Indians Can Not Back Up Sabathia

Score: White Sox 4 Indians 1

Turning Point: Losing 2-1 going into the bottom of the eighth, the Indians brought in Jensen Lewis to replace C.C. Sabathia. The young right hander promptly loaded the bases and let the game open up on him.


Analysis: The Indians offense only managed four hits. But the issue is quality at bats. They were few and far between. There were several at bats where Cleveland hitters helped the opposing pitcher by swinging at stuff out of the strike zone. The Indians just look lost at the plate, and it isn’t just certain hitters. It is from top to bottom. The only extra base hit was from David Dellucci. On the mound, Sabathia had a bit of trouble in the first and second innings giving up two solo home runs. But after he settled down, C.C. was electric, but took the loss. What a horrible feeling that must be? Jensen Lewis had his second poor outing in a row in as many appearances.


MVP:C.C. Sabathia
C.C. took another tough luck loss tonight, but he had another solid outing. Sabathia pitched seven innings, giving up the two runs, and he struck out eight batters.


Extras:

- The Indians hitters were 4-30 at the plate. For all the math majors out there that is a .133 clip for the game.

- Jim Thome, who was hitless off of C.C. Sabathia prior to this season, now has three home runs this season, when facing Sabathia.

- The Indians tied their longest losing streak on the season at four games.


Next Up: Game Two of this series is tomorrow night from U.S. Cellular Field. The Indians will pitch Paul Byrd. Byrd, who didn’t allow a run in his last start, is 2-3 with a 3.61 ERA. The White Sox will hand the ball to Javier Vazquez. Vazquez is 4-3 with a 3.53 ERA. This game is scheduled to get under way at 8:11 PM.

Lee Handed First Loss, As Reds Sweep Tribe

Score: Reds 6 Indians 4


Turning Point: With one man on and two outs in the bottom of the sixth, Joey Votto hit a pinch hit home run that drove in two, and gave the Reds the six runs they would need for the victory.


Analysis: It was bound to happen. Cliff Lee pitched alright but he had trouble finishing an inning. He gave up six runs, five of which were earned, on ten hits, and he struck out only two batters. The Indians did what they could against Edinson Volquez, getting two runs. They rallied in the seventh to score two runs, but the Reds bullpen has been great this series. In what was a piece meal lineup, the offense wasn’t stellar though. In what seems to be the theme on the season, the Indians squandered early opportunities that may have gotten them rolling and chased Volquez from the game. But as this run drought continues, the big hit continues to elude the Indians. The Reds pitching staff fanned eight Tribe batters this afternoon.


MVP: Michael Aubrey
It was slim pickings for MVP today, but it will go to the newest call up for the Indians. Michael Aubrey got his first MLB hit and it came in the form of the home run. Aubrey was 1-4 today with that solo shot.


Extras:

- Asdrubal Cabrera’s stolen base in the top of the fourth this afternoon was the first of his major league career.

- April may have been kind to David Dellucci at the plate. But May is a different story. In the month of May, Dellucci is 7-47 and only five RBIs. If you are keeping track that is a .148 average and a RBI every 9.4 at bats.

- The Indians hitters struck out a combined twenty seven times of the three game series by the Reds.


Next Up: After an off day tomorrow, the Indians travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago White Sox. This is the first time these teams have met since the opening series of this season. The Indians will send the big man, C.C. Sabathia, to the mound. Sabathia made his contribution to the string of shutout innings last week, when he pitched a complete game shutout against Toronto. C.C. gave up only five hits and struck out eleven batters. Sabathia is 3-5 with a 5.47 ERA. The White Sox will pitch Jose Contreras. Contreras has had two lights out performances in his last two starts. Contreras went seven innings in both game, and he only gave up a run in both. He is 4-3 with a 3.35 ERA. First pitch will be at 8:11 PM from U.S. Cellular Field.

Dunn's Walk Off Crushes Tribe

Score: Reds 4 Indians 2


Turning Point: Masa Kobayashi experienced his first blown save in dramatic fashion. The Japanese reliever let the first two Reds on the base paths in the ninth with no outs. Then Adam Dunn launched a 2-1 offering into orbit to beat the Indians with a three run homer.


Analysis: What a pathetic showing at the plate this afternoon? The Indians had ten hits and managed to score a measly two runs against Cincinnati. The Indians had scoring opportunities all afternoon, and again this offense remains stagnant with runners in scoring position. The Tribe left six men in scoring position and a total of nine men on base. Another fantastic outing by Fausto Carmona was wasted. Carmona was spectacular all afternoon. He went 7 and 1/3 innings, gave up one earned run on four hits, struck out four and didn’t walk a batter.


MVP: Ben Francisco
The Ben Francisco treat has been on fire the past few games. Today he generated the only runs the Indians could muster. He was 3-4 with a home run, and he scored the only runs the Indians scored today.


Extras:

- Michael Aubrey, who was called up after Jeremy Sowers was sent back down to Buffalo, made his major league debut today. He had one plate appearance in which he was 0-1.


Next Up: The Indians will try and avoid the sweep at the hands of the Reds tomorrow afternoon. It will be quite a pitching match up as well. Cliff Lee will get the ball for the Indians. Lee is looking for his seventh win of the season. In his last start, Cliff pitched nine shutout innings, giving up seven hits, and struck out five. Lee is 6-0 on the season with a 0.67 ERA. The Reds will send their hottest pitcher of the season. Edinson Volquez has been awesome, since he was acquired from the Texas Rangers. Volquez is 6-1 with a 1.12 ERA. He is the National League leader in ERA. First pitch is at 1:15 PM tomorrow afternoon from Great American Ball Park.

Indians Can't Muster Much Offense

Score: Reds 4 Indians 3


Turning Point: Jensen Lewis came on to pitch the eighth inning, and loaded the bases with only one out. He, then, walked Adam Dunn to drive in the go ahead run to give Cincinnati the 4-3 lead.


Analysis: The starting pitching was not as sharp tonight for Cleveland, and the struggling offense couldn’t produce anything outside of the sixth inning, when the Indians hit three solo home runs. The very next inning,they had a runner on second with one out and the bases loaded with two outs. Yet the Tribe couldn’t get the big hit to take the lead. The rest of the evening the Indians looked like little leaguers at the plate, swinging at bad pitches and taking good pitches. Jeremy Sowers had another average outing. He struggled early giving up a two run homer and a solo home run in the first and second innings. He would rebound, but Sowers was in trouble most of the night. His only 1-2-3 inning was the fourth. You can’t blame Lewis either. He did walk three batters, but the key hit was a bloop double by Joey Votto. Jorge Julio and Rafael Perez each had worked, and neither gave up a run.


MVP: Casey Blake
Blake was the only Indians to have more than one hit tonight. Blake got the offense rolling in the sixth with his solo shot. Then he had the double in the seventh. Blake was 2-4 with the home run and double. He continues to hit well away from Progressive Field.


Extras:

- The Cincinnati Reds pitching staff struck out a combined twelve batters on the night. Every starter, outside of David Dellucci, struck out at least once.

- Tonight was Travis Hafner’s second career pinch hit home run. The other pinch hit home run also came at Great American Ball Park on July 1, 2006.

- The Indians left four runners in scoring position and had a total of seven men left on base.


Next Up: Game Two of the Battle of Ohio is tomorrow afternoon. The Indians will start Fausto Carmona. Carmona had a tremendous outing in his last start against Toronto. Carmona pitched a complete game shutout, allowing only five hits and striking out three. Carmona has a 4-1 record with a 2.40 ERA. The Reds will counter with their number one starter, Aaron Harang. Harang has not got much run support when on the mound. He is 2-5 with a 3.32 ERA. The matinee will start at 3:55 PM from Great American Ball Park, on the banks of the Ohio River.

Laffey Leads Indians To Sweep Over Athletics

Score: Indians 4 Athletics 2


Turning Point: With the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth and one out, Masa Kobayashi came into relieve Rafael Betancourt. After a run scoring wild pitch, Kobayashi got Mike Sweeney and Ryan Sweeney to strike out for his second save.


Analysis: Well the sweep is official. The tormented have become the tormentors. The Indians struggled early in the season against Oakland, but they were finally able to get the monkey off their collective backs. Aaron Laffey was lights out again with another stellar outing. The scoreless inning streak is over, but it was his only hiccup all game. The offense was alright again. They scored just enough to win, and that’s about all you can ask for against the AL’s leading pitching staff. The team had eleven strike outs today and eight men left on base.


MVP: Jhonny Peralta
Peralta was a key bat in the line up today. Peralta was 2-3 with a home run and scored three of the Indians four runs. He also had a stolen base.


Extras:

- Ben Francisco had a great day at the plate. He was 3-4 at the dish and he drove in a run in the second inning. His average jumped from .286 to .344 which is a fifty eight point jump.

- Travis Hafner had another productive day at the plate. Hafner was 1-2 with an RBI single in the third, two walks, and a rare stolen base. It looks like he might be emerging from his slump.

- The Indians finished off their home stand at 6-1. The Indians starting pitchers had a 6-0 record over the past two series. The rotations stats are 55 and 1/3 innings pitched, with a 0.16 ERA. The starters struck out forty three batters and only walked eleven.


Next Up: The Indians hit the road to start a three game set in the Queen City. The Indians will send lefty, Jeremy Sowers, out to the hill. This is Sowers second spot start of the season. He last pitched on April 26th against the Yankees. He went 5 and 1/3 innings, giving up three runs on seven hits and striking out three. Sowers is 0-0 with a 5.06 ERA. The Cincinnati Reds scheduled starter is fire baller, Johnny Cueto. Cueto had a tremendous debut but has struggled since then. Cueto is 2-4 with a 5.91 ERA. The Battle of Ohio kicks off at 7:10 PM from Great American Ball Park.

C.C. K's His Way To Shut Out

Score: Indians 2 Athletics 0


Turning Point: This game was over after Grady Sizemore led off the game with a home run. The way C.C. Sabathia pitched tonight, the Indians only needed one run even though they got two.


Analysis: Sabathia kept the string of outstanding starts going with his first complete game shut out of the 2008 season. He was never really in trouble all night, and only once did Oakland have two men on base at one time. Grady Sizemore led off tonight’s game with a home run. Ryan Garko hit a home run for the second consecutive night, to give the Indians a 2-0 lead. But the story was C.C. tonight. He kept the A’s hitters guessing, by mixing his fastball and change up regularly.


MVP: C.C. Sabathia
Continuing his return to form since a rocky start, Sabathia’s stuff was electric. C.C. went nine shut out innings, giving up only five hits, and striking out eleven batters. He has a 1.49 ERA over his last five starts.


Extras:

- The Indians offense has been saved by its great starting pitching. Grant it, Oakland is leading the league in pitching. But the Indians squandered a bases loaded opportunity in the fifth and left four runners in scoring position tonight.

- Grady Sizemore’s lead off home run is his third of the season and fourteenth of his career. He trails Kenny Lofton, who had eighteen lead off homers during his Indians career, for the most in franchise history.

- Indians starters now have now pitched 43 and 1/3 innings of scoreless baseball. The last run a starter gave up was last Friday against Toronto.

- Jhonny Peralta broke out of a 0-15 slump tonight, going 2-4 with two doubles.


Next Up: The Indians look for a sweep tomorrow afternoon, when they take on Oakland again for their final meeting of the 2008 season. South-paw, Aaron Laffey, will take the hill for the Tribe. Laffey will be making his fourth start since being called up from Buffalo. Laffey got his first win of the season last time he pitched. Laffey is 1-2 with a 1.83 ERA. The Athletics will send Greg Smith out to face Cleveland. Smith has not faced Cleveland yet, but he has been a solid starter since he was called up April 10th from Sacramento. Smith is 2-2 with a 3.00 ERA. Tomorrow’s matinee kicks off at 12:05 PM from Progressive Field.

Tribe Defense Backs Up Byrd's Beauty

Score: Indians 4 Athletics 0


Turning Point: In the Oakland half of the fifth, Paul Byrd was in a little bit of a jam with runners on first and second and only one out. Byrd was able to get strike out Donnie Murphy, and Victor Martinez threw out Bobby Crosby, who was attempting to steal third base to end the inning.


Analysis: Byrd kept the scoreless inning streak in tact. But he got plenty of help from his friends. The Indians were nursing a 1-0 lead through out most of this game. Grady Sizemore threw out Frank Thomas at home plate in the second inning and had a diving grab in center field later in the game. Asdrubal Cabrera made a diving catch over his shoulder in the eighth. David Dellucci made a leaping grab up against the wall in left field in the third inning. The defense answered the call all night. But that’s not to take anything away from Paul Byrd. Byrd had his best start of the season. At the plate, the offense sputtered most of the evening. After a Travis Hafner RBI single in the first, the Indians only had four more men reach base against Oakland starter, Justin Duchscherer. Ryan Garko finally got to the A’s bullpen, with a three run homer to straight away center field in the eighth.


MVP: Paul Byrd
As stated before on this blog, if the opponent can’t score, they can’t win. Byrd held Oakland in check on giving up five hits, and struck out a season high seven batters in 7 and 1/3 innings of scoreless baseball.


Extras:

- Travis Hafner continues to make strides towards regaining his batting form. He is six for fifteen at the plate during home stand, which is a .400 average. He is also having better at bats. Travis battled out of a 0-2 hole at the plate twice this evening for hits.

- Masa Kobayashi got his first major league save tonight, after pitching 1 and 1/3 innings of shutout ball. He gave up a hit and had a strikeout.

- All of the Indians runs were scored with two outs tonight.


Next Up: Game two of the three game set is tomorrow evening at 7:05 PM from Progressive Field. C.C. Sabathia, who out dueled Toronto ace, Roy Halladay, last start, will get the ball for Cleveland. He has not fared well against Oakland in his career, and looks to change things tomorrow night. Sabathia is 2-5 with a 6.55 ERA. Oakland will start the right handed, Joe Blanton. Blanton has put together three fantastic starts in a row, giving up only six earned runs in 19 and 2/3 innings of work over those starts. Blanton, too, is 2-5 with a 3.82 ERA.