Minneapolis, MN (Best E Casino) - Paul Byrd was solid on the mound and David Dellucci missed the cycle by a triple, as the Cleveland Indians made short work of the Minnesota Twins, 5-1, in the middle contest of a three-game set from the Metrodome.

The Twins were without manager Ron Gardenhire, who was suspended one game and fined an undisclosed amount by Major League Baseball for his actions during Thursday's 10-6 win over the Chicago White Sox. It was during the seventh inning of Thursday's game when Gardenhire incited a disruptive reaction from the Metrodome crowd, causing fans to throw debris on the field.

Byrd (6-10) tossed seven innings and gave up just one run on six hits while walking two and fanning one. Rafael Perez hurled two perfect innings of relief, though it was not a save situation.

In addition to Dellucci's two-run homer, Kelly Shoppach also had a two-run blast for the Indians, who still only have three wins in their last eight games. Jhonny Peralta had an RBI double and scored once in the win.

Kevin Slowey (7-8) was saddled with the loss as he was roughed up for five runs on six hits over six frames. Slowey did strike out seven without walking a single batter though. Brian Bass and Dennys Reyes combined to throw three innings of one-hit relief.

Denard Span and Delmon Young combined for four of the six hits for Minnesota, which has only lost two of its previous eight contests. Justin Morneau knocked in the only run in defeat for the Twins, who remain a half-game behind the Chicago White Sox for the AL Central lead.

The Twins got on the board in the third frame as Carlos Gomez and Span both reached on bunt singles. Nick Punto then put down a sac bunt to move both runners into scoring position and Joe Mauer worked a four-pitch walk to load the bases. Morneau offered a sac fly to center to plate Gomez, and the Twins held a 1-0 lead.

Cleveland answered in the fourth inning. Dellucci led off with a double and, after Ben Francisco grounded out, Peralta brought him home with another two-bagger. Shin-Soo Choo popped up in foul territory for the second out, but Shoppach crushed a homer over the fence in right field to make it 3-1 in favor of the Tribe.

The Indians tacked on two more runs in the fifth. Asdrubal Cabrera clubbed a one-out double and moved to third as Grady Sizemore grounded out. Dellucci followed with a long homer to right, and it was 5-1.

Game Notes

The Twins also made some news off the field on Friday, as they announced that Francisco Liriano will start Sunday's finale. He takes the roster spot left vacated by Opening Day starter Livan Hernandez, who was designated for assignment...Byrd has faced the Twins 20 times over the course of his 13-year career and is 11-5 against them...Cleveland had lost nine of its 13 games with the Twins this season prior to Saturday's win, and had also dropped six of its seven meetings with the Twins at the Metrodome this season, with Minnesota sweeping a three-game home set from the Indians in July.