Carmona Back From DL

The Cleveland Indians' pitching staff has struggled since Fausto Carmona went on the disabled list two months ago. They hope his return can provide them with some much needed consistency.

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On Saturday, Carmona and the Indians continue their three-game home series against the slumping Minnesota Twins, who look to avoid matching their longest losing streak of the season.

Oddsmakers from SBG Global have made Cleveland -125 money line favorites (MLB Odds) for tonight's game, the over/under has been set at 8 total runs (Matchup). Current public betting information shows that 48% of bets for this game have been placed on Cleveland -125 (View MLB Bet Percentages).

Fausto Carmona (4-2, 3.10 ERA), who won 19 games last year for Cleveland (45-56), has been on the disabled list since May 24 because of a left hip strain. Pitching coach Carl Willis told the Indians' official Web site that it will be crucial for Carmona not to get overly excited to be back on the mound.

"It's all about him controlling his emotions and his effort level," Willis said. "Anybody who misses time and comes back after a while, it's hard to pull the reins back. I'm sure that's something we'll deal with (Saturday)."

When Carmona was placed on the DL, the Indians' pitching staff had the sixth-best ERA in the majors at 3.64. In the 52 games since, however, they have the fifth-highest at 5.03.

Carmona, who is 3-1 with a 1.75 ERA in five starts against Minnesota (55-47), follows a solid outing by Cliff Lee in the Indians' 5-4 win over the Twins on Friday. Lee threw eight innings, allowing two runs and striking out 10 for his 14th win and Cleveland's eighth in the last 11 games.

Minnesota, which had a runner on third in the ninth but was unable to get him home, has lost five in a row. The Twins are 0-4 on this six-game road trip and they may have to continue it without outfielder Carlos Gomez.

Gomez was immobilized, carted from the field and transported to Lutheran Hospital after crashing into the outfield wall at full speed while making a spectacular catch in the first inning Friday. The Twins said the 22-year-old sustained a lower back injury. He was back in the ballpark 10 minutes after the final out, but was walking gingerly.

"I never had so much pain in my life," said Gomez, who came in batting .248 with five homers, 33 RBIs and a team-high 21 stolen bases. "When it happened, I was scared. I didn't know what I did, but I thought I broke something. I ran into it full speed."

Minnesota fell 3 1/2 games behind the Chicago White Sox for first place in the AL Central.

Scott Baker (6-3, 3.26) looks to snap the Twins' losing streak when he takes the mound on Saturday.

The right-hander suffered a tough loss Sunday against Texas, allowing one run and two hits in eight innings of a 1-0 defeat. Baker struck out eight and the only run he yielded came on a sixth-inning home run, which broke up his bid for a perfect game.

"If Scott can do that the rest of the year, we're going to be pretty tough," catcher Joe Mauer said.

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