CLEVELAND -- Max Kepler is powering his way into Rookie of the Year consideration.The German-born outfielder had three two-run homers and six RBI, leading Minnesota to a 12-5 win over the Cleveland Indians on Monday night.Kepler became the fifth Twin ever and first since Justin Morneau in 2007 to homer three times in a game.Its a good feeling, he said. I was ecstatic. Ive had two before in the minors and once up here. I was real excited.Kepler homered off All-Star Danny Salazar in the first and third innings and hit another off Cody Anderson in the sixth. His was the 12th three-homer game in the majors this season.Kepler singled in the ninth off Zach McAllister to raise his average to .256. He began the season at Rochester but leads AL rookies in homers (14) and RBI (44). He has homered 13 times and driven in 37 runs since June 19.Salazar (11-4) lost for the first time since May 22 and will undergo an MRI on his right elbow Tuesday. He allowed three homers and was charged with six runs in two innings, the shortest outing of his career.Joe Mauer had four hits and homered in the eighth off Andrew Miller, who was making his first appearance with Cleveland after being acquired Sunday from the Yankees.Jose Berrios (2-1) retired 15 straight after a three-run first inning. The rookie right-hander, recalled from Triple-A Rochester before the game, allowed four hits in six innings.Miller received a standing ovation from the crowd of 15,018 when he ran in from the bullpen. He retired Kepler on a groundout, the only other batter he faced.Kepler had two chances for a fourth home run, but said that wasnt on his mind when he batted in the eighth and ninth.I wasnt trying for home runs, he said. I never do.You dont see three home runs all the time, Twins manager Paul Molitor said. Its fun to watch. He does a really nice job. Those balls basically are line drives that went really far.Mike Napoli hit a two-run homer in the eighth for the Indians, whose lead in the AL Central over idle Detroit was cut to four games. Minnesota is 6-4 this season against Cleveland.Eddie Rosario led off the second with a home run. Jorge Polanco had a three-run triple in the third and tripled again in the fifth.Salazar didnt pitch in the All-Star Game because the Indians wanted to rest his arm. He has allowed 10 runs in six innings over his last two outings.While manager Terry Francona doesnt think Salazar looks hurt, the pitcher wants to get it checked out.Its been there for a while but its getting worse, Salazar said. I want to find out whats going on so I know whats in there.START THEM UPThe Twins took the opener of the four-game series with 19 hits, matching a season high.We play a game thats unpredictable in a lot of ways, Molitor said. You come in here and face a team thats hot. You get a guy like Salazar out there facing a kid that just got called up. Circumstances dont look particularly bright, but you go play.TRAINERS ROOMTwins: OF Byron Buxton (right knee) is considered day-to-day after an MRI revealed no damage beyond an existing bone bruise.UP NEXTTwins: RHP Kyle Gibson went six innings and allowed two runs in his last start, a July 28 no-decision against Baltimore.Indians: RHP Carlos Carrasco is scheduled to make his 100th career start. He is 5-2 with a 1.61 ERA in his last eight outings. Stan Smith España . Tests earlier this week revealed a Grade 2 left hamstring strain for Sabathia, who was hurt in last Fridays start against San Francisco. Its an injury that will require about eight weeks to heal. He finished a disappointing campaign just 14-13 with a career-worst 4. Stan Smith Baratas Rebajas .J. -- Seven games into a disappointing season, New York Giants defensive catalyst Jason Pierre-Paul is getting the feeling hes back. http://www.stansmithbaratas.es/ . Anthony Calvillo, through 20 CFL seasons, was frequently invincible and largely stoic in the heat of competition. But underneath the professional exterior he was, and is, compellingly human. Comprar Stan Smith Baratas . -- PGA TOUR Canada member Steve Saunders took a three-stroke lead Saturday in the Web. Stan Smith España Baratas . -- Arizona knocked off some quality opponents, rolled over a few overmatched ones and grinded out victories even when things didnt go so well. RICHMOND, Va. -- The race to get into the Chase for the Sprint Cup had little drama at Richmond.It had insults. Just not much drama.The underdog Jeremy Mayfields?win-and-in story never developed. The drivers who couldnt have problems had nagging but simple issues rather than full-fledged disasters. The drivers who needed to have great days and good luck had mediocre days and horrible luck, at best.Ryan Newman had about as bad a week as a driver could get. Saddled with a 15-point penalty earlier in the week, Newman knew early in Saturdays race that he probably wasnt going to make the Chase for the Sprint Cup field. Not with the way his car was driving. Not with the somewhat insignificant wholesale changes to the car the Richard Childress Racing team made throughout the race.He had gotten into the top 10 though before tangling with Tony Stewart.And then it was on. Outside the infield medical center, Newman ripped into Stewart, whom he felt (correctly) had cut across his nose on purpose.Him just being bipolar and having anger issues, Newman described as the cause of the wreck.Stewart didnt get too spicy in his responses. The last thing he needs is a war of words with a driver that at least used to be one of his good friends.This is Stewarts last Chase as the sun is about to set on his Cup career. He doesnt need to throw wood on the fire with Newman to distract him from his last chance to win a championship.Unfortunately for Stewart, the whos in, whos out story couldnt overshadow the Newman words.The Chase field was rarely in doubt throughout the race. With 200 laps to go, Newman was 34 points out of the cut, while Chris Buescher was up 16 on David Ragan for 30th.With 40 laps to go, Newman had cut that deficit in half to 17, but he was in the top 10. So he wasnt going to make up much more ground, and Jamie McMurray -- the driver he needed to catch -- was on pace to maintain his spot or at least not lose many. One position on the track is worth one point in NASCAR.Then came the wreck. And all that was left were the words. The drama was pretty much over.Oh, Kasey Kahne had a desperation shot on the green-white-checkered finish as he restarted fourth. But on old tires, he wasnt going to beat the much stronger Toyotas on the front row.That didnt keep McMurray from feeling nervous. He would have been out if Kahne had pulled off the upset.I was totally worried about him, McMurray said. Heading into the last restart, we had fresh tires and I was like, There is nothing I can do about Kasey Kahne right now. Im going to go out and just do the best I can, and if it works out, it works out.It worked out just fiine.dddddddddddd In the end, Newman finished 43 points off the cut -- maybe making it a little easier for him to stomach the 25 points in penalties during the year. Chase Elliott, who at one point had to pit for a cut tire, ended up with a 48-point cushion, and Austin Dillon was 46 points to the good.[Were] very lucky our tire cut down when it did, was able to get up against the wall and kind of get slowed down before I had a big hit, Elliott said. That was just luck, I guess, and how that worked out. ... Well take it.Buescher finished with a 21-point cushion on 30th even with having contact on a restart that resulted in a cut tire and a green-flag pit stop that at one point put him two laps down.We wouldnt want it to be easy, Buescher said. That definitely was a stressful day. ... It is just a huge weight lifted off my shoulders.I tried not to get too caught up into that early on. It wasnt until that last 50 or 60 laps wanting a little more information.Newman never had to ask for information even before his accident. With his chances to make the Chase dim, being mired between 11th and 20th and then have a speeding penalty, he knew he needed the others to have trouble.The funny thing about racing, though, is things can turn thanks to another drivers mistake or a broken part.Newman didnt have the funny thing happen. He had the racing thing, and he tangled with a driver that he knows drives by a certain code.How many times does he get to run into you before you say, Youve had enough? Stewart said.Stewart didnt have any qualms telling it the way he saw it. He fully admitted he cut into Newman, because if Newman was going to keep running into him, he wasnt going to get away with it.I remember when he has had a lot of stuff on the line and he gets the give and take, but he has never been really one to give back much, Newman said.Stewart wont be giving back much. He will be among 16 drivers doing a heck of a lot more taking than giving over the next 10 weeks.That could create tension. Make that, it should create tension.It should, hopefully, make the Chase better than its regular-season finale. The biggest names -- except for the concussed Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- in the sport are all in the Chase.Those drivers will have to put regular-season issues behind them. Stewart said there is no feud with Newman, that in his eyes, it was over.He is right. Its time for a new season. Let the drama begin. Because NASCAR fans are probably starving for it after Saturday night at Richmond. ' ' '