Look at the defensive situation.  After June, we gradually replaced Nixon with Gutierrez, and Dellucci essentially with Lofton.  In the fourth quarter, we replaced Barfield with Cabrera, and we might guess that Garko will be better in October than his season numbers would show.  So we've upgraded defensively at three or four different positions, but this report would know nothing of this.

Now let's look at the K rates, which they include because they've found that power pitchers are more likely to hold up in the postseason and/or against good lineups, etc.  Trying not to have rose-colored glasses on this, but I really do think that the K rate substantially understates the dominance of our particular staff.

Of course it's true that the full-season team stats are loaded up with low-K-rate innings from the likes of Sowers and Laffey and Lee, who will play no meaningful role in the postseason, and especially Byrd, who will have no role in the first round.  But you probably would find the same thing for just about any of these teams.  No, the more significant issue is the Indians more significant pitchers.

Sabathia, with a great K rate coupled with outstanding walk rate -- when you're fooling guys in the zone, you're dominating.  Westbrook's 6.01 K rate over the last two months combined with his extreme groundball tendencies make it dubious to lump him in with the mass of nibblers and junkballers.

But Fausto of course is the real anomaly -- and I said so even back in March, his K rate clearly understates his ability to dominate hitters, and he's been anomalizing away at this for four years now.  But his K rate is also on the rise -- 3.32 for April and May, 6.72 for the last four months.

So they're trying to suggest something about power pitchers and dominance over good hitters, but does anybody really believe that the Indians postseason pitching situation is less dominant than the Red Sox or Angels, and about the same as the Yankees?  I sure don't.

now I don't know how I'll be able to watch the playoffs with my children, it just sends the wrong message