, Mid 7th — Scott Atchison is giving up a lot of strong contact, but the Indians are hitting them right at defenders, so he’s kept his pretty ERA intact.

Indians 7, Red Sox 2, End 6th — Kelly Shoppach gets plunked, but Ryan Sweeney grounds into a play. That’s gotta be the most annoying thing in the world for the guy getting hit. And the fans. Always the fans.

Indians 7, Red Sox 2, Mid 6th — Scott Atchison gets himself in a little trouble with a pair of singles putting runners on the corners with one out, but Will Middlebrooks snags a line drive and Atchison gets Jason Kipnis to ground out to end the inning.

Indians 7, Red Sox 2, End 5th — The Red Sox get a run back with hits from Adrian Gonzalez, Will Middlebrooks (off Derek Lowe’s foot), and Daniel Nava, whose Pawtucket hot streak may have survived the jump to the majors. Unfortunately, there’s still five more to go…

Indians 7, Red Sox 1, Mid 5th — Andrew Miller out, Rich Hill in. A couple of dangerous fly balls to left-center stay in enough for Marlon Byrd to grab them in front of the wall before Hill settles it down with a strikeout of Shin-Soo Choo.

Indians 7, Red Sox 1, End 4th — The Sox are trotting out their greatest hits tonight. A two-inning start, a lineup featuring a minor league backup batting sixth, and now a wasted bases loaded situation, as Ryan Sweeney makes the third out with the bags juiced and no runs in.

Indians 7, Red Sox 1, Mid 4th — Johnny Damon manages to single on a pop-up that drops some ten feet behind the mound, but a couple of ground balls get Andrew Miller out of the inning with a fielder’s choice and a double play.

Indians 7, Red Sox 1, End 3rd — The Sox manage a pair of infield singles, but no runs, as Derek Lowe still seems to be rolling right along.

Indians 7, Red Sox 1 Mid 3rd — From bad to worse for Beckett, who doesn’t even make it into the third inning. A leadoff shot by Travis Hafner just sets the tone as Beckett surrenders a single, a walk, and two doubles before being yanked with a lost game to his name.

Indians 3, Red Sox 1, End 2nd — The Sox manage to grab a run thanks to the increasingly hot Adrian Gonzalez. A double to left field puts him in scoring position, and with two outs Mike Aviles manages to squeeze a seeing-eye single up the middle for the RBI.

Indians 3, Red Sox 0, Mid 2nd — After a strong first, Josh Beckett folds in the second. After striking out Carlos Santana and getting ahead of Shin-Soo Choo 0-2, Beckett completely lost the strikezone, eventually surrendering a walk. Michael Brantley quickly sliced a double to left, and a long fly ball to right scored Choo from third on a sacrifice fly.

The real damage, however, would come when Josh Beckett hung a changeup to Jack Hannahan. A player with all of 26 homers in 426 major league games, Hannahan made it 27 by finding the seats in right field. 3-0 Indians, same old story.

Indians 0, Red Sox 0, End 1st — Bad news for the Red Sox: Derek Lowe has his sinker working. Ground balls from Ryan Sweeney and Dustin Pedroia got the Sox off on the wrong foot, and David Ortiz popped up to end the frame in rapid fashion.

Indians 0, Red Sox 0, Mid 1st — The Red Sox are out of the first without any damage done. Johnny Damon goes down swinging on three pitches to start the game as Josh Beckett gets him with a sharp-breaking curveball. While Asdrubal Cabrera did manage a ground rule double down the right field line, Beckett induced a ground ball from Travis Hafner to end the threat.

Cleveland Indians pitcher Derek Lowe collected 70 wins and 85 saves during his time with the Boston Red Sox. The Tribe begin a four-game series tonight in Boston and Lowe will take the mound.

MLB.com reporter Zack Meisel writes how Lowe will make his second career appearance against his former squad, with whom he won a World Series ring in 2004. On June 20, 2009, he took the loss in a 3-0 defeat while pitching for the Braves.

After scuffling to a 9-17 record and 5.05 ERA last season, Lowe has looked like his old Boston self in 2012, posting a 4-1 mark and 2.39 ERA through six starts. The 38-year-old said his last outing, when he limited a powerful Rangers offense to two runs in six innings, was his best of the season.

“The game is easy when you can throw pretty much any pitch whenever you want,” Lowe said, “but it’s gratifying when you don’t really have that good of stuff against this tough of a lineup. To actually only give up two runs was pretty hard to do. Some of those innings I would never want to try again.”

The Red Sox will counter with Josh Beckett.

More Cleveland Indians

The White Sox score early and often (Cleveland.com).

Tribe offense not carrying team (Ohio.com).

White Sox 8, Tribe 1 (The News-Herald).

Jack Peavy wins his fourth game with victory over the Tribe (Chicago Sun-Times).

Chicago White Sox defeat the Tribe (Chicago Tribune).

Where: Fenway Park, Boston, Mass.

When: Thursday through Sunday.

TV/radio: SportsTime Ohio on Thursday, Friday and Sunday; WKYC/Ch. 3 on Saturday; WTAM AM/1100.

Pitching matchups: Indians RHP Derek Lowe (4-1, 2.39 ERA) vs. RHP Josh Beckett (2-3, 4.45), Thursday at 7:10; RHP Ubaldo Jimenez (3-2, 4.04) vs. RHP Clay Buchholz (3-1, 9.09), Friday at 7:10 p.m.; RHP Josh Tomlin (2-2, 4.67) vs. LHP Felix Doubront (2-1, 5.29), Saturday at 7:10 p.m.; RHP Justin Masterson (1-2, 4.89) vs. RHP Daniel Bard (2-4, 4.83), Sunday at 1:35 p.m.

Season series: First meeting. Indians lead, 1,021-958, overall.

Indians update: They went 6-4 against Red Sox last year, including 2-2 at Fenway Park. Indians who hit well included Jason Kipnis (6-for-16, three homers), Travis Hafner (8-for-22) and Asdrubal Cabrera (13-for-39, four homers, 11 RBI, 10 runs). Tribe hitters entered Wednesday ranked second in majors with 3.97 pitches per plate appearance.

Red Sox update: They are managed by Bobby Valentine, who was a candidate for the Indians’ job that went to Manny Acta in October 2009. … Red Sox who hit well against Indians last year included Dustin Pedroia (11-for-37) and Adrian Gonzalez (11-for-38). Beckett was 1-1 with a 3.06 ERA in three starts. … Beckett recently dealt with lat tightness.

Injuries: Indians — OF Grady Sizemore (back), RHP Carlos Carrasco (elbow) and LHP Rafael Perez (left lat) are on the disabled list. Red Sox — RHP Andrew Bailey (thumb), RHP Bobby Jenks (back), RHP Chris Carpenter (elbow), RHP Daisuke Matsuzaka (elbow), RHP Aaron Cook (left knee), LF Carl Crawford (left elbow), LF Ryan Kalish (left shoulder), CF Jacoby Ellsbury (right shoulder), CF Jason Repko (left shoulder) and 3B Kevin Youkilis (back) are on disabled list. RHP John Lackey (elbow) is out for season.

Next: The Indians’ six-game trip concludes with two in Minnesota beginning Monday.

CHICAGO — The Indians felt it was just a matter of time before they put some runs on the board.

Carlos Santana and Travis Hafner homered to lead the Cleveland Indians to a 6-3 win over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday night.

Santana hit his fourth homer of the season, a three-run shot in the fifth inning that landed well behind the Indians’ bullpen in right field. Hafner added a two-run shot in the ninth.

“It was great game to win after we felt like we had plenty of opportunities early in the game,” Indians manager Manny Acta said. “It’s a funny game.”

Jack Hannahan doubled home Michael Brantley with the go-ahead run in the eighth off Addison Reed.

White Sox starter Phil Humber, pitching less than 24 hours after his wife gave birth to their first child, limited Cleveland to three runs in six innings, making key pitches to escape a couple of jams.

He was wild all night, walking a career-high six and hitting another.

“I didn’t feel great,” Humber said. “I didn’t have great stuff. I’m not going to blame it on lack of sleep or anything like that. Having a new baby is a blessing.”

Johnny Damon went 0 for 3 with a walk in his Indians’ debut, starting in left field and leading off. The 38-year-old Damon is with his seventh organization in 18 big league seasons, and is 277 hits shy of 3,000.

Damon was replaced in the sixth inning because of what the team called “general cramping” but is expected to be available for Thursday’s series finale.

Four Cleveland relievers combined for three scoreless innings in relief of Josh Tomlin, extending the bullpen’s shutout streak to 15 2/3 innings. Joe Smith (1-0) picked up the win and Chris Perez pitched the ninth for his eighth save in nine chances.

“Once you come out of a game like that, you know that (the bullpen is) going to be lights-out no matter what,” Tomlin said. “If we can give the ball to them with the lead or a tie ballgame in the seventh or eighth inning, we feel pretty good about our chances.”

Adam Dunn reached base three times and hit his sixth homer for Chicago. Alexei Ramirez added a two-run single.

Will Ohman (0-1) took the loss in relief.

After throwing the 21st perfect game in big league history at Seattle on April 21, Humber allowed a career-high nine runs in five innings against Boston on April 26.

“It’s a whirlwind couple weeks for him,” White Sox manager Robin Ventura said. “I guess that’s what it is, more than him not being a good pitcher. It kinda comes with playing, a lot of outside stuff comes into it. He still pitched well enough to get us through, we had a shot at it.”

Tomlin held Chicago to three runs in six innings, pitching beyond the fifth for just the second time in five starts. Tomlin’s start against Humber the first time the close friends have faced each other.

“It was fun,” Tomlin said. “It was a good experience to go out there and pitch against him. I had a good time doing it.”

With Brantley on first in the eighth, Ohman appeared to escape the inning when Casey Kotchman hit a grounder at Dunn, but the ball was ruled foul by first base umpire Eric Cooper. Kotchman then walked and Hannahan stroked a ball up the left-field line.

“That’s the name of the game,” Hannahan said. “You’ve got to get guys on, then you’ve got to get the big hits and put runs on the board for this good pitching staff.”

Humber worked out of a pair of early jams despite walking five and hitting another during his first five innings. He struck out Shin-Soo Choo with the bases loaded to end the first and third innings.

CHICAGO — The Indians felt it was just a matter of time before they put some runs on the board.

Carlos Santana and Travis Hafner homered to lead the Cleveland Indians to a 6-3 win Wednesday against the Chicago White Sox.

Santana hit his fourth homer of the season, a three-run shot in the fifth inning that landed behind the Indians’ bullpen in right field. Hafner added a two-run homer in the ninth.

“It was great game to win after we felt like we had plenty of opportunities early in the game,” Cleveland manager Manny Acta said. “It’s a funny game.”

Jack Hannahan doubled home Michael Brantley with the go-ahead run in the eighth against Addison Reed.

White Sox starter Phil Humber, pitching less than 24 hours after his wife gave birth to their first child, held Cleveland to three runs in six innings, making key pitches to escape a couple of jams.

He was wild all night, walking a career-high six and hitting another.

“I didn’t feel great,” Humber said. “I didn’t have great stuff. I’m not going to blame it on lack of sleep or anything like that. Having a new baby is a blessing.”

Johnny Damon went 0-for-3 with a walk in his Indians’ debut, starting in left field and leading off. The 38-year-old Damon is with his seventh organization in 18 seasons, and is 277 hits shy of 3,000.

Damon was replaced in the sixth inning because of what the team called “general cramping” but is expected to be available for today’s series finale.

Four Cleveland relievers combined for three scoreless innings in relief of Josh Tomlin, extending the bullpen’s shutout streak to 15 2/3 innings. Joe Smith (1-0) picked up the win and Chris Perez pitched the ninth for his eighth save in nine chances.

“Once you come out of a game like that, you know that (the bullpen is) going to be lights-out no matter what,” Tomlin said. “If we can give the ball to them with the lead or a tie ballgame in the seventh or eighth inning, we feel pretty good about our chances.”

Adam Dunn reached base three times and hit his sixth homer for Chicago. Alexei Ramirez added a two-run single.

Will Ohman (0-1) took the loss in relief.

After throwing the 21st perfect game in big league history April 21 at Seattle, Humber allowed a career-high nine runs in five innings against Boston on April 26.

“It’s a whirlwind couple weeks for him,” White Sox manager Robin Ventura said. “I guess that’s what it is, more than him not being a good pitcher. It kinda comes with playing, a lot of outside stuff comes into it. He still pitched well enough to get us through, we had a shot at it.”

Tomlin held Chicago to three runs in six innings, pitching beyond the fifth for just the second time in five starts. Tomlin’s start against Humber was the first time the close friends have faced each other.

“It was fun,” Tomlin said. “It was a good experience to go out there and pitch against him. I had a good time doing it.”

With Brantley on first in the eighth, Ohman appeared to escape the inning when Casey Kotchman hit a grounder at Dunn, but the ball was ruled foul by first base umpire Eric Cooper. Kotchman then walked and Hannahan hit a ball down the left-field line.

“That’s the name of the game,” Hannahan said. “You’ve got to get guys on, then you’ve got to get the big hits and put runs on the board for this good pitching staff.”

Humber worked out of a pair of early jams despite walking five and hitting another during his first five innings. He struck out Shin-Soo Choo with the bases loaded to end the first and third innings.

Notes: Choo returned to the lineup after sitting out since April 24 with a groin injury. … White Sox manager Robin Ventura said Dylan Axelrod likely is start one game of Chicago’s doubleheader at Cleveland on Monday unless he is used in a long relief outing before then.

The Cleveland Indians have yet to lose a road series this season. Based on their history against at U.S. Cellular Field against Chicago’s John Danks, they have a good chance to extend that run.

First in the AL Central, the Indians look to continue their road success against Danks in Thursday night’s finale of a three-game set against the White Sox.

After struggling to produce in Tuesday’s 7-2 series-opening loss at Chicago, Cleveland (12-10) snapped a three-game skid to the White Sox with a 6-3 victory Wednesday. Carlos Santana hit a three-run homer and Travis Hafner added a two-run shot as the Indians improved to 8-3 on the road.

“That’s the name of the game,” said Indians third baseman Jack Hannahan, who drove in the go-ahead run in the eighth with a two-out double. “You’ve got to get guys on, then you’ve got to get the big hits and put runs on the board.”

Though the Indians are 4-7 at Progressive Field, they won each of their previous three road series. Five of their eight road victories have been decided by three or fewer runs.

“We’ve just been playing good, fundamental and winning a lot of (close) games,” Indians manager Manny Acta said. “It’s very satisfying when you know you’re not hitting on all cylinders.

“The fact that we haven’t played our best baseball yet, it’s encouraging.”

The Indians put themselves in a good position to continue their road success while facing Danks (2-3, 6.23 ERA).

Though the left-hander managed to earn a win despite giving up four runs and walking five in 5 2-3 innings of a 10-6 victory at Cleveland on April 11, he’s 0-4 with a 6.25 ERA in six home starts against the Indians. Danks has yielded 16 runs and 22 hits in 15 innings while losing each of his last three starts versus Cleveland at U.S. Cellular Field.

He’s also coming off a rough outing in which he allowed seven runs, six hits and four walks in 5 2-3 innings of a 10-3 home loss to Boston on Friday. That performance added to the frustration Danks has felt during the first month of the season.

“I’m not OK with it at all,” Danks told the White Sox official website. “I’ve stole two wins and I’ve pitched (poorly) the other ones. That’s way too inconsistent. That’s the deal. You’ve got to go out there and I’ve got to do my job.”

Two of Hafner’s seven hits in 27 at-bats against Danks have left the park. He snapped a 13-game drought without a homer Wednesday.

Johnny Damon went 0 for 3 in his Indians debut in the middle game of the set before leaving the game with general cramping. It’s uncertain if he will be in the lineup Thursday.

Cleveland’s Justin Masterson (0-2, 5.40) won his first five starts of 2011, but tries a sixth time to win his first this season Thursday. The right-hander, however, allowed two runs and four hits while walking five in 8 1-3 innings of a 3-2 win over Los Angeles on Friday.

Masterson is 3-5 in 11 starts versus Chicago despite a 2.37 ERA in those outings.

Chicago’s Adam Dunn, 6 for 15 (.400) with a home run versus Masterson, hit his sixth homer and second in three games Wednesday.

Carlos Santana and Travis Hafner homered to lead the Cleveland Indians to a 6-3 win over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday night. 

Santana hit his fourth homer of the season, a three-run shot in the fifth inning that landed well behind the Indians’ bullpen in right field. Hafner added a two-run shot in the ninth. 

Jack Hannahan doubled home Michael Brantley with the go-ahead run in the eighth off Addison Reed. 

Johnny Damon went 0 for 3 with a walk in his Indians’ debut, starting in left field and leading off. The 38-year-old Damon is with his seventh organization in 18 big league seasons, and is 277 hits shy of 3,000. 

Damon was replaced in the sixth inning because of what the team called “general cramping.”

Four Cleveland relievers combined for three scoreless innings in relief of Josh Tomlin, extending the bullpen’s shutout streak to 15 2-3 innings. Joe Smith (1-0) picked up the win and Chris Perez pitched the ninth for his eighth save in nine chances. 

Adam Dunn reached base three times and hit his sixth homer for Chicago. Alexei Ramirez added a two-run single. 
Will Ohman (0-1) took the loss in relief. 

White Sox starter Phil Humber held Cleveland to three runs in six innings, making key pitches to escape a couple of jams. He was wild all night, walking a career-high six and hitting another. 

After throwing the 21st perfect game in big league history at Seattle on April 21, Humber allowed a career-high nine runs in five innings against Boston on April 26. 

With Brantley on first in the eighth, Ohman appeared to escape the inning when Casey Kotchman hit a grounder at Dunn, but the ball was ruled foul by first base umpire Eric Cooper. Kotchman then walked and Hannahan stroked a ball up the left-field line. 

Humber worked out of a pair of early jams despite walking five and hitting another during his first five innings. He struck out Shin-Soo Choo with the bases loaded to end the first and third innings. 

Humber’s wildness caught up with him in the fifth. His two-out walk to Asdrubal Cabrera extended the inning. Hafner’s single set up Santana’s three-run homer, putting Cleveland ahead 3-1. 

Dunn’s solo homer in the fourth snapped a string of seven straight batters retired by Tomlin. Ramirez hit a two-out single in the fifth to drive in two runs, tying the game 3-all. 

NOTES: Choo returned to the lineup after sitting out since April 24 with a groin injury. … White Sox manager Robin Ventura said that Dylan Axelrod is likely start one game of Chicago’s doubleheader at Cleveland on Monday unless he is used in a long relief outing before then. 
 

Carlos Santana and Travis Hafner homered to lead the Cleveland Indians to a 6-3 win over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday night.  

Santana hit his fourth homer of the season, a three-run shot in the fifth inning that landed well behind the Indians’ bullpen in right field. Hafner added a two-run shot in the ninth.  

Jack Hannahan doubled home Michael Brantley with the go-ahead run in the eighth off Addison Reed.  

Johnny Damon went 0 for 3 with a walk in his Indians’ debut, starting in left field and leading off. The 38-year-old Damon is with his seventh organization in 18 big league seasons, and is 277 hits shy of 3,000.  

Damon was replaced in the sixth inning because of what the team called “general cramping.”

Four Cleveland relievers combined for three scoreless innings in relief of Josh Tomlin, extending the bullpen’s shutout streak to 15 2-3 innings. Joe Smith (1-0) picked up the win and Chris Perez pitched the ninth for his eighth save in nine chances.  

Johnny Damon went 0 for 3 with a walk in his Indians’ debut, starting in left field and leading off. The 38-year-old Damon is with his seventh organization in 18 big league seasons, and is 277 hits shy of 3,000.  

Damon was replaced in the sixth inning because of what the team called “general cramping.”

Adam Dunn reached base three times and hit his sixth homer for Chicago. Alexei Ramirez added a two-run single.  

Will Ohman (0-1) took the loss in relief.  

White Sox starter Phil Humber held Cleveland to three runs in six innings, making key pitches to escape a couple of jams. He was wild all night, walking a career-high six and hitting another.  

After throwing the 21st perfect game in big league history at Seattle on April 21, Humber allowed a career-high nine runs in five innings against Boston on April 26.  

With Brantley on first in the eighth, Ohman appeared to escape the inning when Casey Kotchman hit a grounder at Dunn, but the ball was ruled foul by first base umpire Eric Cooper. Kotchman then walked and Hannahan stroked a ball up the left-field line.  

Humber worked out of a pair of early jams despite walking five and hitting another during his first five innings. He struck out Shin-Soo Choo with the bases loaded to end the first and third innings.  

Humber’s wildness caught up with him in the fifth. His two-out walk to Asdrubal Cabrera extended the inning. Hafner’s single set up Santana’s three-run homer, putting Cleveland ahead 3-1.  

Dunn’s solo homer in the fourth snapped a string of seven straight batters retired by Tomlin. Ramirez hit a two-out single in the fifth to drive in two runs, tying the game 3-all.  

NOTES: Choo returned to the lineup after sitting out since April 24 with a groin injury. … White Sox manager Robin Ventura said that Dylan Axelrod is likely start one game of Chicago’s doubleheader at Cleveland on Monday unless he is used in a long relief outing before then.  

CHICAGO (AP) – Carlos Santana and Travis Hafner homered to lead the Cleveland Indians to a 6-3 win over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday night.

Santana hit his fourth homer of the season, a three-run shot in the fifth inning that landed well behind the Indians’ bullpen in right field. Hafner added a two-run shot in the ninth.

Jack Hannahan doubled home Michael Brantley with the go-ahead run in the eighth off Addison Reed.

Johnny Damon went 0 for 3 with a walk in his Indians’ debut, starting in left field and leading off. The 38-year-old Damon is with his seventh organization in 18 big league seasons, and is 277 hits shy of 3,000.

Damon was replaced in the sixth inning because of what the team called “general cramping.”

Four Cleveland relievers combined for three scoreless innings in relief of Josh Tomlin, extending the bullpen’s shutout streak to 15 2-3 innings. Joe Smith (1-0) picked up the win and Chris Perez pitched the ninth for his eighth save in nine chances.

Johnny Damon went 0 for 3 with a walk in his Indians’ debut, starting in left field and leading off. The 38-year-old Damon is with his seventh organization in 18 big league seasons, and is 277 hits shy of 3,000.

Damon was replaced in the sixth inning because of what the team called “general cramping.”

Adam Dunn reached base three times and hit his sixth homer for Chicago. Alexei Ramirez added a two-run single.

Will Ohman (0-1) took the loss in relief.

White Sox starter Phil Humber held Cleveland to three runs in six innings, making key pitches to escape a couple of jams. He was wild all night, walking a career-high six and hitting another.

After throwing the 21st perfect game in big league history at Seattle on April 21, Humber allowed a career-high nine runs in five innings against Boston on April 26.

With Brantley on first in the eighth, Ohman appeared to escape the inning when Casey Kotchman hit a grounder at Dunn, but the ball was ruled foul by first base umpire Eric Cooper. Kotchman then walked and Hannahan stroked a ball up the left-field line.

Humber worked out of a pair of early jams despite walking five and hitting another during his first five innings. He struck out Shin-Soo Choo with the bases loaded to end the first and third innings.

Humber’s wildness caught up with him in the fifth. His two-out walk to Asdrubal Cabrera extended the inning. Hafner’s single set up Santana’s three-run homer, putting Cleveland ahead 3-1.

Dunn’s solo homer in the fourth snapped a string of seven straight batters retired by Tomlin. Ramirez hit a two-out single in the fifth to drive in two runs, tying the game 3-all.

NOTES: Choo returned to the lineup after sitting out since April 24 with a groin injury. … White Sox manager Robin Ventura said that Dylan Axelrod is likely start one game of Chicago’s doubleheader at Cleveland on Monday unless he is used in a long relief outing before then.

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