The Cleveland Indians will have Justin Masterson on the mound for their Friday night matchup against the visiting Washington Nationals at 7:05 p.m. ET.
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Via ESPN:
Cleveland (32-33) opened a nine-game road trip by losing seven in a row before finding some solace in winning the last two, including Wednesday's 5-2 victory at Texas.
"It takes a little pressure off," second baseman Jason Kipnis said. "You get a happy flight home, you get a day off, you get a little momentum on your side, you get to go home for a long homestand."
A nine-game homestand may be just what the Indians need to begin cutting into the 4 1/2-game gap on AL Central-leading Detroit. Hosting an NL foe may be even better since they've won seven in a row in Cleveland in interleague play, batting .341 with 15 homers while averaging 7.6 runs.
The pitching staff has been particularly outstanding in four home interleague wins this year, compiling a 1.25 ERA with the rotation getting each victory.
Masterson (8-5, 3.68 ERA) was responsible for one of them, allowing one run with seven strikeouts in six innings of a 5-2 win over Cincinnati on May 29. He's won three straight interleague starts at Progressive Field, yielding two runs with 25 strikeouts in 22 innings.
The right-hander is 5-1 with a 2.36 ERA in seven home starts in 2013.
Masterson, who is making his first career start versus Washington, hasn't been nearly as effective on the road, compiling an 8.06 ERA while losing four starts in a row, two on Cleveland's recent trip.
Kipnis was one of the few bright spots for the Indians during that stretch, going 11 for 28 (.393) over the last seven games. He kept that surge going with his best performance yet Wednesday, getting three hits while coming a triple shy of the cycle and driving in a run.
Michael Brantley, who owns a .184 average with two RBIs over the past 11 road games, could be sparked with a return to Cleveland, where he is hitting .345 with 10 RBIs in his last eight contests.
