CLEVELAND — CC Sabathia was a man on a mission in his return to Progressive Field on Tuesday night.

New York Yankees starter CC Sabathia pitches against the Cleveland Indians in the second inning Tuesday. (AP photo.)

Sabathia, pitching for just the third time at Progressive Field since the 2008 trade that sent him to Milwaukee for a bevy of prospects, showed the form that made him the 2007 American League Cy Young Award winner. He tossed seven innings of six-hit, shutout baseball as the New York Yankees defeated the Indians 9-2.

He struck out 11 hitters, the 25th time Sabathia (12-4) has reached double digits in strikeouts. In his previous start he fanned 13 Milwaukee Brewers. Over the last two starts he has thrown 14 2⁄3 innings without allowing a run.

“I had all of my pitches working tonight and my velocity was good,” Sabathia said. “I just wanted to stay loose and work up a good sweat because there were a couple of long innings in there.”

By beating up on his former team Sabathia may have been sending a message to Rangers manager Ron Washington, who will lead the American League All-Star team and played a role in its selection. Sabathia was snubbed for the Midsummer Classic despite being tied for the league lead in wins and tied for seventh in strikeouts when the All-Star selections were announced.

“I didn’t let it bother me,” Sabathia said. “I just try to go out there and pitch my best every game.”

Yankees manager Joe Girardi said Sabathia didn’t seem to be upset when the selections came out and his name was not on the list.

“I haven’t heard him say anything about it. CC is a pretty mild-mannered guy, he doesn’t let a lot bother him,” Girardi said. “I’ve been in that situation (as a manager) where you have to choose that team and it is tough. In my mind, though, I know he is an All-Star.”

Since joining the Yankees as a free agent prior to the 2009 season, Sabathia has cemented his spot among the elite pitchers of his era. With a career record of 169-92, Sabathia — two weeks shy of his 31st birthday — has more wins at the age of 30 than Bert Blyleven (167), Greg Maddox (166) or Roger Clemens (161).

In fact, no pitcher in the past 30 years has won as many games at such a young age. He is also the first pitcher since Tom Seaver to win at least 11 games in each of his first 11 seasons in the majors.

“This is as good of a run as he has had with us,” Girardi said. “He was strong until the end tonight and I know I could have sent him back out for another inning, but that’s an inning we are going to need him down the road.”

Over his last 10 starts, Sabathia is 9-1. In six of those starts he has allowed one or no earned runs.

His name is all over the record books in Cleveland as well as in New York. Sabathia left the Indians ranked fifth all time in strikeouts with 1,265. In baseball’s expansion era, only Charles Nagy (129) and Sam McDowell (122) won more games in an Indians uniform than Sabathia with 106.

More surprising is the fact that Sabathia has the all-time best winning percentage (.742) of any pitcher in the star-studded history of the Bronx Bombers.

Sabathia’s professional career began in 1998 when the Indians made him their first-round selection in the amateur draft. Although his heart is now in New York, he still pays attention to what is happening in Cleveland.

“The Indians have a good team. I am impressed with what Mark (Shapiro) and Chris (Antonetti) have done turning this team over again since back in 2007-08,” Sabathia said of the former and current general managers.

However, Sabathia said he no longer feels any special emotions stepping on the Progressive Field mound.

“It’s just like going to any other city now. I’ve been coming back here for three years now,” he said.

For Sabathia it may have been just another stop on the 162-game marathon that is a Major League Baseball season. But for Indians fans it was more like a look at what once was and what could have been.

Contact Todd Shapiro at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com.

CLEVELAND — It was an all-around sour night at Progressive Field on Tuesday.

Not only did the Indians lose a game to the dreaded New York Yankees and former Cleveland ace CC Sabathia, they also lost All-Star shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera to an injury.

With Sabathia dominating his former mates for seven innings, the Indians limped to a 9-2 defeat, as the Yankees’ vaunted lineup outhit Cleveland’s inconsistent one, 17-7.

In the midst of the loss, Cabrera left the game after suffering a right ankle sprain while making an off-balance throw to second base and landing awkwardly on his right foot. He is listed as day-to-day, but it would be surprising to see Cabrera in the lineup for the series finale tonight.

A pair of baseball’s hottest pitchers — Sabathia and Cleveland’s Carlos Carrasco — were on the mound to start the second game of the series, but only one looked like the part.

Sabathia (12-4) allowed just five hits on the night — one over the first three innings — and struck out 11. Carrasco, who owned a 7-2 record and 2.55 ERA over his previous nine starts, was in trouble early, allowing five runs in the second inning, and six for the game, on 10 hits in just four innings.

With Sabathia in control, the second inning spelled doom for Carrasco and the Indians.

“That second inning pretty much did us in,” Indians manager Manny Acta said. “That was too much against Sabathia. Carlos didn’t have very good fastball command and I didn’t feel he was aggressive with his fastball.”

After allowing a one-out single to Nick Swisher in the second, Carrasco walked two straight to load the bases and could have gotten out of it when Francisco Cervelli grounded to Cabrera on a tailor-made double play ball. But second baseman Cord Phelps made a poor throw on the turn and bounced the ball to first baseman Carlos Santana, who couldn’t come up with the throw.

Derek Jeter followed with a two-run double and Curtis Granderson hit his first of two home runs off Carrasco for two more runs and a 5-0 New York lead.

“We have to turn that double play but the reason we were in that situation was because we walked two hitters at the bottom of the order,” Acta said. “It’s part of the game. You have to turn the page. You still have to attack hitters and be aggressive.”

Carrasco’s performance paled in comparison to his last start against the Yankees — a dominant effort in New York (seven shutout innings, five hits and seven strikeouts in a 1-0 win June 13.

“I didn’t have my fastball command last time but I was able to find it,” said Carrasco, who walked the bases loaded in the first inning at New York but was able to emerge unscathed. “This time, I didn’t do that. I tried to do better, but I allowed another run (in the fourth on Granderson’s leadoff homer).”

Sabathia, who Carrasco beat in New York, toyed with Indians hitters as the game wore on. He allowed a leadoff single to Austin Kearns followed by a walk to Cord Phelps in the fifth before striking out Lou Marson, Michael Brantley and Lonnie Chisenhall.

In the seventh, Sabathia surrendered a leadoff double to Grady Sizemore and a one-out walk to Phelps before striking out Marson and Brantley again.

“We don’t match very good against him,” Acta said. “Our main guys in the lineup hit from the left side and he’s very good against lefties.”

The Indians employed three left-handed hitters — Sizemore, Hafner and Brantley — the trio combining to go 2-for-12 with six strikeouts, with Sizemore getting both hits.

Jeter, who went hitless in his first game off the disabled list Monday, went 2-for-6, giving him 2,996 career hits on his quest for 3,000.

After the game, Acta confirmed that right-hander Zach McAllister would be promoted from Triple-A Columbus to make a spot start Thursday in place of Fausto Carmona. Carmona, on the disabled list with a strained right quad, is expected to miss one start.

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

CLEVELAND — There’s not much more right-hander Josh Tomlin can do to impress manager Manny Acta, but he gave it another try in his latest start Monday. Thanks to a seven-inning effort in a 6-3 victory over the Yankees, the 26-year-old Tomlin became the first pitcher since 1919 to pitch at least five innings in each of his first 29 career outings. He surpassed Boston’s Daisuke Matsuzaka, who accomplished the feat in his first 28 starts. “It’s very impressive,” Acta said. “If you go way back when, that means there were a lot of guys before him that couldn’t do that. He just passed Matsuzaka. You heard all about the stuff that he had, and here comes this little cowboy from Texas and it’s money in the bank for five innings.” Tomlin (10-4, 3.78 ERA) has been the picture of consistency, with the same approach — throwing strikes with all four of his pitches. He’s walked only 13 batters in 109 2/3 innings, issuing his first free pass in four starts Monday. “If he walks one, It surprises me,” Acta said. “If he walks more, I want to blame the umpire. He’s remarkable. He knows what his game is. “I’m not saying he’s straight to Cooperstown, but I just don’t see a guy that can throw four pitches and locate them, not having a career up here.” Many of Tomlin’s starts have been carbon copies. He has allowed three runs or fewer in 13 of his 17 starts. “It’s a piece of cake when he pitches,” Acta said. “I don’t have to worry about controlling the running game because he does that. You just let him go out there through the sixth and seventh innings and go to the bullpen when you need to.”

Wounded Wahoos

Right-hander Alex White was at Progressive Field on Tuesday to have his surgically-repaired right middle finger examined. White, Cleveland’s first-round draft pick in 2010, made three starts for the Indians before sustaining the injury and has begun throwing but not from the mound. Acta said White would pitch again this season, provided he does not have a setback. (bullet) An MRI performed on Fausto Carmona’s injured right quad revealed nothing serious, but the right-hander will miss his next start Thursday. Triple-A Columbus’ Zach McAllister (8-3, 2.97 ERA) is expected to be promoted for the spot start against Toronto. (bullet) Acta said he is leaning toward activating first baseman Matt LaPorta (right ankle sprain) from the disabled list, rather than send him on a minor league rehab assignment. LaPorta has been on the shelf since June 18. (bullet) Right fielder Shin-Soo Choo (broken left thumb) is still on track to return in late August, according to Acta. (bullet) Outfielder Travis Buck (hamstring) is expected to be available today. He hasn’t played since Friday.

Minor detail

Cleveland’s first-round draft pick (fifth overall), left-hander Drew Pomeranz, is 2-2 with a 2.06 ERA in 14 starts for High-A Kinston, striking out 88 batters in 70 innings. “Drew’s had a very good first professional season,” said Cleveland general manager Chris Antonetti. “He’s progressing very well.” Antonetti said there was a possibility of Pomeranz, 22, getting promoted to Double-A Akron before the season in complete.

Roundin’ third

Tomlin is 12-2 in 15 career starts at Progressive Field. According to Elias Sports Bureau, Tomlin is just the second MLB pitcher that debuted in the expansion era to win 12 of his first 15 starts at home. He joined Lamar Hoyt, who accomplished the same for the White Sox at Comiskey Park from 1980-82. … The last time the Indians entered the all-star break in first place was 1999. … Tonight, 7:05, ESPN/Channel 3/STO/WTAM 1100-AM/WEOL 930-AM. Masterson (6-6, 2.85) vs. Hughes (0-1, 13.94). Contact Chris Assenheimer at 329-7136 or cassenheimer@chroniclet.com. Fan him on Facebook and follow him on Twitter.

CLEVELAND — It’s been awhile since the Indians were buyers at Major League Baseball’s trading deadline. But with the club in first place and nearly half the season complete, general manager Chris Antonetti hinted that this might be the time.

“The plan has always been to win games, get to the postseason and win championships,” Antonetti said. “We’re in first place in July, so we’ll continue to explore ways to improve the team and improve our level of competitiveness.

“We’re open to anyway we can improve the team, whether that be externally or internally. External options are so difficult to predict, but I can tell you we’re going to explore all those options.”

This being the low-budget Indians, money will likely be an issue where any potential trade is concerned. But Antonetti said Tuesday that ownership has signed off on exploring moves outside the organization, as long as it doesn’t mortgage the future.

“It’s always going to be a factor economically,” Antonetti said. “We have to be mindful of what expense it has to the long-term development. (President/CEO Paul Dolan) has encouraged us to continue to explore ways to improve the team.”

If the Indians do make a move outside the organization, it is expected to come in the position-player department to assist a sporadic offense that is without a key cog in injured right fielder Shin-Soo Choo.

Outside of poor performances from starters Fausto Carmona and Mitch Talbot, pitching hasn’t been a problem for Cleveland.

“The nature of the job is to be concerned with everything,” Antonetti said. “What might be a strength now, might not be two weeks from now. But our pitching staff has done a very good job. Our bullpen has been consistent throughout the season. The offense has been the one area that’s been the least consistent.”

With a wealth of teams still in contention, the Indians won’t be the only ones looking to improve for a postseason run. It has affected the atmosphere leading up to the July 31 deadline.

“It’s slowed down the process,” Antonetti said. “But the dialogue between teams has picked up as we approach (the deadline). There’s been a lot more activity than there was a week ago.”

Few figured the Indians would be in this position this far into the season. But thanks to a fast start, contending isn’t such a long shot — certainly not in a mediocre Central Division.

“We had expectations at the beginning of the season,” Antonetti said. “We expected to compete and I think there was a collective belief within the clubhouse that we had a talented roster and that we could compete if we played well.”

Now, Antonetti’s job is to see whether there is anything out there that makes them play even better.

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