ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Unlike his last start, there was no quit in

C.C. Sabathia.

Eight dominant innings from the left-hander, who was battered in

his last outing, helped the Cleveland Indians win consecutive games

for the first time since the beginning of June and send the St.

Louis Cardinals to their eighth straight loss with a 3-1 victory on

Tuesday night.

"I felt like a kid throwing a baseball," Sabathia said. "I

was having fun. Just to get back out there and be pitching, it felt

awesome."

Ronnie Belliard hit a two-run homer in the first for the

Indians, who clinched their first series win since taking three of

four from the Chicago White Sox from May 29-June 1. On Monday, they

snapped a 10-game losing streak in series openers. On Wednesday,

they'll go for a sweep of the Cardinals, whose last eight-game

slide was July 4-16, 1988.

"This team, it's not going to be down too much longer,"

Cardinals starter Anthony Reyes said. "Once we get that little

click, it's going to be scary what this team's going to be able to

do."

The Indians, who are 9-15 this month, last won consecutive games

on May 31-June 1. They're 10-3 all-time against the Cardinals,

including 6-2 in St. Louis.

"The pitching is starting to settle in and we're starting to

swing the bats a little bit," manager Eric Wedge said. "A lot of

good things."

Sabathia (6-4) allowed nine runs in 2 1-3 innings against the

Cubs in his last start, the run total equaling his career worst,

and had been 0-3 with a 10.24 ERA in four starts this month. He

muffled the Cardinals, allowing one run and five hits with four

strikeouts and no walks.

After his last outing, Sabathia apologized for briefly quitting

and said "What's inexcusable? For me not to make pitches, for me

to be giving up."

After beating the Cardinals, he said teammates understood that

it was just frustration.

"You know what, those words came out of my mouth but that's not

what I meant," he said. "Everybody in here, all my teammates,

knew what I meant so it really didn't affect me at all."

David Eckstein had three hits and an RBI for the Cardinals, who

have been outscored 67-28 during the slump, although they still

lead the NL Central by 1½ games. They're 0-6 since getting Albert

Pujols back from a side injury.

"It's the same group of guys that lost one of the best players

in the game for two weeks and played like heroes," manager Tony La

Russa said. "Now, we're in a lull and can't make anything good

happen.

"The same guys who were heroes are the same guys who are going

to rebound and make start making good things happen."

Reyes, making his fifth career start and first since losing on a

one-hitter to the White Sox, allowed two runs and four hits in five

innings. He was trailing after the first two batters, a full-count

walk to Grady Sizemore followed by Belliard's fifth homer that put

the Indians ahead 2-0.

The Cardinals cut the deficit to one in the third on Hector

Luna's leadoff double off the third base bag and Eckstein's two-out

RBI single.

Reyes (1-2) worked out of a bases loaded jam in the fifth, which

was delayed 18 minutes by a brief rainstorm, getting Victor

Martinez on an infield pop-up for the third out.

"I was a little shaky with command," Reyes said. "I was just

doing the best I could to put the ball in places where they

couldn't do too much damage."

A two-out rally in the seventh against Adam Wainwright started

by Jhonny Peralta's single and capped by Martinez' single gave the

Indians a 3-1 lead.

Bob Wickman got the last three outs for his 11th save in 13

chances. It came in his 744th appearance, tying him with Willie

Hernandez for 50th on the career list.Game notes
Sizemore doubled in the third and is 13-for-35 (.371)

during a nine-game hitting streak. He's among the league leaders

with 41 extra-base hits, by far the most by a leadoff hitter. ...

The Cardinals have been outhomered 22-8 over the last 11 games.

They have no long balls the last four games. ... The Indians are

assured of only their second series win since May 23. They had been

1-8-1 since then. ... Three of Reyes' four starts have come in

interleague play. He beat Kansas City earlier this season. ... The

last time the Cardinals lost nine in a row was in 1980 when they

dropped 10 straight from May 15-25.