Indians outslug Reds 10-9

CLEVELAND (AP) -- Lonnie Chisenhall and Casey Kotchman had three RBIs apiece as the Cleveland Indians ended Cincinnati's six-game winning streak with a 10-9 win over the Reds on Monday night.

Chisenhall and Kotchman hit two-run homers, and both drove in runs in the sixth inning off Sam LeCure (2-2) as Cleveland snapped a 7-7 tie.

Shin-Soo Choo homered for the Indians.

The ongoing feud between Indians pitcher Derek Lowe and Reds manager Dusty Baker didn't worsen. The pair behaved less than a week after exchanging ugly comments following a game.

Joey Votto and Jay Bruce homered for the Reds, who swept a three-game series from Ohio's other major leaguers last week.

Joe Smith (5-1) replaced an ineffective Lowe in the sixth. Chris Perez worked the ninth for his 22nd straight save.

Perez let the Reds close within one run in the ninth on Bruce's two-out RBI single, but the colorful closer struck out Ryan Ludwick looking for the final out.

Bruce and Brandon Phillips had three hits each for Cincinnati.

There was plenty of humidity on a sultry night at Progressive Field, but none of the heat was generated by angry words or actions.

It was a slugfest, just not the one expected.

Last Wednesday, Lowe and Baker pointed fingers at each other during a game in Cincinnati and exchanged disparaging comments afterward.

Baker had told Mat Latos to brush back Lowe with a pitch, and the right-hander took exception, wagging a finger at the Reds manager, who said he ordered the inside pitch as payback for one Lowe threw a few years ago. Lowe responded by hitting Phillips later.

Both managers did all they could to avoid the issue before the series opener.

Moments ahead of Baker's pregame availability, a Reds spokesman asked reporters to refrain from asking questions about the manager's past with Lowe.

Outside Cleveland's clubhouse, Indians manager Manny Acta downplayed the Lowe-Baker conflict, taking some of the tension out of the rematch.

Still, both Lowe and Latos got pummeled.

Lowe allowed seven runs and 11 hits in five innings, while Latos was charged with seven runs and eight hits over four.

The RBIs by Kotchman and Chisenhall made it 9-7 in the sixth before Bruce's 16th homer got the Reds within a run in the seventh.

Michael Brantley's sacrifice fly restored the Indians' two-run lead in the bottom half.

Cincinnati tied it 7-7 in the fifth on Phillips' shot down the left-field line that turned into a "Little League" home run for the second baseman.

With Votto on with a double, Phillips pulled a pitch just inside the bag at third, the ball sneaking past left fielder Johnny Damon, who crashed hard into the railing. As Damon retrieved the ball, Phillips never slowed after rounding second and scored just ahead of the relay throw with a headfirst slide.

Kotchman's two-run homer and Choo's RBI double gave the Indians a 7-5 lead in the fourth.

Brantley led off with a double, and with two outs, Kotchman hit his sixth homer. Chisenhall followed with his first career triple into the right-field corner and Choo brought him home with his double - a shot off the wall in left that just missed being his second homer.

The Reds took a 5-4 lead in the third on Ludwick's RBI double and Scott Rolen's run-scoring single.

Chisenhall's two-run homer, a shot to the back rows of the first deck in right, gave Cleveland a 4-3 lead in the second.

Brantley opened the inning with a ground-rule double and went to third on Carlos Santana's single. Latos gave up an RBI groundout to Damon, struck out Kotchman and had Chisenhall down 0-2 in the count before the Indians' third baseman unloaded on an inside pitch for his third homer.

Lowe gave up four hits, including RBI singles by Rolen and Ryan Hanigan in the second, to give Cincinnati a 3-1 lead.

Votto, who has destroyed Cleveland pitching, hit a two-out homer in the first to put the Reds ahead 1-0. It was Votto's 13th homer this season and ninth in 26 career interleague games against the Indians.

Choo countered in the Indians' first with a leadoff homer, his sixth, and third to open a game this season. Choo has hit seven homers in 22 games against the Reds.

Notes: Rolen went 2-for-4 in his first game since May 12 because of a sore left shoulder. He was activated from the DL before the game. ... Ohio State football coach Urban Meyer and his 13-year-old son, Nate, threw out ceremonial first pitches. Meyer grew up in Ashtabula, Ohio, rooting for the Indians and wanted to be drafted by the club in 1982. However, he was selected in the 13th round by Atlanta and spent two years in the Braves' organization. ... Baker said the annual home-and-home interleague series with the Indians has developed into quite a rivalry. "You play, what, 15 interleague games?" Baker said. "That's about one-tenth of your season, so these games are big. We went 1-5 against them last year. We go 5-1 and that's a difference. We're talking about being in the wild card chase then. These games have a big impact."