MINNEAPOLIS -- Carlos Carrasco managed to get his glove up in time, using the leather to knock down a sharp comebacker off the bat of Robbie Grossman in the fourth inning on Friday. In the process, the big right-hander fell hard on the dirt mound, as the baseball rolled away.
That was the kind of night it was for Carrasco, who struggled to finish off innings and made an early exit in a 7-4 loss to the Twins at Target Field. The six runs surrendered by the Tribe starter were effective in ending the Indians' six-game winning streak.
"He wasn't really crisp," Indians manager Terry Francona said. "Things were just a little flat. They didn't have to respect his fastball as maybe they normally would."

In Carrasco's previous trip up the hill, against the Astros, all five runs he allowed came with two outs. That theme persisted against Minnesota's lineup, which scored five of its runs off the righty via two-out rallies. That included the first inning, when Eduardo Escobar -- as part of a two-homer performance -- drilled a three-run, two-out home run to put Cleveland in a quick 3-0 hole.
Escobar's home run came on a curveball that dropped below the strike zone. When the ball left the bat, Carrasco thought he had induced an inning-ending flyout, but that was far from the case.

"That pitch was low," Carrasco said. "Escobar likes a low pitch. He got a little bit in front. I thought it was a fly ball, but no, that ball is still going. He hit it pretty good."
As for the two-out troubles, Carrasco did not have an explanation.
"I think there's something going on. I don't know," said Carrasco, who is now 6-4 with a 4.50 ERA through 12 starts. "I'm just trying to figure it out. That's what happened last outing and today. Two quick outs and I get in trouble. So, I don't know. I'm just trying to figure out what it is."

In the second inning, Carrasco had two outs and a runner on first base. He then allowed back-to-back singles to James Dozier and Eddie Rosario -- the latter bringing in a run. Carrasco's next setback arrived in the fourth, which began with Grossman giving the Indians a scare with his liner up the middle.
Grossman wound up with an infield single off Carrasco, who shifted to his feet, brushed the dirt off his legs and indicated to Francona that he was good to go. Ryan LaMarre followed with an RBI double and Miguel Sano later added a run-scoring double with two outs to knock Carrasco out of the game.
Carrasco departed after logging just 71 pitches in 3 2/3 innings, in which he yielded four extra-base hits and finished with more walks (three) than strikeouts (two).

Against Twins starter Jose Berrios, the Indians' offense broke through twice. Yan Gomes and Greg Allen opened the third with consecutive hits and each came around to score. In the sixth inning, Edwin Encarnacion belted a two-run shot off Berrios, marking the designated hitter's 14th blast of the season. Berrios struck out seven over six innings en route to the win.
"Encarnacion got one of his few mistake breaking balls," Twins manager Paul Molitor said. "But we kept scoring for the most part, kept putting pressure on [Carrasco] and did a nice job coming out of the 'pen with three clean innings from our guys."

MOMENT THAT MATTERED
Sano chases Carrasco: With two outs in the fourth inning, the Twins had a runner on third with Rosario at the plate. Carrasco opted to intentionally walk the lefty-hitting Rosario, who connected for an RBI single in his previous at-bat, in favor of facing Sano. The slugger made the pitcher pay by pulling an 0-1 offering to left for an RBI double that sent Carrasco to the showers and gave Minnesota a 6-2 lead at the time.
"I thought I was going to get another strikeout," said Carrasco, who struck out Sano in his first two at-bats. "But, I threw that slider kind of inside and then middle. He just got that pitch right there and hit a double, and they got another run right there. It is what it is, man. I should've thrown a better pitch."

SOUND SMART
Jose Ramirez ignited a two-run outburst for the Indians in the sixth inning with a one-out double off Berrios. That marked the third baseman's 18th two-base hit of the season, giving him 66 doubles in his last 162 games, dating back to last year. For perspective, the single-season Major League record for doubles is 67, set by Earl Webb in 1931 for the Red Sox.
UP NEXT
Right-hander Trevor Bauer (4-3, 2.61 ERA) is scheduled to take the mound on Saturday, when the Twins host the Tribe in a 4:10 p.m. ET divisional clash at Target Field. In his past three starts, Bauer has a 1.69 ERA with 29 strikeouts vs. four walks in 21 1/3 innings. Minnesota will counter with righty Lance Lynn (3-4, 5.94 ERA).