CLEVELAND — The first traditional doubleheader in Cleveland since 1997 took place Monday at Progressive Field, and the hometown team and its fans left with mixed emotions.
Cleveland got brilliant pitching performances from starters Cliff Lee and Fausto Carmona against the Toronto Blue Jays, but was only able to capitalize on one of them, winning the first game 3-0, before dropping the nightcap by the same count in 10 innings.
Both Lee and Carmona worked nine innings of shutout ball, but only Carmona got the complete-game victory after the Indians failed to generate any offense for Lee in the second game, which ended with Toronto scoring three times off closer Rafael Betancourt to win it in the 10th.
The loss in Game 2 left Indians manager Eric Wedge in a sour mood.
“That was a tough one,” said Wedge, whose lineup mustered just three hits in the extra-inning defeat. “What a performance by Cliff again, but we didn’t do anything offensively. Our approach tonight was one of the poorest, if not the poorest, I’ve seen.
“There are no excuses. We gave away at-bats all night. We’ve made progress (offensively), but that was a step back.”
Even though they lost, the Indians generated plenty of highlights in the nightcap, including a rare unassisted triple play turned by second baseman Asdrubal Cabrera in the fifth inning — just the 14th  time in major league history it has occurred in the regular or postseason.
With Toronto runners Kevin Mench and Marco Scutaro stealing on the pitch, Cabrera made a diving catch on a liner from Lyle Overbay, got up and stepped on second base to retire Mench and tagged Scutaro, who was standing near the second base bag.
It was the second unassisted triple play ever for Cleveland during the regular season and the first since July 19, 1909, when shortstop Neal Ball accomplished the feat against Boston in Cleveland. Indians second baseman Bill Wambsganss completed the only unassisted triple play in World Series history in Game 5 of the 1920 Fall Classic against Brooklyn. Oddly enough, Ron Hansen, a big league scout who turned an unassisted triple play against the Indians while with Washington in 1968, was in attendance.
“It was special,” said Cabrera through interpreter and first base coach Luis Rivera. “Knowing that it hadn’t happened since 1909 made it even more special.”
Special is a perfect description of Lee’s start to this season.
His major league-leading consecutive innings streak without a walk came to an end at 281/3 innings after he issued a free pass to the second hitter of the game in the opening inning, but the left-hander’s march to the American League’s Cy Young Award remained intact.
Lee (6-0) allowed seven hits and struck out five, with his ERA dipping to a major league-low 0.67. Had he got the deserved decision, he would have been the first Cleveland pitcher to win his first seven starts since Duster Mails in 1920.
“I’m pleased with how I did,” Lee said. “We just weren’t able to score any runs. You’ve got to score to win.”
Game 1 was played in front of a sparse crowd, but the light fanfare didn’t bother Carmona, who won his third straight decision to improve to 4-1 with a 2.40 ERA.
Carmona allowed just three hits through the first six innings, shutting out the Jays on four hits for the game, while striking out three.
“He did a fantastic job,” Wedge said. “Even when he did get himself into situations, he was able to put the ball on the ground.”
Cleveland’s defense was on display all day.
First baseman Ryan Garko made a diving stop on a ground ball down the line with runners on first and second and two outs in the seventh inning to preserve a 1-0 lead in the opener. Victor Martinez made a leaping grab on a liner to first with one out and a runner on second in the ninth inning of the nightcap, with Franklin Gutierrez making a spectacular catch for the final out in the same inning.
“We haven’t been swinging the bat very well,” Cabrera said. “If you don’t hit, you better catch the ball.”
Cabrera was one of the few Indians hitting in Game 1, with his two-run home run — his first homer of the season — distancing Cleveland from Toronto in the seventh inning. He was an unlikely offensive hero, entering the at-bat on a 3-for-31 skid.
The runs allowed by Betancourt in the 10th snapped Cleveland’s consecutive-scoreless-innings streak at 31 — the longest by an Indians’ staff since a 34-inning streak in 1972.
It was Toronto’s last trip to Cleveland of the season, which undoubtedly comes as good news to the Blue Jays. The Jays, who suffered three losses in the four-game series, have won just twice in Cleveland over their last 16 games here, dating back to 2004. They had lost eight straight before winning the nightcap.  
Contact Chris Assenheimer at 329-7136 or cassenheimer@chroniclet.com. 

TONIGHT

WHO: Cleveland vs. Oakland
TIME: 7:05
WHERE: Progressive Field
PITCHERS: Byrd (1-3, 4.28 ERA) vs. Duchscherer (3-1, 2.45)
TV/RADIO: SportsTime Ohio; WEOL 930-AM, WTAM 1100-AM

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