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Indians Tidbits (2008 season)

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ABJ

Lofgren pitching his best with the Tribe's bosses watching Lefty back in form in six-inning stint against Erie, allowing 1 run, 6 hits
By Stephanie Storm
Beacon Journal sportswriter

Published on Friday, May 02, 2008
Hidden from the crowd of 3,989 ? mostly wound-up school kids excited to be at Canal Park instead of their usual classrooms Thursday morning ? Indians farm director Ross Atkins and Tribe roving instructors Bruce Fields and Travis Fryman quietly watched the Indians' Double-A team from the press box.
With such an important audience in attendance, Aeros starting pitcher Chuck Lofgren couldn't have picked a better day to have his best outing of the season.
Despite entering the game at 0-2 and carrying a hefty 8.66 ERA, the 22-year-old left-hander limited the aggressive Erie SeaWolves to a run on six hits in a 6-2 Aeros victory. He walked three batters and struck out nine in six innings.
''That's nine strikeouts against a pretty good lineup,'' Atkins said, impressed by the fifth start this season by the Tribe's fourth-round pick in 2004. ''Chuck has had some issues with his release point, but today he was consistent and had a better pitch distribution than he did in his previous outing.''
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ABJ
CLEVELAND: As usual, the topic was Travis Hafner, who has been in the news for three reasons:
1. He isn't hitting
2. He didn't play Wednesday night.
3. He batted sixth rather than third, his usual spot in the Indians' lineup, Thursday night.
That was the latest tidbit in the designated hitter's growing saga.
''We wanted to give him a little break and let him see a few more at-bats before he gets to the plate,'' manager Eric Wedge said. ''Yesterday, we gave him a complete break, which he needed.''
Hafner worked out in the weight room on Wednesday and did not take any swings, which is extremely unusual for a guy who takes a couple of hundred cuts in the indoor cages and during the team's regular batting practice session.
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CPD

Asdrubal Cabrera's 11th-inning bases-loaded single gives Cleveland Indians win over Seattle Mariners


Friday, May 02, 2008Paul Hoynes
Plain Dealer Reporter
Rafael Betancourt slammed something hard against his locker and left in a huff. Manager Eric Wedge barely cracked a smile during his postgame interview. Casey Blake breathed a sigh of relief, but still looked shaken.
All that went on after the Indians beat Seattle, 3-2, in 11 innings Thursday night at Progressive Field. Who knows what would have happened if they lost?
"It's tough to win a major-league ballgame," Wedge said. "I'm happy for the guys. But if we do a better job early on, we're not even in that situation."

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CPD

Cleveland Indians drop designated hitter Travis Hafner to No. 6 in batting lineup


Friday, May 02, 2008
There's a whole lot of hammering and drilling coming from under Travis Hafner's hood. Manager Eric Wedge is confident they'll get the Tribe's designated hitter refitted with new shocks and plugs. If they don't, the cobwebs will continue to grow in Pronkville.
One of the first steps came Thursday when Wedge dropped Hafner from third to sixth in the batting lineup. It's the first time Hafner has started a game hitting sixth since 2004.
What do the rest of the steps entail to snap the man called Pronk out of slump that is now a calendar year in length (May 1, 2007, to May 1, 2008)?

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CPD

Cleveland Indians' Travis Hafner's work in batting practice pays off in game

Smacks pair of doubles in Tribe win
Friday, May 02, 2008Dennis Manoloff
Plain Dealer Reporter
Travis Hafner is not a six-hole hitter. He better not be, or the Indians are in trouble.
One way for Hafner to return quickly to his customary No. 3 spot is to crank out the type of at-bats seen Thursday night against the Mariners.
Batting sixth for the first time since September 2004, Hafner went 2-for-4 with two doubles in the Tribe's 3-2 victory at Progressive Field.

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Canton

Wedge sees his dentist: Indians' latest win 'like pulling teeth'
Friday, May 2, 2008
By Andy Call
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER

CLEVELAND The Indians will take a win any way they can get one.

But, they certainly shouldn't be too giddy about how they got one Thursday night. Manager Eric Wedge definitely wasn't.

The Indians survived a blown save in the ninth inning as well as some of the most forgettable plate appearances in modern baseball history during the 10th and 11th to finally outlast Seattle, 3-2, at Progressive Field.

"It was like pulling teeth tonight," an agitated Wedge said afterward. "Our at-bats have got to be better. We have to do a better job sticking our nose in there with two strikes and having some concentration and discipline. And it's not OK to do it one time and not the next.

"I try to stay as positive as I can be, but these guys have got to turn the corner."
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Canton

Hafner will 'get there,' says Indians manager
[FONT=Verdana,Times New Roman,arial,helvetica,sans-serif]Indians notebook[/FONT]
Friday, May 2, 2008
BY Andy Call
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER

CLEVELAND Travis Hafner knows what he's been working on to break out of his slump.

But, if he told you, he'd have to kill you.

"It's top secret," Cleveland's designated hitter said.

Hafner returned to the starting lineup Thursday, but was dropped to No. 6 in the order. He had batted third in 22 starts, fourth in four others. But, it's difficult to leave a player who is 7-for-51 (.137) in his last 14 games and batting .210 for the season in a critical spot in the lineup.

"I think it is the best way to go, for the team and for myself," Hafner said. "We've got a plan in place."

"This young man is going to get back to where he needs to get to, but it's going to take a little bit of time," Manager Eric Wedge said. "Because he has some adjustments he will be making, we didn't think we should leave him in the 3-hole."
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Dispatch

Indians ace has trumped his early struggles
Sabathia resembles Cy Young Award winner of a year ago
Friday, May 2, 2008 3:27 AM
By Jim Massie


THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
0502_sabathiab_sp_05-02-08_C1_86A3EBI.jpg
C.C. Sabathia has pitched solid back-to-back outings after starting the season 0-3 with an ERA of 13.50.




CLEVELAND -- The big man stalked off the pitcher's mound, pumped his left fist twice and let loose a pair of primal screams. If Indians ace C.C. Sabathia were a volcano, molten lava would have accompanied his emotional eruption Sunday against the New York Yankees in Progressive Field. In recording back-to-back, sixth-inning strikeouts of Alex Rodriguez and Shelley Duncan, Sabathia stranded Derek Jeter at third base in a 1-0 game and, for the first time probably this season, resembled his Cy Young Award-winning self of a year ago. Something simple had to give, even if it wasn't choreographed.
"It was kind of early in the game for it," Sabathia said. "But there's been a lot of frustration over the past couple of weeks. I was just letting it out. I was letting out a lot of frustration."
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Dispatch

Indians 3
Mariners 2, 11 innings
Cabrera turns table on his former team

Friday, May 2, 2008 2:59 AM
By Paul Hoynes


The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer
0502_hafner_05-02-08_C5_UMA3G4L.jpg
Mark Duncan Associated Press
Travis Hafner hits a double in the fourth inning off Miguel Batista to give the Indians a 1-0 lead.


Travis Hafner never looked so good in the No. 6 hole, but Asdrubal Cabrera looked even better hitting ninth. Cabrera ended a long and frustrating game last night in Progressive Field with a two-out, bases-loaded single into right-center field to give the Indians a 3-2 victory over Seattle in 11 innings. The Indians are 3-4 in games decided in the ninth inning or later this year.
"I was calm, looking for a pitch over the plate," Cabrera said through first-base coach Luis Rivera, who served as interpreter for the 22-year-old switch-hitting infielder from Venezuela. "I got a good fastball to hit."
The Indians created their second straight bases-loaded situation in the 11th as Jhonny Peralta walked, Hafner dumped a bloop double into left field and Mariners pitcher Mark Lowe hit Jamey Carroll with a pitch. After Sean Green relieved, the crowd of 15,722 groaned as Franklin Gutierrez struck out on four pitches. Cabrera, playing against his former team, took a strike from Green before lining the next pitch into the right-field gap for the victory.
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If the game had not ended last night when it did since we were out of infielders, we might have seen Marte play in the field. I don't think he has done that this year but I could be wrong because I usually keep my eye on the bullpen.

Notice to our Japanese relief pitcher--do not try and throw a fastball past Richie Sexson. It is usually not a good move.

Noticed to Casey Blake-- catch the baseball before you try and tag the player out. It is always helpful.
 
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buckeyemania11;1153870; said:
Maybe they can get some hits tonight against Luke Hochevar and his .326 BAA
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Nope. Three hits through six innings. :smash:

or maybe they will make another subpar pitcher look great
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Correct. Aside from Grady's homerun and Hochevar's lack of control, yet another pathetically anemic outing so far. Meanwhile, KC lights up our "ace" for 10 hits in 6 innings. Cue the "Benny Hill" theme music, Kobayashi gives up a run and Perez continues to look more and more like a one year wonder. What a mess.
 
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