Cleveland ? Aaron Boone isn’t ready to give up on his first season with the Cleveland Indians.

“As bad as we’ve been playing, and as frustrating as it has been for all of us, we’re right there,” Boone said.

The Indians kept from falling farther back in the AL wild-card race Thursday, as Jake Westbrook dodged danger for seven innings, and Jhonny Peralta and Victor Martinez each hit three-run homers in a 10-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals.

Cleveland, which was 10 games over .500 on July 4 and in the thick of the playoff race, improved to just 3-11 since then by salvaging a four-game series split against one of the AL’s worst teams.

Boone hopes the victory reverses the losing trend for the Indians, who have been up and down since April.

“We’ve been getting beat like a drum for a while,” said Boone, who after a rough first two months is batting .302 (42-for-134) since June 4. “Hopefully, this gets us going and gets us playing like I know we can.”

Realistically, the Indians probably won’t catch Chicago in the AL Central, but they’re among five or six teams that could make the wild-card race fun.

Westbrook (7-12) didn’t allow an earned run, scattered nine hits and worked out of several jams, only once retiring the Royals in order. He walked none and struck out five after entering 0-3 with a 6.57 earned-run average this month.

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Cleveland’s lineup hasn’t produced for Westbrook or any other starter lately, and while protecting a slim lead, the right-hander was forced into damage control. The Royals had at least two runners on and fewer than two outs three times, but Westbrook got the key groundout or strikeout every time.

“He pitched through some tough innings,” Indians manager Eric Wedge said. “He has a strong intensity about him that may not show from the outside but it’s in there, believe me.”

Peralta homered in the fourth off J.P. Howell (1-4) and Martinez capped Cleveland’s seven-run seventh – the club’s biggest inning since June 25 – with a shot off Leo Nunez.

Casey Blake added a solo homer for the Indians, who have been shut out three times since the All-Star break and hadn’t scored more than six runs since July 9.

“We haven’t been scoring at all,” Ronnie Belliard said. “We needed this.”

Blake homered just inside the left-field foul pole to open the seventh off Howell, who gave up four runs and five hits in six-plus innings.

The Indians added three more runs on Boone’s two-run single and Coco Crisp’s RBI single before Martinez homered into the right-field seats.

Peralta, recently moved up in the order after batting mostly ninth, put the Indians up 3-0 with his two-out homer in the fourth. Martinez singled with one out and chugged into third on a double by Jose Hernandez.

Blake couldn’t bring Martinez home with a fly to left, but Peralta followed with his shot onto the pedestrian patio in left.

“My thought process was right, I just didn’t execute,” Howell said. “It’s my fault. I threw him a splitter and wanted to bury it so he would hit a groundball. But I left it up.”

The Royals got an unearned run back off Westbrook in the fifth. Blake kicked around Ruben Gotay’s double into the right-field corner for an error and Albert Castillo’s groundout brought home the Royals’ only run.

Kansas City had two on and none out in the sixth, but Westbrook escaped by retiring Matt Stairs on a flyout and inducing Emil Brown to hit into a double play.

Westbrook somehow got out of the first without giving up a run. He gave up two singles and watched the Indians botch a rundown but bounced back by striking out Mike Sweeney, throwing home to catch a runner at the plate and fanning Brown.

“I was able to battle out of it,” Westbrook said. “I could have pitched better – I gave up nine hits. But I got outs when I needed them.”

Notes: Indians DH Travis Hafner missed his fifth straight game with lingering effects from a concussion. He hasn’t played since he was struck in the face with a pitch by Chicago’s Mark Buehrle last weekend. He’s feeling better, but Hafner still gets dizzy exercising. … The debut of OF Chip Ambres on Wednesday was the 10th by a Royals rookie this season, two shy of the club record (2002). … Royals OF Davis DeJesus is batting .396 (19-for-48) during his 12-game hitting streak. … Indians OF Jason Dubois is 1-for-11 with five strikeouts since coming over in a trade with the Chicago Cubs.