Indians Tidbits (2008 season)

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Notes: Hafner earns bragging rights
Fantasy football championship helped make winter good

Travis Hafner edged out Paul Byrd to win his second straight fantasy football title. (David J. Phillip/AP)​

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. -- Travis Hafner will not be attending Sunday's Academy Awards ceremony, despite the fact he's nominated for "Best Supporting Actor."

Actually, upon further review, that's not Hafner playing the part of Anton Chigurh in "No Country For Old Men." It's actor Javier Bardem. But the two bear more than just a passing resemblance, as Pronk himself admits.
"If I grew my hair out, that's what I'd look like," Hafner said with a laugh Tuesday. Hafner said he has yet to see "No Country For Old Men," but it is on his Spring Training agenda.

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[OSUBasketballJunkie]

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Minors: Depth takes a hit
2007 callups leaving Indians farm system depleted in '08

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. -- The Indians raided Ross Atkins' cupboard last year.

Not that Atkins is complaining. It's the job of a farm director, after all, to oversee the grooming of players who can eventually help out the Major League club.
But the Tribe's player development system didn't just augment the 2007 Indians; it was a critical part of their success. Callups such as Rafael Perez, Asdrubal Cabrera, Franklin Gutierrez, Jensen Lewis and Aaron Laffey sparked the team in the second half of the season. All of the above players are now considered some part of the big league equation, which means Atkins' territory looks decidedly less deep than it did this time last year.

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Notes: Sidelined making progress
Some members of Tribe, farm system rehabbing injuries

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. -- Aside from reliever Jorge Julio, who is expected to report Thursday after having his visa issues settled in Venezuela, the Indians' full squad is accounted for.
But not every player who has reported to the Chain of Lakes complex is up to full speed. With that in mind, Indians director of media relations Bart Swain provided a quick rundown of all the players who are coming off injuries from 2007 and where they stand in these early days of camp: ? RHP Adam Miller: The Tribe's top pitching prospect is about a week behind after straining the middle finger on his throwing hand during Arizona Fall League play. It is the same finger Miller strained last season at Triple-A Buffalo. Miller has a blister on his finger and, therefore, did not throw Tuesday. He is expected to play catch Thursday. His game activity won't be determined until after the blister issue is resolved.

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Wedge sets pace for hopeful Tribe
Manager wants to move past '07, but not look too far ahead


WINTER HAVEN, Fla. -- If the perception that going from one child to two is akin to going from one to 20 holds true, Eric Wedge and his wife, Kate, will have their hands full this season.
"That's what they say," Wedge said with a laugh. "We'll see what happens."
Little Dalton Cash Wedge was brought into the world by Kate on Monday afternoon in Cleveland. He joins 22-month-old sister Ava in the quickly expanding Wedge clan. But crying kids and late-night diaper changes won't be the only challenges placed before Wedge, the reigning American League Manager of the Year, in 2008.

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Notes: Indians shake off cobwebs
Pitchers and hitters get first chance to face each other live

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. -- Third-base coach Joel Skinner looked at his watch on Thursday morning and smiled.

"This is fun, huh?" Skinner said. "Can you imagine facing C.C. [Sabathia] at 10:38 a.m.?"
Uh, no. Let's leave that to the professionals. In an annual rite of spring, the Indians held their first full-squad workout at the Chain of Lakes complex on Thursday. Manager Eric Wedge gave the club an hour-long pep talk, position players had their first round of agility drills and pitchers, catchers, infielders and outfielders all had group meetings.

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[osugrad21]

CPD

Cleveland Indians pleased by pitching debut of Masa Kobayashi


Saturday, February 23, 2008Bud Shaw and Paul Hoynes
Plain Dealer Reporters
Winter Haven, Fla. -- All eyes turned from 19-game winner Fausto Carmona's live batting practice session to Field 5 where Japanese reliever Masa Kobayashi threw to hitters for the first time on Friday.
Observers behind the batting cage grew to include GM Mark Shapiro, assistant GM Chris Antonetti and pitching coach Carl Willis. Eric Wedge walked up late as Kobayashi faced Josh Barfield, Jason Michaels, David Dellucci and Casey Blake.
"What's everybody here for?" Wedge deadpanned.

Hitters aren't thrilled to be standing in against major-league pitching this early in camp and it showed when Barfield took a swing and splintered his bat. When Kobayashi left the field, he was carrying the bat.
"I gave it to him," said Barfield. "A souvenir. His first broken bat in America."
"I saw his two-seam fastball, his four-seam and his slider," Blake said. "He seemed to have good location."


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[osugrad21]

ABJ

Offense needs to boost numbers Tribe's Wedge hopeful performance to improve for struggling players
By Sheldon Ocker
Beacon Journal sportswriter

Published on Saturday, Feb 23, 2008
WINTER HAVEN, FLA.: The Indians began last season knowing that if there was one thing they would do, it was hit.
Excuse me? That's not exactly the way it turned out. The Tribe finished the season sixth in the American League with 811 runs, fifth in home runs (178) and on-base percentage (.343), seventh in batting average (.268) and doubles (305).
In other words, the Indians fell far short of being the offensive juggernaut they were purported to be. So how did they win the Central Division championship? Only two other teams held opponents to fewer runs (704) than the Tribe pitching staff.

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[osugrad21]

ABJ

Indians notebook
Kobayashi delivers 1st pitches in unique windup Newest closer on mound draws curious onlookers at initial batting practice
By Sheldon Ocker
Beacon Journal sportswriter

Published on Saturday, Feb 23, 2008
WINTER HAVEN, FLA.: As Masa Kobayashi walked to the mound to throw batting practice for the first time with the Indians Friday morning, a couple of dozen onlookers rushed to the scene.
Yes, it was only batting practice ? actually, pitchers' practice, because pitchers throw with max effort ? but this was the new guy on the block, the distinguished Japanese closer signed during the winter.
So Kobayashi threw, and everyone else watched. His game windup was nothing if not unconventional. He began with his hands together at the waist, as if he were pitching from the stretch. Then he lifted both arms high over his head, brought his hands together, stood on his toes and delivered the ball.


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[osugrad21]

ABJ

Numbers don't count lot to Borowski Losing a few bad games just part of closer's job; chance to win the key
By Sheldon Ocker
Beacon Journal sportswriter

Published on Friday, Feb 22, 2008
WINTER HAVEN, FLA.: Rev up the fans and the talk show hosts, because Joe Borowski is back.
Nothing grates on the sensibilities of Indians partisans more than a blown save by a Tribe closer. And Borowski didn't just blow one save last year, he let eight leads get away. And never mind that he led the American League with 45 saves, a career best.
Borowski endured two meltdowns among his blown saves: giving up home runs to Alex Rodriguez and Josh Phelps to turn a 6-2 win into a ninth-inning, 8-6 loss to New York at Yankee Stadium on April 19, and giving up four ninth-inning runs ? two on Milton Bradley's homer ? as the Oakland Athletics rallied for a 10-7 win.


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[osugrad21]

CPD

Indians chatter



Sunday, February 24, 2008

Clubhouse confidential: Indians officials aren't sure what the resignation of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro will eventually mean to opening the island's wealth of baseball talent to the big leagues. Initially, little is expected to change because Raul Castro, Fidel's younger brother, is expected to take over.
Big-league teams would welcome access to a new source of talent because it's disappearing in the nearby island of Puerto Rico. Not only was the Puerto Rican winter league canceled last winter, but not one Puerto Rican player is expected to be taken in the first five rounds of this year's amateur draft.




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[osugrad21]

ABJ

Ocker on the Indians
Imagine that Sabathia does re-sign If we could be fly on wall, when he's accepting new deal, it would go like this
Published on Sunday, Feb 24, 2008



WINTER HAVEN, FLA.: The odds are against it, of course, but what would happen if C.C. Sabathia left tens of millions of dollars on the table to re-sign with the Indians?
For starters, fans celebrating in the streets of Cleveland would create a safety hazard, and a few might never be heard from again after tumbling into a pothole. Another group of disbelieving partisans probably would leave Northeast Ohio forever, suspecting that the astonishing good news is a sure sign the Apocalypse is near.
But there would be more dramatic repercussions for major-league baseball, a sport that can't seem to stay out of trouble. To wit: the Black Sox scandal, countless work stoppages, Pete Rose's malfeasance, the steroid mess, Gabe Paul giving away deodorant on Mother's Day and Albert Belle in all of his charming incarnations.


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[osugrad21]

ABJ

Who will be winner of rotation sweepstakes? Lee probably has edge over Laffey and Sowers to be one of five starters
By Sheldon Ocker
Beacon Journal sportswriter

Published on Sunday, Feb 24, 2008
WINTER HAVEN, FLA.: It's too early to know if anyone has a lead in the competition to be the Indians' No. 5 starter, but it's not too soon to handicap the race.
Cliff Lee, Jeremy Sowers and Aaron Laffey presumably began training camp dead even, but that probably is not the reality. Despite enduring his worst season in the big leagues, Lee won 46 games from 2004-06, a solid indicator that if he is in the right frame of mind and throwing as he should, he will be one of the Tribe's five starters.
Lee also will make $3.75 million this year, whether he's in the rotation with the Indians or Triple-A Buffalo, though club officials insist that will play no part in their decision.
That seems to surprise Lee.


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[osugrad21]

ABJ

Indians notebook
Sabathia's role no surprise No need to tell him he will pitch in opener. Miller throws painlessly
By Sheldon Ocker
Beacon Journal sportswriter

Published on Monday, Feb 25, 2008
WINTER HAVEN, FLA.: Eric Wedge didn't exactly make an announcement. There was really nothing for the Indians manager to announce.
It is taken for granted that C.C. Sabathia will start the season opener March 31 in Cleveland. How much is it taken for granted?
Asked he if told Sabathia, Wedge said, ''I haven't. I would assume that he would assume.''
Sabathia isn't the only one. He already has made four Opening Day starts, and it would have been more if he hadn't suffered an oblique strain in spring training, 2005.
Wedge wasn't sure, but he said Sabathia might already be lined up so that his appearances in exhibition season lead directly to his first start of the regular season.


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[osugrad21]

CPD

INDIANS INSIDER
Cleveland Indians' first order of business sets up pitching lineup


Monday, February 25, 2008Paul Hoynes
Plain Dealer Reporter
Winter Haven, Fla.- It's that time of spring training when pitching staffs must be put in order. The order might not last long, but the effort has to be made.
The Indians open the Grapefruit League season Thursday against Houston at Chain of Lakes Park. Jake Westbrook will start for the Tribe with C.C. Sabathia scheduled to face the same Astros on Friday in Kissimmee, Fla.
Almost every other pitcher in camp will pitch in Tuesday's or Wednesday's intrasquad games.

Paul Byrd, Rafael Betancourt, Aaron Laffey, Edward Mujica, Matt Ginter and Jeff Stevens will pitch against Joe Borowski, Jeremy Sowers, Tom Mastny, Rick Bauer and Scott Lewis on Tuesday.
Fausto Carmona, Rafael Perez, Masa Kobayashi, Scott Elarton, Chuck Lofgren and Rich Rundles will pitch against Cliff Lee, Jensen Lewis, Aaron Fultz, Jeff Harris, J.D. Martin and Reid Santos on Wednesday.
Precautionary measures will keep Brian Slocum (back) and Adam Miller (middle right finger) out of the games. Jorge Julio, who arrived in camp late last week, isn't ready to pitch in game conditions yet.




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[osugrad21]

CPD

Indians chatter



Monday, February 25, 2008

Clubhouse confidential: It's not like it's a surprise, but C.C. Sabathia will be the Tribe's Opening Day starter on March 31 against Chicago at Progressive Field.
Manager Eric Wedge was asked if he's told Sabathia that he's his Opening Day starter.
"I haven't, but I would assume, he would assume," said Wedge. "How's that for a Yogism?"




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