A Quest Called Tribe

So... with the odd start time and my utter disdain for Matt Underwood, I found myself in need of entertainment for the ten minutes at the top of the 8 o'clock hour.  After nearly guffawing myself into conniptions to the antics of Caddyshack, I flipped back to notice Ezequiel Carrera on first base.  Being the responsible pseudo-journalist that I am, I had checked the lineup on Indians.com hours earlier and noted Michael Brantley listed as the leadoff hitter and Zeke penciled in to bat 9th.  I whipped into a fury of Googling and quickly discovered Brantley to be a late scratch due to (I kid you not) "an upset stomach."  Aww, Mikey tum-tum no feel good?  Regardless, the aforementioned play-by-play goon found it unnecessary to mention this, even as Travis Buck took a fastball to the skull forcing Luis Valbuena into his first big league action in left.  Maybe Luis should have made a dive at that ball.

Despite the lead, all we should really be talking about is how Justin Masterson (7.2 IP, 4 H, 6 K) utterly dominated the Twins.  Newly marked as the ace of the staff, Bat showed exactly why.  Whether it was retiring 13 in a row in the middle of the game, coming back from a 3-0 count to strike out Danny Valencia on three more pitches, or escaping a two-on none-out jam in the 7th by fanning a future Hall of Famer and inducing a double play; Bat was fantastic.  Remember that, even as he went two months without a win, Justin (8-6, 2.64) never slumped and has been both the most consistent and, on any given night, the most devastating horse in the Tribe's barn.  Following another effort bereft of free passes (72 strikes over 104 pitches), Masterson, who averaged 5.5 BB/9 for the Tribe in '09 and 3.7 last season, has delivered a 2.6 BB/9 in 2011.  All of these are excellent signs, as starting pitching will doubtlessly be the most important consideration as the we dig in for the dog days of August.

In case you are wondering, the Indians starting rotation now looks as follows - Justin Masterson, Josh Tomlin, Carlos Carrasco, David Huff, and, lastly, Fausto Carmona.  That means that Carmona has gone from engine to caboose in about three months, inspiring less confidence than the retread who had been at AAA until yesterday.

Noticeably absent from the above list is Mitch Talbot.  Mitch, who conveniently found his way onto the disabled list with a back strain just before the All-Star break, began a 30-day rehab stint with Columbus yesterday.  The interesting part?  He will work out of the bullpen.  Given Talbot's struggles over the past month (1-4, 9.49), it seems as if the organization has decided on a new role for him.  Does this mean the end of CHUD Durbin?  We can only hope.

The loss was a heart breaker to be sure and it raises again the question of using a closer in a non-save situation.  Chris Perez (2-5, 3.03) was inserted yesterday for exactly no reason, went ahead and looked completely out of sorts, then did the same tonight.  Unfortunately, tonight, Manny Acta's poor decision making equals a loss.  On a day when the lineup was already short three starters (Sizemore, Choo, Brantley), Manny refused to play Travis Hafner when Brantley came down with a tummy ache.  Maybe he should have pulled Jeanmar on Sunday?  Perhaps you pinch hit Shelley Duncan (or any right-handed batter) for Grady on Saturday?  Why was Valbuena positioned on the warning track when Cuddyer hit his "double?" Hindsight is 20/20, but when managerial missteps result in three losses in four days, something sure is rotten in Mudville.

Fun Fact:  According to STO, this is the first time that the Indians and Pirates have both been in first place as late as July 19th since 1921.  Wow.

Cheers.

P.s. Word on the street is that Travis Buck is showing no signs of concussion.  At least there is some good news.

While I Was Sminking

What's the only thing better than the Indians winning?  The Indians winning twice!  There is nothing like a double header sweep to wash the nasty taste of the last two games in Baltimore out of your mouth.

If you had told me a month ago that the linchpins in one of the season's biggest days would be David Huff AND Fausto Carmona AND Lou Marson AND Ezequiel Carrera, I likely would have passed out from the laughter.

I have been touting Zach McAllister for months, but there is simply no arguing with Huff's performance (7 IP, 5 H, 2 BB, 5 K).  David earned a spot in the rotation (Jeanmar Gomez back to Columbus after giving up the lead on Sunday) by notching the first win by an Indians left-handed starter in a calendar year.  Word on the street had been that Huff had added about 3 MPH to his fastball (89 to 92) and had found added success thanks to it.  Based on yesterday's outing, this is all true.  He was able to command that fastball and throw enough breaking balls to keep the Twins swinging at balls out of the zone.  Even more exciting is that there is already a book on Huff (38 previous MLB starts), so this is not a situation where the league will catch up to a kid making his debut.  I would not expect the moon from him, yet if David can pitch a tick over .500 with an ERA in the 4's, it would go a long way to stabilizing the rotation.

Speaking of said stability, Dr. Carmona showed up on the bump last night.  We have all seen the numbers, so I shall not reprise.  Suffice it to say, that if we can avoid the recurrence of Mr. Fausto and allow the big right-hander to push his record a few stops closer to even, then the division will belong to the Tribe.  This is an enormous if.  Even as Carmona (5-10, 5.63) produced a quality start, he looked in no way comfortable on the mound.  There was no rhythm to the at-bats as Carmona stepped off the hill and, as Manning mused, likely stepped through a mental checklist to keep his wildly swinging emotions in check.  Still, he showed remarkable toughness in escaping the third inning and limiting the O's to just a single run.  A Captain Jack web gem never hurts either.

Also, Ezequiel Carrera is pretty damn fast.  I cannot recall the last time I saw a runner picked off, who then proceeded to beat the throw to second.  The question still remains as the whether he can hit major league pitching (.200), but the four runs scored, 2 walks, sac bunt and two steals over the past three games do bode well.  Zeke singled in the first run of game one and then single-handedly generated the first insurance run of game two by forcing an error and stealing second.  He covers a lot of ground in center, possesses great instincts and has a strong arm (see the back-up play in Saturday's loss).  While it may not be that Carrera becomes an everyday player in the bigs, he certainly has the tools to contribute to the Tribe's success.

The very same thing may be said of Lou Marson.  I do not believe that the man will ever develop the consistent stick to be a starter.  Even so, he has performed well since the Indians have gone to the C-1B rotation.  Since bottoming out at .185 in early June, Lou-Lou has hit .299 with a .751 OPS over his last 67 AB's.  Marson (.248) has delivered a couple of key late inning hits this year and that ball he struck to center field to give Carmona the W was certainly no cheapie.

As you doubtlessly know, Grady Sizemore is back on the DL with right knee soreness.  This is the same knee that sidelined Grady (.237) in early May.  While it is far to early to speculate on the timetable for his return, be prepared for the worst.  According to Sizemore, the pain he experienced felt much to similar to that of his left knee when it required micro-fracture surgery last summer.  Just when he was starting to hit again...

Pair this with the absence of Shin-Soo Choo for at least the next month and the need for a right-handed hitting outfielder with some power becomes paramount.  The Indians decision will likely be based on how little they have to give up rather than how much they can gain.  Names that have been bouncing around include Jeff Francouer, Josh Willingham and Ryan Ludwick.  Supposedly Willingham has multiple suitors and the Royals are trying to unload Melky Cabrera rather than Francouer.  This makes Ludwick the probable target.  As impressive as Ludwick was in 2008 (.299, 37 HR, 113 RBI, .966 OPS), he has been incredibly pedestrian since (.253, 50 HR, 222 RBI, .738 OPS, 305 K to 333 H).  With so many teams still in contention, the word on the street is that we may see more activity in August than in July.  Let us hope this is not true for the Indians, who need help now, rather than later.

Other Minor Points of Interest --

Hey, remember Beau Mills?  He was the #13 overall pick in 2007 and has languished at AA for the past 3 seasons?  Well, the dude is on fire.  The reigning Eastern League player of the week hit (I'm not kidding) .632 with 3 homers and 9 RBI from June 11-17.  His OPS was an even 2.000.  Yikes.  While Mills (.303) has not yet elevated himself back to prospect level that he held with the Indians in 2009, he has definitely put himself back on the radar and will almost certainly see AAA this season.

In case you missed it, Drew Pomeranz's first AA start was sort of up and down.  Pom lasted just four and two thirds, while allowing a run on three hits and a walk.  He fanned five, including #1 prospect Bryce Harper in both of the latter's PA's.  Drew still needs to build up length to pitch through six innings, but if the results this season (3-2, 1.87) are any indication we have much to look forward to from the 22-year old lefty.  Pomeranz makes his first home start for Akron tomorrow night.

Cheers.

Pretty Girl 07.19.11 - Tiffany

I'll tell ya this, she looks a shade better than Debbie Gibson does these days.