03/25 Minute: So Long, Chain Of Lakes. Hello, Cleveland.

 In the mid-80s, my grandparents purchased a place in Winter Haven, Florida.  Not more than a mile or so down the street was a baseball facility along with a stadium that featured a minor-league segment of the Boston Red Sox.  Upon the death of my grandfather, their place was sold in 1991.  The Indians conveniently made it their home in 1992.

16 seasons later, the Tribe bids farewell.  The same scene that brought us the tragic death of Steve Olin and Tim Crewsalso prepared a team that would win a handful of AL Central championships, even making a couple of runs at a World Series title.  A place that has seen the evolution from the Hargrove roster to the current Wedge roster, the Loftons and Thomes are now the Sizemores and Garkos.  And though most of this roster will be making its way to Goodyear, Arizona in 2009, Chain of Lakes will be something that I know I will remember as a Tribe fan for many years to come.

And what a better way to say goodbye than a 8-0 blanking of the Atlanta Braves?  And before you ask if the Braves were actually trying, Mark Kotsay, Mark Teixeira and Jeff Francour each had three at-bats – totaling one combined hit.  Jake Westbrook tossed six innings of immaculate ball, fanning eight, walking none.  It’s been said before, but Jake is quietly 3-0 in the spring with an ERA of 0.00.  And he’s our third starter.

Masa Kobayashi and Rafy Betancourt each tossed an inning of scoreless ball.  Kobe allowed a hit, but Betancourt fanned another batter, and lowered his ERA to 1.13 on the spring.  I’m feeling very, very good about these two.  And don’t get me started about Jensen Lewis.  If he can even come close to replicating what he did last season (29 IP, 34 K, 2.15 ERA), Cleveland’s bullpen could be pretty lethal.

As of right now, the weather forecast calls for 42 degrees and showers.  Not the best combination for a baseball game.  Thankfully, as we speak, Winter Haven is boasting a pretty brisk 46 degrees, so it may not be too shocking.  Ignore the fact that it’ll actually be near 80 within the next 36 hours, it’ll just make you cringe – assuming you’re in the Cleveland area.  Regardless, it will not keep 70,000 proud from filling up Jacobs Progressive Field for what will hope to be a full nine-inning game against a team that we’ll be locking horns with several more times as the season progresses. 

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