Yankees 8, Indians 6
CLEVELAND -- Brian McCann and Stephen Drew homered and the slumbering New York lineup finally generated some runs as the Yankees snapped their five-game losing streak with an 8-6 win over the Cleveland Indians on Thursday night at Progressive Field.
The eight runs were two more than the Yankees scored during their five-game losing streak. McCann's three-run homer in the first inning and Drew's solo homer in the second gave the Yankees a 4-0 lead in a game in which they never trailed.
Right-hander Nathan Eovaldi (12-3) pitched into the sixth inning for the win. Cleveland right-hander Trevor Bauer (9-9) never got out of the fourth inning and took the loss, which halted the Indians' four-game winning streak.
Leading 6-2 after five innings, New York added an unearned run in the sixth. Drew reached first on a throwing error by third baseman Giovanny Urshela, went to second on a passed ball and scored on a single by left fielder Brett Gardner, giving the Yankees a 7-2 lead.
Cleveland knocked Eovaldi out of the game in the sixth, which began with back-to-back doubles by catcher Yan Gomes and center fielder Abraham Almonte. The double by Almonte scored Gomes, and Almonte later scored on a single by right fielder Lonnie Chisenhall, cutting the New York lead to 7-4.
The Indians shaved another run off the lead in the seventh when they loaded the bases with two outs. A wild pitch by right-hander Dellin Betances allowed a run to score to make it 7-5. But with runners at second and third and two outs, Betances struck out Almonte to end the inning.
An RBI single by Gardner in the top of the eighth extended the Yankees' lead to 8-5, and the New York bullpen took it from there.
Betances gave up a double to right fielder Chris Johnson leading off the bottom of the eighth, but Betances retired the next three batters in a row, two of them on strikeouts.
Yankees left-hander Andrew Miller pitched the ninth, and despite giving up an RBI single to Gomes, picked up his 25th save.
The Yankees, who only scored one run in their last 15 innings coming into the game, scored three times in the top of the first against Bauer. Center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury led off the game with a single and Gardner followed with a walk.
Bauer retired the next two batters, but McCann, whose home run Wednesday accounted for the only run in the Yankees' 2-1 loss, launched a towering shot that sailed into the right field seats for a three-run homer. It was McCann's 20th homer of the year.
The Yankees used the long ball again to add to their lead in the second. Drew hit a 1-1 pitch from Bauer over the wall in right field for his 15th homer of the season, giving the Yankees a 4-0 lead.
Cleveland got two runs back in the third against Eovaldi. Urshela led off with a walk and second baseman Jose Ramirez followed with a single. A sacrifice bunt by shortstop Francisco Lindor moved the runners to second and third. Urshela scored on a sacrifice fly by left fielder Michael Brantley and Ramirez scored on a two-out single by designated hitter Carlos Santana, cutting the New York lead to 4-2.
But the Yankees countered with two runs in the fourth. Shortstop Didi Gregorius led off with a single and he scored on a double down the left field line by Drew. Drew then scored on a double by Gardner, giving New York a 6-2 lead.
Bauer was removed from the game after Gardner's double. In 3 1/3 innings, Bauer gave up six runs and seven hits with one strikeout and two walks.
NOTES: Four-year-old Adriana Aviles and twin sister Maiya, daughters of Indians INF Mike Aviles, threw out the ceremonial first pitches before the game. Adriana Aviles was diagnosed with leukemia in May. ... The Yankees called up 1B Greg Bird from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and he made his major league debut on Thursday night. To make room on the roster for Bird, the Yankees optioned RHP Nick Goody to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, one day after he was recalled. ... The Yankees transferred RHP Diego Moreno (right elbow inflammation) from the 15-day disabled list to the 60-day DL.