KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Danny Salazar has no idea why he seems to handle the Kansas City Royals so easily.Perhaps its because hes such an aggressive pitcher and they have such an aggressive lineup.The Indians right-hander went right after the Royals in his third outing against them this season, shutting them down into the seventh inning in leading Cleveland to a 7-3 victory.They like to swing a lot, said Salazar (11-3), who tossed 7 2/3 shutout innings against Kansas City in a 7-1 victory in early May, and allowed one run over eight innings in a 6-1 win last month.You really have to mix your pitches.He did that nicely, striking out seven and walking one over 6 2/3 innings.He did a really good job of keeping them off the scoreboard, for the most part, Indians manager Terry Francona said. We really needed that bounce-back win.Mike Napoli hit a two-run homer in the first off Brian Flynn (1-1), and Carlos Santana drove in two runs off long reliever Dillon Gee, as the Indians snapped a five-game skid at Kauffman Stadium.Francisco Lindor added a solo shot in the ninth for Cleveland.Youre facing an All-Star pitcher in Salazar, said Royals manager Ned Yost, who skippered the winning club last week. Hes not an All-Star for nothing. Hes tough.The Flynn-Gee combo got the call for the Royals in place of ineffective fifth starter Chris Young. Flynn lasted 2 2/3 innings in his first start since August 2014, while Gee went the next 5 1/3 innings.Then again, Cy Young would have had a tough time matching Salazar on another hot, humid night.He didnt allow a runner past first base through the first five innings, striking out Alex Gordon twice along the way. He seemed to falter in the oppressive weather in the sixth, when Salvador Perez drove in a run and Kendrys Morales scored on a wild pitch, but managed to escape the inning.He gave up a sacrifice fly in the seventh before Kyle Crockett finished the inning.Salazar pitched with the lead the entire way after Napolis homer in the first inning, his 21st of the year just skirting inside the left-field foul pole. But the rest of the Indians offense came from the same kind of small ball that carried the AL Central-rival Royals to the World Series title last season.They scored a run in the second on a single, a walk and two sacrifices. The division-leaders added three more in the fifth on a double, three singles, a walk and a fielders choice.It was a nice way to rebound after Cleveland blew a late lead in a 7-3 loss the previous night,I was really pleased the way we handled it, Francona said.STATS AND STREAKSIndians OF Erik Gonzalez had a single in the third for his first career hit. ... Salazar has won seven straight, a career best. ... Lindor has hit 24 career homers. Nineteen have been solo shots. ... Gee matched the longest relief outing of his career.HOT SEATSYost and Francona both said they may change up their lineups for the series finale on Wednesday. Temperatures are expected to approach 100 degrees for the afternoon start with a heat index well into triple digits. Were going to see tonight who needs a break, Yost said.TRAINERS ROOMIndians: OF Michael Brantley will have an MRI on Wednesday after experiencing pain in his right shoulder. He had surgery last November and played in only 11 games this season before landing back on the DL. Brantley has been on a rehab assignment at Double-A Akron since July 11.Royals: RHP Kyle Zimmer, one of the clubs top prospects, has been diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome and will miss the rest of the season. The former first-round draft pick will have surgery in the coming weeks. The Mets Matt Harvey had surgery for the same condition Monday.UP NEXTThe Royals Ian Kennedy is 3-0 with a 1.45 ERA in daytime starts this season. He goes against fellow right-hander Carlos Carrasco, who is 4-2 with a 1.94 ERA in seven road starts. Nike Shoes Black Friday Sale . -- Matt Ryan needed one of the best games of his career to lead the Falcons and their depleted offence out of their three-game losing streak last week. Nike Shoes Black Friday 2019 . LeBron James and Chris Bosh didnt need any more. Williams scored 11 points in 10 minutes, Alan Anderson scored 17 points, and the Brooklyn Nets finished the exhibition season with a 108-87 win over the Miami Heat on Friday night. http://www.nikeshoesblackfriday.com/ . In taking its goal tally to 99 in all competitions already this season, City delivered another demonstration of its lethal firepower at Etihad Stadium to set up a fourth-round match at home to another second-tier team -- Watford. Wholesale Nike Shoes Black Friday . DAmigo scored twice in regulation and added the shootout winner as the Toronto Marlies edged the San Antonio Rampage 5-4 in American Hockey League action. Fake Nike Shoes Black Friday . Inter president Erick Thohir says in a club statement on Wednesday that Vidic is "one of the worlds best defenders and his qualities, international pedigree, and charisma will be an asset. NEW YORK -- The Liberty have been finding ways to win close games lately.New York nearly blew an 18-point lead against Seattle before holding on for a 78-74 victory on Wednesday night. The Liberty have won five of their past six games that have either gone to overtime or been decided by four points or fewer.We said we dont want to just be a mediocre team, said Tina Charles, who led New York with 18 points. It was good finding a way to win again as we didnt want to lose two straight games.Since dropping three in a row at the end of May, including two in overtime, New York has won 11 of 14 overall. Tanisha Wright added a season-high 18 points for the Liberty (13-6).New York led for the entire game, building its advantage to 18 in the first half before Seattle rallied behind Breanna Stewart, the No. 1 pick in the WNBA draft this past April. She finished with 24 points and 16 rebounds.Its frustrating losing, but we are competing, Stewart said. We were coming off a back-to-back and wanted to be competitive with one of the best teams in the league.The Storm (6-12) trailed byy seven midway through the fourth before Stewart scored five straight to get them within 75-73.dddddddddddd After getting a stop on the defensive end, Sue Bird was fouled with 4.9 seconds left and hit the first of two free throws. Her second bounced off the rim and New York grabbed the rebound.Wright hit two free throws with 1.9 seconds remaining and Seattle turned the ball over on its last possession to seal the game.Bird, who grew up on Long Island and said she had about 60 family and friends at the game, matched her season high with 10 assists. She also had 10 assists against New York in the earlier meeting this season in Seattle.A beautiful rendition of the national anthem was sung before the game by a group of students from Daniels Music Foundation. The New York-based music school was founded in 2006, nine years after Daniel Trush had a burst arterial brain aneurysm at 12 years old. Now 32 years old, Trush was part of the group singing. ' ' '