CLEVELAND — The return of Fausto Carmona was far from a triumphant one Saturday night at Progressive Field.

With Carmona, a 19-game winner last year, making his first appearance in over two months, the Indians were thumped 11-4 by the Twins, who evened the series at a game apiece with their first win in six games.

Carmona was at the root of the loss, leaving the disabled list where he had lingered with a strained left hip to allow a career-high nine runs on seven hits and three walks in just 2 1/3 innings.

“I think he was a little too geared up,” Cleveland manager Eric Wedge said. “He was really rushing out there in the first inning. You know he’s going to be better the next time out. He’s going to figure it out. He’s experienced too much not to get through this.”

Things looked bleak for Carmona from the get-go, with the right-hander walking the first batter he faced and two others during a six-run first inning from the Twins that was capped by a three-run home run from Brian Buscher.

Carmona appeared to be en route to escaping the opening inning with just three runs crossing the plate, but made a mistake on a 1-2 pitch with two outs to Buscher, who hammered it into the seats in right-center for the 6-0 lead.

Carmona (4-3, 4.33 ERA) retired the side in order in the second, but got more rough treatment in the third inning from Minnesota, which scored three more runs to open a 9-0 advantage. Carmona was gone after retiring just one of the five batters he faced in the third, Buscher again capping the rally with a two-run single to give him a career-high five RBIs.

“I felt like I was a little bit excited,” said Carmona through interpreter and first base coach Luis Rivera. “I was a little off with my pitches.”

The only positive result from his first outing back from the DL was that Carmona emerged with his health intact.

“Physically, by all accounts he was fine,” Wedge said.

“It feels good because I don’t feel any pain,” Carmona said. “But I don’t feel good about the outcome.”

Pitching wasn’t nearly the same problem for the Twins, who got four straight scoreless innings from starter Scott Baker to open the game.

Baker allowed a single to the first batter he faced, Grady Sizemore, then didn’t allow another hit until Andy Marte led off the fifth inning with a solo home run to right-center.

Marte’s third homer of the year extended Cleveland’s long-ball streak to a season-high 12 games.

With Casey Blake leaving in a trade with the Dodgers prior to the game, Marte knows the third base job is his for the rest of the season.

“It makes me feel more comfortable knowing I’m going to be in the lineup every day,” said Marte, who has hit in seven of his last 10 games, batting .270 (10-for-37) with three homers and four RBIs over the span. “I just need to start showing everybody that I can play every day.”

Cleveland caught up to Baker for good in the sixth, chasing him with three consecutive hits, the last a two-run single from Jhonny Peralta.

Peralta stayed hot, going 2-for-4 with a triple in the eighth inning and reaching home for Cleveland’s final run on a check-swing base hit from Kelly Shoppach.

The Indians’ shortstop has hit safely in 14 of his last 15 games, batting .390 (23-for-59) with five homers and 17 RBIs over the span.

Andy Gonzalez, who was promoted from Triple-A Buffalo prior to the game to replace Blake on the 25-man roster, made his season debut, collecting a base hit as a pinch hitter in the ninth.

Contact Chris Assenheimer at 329-7136 or cassenheimer@chroniclet.com.

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