While We’re Waiting… What Others Are Saying About Game 1
May 21, 2009ECF Game One Numbers and Words
May 21, 2009Your last place Cleveland Indians! Since none of you (me included), saw any of this game, as were busy watching the Cavs blow a 16 point lead, here is a quick recap of exactly how the Indians won a game (6-5) with a late inning lead, and actually didn’t completely blow it!
It wasn’t for a lack of trying.
The Kansas City Royals, a night after ripping the guts out of your Wahoos, jumped out to a 3-0 lead against Fausto Carmona behind four hits, including a two-out, two run double off the bat of Jose Guillen. The Tribe stuck back in the top of the fourth.
After K’dy Sizemore (another 0-5 night brings him to .205) grounded out, Victor Martinez (.400) doubled. Shin-Soo Choo singled to score The Stick and advanced to second on the throw home. Jhonny Peralta brought home Choo with an RBI single of his own to bring the Indians to within 3-2. The rally ended there with a DP ball off the bat of Ryan Garko.
As Fausto is known to do, he gave a run right back in the home half of the inning. After two were out, Mike Aviles singled. Fausto then threw a wild pitch to move him into scoring position. Coco Crisp beat out an infield single to short with Aviles advancing to third. A second wild pitch brought him home.
Whatever happened the Carmona with pinpoint control and the unhittable power sinking? Like everything else, the 2007 version looks like the aberration rather than the rule. But I digress.
To the seventh we went the Indians trailing 4-2. KC starter Gil Meche was pulled in favor of Jamey Wright. The boys went of “The Grind Tour” with one out. Mark DeRosa and Ben Francisco hit back to back singles. Jamey Carroll was hit by a pitch to load the bases for Asdrubal Cabrera. AC watched four pitches sail wide to bring the Wahoo Warriors to within one run.
Out when Wright, in came B.F. Sidney Ponson to face K’dy in another big spot. He hit a hard grounder to second which scored a run, but almost turned into a DP. Martinez had a shot to break the 4-4 tie, but lined out to end the inning. However, the Indian bats had more in store for Sir Sidney.
After Aaron Laffey (now 3-0) pitched a perfect 7th, Choo lead off the eighth with a single. Jhonny Peralta sacrificed him over to second. Ryan Garko almost completely killed this rally by grounding back to Ponson, erasing Choo at third, but ended up advancing to second. Wedge sent Matt Laporta out to pinch run for Garko. DeRosa, the subject of trade rumors on SI.com yesterday, came through with a big RBI double on a 3-2, two out pitch and the Tribe had their first lead at 5-4. Big Ben Francisco greeted new KC pitcher Robinson Tejada with a shot up the middle to bring in DeRosa.
The only problem for manager Eric Wedge was that he had six more outs to get.
Laffey, who was stellar in the seventh, gave one right back with one out from a run scoring single by David Dejesus. Laffey was replaced by Raffy Betancourt. In true ’09 pen fashion, he walked the first man he faced, John Buck. Then “The Realtor” buckled down with two on and one out, striking out both Aviles and Crisp.
It was time to turn the ball back over to Kerry Wood, who a night before, had the mother of all blown saves. This would looked to have all the makings of another doozy. The newly clean-shaven Tribe closer walked leadoff man Willie Bloomquist. Again, he looked like “one-pitch Wood.” Billy Butler, in a horrific at bat, decided to swing at a high 2-0 pitch and helped Wood out, hitting a lazy fly to right. During the next two at bats by Mike Jacobs and Jose Guillen, the flame-thrower couldn’t find the plate. So now the bases were loaded with one out in a one run game.
Somehow, Kerry Wood found his breaking pitch. Out of nowhere, he revereted right back to the guy who signed a deal worth $10 million a year. Mark Teahen and Dejesus had no shot against Wood and struck out to finish the game.
Tribe wins! Tribe wins! Woo Hoo!!!
“Last night was tough to swallow,” Wood said. “It’s got to be over. I’m going to be out there and I’ve got to be focused on getting the guys out tonight. It’s not always easy to do, but you’ve got to be able to get [the bad memory] out of there.”
More from Wood: “I’m just glad I was able to find it before it was too late. I didn’t start out the inning the way I wanted to start, but I finished it the way I wanted to finish.”
The Tribe finishes their series in KC with a 2:10 afternoon tilt. Carl Pavano takes on the best pitcher in the AL right now, Zack Greinke.
7 Comments
Funny how we were excited to get Wood to be a lights-out closer, but instead he’s been just as death-defying as Wickman and Borowski. Been that kind of season for this team.
Boom – you bleed Red, White, and Blue like me, dont you….I respect it.
I’m gonna call it… Indians -2 Royals -1. Tribe takes the series!!!
Shave Kerry Wood dot com?
After turning the Cavs off, I kept expecting Wood to groove a Fastball and the game ends on a GS. Atleast 1 good thing happened last night.
You forgot to mention that after the game Wedge said that K’dy has a sore left elbow, which is contributing to his poor impression of a major league hitter right now. Seems to me if its as bad as he’s hitting, perhaps he shouldn’t be playing. They did this last year with Vic when he was hurt and it didn’t help the Tribe at all.
It’s in the nature of the closer’s role that his work will often be death-defying. Mitch Williams was often similar even when he was great with the Phillies, and Brad Lidge had similar up-and-down saves while he was working his way back into form after Pujols demolished him.
The big differences between Kerry Wood and guys like Wickman and Borowski are velocity and intimidation. Closers have to be able to throw hard so their pitches are imposing and intimidating, which Wood can do, but Wickman topped out at 92 on a generous night and Borowski could only hit 88. It’s only because Wood can hit 94-95-96 that his breaking ball is worth anything.
He’ll get rocked occasionally, but we have to remember that he’s still transitioning into the role. As he becomes more familiar with the unique pressure of coming into a game in the ninth and needing to shut the other team down with no margin for error, we’ll see him get better at it and develop his own unique swagger.
Either that or he’ll be Jose Mesa.