The Indians dropped the rubber match of a three-game series to the Twins on Wednesday afternoon at Progressive Field, losing 3-2 in 10 innings.

Cleveland tied it on Jack Hannahan’s solo home run with two outs in the ninth, but the Twins scored once off closer Chris Perez in the 10th to win it.

The Indians have lost 11 of their last 15 games.

CLEVELAND — The Indians didn’t need to put it all together, as shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera suggested after their fifth straight loss Monday night.

Carlos Carrasco delivers a pitch against the Twins’ Ben Revere in the first inning Tuesday. Carrasco was dominant for 81⁄3 innings as the Tribe won 1-0 to snap a five-game losing streak. (AP photo.)

All they required was for Carlos Carrasco to pitch like a Cy Young contender — a tall order, but one the right-hander filled with earnest Tuesday at Progressive Field.

With Carrasco offering up arguably the best start of his career, Cleveland shook a season-high losing skid with a 1-0 victory over Central Division rival Minnesota — the Indians’ first win over the Twins in nine games dating back to last season.

“Everything was perfect today,” said Carrasco, who pitched a career-high 81⁄3 innings, shutting out the Twins on just three hits, while striking out six. “Everything worked perfect today — fastball, slider, change-up. It was very good.”

With his fastball location the key, Carrasco didn’t allow a baserunner the first four innings.

A Delmon Young double with one out in the fifth ended Carrasco’s bid for perfection, but not his efficiency, as he wiggled out of the stickiest situation he faced all night.

Clinging to a 1-0 lead after the Indians scored in the fourth, Carrasco had Twins on the corners when Young’s double was followed by an infield single from Luke Hughes.

.

Carrasco didn’t blink, retiring Brian Dinkelman on a foul pop to the catcher and striking out Rene Rivera to end the threat.

“That was impressive,” Cleveland manager Manny Acta said. “The whole day, he was very aggressive. Carlos was tremendous today. He had a very good fastball and kept it at the knees the whole game.”

Carrasco’s dominance was a surprising sight from a pitcher who had allowed three or more runs in six of his 10 starts on the season.

“He can do this a lot,” Acta said. “This guy has the stuff to be a very good pitcher. I have a lot of confidence in him. He has to have confidence in himself and go out and do it.”

Carrasco began the ninth inning bidding for his first complete game, but after allowing a one-out single to Ben Revere, he was removed in favor of closer Chris Perez.

“He was not going to lose this ballgame after he gave us eight-plus innings,” Acta said.

Perez secured the win for Carrasco along with his 15th save in 16 opportunities by getting Alexi Casilla to ground out and Michael Cuddyer to strike out looking for the final out.

Cuddyer argued vehemently with home plate umpire Adrian Johnson on the called third strike, having to be restrained by manager Ron Gardenhire as the Indians flooded the field in celebration.

With the offense still struggling mightily, Carrasco’s dominance was a necessity.

The Indians managed just a run on three hits off starter Francisco Liriano, who was making his first appearance since going on the disabled list May 30 with left shoulder inflammation.

The Indians had early opportunities off Liriano in the first two innings but couldn’t cash in on either one as their futility with runners in scoring position climbed to 1-for-32 after the second inning.

Cleveland put its first two hitters of the game aboard, but Grady Sizemore struck out and Carlos Santana bounced into a double play — the third time he hit into a double play in five at-bats going back to Monday night.

An Orlando Cabrera double and a walk to Jack Hannahan left two on and two out in the second, but Lou Marson flied to right to end the inning.

Cleveland, which mustered just four hits on the night, finally scored in the fourth after Santana led off with a double and moved to third on an error by Young, then scored on a Shelley Duncan groundout.

“We keep swinging the bats,” Orlando Cabrera said. “Things are going to turn around for us offensively.”

For now, the Indians are just thankful they turned things around in the win-loss department.

“You want to cut it off as soon as possible,” Acta said of the losing skid. “You don’t want to get into six, seven, eight games, cause it builds up. So, a sigh of relief, yes, for all of us.”

Contact Chris Assenheimer at 329-7136 or cassenheimer@chroniclet.com. Like him on Facebook and follow him on Twitter.

Wlaszyn

LORAIN — A Lorain woman has been charged with conspiracy to commit murder after police say she tried to hire a man to kill her deceased niece’s husband.

Irene Wlaszyn, 53, was arrested last night at West Fifth Street and Reid Avenue, according to Lorain police Lt. Mark Carpentiere.

Her intended victim, U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. James Eppler, was released from a Georgia jail last month after being cleared in the February death of his wife.

Eppler, who like his late wife, Natalie Eppler, is a native of Lorain County, had been charged with murder, but those charges were dropped, Dougherty County District Attorney Gregory Edwards said.

Edwards said that the investigation has determined that the single gunshot wound to the head that killed Natalie Eppler was self-inflicted.

Carpentiere said Wlaszyn approached the Lorain man two to three weeks ago.

“Luckily that guy she approached came to us, and we had her under surveillance,” Carpentiere said. “She met with this guy, and we were able to arrest her.

“We had enough evidence to determine she was serious about her intentions.”

Carpentiere declined to identify the would-be hit-man, but said “it was somebody she knew, we’re not exactly sure how.”

Police aren’t yet releasing details of how Wlaszyn wanted Eppler killed, saying “those details will come out in court.”

Wlaszyn will be arraigned today, Carpentiere said.

.

Last month, Rusty Parsons walked into the Mellen Center at the Cleveland Clinic, the same place he has sat through numerous doctors appointments in his battle with multiple sclerosis, and faced his biggest challenge.

Sitting in a chair across the room was the love of his life, 23-year-old Jessica Selva, and inside his pocket was an engagement ring. The 34-year-old Elyria man went to the hospital to propose to his girlfriend, also an MS patient who was diagnosed in March 2008 after unexpectedly losing vision in her right eye.

Such a location may seem odd, but Parsons credits the state-of-the-art MS research and treatment facility with his meeting Selva and ultimately falling in love.

In December 2009, the two crossed paths at the Mellen Center and in the quick 10-minute conversation a connection between the two of them was felt. However, phone numbers were not exchanged and for months afterward, the two didn’t run into each other.

“I was kicking myself because I wish I got her phone number that day,” said Parsons, who was diagnosed in November 2008. “So I made sure to ask the nurses about her every time I came for my treatment and let them know if she ever asked about me to give her my phone number.”

Little did Parsons know, but Selva was doing the same thing. She was also using the nurses to gain tidbits of information about Parsons.

Then, in October 2010, Selva said she got up the courage to ask a nurse for Parsons’ phone number. She sent him an innocent text message under the guise of wanting to see how his treatment was going.

“I couldn’t just come out and say, ‘ask me out,’ ” Selva said Tuesday.

Regardless, the technique worked. The message led to a first date, which has blossomed into a beautiful relationship.

“It’s nice to have someone who understands what you are going through,” Selva said. “Our families have been great, but to actually have someone who really knows how you feel is wonderful.”

“She is very sweet, generous and beautiful,” Parson added. “She makes me laugh. She makes me happy. I don’t know what else to say, but I love her.”

On the day of the proposal, Rusty first sent Selva at the hospital a dozen roses and a balloon. She said she just thought it was her sweet suitor wooing her some more.

She grabbed her cell phone to send him a quick thank you when she spotted him coming through the door.

“He is so sweet, so I didn’t think anything of it,” Selva said of the flowers. “I mean, I hate going to treatment. I moan and complain. I thought he just wanted to do something nice. But when he made me stand up and started talking, I knew he was proposing.”

Parsons grabbed Selva’s hands.

“It’s because of MS we were able to meet and be together. I love you, and I can’t imagine my life without you,” he said before popping the question and pulling out a ring.

Selva said yes and the entire moment was caught on camera by a Cleveland Clinic employee while others in the clinic watched in disbelief. The only ones who knew exactly what was going on were the nurses/matchmakers.

The Cleveland Clinic will not only be remembered by the couple as the place they meet and the place where Parsons proposed, but it could also be the place where they marry.

The couple said it won’t hurt to ask if that would be possible.

“We are both Plain Jane people,” Selva said. “We just want to get married, but if it wasn’t for the Cleveland Clinic, we would have never met.”

Contact Lisa Roberson at 329-7121 or lroberson@chroniclet.com.