More importantly, big props to Carlos Carrasco. I admit that I did not give the dude a fair shake and he has been remarkable over the past month (4-1, 0.98). Yesterday, for the first time, I began to dissect what has changed about the young right hander. A lot of talking heads try to over-complicate the method, when, in fact, it is phenomenally simple. Throw strikes. Change speeds. Hit your spots. How? Consistency of motion. Repetition of delivery. Keep a clear head. Not to say that this is easy, but Carrasco (8-4, 3.54) has found the groove on all of these fronts. The most obvious is his mental state. The man is locked in, channeling his competitive spirit into the singular focus of making his pitch. It was wonderful to see how pumped up he was after each of his last two punch outs. Stuff-wise, two significant improvements have bred success: throwing his fastball for strikes early in the count and commanding his slider inside of the zone. Any pitcher will tell you that he cannot be successful without getting ahead, but, on its own, it is insufficient. The slide piece has become devastating, dipping and diving and remaining away from the meaty part of the plate. Carrasco kept the Tribe's head above water during the worst of the losing streak and has become the team's most consistent starter as they fight to remain in contention.
It was certainly heartening to see the bats rap out fifteen hits. Orlando Cabrera is suddenly en fuego (8-for-14 in his last four games) and, Wednesday, produced his first four hit game of the season. Even so, I have been more impressed with Travis Buck. After bottoming out at .220 with his 0-for-24 streak, Buck (.241) has cracked 6 hits in 18 AB's with 3 doubles and 3 RBI. Just when I was about to express how disappointing his performance had been following a monster spring, the man shoots three bullets in his last three plate appearances, recapturing the stroke of March. If Travis can keep this up, the 8-10 weeks that Shin-Soo Choo will spend on the shelf will be much less painful.
Over the past ten days or so, I have found myself a bit put upon by things that are not baseball. As such, I had not watched every pitch of an Indians game in awhile... until Tuesday. And, boy, did I pick a jim-dandy.
Despite a walk-off loss, despite watching his tenth win flit away, the night belonged to Josh Tomlin (9-4, 3.86). Not since Charlie Nagy in the 1992 All-Star game have I felt such a thrill for an Indians pitcher getting a hit. The bunt bonus was good enough, but the hard struck RBI single? Unbelievable. "I can't hit a fastball," he said. What a sandbagger.
Sadly though, Grady Sizemore looks old. It is not only the plummeting average (.226), his bat is slow to the ball. It is not just the absence of stolen bases (0-for-2), he badly misplayed two deep drives (one hit his glove) that he would have made into web gems in his heyday. Worst of all Grady's face is haggard, worn. He does not know what is wrong or how to fix it. As always, the best of luck to him, but I am not optimistic.
I promised to explain why the Indians will continue to win. This is always easier in the rosy glow of an actual victory, so here we go. (1) The Bullpen Mafia - an unfortunate performance on Tuesday notwithstanding, the corps (minus Chad-Chad-Oh-So-Bad) is the heart and soul of the team and the best in the American League. Personally, my favorite is Vinnie Pestano, who showed an 81 mph curveball yesterday that appears unhittable if he can command it. (2) The Starting 4.5 - Since June 7th; Carrasco, Tomlin, Mitch Talbot and Justin Masterson have combined for a 2.99 ERA, a .248 OBA, and 1.10 WHIP. We are going to abstain from Fausto Carmona, currently your league leader in losses and earned runs allowed, for now. (3) Defense, Defense, Defense - While unable to maintain the standard that they set in the season's first month, the D has still saved 21 runs in 2011, third best in the AL. (4) The Bats are waking up - Buck and O-Cab are raking. Lonnie Chisenhall is here and lacing line drives. Travis Hafner is back after Cincy. Even the slumping Michael Brantley had an RBI single last night.
There is only one caveat ...
“The Tribe is currently striking out an average of 7.3 times a game, which projects to 1,183 Ks on the season. That total would put this year’s team just outside the Top 5 all-time in team history for most strikeouts in a single season. And the numbers have been worse since Bruce Fields took over for Jon Nunnally – even though one of the reasons given for Nunnally’s firing is the team was striking out too much.” - Red Right 88
Nothing is perfect, but they are tied for first again.
Cheers.
