Cleveland Indians pitcher Trevor Bauer didn't care for the outcome on Tuesday night, but based on his performance, he liked his chances for the rest of the regular season and beyond.
Todd Frazier and Carlos Sanchez each drove in two runs in a seven-run sixth inning, and the Chicago White Sox handed the division-leading Indians their second straight lopsided loss, 8-1 on Tuesday night.
Bauer (11-7) allowed just one run on a pair of singles over five innings before a few well-placed hits did him in.
"I feel like I didn't deserve to have that happen," said a frustrated Bauer, who was penciled in to start the third game of the playoffs. "They got six hits (off him) tonight. Only two of them were in the strike zone. That's as good as I been in months. Baseball is a (screwed-up) game."
Manager Terry Francona agreed that Bauer had "as good as stuff" as the right-hander had this season.
"They just started bunching hits, and they came in a hurry," Francona said. "I thought (Bauer) was getting frustrated toward the end. "
The White Sox had seven hits, drew two walks and sent 12 batters to the plate against three pitchers in their highest-scoring inning of the season. The Indians, who have allowed 19 runs in two games, maintained a six-game lead over Detroit in the AL Central after the Tigers lost to Minnesota 8-1.
"I mean, we're gonna lose games," said Francisco Lindor, who went hitless. "The way we're losing games is not right. ... But we're OK. I guarantee you we'll be OK."
Jose Quintana (12-10) held Cleveland to five hits over eight innings, including Brandon Guyer's solo homer in the second in Chicago's fifth win in seven games.
Tied at 1, Bauer walked Adam Eaton to lead off the sixth. Four hits followed, with Jose Abreu driving in the first run and Frazier getting his career-high 92nd RBI to chase Bauer.
Avisail Garcia then delivered an RBI single, Sanchez tripled and Eaton doubled in a run in his second time up to end Dan Otero's night. Joe Colon came in and gave up a walk before Melky Cabrera grounded out to end a half-inning that took more than 30 minutes.
Abreu's two-out bloop single in the first made it 1-0 and extended Chicago's scoring streak to nine consecutive innings after an 11-4 rout Monday.
Bauer then retired 12 straight before hitting Sanchez with a pitch in the fifth.
Quintana struck out six and walked one to continue his career-best season.
"I was trying to stay loose," Quintana said. "They scored a lot of runs (in the sixth), so then I just wanted to throw strikes."
