Indians Tidbits (2008 season)

[exhawg]

No kidding. To have starting pitching this damn good and looking at being only 1 game above .500 is damn near criminal.

1 run over the past 5 games!!!

 

[NFBuck]

Pitching has been awesome, if only the hitting would come alive

It's looking quite unlikely that this is going to happen. I think a decent hitting coach could get these chumps going, but Wedge's blind loyalty to Derek Shelton is a major roadblock.

1 run over the past 5 games!!!

That is absolutely sick!

Twinkies trailing Toronto 3-1 in the 6th, so their division lead could be trimmed to 1/2 a game tonight. Imagine if we had an offense. :(

 

[osugrad21]

CPD

Stellar catches preserve shutout for Paul Byrd, Cleveland Indians


Wednesday, May 14, 2008Joe Maxse
Plain Dealer Reporter
One of these days, the Indians will get their offensive house in order. But until then, they will settle for pitching and defense to pick up wins.
That's what they did during Tuesday night's 4-0 victory against the Oakland Athletics at Progressive Field. Paul Byrd continued the Tribe's stellar starting pitching as he helped the club notch its sixth shutout of the season and third in four games. He was the first to praise the defense, which kept coming up with big plays.
"The top five plays of the week and I think I got four of them," said Byrd (2-3, 3.61 ERA), referring especially to big-time diving catches by Grady Sizemore and Asdrubal Cabrera. "If they don't make those plays, it's a totally different game."




Cont...

 

[osugrad21]

CPD

Cleveland Indians manager Eric Wedge says bats took a nap in nightcap


Wednesday, May 14, 2008Joe Maxse
Plain Dealer Reporter
Eric Wedge was in a better mood Tuesday afternoon than he was late Monday night. The Indians manager was not happy after his club failed to take the second game of Monday's doubleheader against Toronto, failing to score in a 3-0 loss in 10 innings.
Wedge, who constantly preaches about his club's grinding approach to the game and the season, was upset about the "approach" his hitters took in the nightcap, giving at-bats away all game long.
"I have different conversations with different individuals," said Wedge, whose club is hitting .199 during 10 games this month. "A lot of that is combined with the way we were doing things in the past. It's a long season and there is a fine line. You can't have a sense of urgency from day to day, game to game."

Cont...

 

[osugrad21]

CPD

Cabrera's triple play ball tossed in the excitement of Cleveland Indians' feat

But triple-play ball tossed in excitement
Wednesday, May 14, 200ennis Manoloff
Plain Dealer Reporter
Jamey Carroll does not recall having been involved in the execution of a triple play.
But Carroll has been on the defensive side of the last two unassisted triple plays in Major League Baseball.
Carroll, reserve infielder for the Indians, was in the dugout Monday night when second baseman Asdrubal Cabrera pulled off the feat in Progressive Field.




Cont...

 

[osugrad21]

Canton

Byrd keeps Tribe pitching goose eggs
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
By Andy Call
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER

CLEVELAND The last thing Paul Byrd wanted was to be the guy who broke the streak.

"Hey, I definitely had a little pressure going out there," Byrd said with a grin Tuesday night after pitching the Indians to a 4-0 victory over Oakland at Progressive Field.

Byrd's 71⁄3 scoreless innings followed Cliff Lee's nine scoreless innings ... which followed Fausto Carmona's nine scoreless innings ... which followed Aaron Laffey's seven scoreless innings.

Cleveland's starting pitchers have combined to work 34 consecutive innings without allowing a run since C.C. Sabathia surrendered an RBI single in the fifth inning Friday.

"It's a friendly competition, if you will," Manager Eric Wedge said. "You try to move it on down the line, to feed off each other."

Cont...

 

[osugrad21]

Canton

Indians Notebook: Indians hitters tumble to AL cellar
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
BY Andy Call
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER

CLEVELAND A look at the statistics reveal numbers that would make any manager a little crabby.

Indians Manager Eric Wedge admitted disgust with his team's hitters Monday following a 3-0, 10-inning loss to Toronto in which Cliff Lee couldn't get a win despite throwing nine shutout innings. Wedge was in a little better frame of mind Tuesday, but still realizes the value of opportunities missed.

"I just know these guys are better than this," Wedge said. "We know, and the league knows."

If the American League knows, it's not from looking at the statistics.

The Indians came into Tuesday ranked dead last in AL team batting average (.237) and slugging percentage (.357). Only four teams had fewer home runs than Cleveland's 27 and only four teams had a worse on-base percentage (.318).

Five everyday players and three reserves are hitting .235 or worse. The team's cleanup hitter, Victor Martinez, had zero home runs in 111 at-bats.

Cont...

 

[LitlBuck]

Peralta batting second? Well, that's one way to go. I'd love to rip Wedge up and down for this, but who the hell else do you put there?

I have no problems with JP in the starting lineup but batting him 2nd is a Wedgie. Everyone knows he can not bunt and we need to manufacture runs the way we have been hitting. Cabrera or Gut should bat second no matter what their BA.

looks like this game is gonna be decided by the bullpen (unless Byrd can go the distance)

All I can say is thank goodness we did not have to go to Raffy last night thanks to Garko. I don't even understand why Wedgie did not let Perez pitched to both batters in the 8th inning. He is almost better against right-handed hitters than left-handed.

Byrd must have heard you guys talking about getting rid of him to keep Laffey. The Indians have to have the deepest starting pitching in baseball.

I know it is a good problem to have when you have so much quality starting pitching but it will be interesting to see what happens when Westbrook comes back if all those starters are still pitching this well. What do you do with Laffey or whomever.

 

[NFBuck]

I have no problems with JP in the starting lineup but batting him 2nd is a Wedgie. Everyone knows he can not bunt and we need to manufacture runs the way we have been hitting. Cabrera or Gut should bat second no matter what their BA.

I think he's just penciling Grady in at leadoff and Victor fourth and just drawing the rest from a hat at this point.

 

[Buckeye86]

decent start tonight, 8 pitch inning for CC then a lead off homer by Sizemore, had a chance to really get rolling when Peralta hit a double, but Dellucci flew out, Martinez and Hafner grounded out

 

[CincyBuck88]

CC's at 100 pitches, 8 excellent innings... I say we bring him back out there for the 9th.

Not cashing in earlier with the bases loaded and none out makes this game a lot closer than it should be.

 

[buckeyemania11]

CC's at 100 pitches, 8 excellent innings... I say we bring him back out there for the 9th.

Not cashing in earlier with the bases loaded and none out makes this game a lot closer than it should be.

the Indians are great at doing that

 

[NFBuck]

We have the best starting pitching in baseball right now. If we had a halfway decent offense, we'd be running away with it.

 

[CincyBuck88]

Now that's the way a Cy Young winner pitches! This run by the starters is amazing.

 

[buckeyemania11]

thank god the pitching is pitching like this, with the way the "offense" is playing