Meet Joe Smith

On K-Wood: Kerry Wood is unbelievable. He can really help a bullpen.
On Cleveland: My mom is from Bay Village, so I know the Cleveland area pretty well. We go up there to see my grandparents. I've been to some Cavs games and Indians games.
On pitching in New York: I loved it. It's the only thing I've known. I got thrown right into it. There's a lot of media and a lot of other things, but it's a great city to play in.
On pitching for the Indians: It's going to be good. I like the city.

as told to Paul Hoynes

6 months ago Jay Comment 51 comments 0 recs |

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meet the new steve reed … i can’t wait to say “frisbee slider” again.

by piersall on Dec 11, 2008 5:48 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Ahh…Steve Reed. Gave one of my favorite quotes—as he entered his first game as an Indian, he introduced himself to the Tribe catcher (Pat Borders!) by saying, “Hi, I’m Steve Reed. I throw 80 miles per hour. Let’s go get ’em!”

by TribeJay on Dec 11, 2008 10:55 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Steve Reed drove me nuts. Problably my least favorite bullpen pitcher in the 90s. Can’t really explain why

by Roger Dorn on Dec 11, 2008 11:15 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

He was just never quite as good as you thought he was going to be.

by Jay on Dec 12, 2008 12:15 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

He was, but just not in consecutive appearances.

by Thommy on Dec 12, 2008 10:54 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I got briefly excited about Mike Koplove in 07, mostly because of one game against Boston (out of what, like 3 games he appeared in for us?) where he just had this ridiculous movement on his pitches and was getting all these swings and misses… Like you, I have no idea whether side arm is really a good idea, but it sure is sexy (in, y’know, a heterosexual kind of way).

I had pretty much completely forgotten about Steve Reed ’til he was brought up here. If asked to come up with a list of late ’90s pitchers I think I would have missed him.

by Logodaedalus on Dec 12, 2008 11:33 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Speaking of 90’s pitcher you rarely think about… Paul Assenmacher.

…not gonna lie, part of the reason I became an Indians fan.

by world dictator on Dec 12, 2008 1:14 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I remember he absolutely shut down Griffey. Not sure the exact numbers, but he was something like 3 for 40 in his career off Assenmacher.

The best thing probably is to hit [Grady] 2nd -- Jay

by Buckeye Brad on Dec 12, 2008 1:23 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

my dad was convinced that the indians didn’t win the series in ’95 because of the “ex-cubs” factor, with assenmacher … remember when people constantly talked about that regarding all playoff teams? or, am i jut delirious?

by macasson on Dec 12, 2008 2:20 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I remember them talking about it even a couple years ago.

The best thing probably is to hit [Grady] 2nd -- Jay

by Buckeye Brad on Dec 12, 2008 3:17 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

He was impressive in that playoff game against both Griffey and Martinez (or was it Buhner? Not even sure) – and those two (whether it would be Martinez or Buhner) were in their primes as great hitters at the time, so it was no small feat, especially for a LHP against either Martinez or Buhner.

The "cream of the crop" doesn't always rise to the top.

by indiansfan on Dec 12, 2008 8:11 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Ker-Plunk.

Steel Nick

by nickjs21 on Dec 12, 2008 1:24 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Of course.

The best thing probably is to hit [Grady] 2nd -- Jay

by Buckeye Brad on Dec 12, 2008 3:17 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Huh… he actually would have been one of the first names I came up with. Maybe right after Mesa…

by Logodaedalus on Dec 12, 2008 1:32 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Ah, must be because my “real” Indians fandom didn’t begin until Shapiro took over. I was pretty young throughout most of the Hart era. I remember fairly little about those teams besides all of the awesome superstar players. And of course Dave Burba.

by world dictator on Dec 12, 2008 6:04 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I was definitely paying attention during the Hart era — not like I do now, being a) an adult, and b) having all sorts of internet sources (I was growing up in eastern PA and didn’t get to watch Indians games that often) — but it might honestly be partly because of his crazy name that I remember Assenmacher…

by Logodaedalus on Dec 12, 2008 6:48 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Dirty Paul is spoken of frequently in my baseball watching circle when we wax on the 90s.

by PatBordersHelmet on Dec 12, 2008 3:57 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

for some reason, i remember liking him and thinking he was underrated … i also can’t really explain why … now that i’ve looked at his stats during his two years with us, i REALLy can’t explain why

by piersall on Dec 12, 2008 12:13 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

The guy I always felt was underrated was Sean Depaula. Mainly because of one appearance he made in the 99 postseason, when the rest of the bullpen was crumbling

by Roger Dorn on Dec 12, 2008 12:32 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Jeff D’Amico.

Just thought that belonged here.

by Brick. on Dec 12, 2008 12:49 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Jamie Brewington.

by fwembt on Dec 12, 2008 1:33 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Hooray!
One of my favorite indians moments:
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CLE/CLE200404190.shtml

Travis Hafner is overrated. Clarity is underrated. David Dellucci is David Dellucci.

by westbrook on Dec 13, 2008 12:29 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I think I still hate Wedge for pulling Westbrook

by JRontherim on Dec 13, 2008 4:37 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

That’s a pretty aggressively dumb reason to hate Wedge.

Jake pitched a complete game his next time out and then six shutout innings a week after that. He had a 3.50 ERA over the rest of the season. I think it’s fair to assume that Wedge’s handled him more or less perfectly.

by Jay on Dec 13, 2008 7:42 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Absolutely. But in the moment, irrationally and selfishly, I wanted to keep Westbrook out there.

by JRontherim on Dec 14, 2008 5:34 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Oh, well, fair enough.

by Jay on Dec 14, 2008 7:39 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I have ZERO recollection of one David Lee who pitched the 9th inning of that game. Am I the only one?

by jakesinger777 on Dec 13, 2008 9:29 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

No. I don’t remember him either.

by ClarkM on Dec 13, 2008 9:42 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

i had nothing

Anti-Ben Fran before it was cool.

by Gradyforpresident on Dec 14, 2008 12:19 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I just remember him being pretty bad in Buffalo, but we threw him out there anyway.

by JRontherim on Dec 14, 2008 5:36 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I remember that there was a guy by that name, but nothing more.

by Jay on Dec 14, 2008 7:39 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Still remember his punchout of Garciaparra in Game 1 of that Division Series.

by cheech99 on Dec 12, 2008 2:27 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I almost forgot about him – he was a decent pitcher with us for a while, even if his stuff wasn’t overwhelming.

And how can we forget – he and Karsay got us John Rocker! :-)

The "cream of the crop" doesn't always rise to the top.

by indiansfan on Dec 11, 2008 11:16 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Nice! I’m a sucker for nostalgia that indirectly involves Pat Borders!

by PatBordersHelmet on Dec 12, 2008 12:32 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

You should sponsor his page on Baseball Reference.

by cclemens31 on Dec 12, 2008 3:51 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

The quote FanShot, on the other hand: highly underrated.

by fleerdon on Dec 11, 2008 6:05 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

This actually is the Chat FanShot, but I like it better for posts like these. For each paragraph, it puts everything up to the first colon in large, bold text.

by Jay on Dec 11, 2008 6:33 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs