CLEVELAND – Don’t look now, but the Cleveland Indians are on a bona fide winning streak.

The Indians used another offensive barrage, mixed in a solid effort from starter Jake Westbrook and powered their way to a 7-2 interleague victory over the Washington Nationals on Friday night.

The Indians have scored 26 runs in the last three games – which include a pair of victories over the Boston Red Sox – and are showing the kind of offensive might many thought they’d have early in the season.

While Austin Kearns hit a pair of home runs and Travis Hafner added a towering solo blast – the Indians’ first three-homer game since July 3, 2009 – it wasn’t the usual suspects that got the praise for the Indians’ newfound success at the plate.

“The difference is the kids in the bottom of the lineup are contributing more than they have in the past,” Indians manager Manny Acta said. “It takes nine guys, and in the beginning we were playing almost six innings of offense because the guys in the bottom of the lineup were struggling so much.”

Happy to have the support, Westbrook barely needed it after a few rocky innings. The right-hander gave up hits to the first three batters and two more in the third, but settled down to face 13 straight batters without surrendering a hit.

“I definitely was a little erratic early on,” Westbrook said. “I felt like I made some decent pitches, but they got some good hits. Through the middle innings, I was able to get ahead in the count and got more consistent in the strike zone.”

Westbrook was also helped out of the gate by rookie catcher Carlos Santana, who was making his major league debut. After Nyjer Morgan led off with a single, he tried to steal second base on Westbrook’s first pitch to No. 2 hitter Ivan Rodriguez. Santana threw a perfect strike to gun down Morgan.

“That was huge considering I gave up three consecutive hits there,” Westbrook said. “That allowed us to hold it to one run that inning. If he didn’t do that, it’s certainly 2-0.

“He caught for me a couple times in spring training and last year at (Double-A) Akron. We were comfortable with each other and he was even coming up to me between innings and discussing how we were going to attack hitters in the next inning.”

While the Indians have said Santana’s defense has kept him in the minor leagues the past two seasons, the young catcher still didn’t expect the Nationals to test him so quickly.

“I was like, ‘Wow,’ when he went on the first pitch,” Santana said through an interpreter. “I knew this team liked to run and they were probably going to try to run against me. So I felt like I was prepared for anything.”

The team is so excited to see what Santana can do, he will catch for Fausto Carmona in tonight’s game against the Nationals, despite the fact backup Mike Redmond has been Carmona’s personal catcher all season.

“We’re very happy with what we saw on the first night,” said Acta, despite Santana’s 0-for-3 performance at the plate. “He called a great game for Jake and he made a lot of adjustments when Jake got out of the strike zone.”

Westbrook’s win Friday was his second over his last three starts, and Acta believes his ace is starting to show the consistency they had hoped for all season.

“Three of his last four starts have been very good,” Acta said. “In the beginning of the season he’d have a good start, then a decent one, then a bad one. Now, we feel confident that he’s going to go out there every five days and give us a chance to win.”

While Acta had plenty of praise for his battery, it was Kearns that he seemed happiest after the game. Acta had been Kearns’ manager in Washington the last two seasons, and both were excited about the left fielder’s performance against their former team.

“I can’t say enough about Austin Kearns,” Acta said. “The way he’s been playing for us … he’s been our most consistent hitter. He’s the ultimate pro. He’s a throwback guy who plays hard, stays professional and never gives a bat away. He deserves everything he’s getting right now after the rough time he’s had the last two years.”

Kearns’ first home run came in the first inning and gave the Indians a 3-1 lead, and his second made it 4-1 in the fourth. He finished 2-for-4 with a pair of runs scored and four RBIs.

The performance came in Kearns’ debut at the No. 5 spot in the order, which is where he was moved to make room for Santana at No. 3.

“Carlos is a good kid and deserves to be here,” Kearns said. “He’s probably going to be hitting third for a while in his career.”

Hafner continued his torrid pace at the plate with a 2-for-3 performance that included the solo homer in the sixth and a double in the first. His last five hits have gone for extra bases.

“We need Travis Hafner in the middle of the lineup,” Acta said. “He’s a patient hitter and he can give you a lot of good at-bats when he’s hitting like he is right now. That’s also important because he’ll protect a young hitter like Santana.”

Jhonny Peralta also had a pair of hits – including a double in the fourth – and Luis Valbuena, Trevor Crowe and Shin-Soo Choo all added singles.

“We’ve been hitting really well lately, including against Chicago (White Sox) and Boston,” Kearns said. “We’re hoping to keep it up, and we’re hoping that it’s something we can build on.”

Contact Shaun Bennett at 329-7137 or sbennett@chroniclet.com.

TONIGHT

• WHO: Cleveland vs. Washington
• TIME: 7:05
• WHERE: Progressive Field
• PITCHERS: Carmona (4-5, 3.49 ERA) vs. Martin (0-1, 2.31)
• TV/RADIO: SportsTime Ohio; WEOL 930-AM, WTAM 1100-AM