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Indians Tidbits (2008 season)

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ABJ

Blake's clutch hit, Shoppach's swinging tag put down White Sox rally in season opener Casey mighty with game on the line
By Sheldon Ocker
Beacon Journal sportswriter

Published on Tuesday, Apr 01, 2008
CLEVELAND: Take that, you Negative Nellies and Dubious Dudes in Cleveland and everywhere else Indians fans occasionally take Casey Blake's name in vain.
Who says he's a lousy hitter with runners in scoring position? You can't do better than one thousand (actually 1.000 in baseball arithmetic).
Of course, Blake has been to the plate once this season with runners on second or third, but his bases-loaded double scored three runs in the eighth inning to snap a 7-7 tie and sink the White Sox 10-8 in the season opener Monday at Progressive Field.
Fans and the media gave Blake plenty of grief about his .190 average with runners in scoring position last year, so here's his chance to get even.
''Write it,'' he deadpanned to reporters who surrounded his locker after the game. ''You guys won't write it.''
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ABJ

Cleveland media keep eye on ball Tony Rizzo's radio show offers spontaneous fun
Published on Tuesday, Apr 01, 2008
Northeast Ohio baseball fans heard the crack of the bat Monday, and the area's media covered it with a mixture of cheerleading and analysis.
Much of the rah-rah stuff came from those media outlets associated with the team, but there were legitimate news morsels to sample. Those ties give WKYC (Channel 3), WTAM (1100-AM) and SportsTime Ohio a decided advantage when it comes to what they provide viewers and listeners.
Indians General Manager Mark Shapiro and President Paul Dolan dutifully made the rounds to each of those spots to talk about the team and expectations. It made for some interesting contrasts, depending on who asked the questions.


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ABJ

Sabathia gives up bombs to Thome White Sox star hits pair of two-run homers, but walks are concern
By Stephanie Storm
Beacon Journal sportswriter

Published on Tuesday, Apr 01, 2008
CLEVELAND: C.C. Sabathia knows when Monday's game started to get away from him during the Indians' 10-8 season-opening victory over the Chicago White Sox at Progressive Field.
It wasn't the 414-foot two-run homer he dished up to designated hitter Jim Thome that spotted the White Sox a 2-0 lead in the first inning.
Nor was it Thome's second two-run homer ? a 420-foot shot in the third, again to right-center field ? that pulled Chicago within 7-4 after the Tribe's offense had bailed out Sabathia from the early hole with a seven-run second inning.



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CPD

Boos go deep

Jeering inspires Thome for two Chicago homers
Tuesday, April 01, 2008Dennis Manoloff
Plain Dealer Reporter
In the postgame clubhouse Monday, White Sox designated hitter Jim Thome was asked if he gets extra motivated when returning to Progressive Field, his former home.
"I'll let you answer that," Thome said.
Then he did, in fact, answer it.
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"There's a lot of emotion, a lot of history here, so, yeah," he said.
Asked if the extra motivation comes from getting booed loudly, Thome stared ahead.
"I'll let you answer that," he said.
He left this one hanging. But odds are good the answer also is yes.




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CPD

Beautiful day for baseball Fans march back to park for thrills instead of chills

Fans get thrills, not chills, as the Indians win, 10-8
Tuesday, April 01, 2008John Horton
Plain Dealer Reporter
The calendar read March 31. The atmosphere inside Progressive Field registered late October.
Baseball's back, Cleveland: Those with heart conditions should consider themselves warned.
The Indians - who cranked the excitement meter to off-the-chart levels last year with a thrilling season that ended one win shy of the World Series - applied the shock paddles to the 2008 season on Monday. Consider the campaign jump-started.
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The Tribe pulled out a 10-8 heart-stopper over the visiting Chicago White Sox on Opening Day. The resulting roars from the sold-out stands echoed the cheers of autumn.
Grown men hugged in joy. Hands met in high-five slaps. Wild whoops turned throats raw.
Energy, energy, energy.
In Game 1.




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CPD

Firsts from the Indians' opener



Tuesday, April 01, 2008

Date: In March.
Pitch: Strike, swinging, to Nick Swisher from Tribe C.C. Sabathia at 3:05 p.m.
Out: Swisher, grounded out to second baseman Asdrubal Cabrera.




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CPD

Parting gift from Winter Haven


Tuesday, April 01, 2008Paul Hoynes
Plain Dealer Reporter
The Indians did not leave Winter Haven, Fla., for the final time last week empty-handed. With the help of city officials, the plaque commemorating the deaths of pitchers Steve Olin and Tim Crews was removed from the stand outside the front of Chain of Lakes Park and given to the Indians.
Bart Swain, Indians director of media relations, said the team plans to display it as part of Heritage Park behind center field at Progressive Field.
"The city of Winter Haven couldn't have been more cooperative," Swain said. "They took it off for us."
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Heritage Park opened in 2006. It contains the Indians Hall of Fame, the top moments in club history and the top 100 players in team history named on the 100th anniversary of the team in 2001.
A plaque honoring Ray Chapman, the only player ever killed in a baseball game, was hung in Heritage Park last year. The plaque, made shortly after Carl Mays hit Chapman in the head on Aug. 16, 1920, hung at League Park and Cleveland Municipal Stadium, but had been lost in a storage room at Jacobs Field.




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CPD

This one's for you, Casey, for perfection in the clutch


Tuesday, April 01, 2008Bill Livingston
Plain Dealer Columnist
The outlook wasn't bril liant for the Cleveland nine that day; the score stood 7 to 7, with an inning and a half to play. Then Shoppach singled and Peralta did the same. Gute walked, after Dotel made a pair look lame. And suddenly a pall fell upon the patrons of the game.
"It settled on the Homer Porch and gripped them in their guts. For Casey, flighty Casey, was ready for his cuts."
With apologies to Ernest Lawrence Thayer, who wrote "Casey at the Bat," seldom has Casey Blake's presence at the bat fired the civic spirit with hope.
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Especially with runners dancing off the bags and rarin' to come around from scoring position. In fact, when this guy comes up with ducks on the pond, it's often orange sauce all around. He has the reputation of a rally killer. He actually does spend much of the off-season duck hunting.




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CPD

Shoppach continues to prove his value


Tuesday, April 01, 2008
Days like this should make Tribe fans happy the Indi ans have Kelly Shoppach for a backup catcher. He took over for Victor Martinez, who was 2-for-2 but stumbled running to second base and "strained" a hamstring in the second inning. Shoppach took over, and had a single to start the winning three-run rally in the eighth. He also made a super catch and tag of Joe Crede (who said Shoppach didn't tag him) on a poor throw to the plate by shortstop Jhonny Peralta, saving a run. The Indians say Shoppach is one of the players most asked about for trades because several teams are desperate for catchers with his skills.
Shoppach has become
Paul Byrd's personal catcher, but he's more than that. He's thrown out 35 percent of stealing base runners in the previous two seasons. Last season, Martinez threw out 30 percent, ranking No. 3 among American League regular catchers. In his minor-league career, Shoppach threw out 40 percent in Class AAA. His overall defensive skills are way above average, and that's why he could be a regular. In 271 at bats with the Tribe over two years, he's a .255 hitter with 10 homers and 46 RBI. The Indians believe he'd be a .250 hitter with more than 20 homers if he played nearly every day. Shoppach came to the Tribe in the Coco Crisp deal and has been more valuable than Andy Marte (the marquee name) so far.
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It was a very strange day




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Canton

Mighty Casey: Blake's three-run double helps lift Tribe in opener
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
BY Andy Call
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER

CLEVELAND All Casey Blake needed was to relax. That's all ? just relax.

For most major-league baseball players, relaxing in a bases-loaded situation with two strikes ranks atop the "easy to say, hard to do" list. It was especially difficult for Blake in 2007, when he batted .190 with runners in scoring position and .228 with two strikes.

"Certainly there are times, if you're not swinging the bat well, you don't even want to be in that situation," Blake said. "It's not fun."

This is a new season, however, one that now holds the promise of much more fun for Blake. Cleveland's third baseman broke a 7-7 tie with a two-out, three-run, eighth-inning double Monday that helped give the Indians a 10-8 Opening Day victory over Chicago at Progressive Field.

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Canton

This 2008 opener has all the elements of the 2007 season
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
BY Todd Porter
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER

CLEVELAND Since we last saw C.C. Sabathia leading the Indians meltdown in Beantown, the ballpark changed its name, the Indians went to throwback cream-colored jerseys, and big C.C. has learned to harbor his energy. After a cold fall and winter, the sun broke through the clouds as Opening Day 2008 started and Sabathia split the plate with the first pitch.

After that, nothing at Progressive Field changed.

Sabathia struggled. Joe Borowski made it interesting. and Joel Skinner held another runner at third base ? albeit Victor Martinez, who runs like a three-legged mule. Monday's opener was the Cliffs Notes version of a happy ending to last season.

The Indians got the one big hit they needed late in the game. Casey Blake's soaring double into an ominous gray sky came 163 days too late for October glory. It did, however, get Cleveland baseball off to the kind of hopeful start the team's optimistic fans expect.

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Canton
Nothing goes right for White Sox in crazy eighth
[FONT=Verdana,Times New Roman,arial,helvetica,sans-serif]Indians get a break on two close calls[/FONT]
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
BY JOSH WEIR
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER

CLEVELAND The boys from the Southside were looking on the bright side Monday.

Even a Crazy Eighth couldn't kill the positive vibe coming from Chicago's locker room after an Opening Day 10-8 loss to the Indians at Progressive Field.

"We play the way we played today, continue to fight and don't give up anything, we're going to win a lot of games," Chicago Manager Ozzie Guillen said. "These guys never give up."

The White Sox spent all afternoon battling back from an early 7-2 deficit. They tied it, 7-7, in the seventh. Then they loaded the bases in the eighth.

Then they got nothing.

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Canton

Indians' Martinez leaves early with injury
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
BY Andy Call
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER

CLEVELAND Put this in the category of bad news that perhaps could have been much worse.

Indians catcher Victor Martinez left Monday's season opener against Chicago with tightness in his left hamstring and is day-to-day.

"They're still taking a good look at him," Manager Eric Wedge said after the game. "It's something going on with his hamstring. I wasn't sure if it was a cramp or what it was. We'll hope for the best and see what they find out."

Martinez was injured while trying to advance from first base to second on a pitch in the dirt by Chicago's Nick Masset in the second inning. It appeared Martinez may have caught a spike in the infield while running. He rolled awkwardly in the dirt, short of second base, and was tagged out to end the inning.

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Canton

Indians notebook
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
COMPILED BY ANDY CALL

Coming up next

The White Sox and Indians are idle, then resume the series Wednesday. RHP Fausto Carmona will start against RHP Javier Vazquez.

Everyday Grady

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Dispatch

Indians 10, White Sox 8: Casey mighty at the bat
Blake's double erases residue of blown lead
Tuesday, April 1, 2008 3:22 AM
By Bill Rabinowitz


THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
0401_indians_slide_sp_04-01-08_C1_7N9Q5FB.jpg
TONY DEJAK | ASSOCIATED PRESS
Franklin Gutierrez beats the tag by White Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski to score on a three-run double by Casey Blake in the eighth inning.




CLEVELAND -- Even for a 34-year-old veteran, opening day holds special charm. Do something special on that day, and you remember.
Two years ago, Casey Blake hit a grand slam in the Cleveland Indians' home opener.



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