Game 24: Tigers 9, Indians 7
by Ryan on May 2, 2009 8:54 PM EDT
in Game Recaps
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PrintAdam Everett has played 9 major-league seasons, mostly as a starter because of his defense. But his career-high OPS is .703, and has never slugged more than .400 in a season. So of almost any single position player in the American League, he's the one you'd want to face with two outs and the bases loaded. Aaron Laffey retired him once in that situation, and retired him on a grounder in the second inning. But Everett came up again two innings later, and this time Laffey made a mistake that he capitalized on. He hooked the fastball down the left field line and over the fence for a grand slam. A batter later, Laffey was chased from the game, and the Indians were down 5-0.
But good fortune again shone on the Indians, for the Tigers' defense let the them back into the game just an inning later. The Indians loaded the bases with two singles and walk, but it looked like they wouldn't take advantage of the opportunity after Grady Sizemore struck out. With two outs, Asdrubal Cabrera hit a fly ball to what looked like medium-deep left field. The wind pushed the ball deeper, and Ryan Raburn, after initially slipping as the ball was hit, caught up to the ball only to have it bounce out of his glove. All three runners on base scored. After Victor Martinez walked, Magglio Ordonez played a Shin-Soo Choo single into a triple, and that miscue allowed the Indians to tie the game. The Indians would again come back in the seventh, scoring two runs to re-take the lead.
But again the bullpen couldn't get the game to the ninth inning. Vinnie Chulk did a commendable job getting the game from Laffey's departure in the fourth through the sixth. For a bullpen of decent depth, two innings of scoreless setup wouldn't be much of a problem. But the Indians have no consistent setup man now, so Eric Wedge tried to squeeze 1.2 innings out of the closest thing to one he had. Rafael Betancourt got the last two outs of the seventh, but gave up the lead with nobody out in the eighth by giving up a Curtis Granderson two-run shot . Whatever help the Indians get from Matt LaPorta and Luis Valbuena, they're going to have to solidify the bullpen in order to win with any kind of consistency.
Next Up: Cliff Lee vs. Justin Verlander, 1:05 PM
| Highest WPA | Lowest WPA | ||
| Shin-Soo Choo | .340 | Rafael Betancourt | -.493 |
| Victor Martinez | .151 | Aaron Laffey | -.227 |
| Asdrubal Cabrera | .140 | Mark DeRosa | -.195 |
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Pretty dubious bullpen management. I’ve said this a lot, but I can’t understand having confidence in Betancourt right now. When our bullpen is as bad as ours is, I can’t see why he’d pitch Sipp for 2 batters.
I don’t have a problem with treating Sipp carefully right now. The Tigers kill lefties. And it’s not like he has anybody he can trust now. If you can’t pitch Betancourt, who can you pitch?
Indeed, per Castrovince:
INDIANS (9-15): CF Grady Sizemore, SS Asdrubal Cabrera, 1B Victor Martinez, LF Shin-Soo Choo, 3B Mark DeRosa, DH David Dellucci, C Kelly Shoppach, RF Matt LaPorta, 2B Luis Valbuena. LHP Cliff Lee (1-3, 3.94).
Il faut d'abord durer.
by CU Adam on May 3, 2009 11:31 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
I didn’t want to say anything, but yeah, it’s almost 3 TB per game. That’s a lot of offense.
You know something? I’m still mad they burned his second option.
by fleerdon on May 3, 2009 11:23 AM EDT up reply actions
Granted, it’s basically all in two games, but it’s still kinda neat.
by supermarioelia on May 3, 2009 11:47 AM EDT up reply actions
Is it too early to start burning the season tickets? It’s time to show a force of power, and demand the front office to do something. Otherwise, it’s going to be time to start the burning.
from indians.com. Phrase for May: FORCE OF POWER.
by fleerdon on May 3, 2009 11:13 AM EDT reply actions
"Start the burning."
Step one: fourth meal
by APV on May 3, 2009 11:16 AM EDT up reply actions 3 recs
Technically?
Though I look right at home, I still feel like an exile
by Manhattan Tribe Fan on May 3, 2009 1:00 PM EDT up reply actions
Wedge said in yesterday’s post-game that they’re “pulling back” on Jensen a bit, to the extent that he “wasn’t an option” yesterday.
Question: Then what the hell is he doing on the 25-man?
by fleerdon on May 3, 2009 11:18 AM EDT reply actions
I think the answer is the 40-man roster. Who else is available and a better option? Adam Miller and Juan Salas are injured. Zach Jackson just got sent down and probably isn’t a better option. Only Meloan and Rundles are really replacement options, and they don’t inspire a lot of confidence.
Yeah, isn’t he on the 60-day DL, and if not, shouldn’t he be? If I remember correctly, the 60-day DL takes the player off the 40-man roster, right?
by Buckeye Brad on May 3, 2009 12:28 PM EDT up reply actions
We have a working theory that you can’t be on the 60-day DL if you’re not first called up to the majors, which would have him accruing service time. Can’t recall any prospects being on the DL before, including Miller himself.
Well, that's just, like, your opinion, man.
“Inspire a lot of confidence” is a little too high of a bar to set in terms of replacing Lewis and/or Perez for a short stretch.
What we are looking for, in the short-term, is someone whose presence in the game doesn’t guarantee a loss.
Well, that's just, like, your opinion, man.
even that low hurdle seems a bit too high for Rundles and Meloan. In the latter case, I think the Indians don’t want to inadvertently screw him up by bringing him up to Cleveland and letting him fail. My guess is the current thinking is the team hoping to get a few low leverage situations where Perez and Lewis can work through their problems.
I agree on Meloan but I think a Rundles for Lewis switch makes sense. For some reason, I’m much more concerned by Lewis than I am by Perez.
Obviously all sample size warnings apply, but for whatever reason Perez isn’t throwing his slider as much this season. He’s obviously having bad control issues too – so I’m sure the two are related.
People came to the park to see Albert
Albert was a GREAT offensive baseball player. He was always locked in, concentrating only on the game. Albert had some demons and the press deemed it news and reported it. Some of his actions were very extream. Yet his local papers and others wanted to magnify everything.
You remember Eddy Murray don’t you? Well some of his antics would rival Albert. Funny thing is, the press left him alone as he was very rude etc…
Just imagine what the Indians could have been like with the teams we had in the 90’s if kept? Manny, Thome still playing…
Again, the obsession is mystifying. This was out of left field.
by supermarioelia on May 3, 2009 11:49 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Can we remove the Yahoo link?
Albert Belle left after 1996. The majority of the sellout streak took place without him. (Started in June of ‘95, and didn’t end until April 4, 2001). Murray left after ’95, so apparently Cleveland was okay coming out to the park without him, too.
Here’s a trend of the White Sox attendance in the years before and after they acquired Albert Belle:
1992 – 33,101/game; 2,681,156 total (2,268,524 AL avg)
1993 – 31,865/game; 2,581,091 total (2,380,955 AL avg)
1994 – 30,042/game; 1,697,398 total* (1,728,728 AL avg)
1995 – 22,204/game; 1,609,773 total* (1,811,356 AL avg)
1996 – 20,569/game; 1,676,403 total (2,122,721 AL avg)
1997 – 23,165/game; 1,864,782 total (2,234,523 AL avg)
1998 – 17,175/game; 1,391,146 total (2,298,169 AL avg)
1999 – 16,656/game; 1,349,151 total (2,286,874 AL avg)
2000 – 24,047/game; 1,947,799 total (2,262,557 AL avg)
I’m not going to waste my time doing the same thing for the 2 years he spent in Baltimore. People, in fact, did not come to the park to see Albert. People came out to the park to see a winning team.
Il faut d'abord durer.
by CU Adam on May 3, 2009 12:19 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
And… done. To summarize: The Brewers liked having CC. Laporta can hit. He’s a good guy.
Il faut d'abord durer.
He also called Micheal Brantley “Mickey”, which is his father’s name, right?
by Buckeye Brad on May 3, 2009 12:58 PM EDT up reply actions
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