While We’re Waiting… No Stars to New York, Hafner’s Clean Jorts, and Artest’s Intensity
July 1, 2009NBA Free Agency Update: Villanueva to DET?
July 1, 2009The same thing can be said with the Indians week to week. Just when you think they may have hit rock bottom, they somehow manage to sink lower. Poor Cliff Lee, he of the AL Cy Young award and little-to-no run support, decided that last night was the time he would have his worst start in almost three years. Then the rains came – twice – and mercifully ending another White Sox domination of the Indians, 11-4 after seven innings.
It was a strange day weather-wise in Cleveland, with strong showers on and off all day long. The game was delayed at the start 30 minutes. It’s too bad they started it at all. In the top of the first Cliff walked Alexei Ramirez on four pitches – something he almost never does – in front of a Jermaine Dye RBI and a Paul Konerko two-run blast. Just like that it was 3-0. The Sox finished the inning with four runs on four hits. Again, this is something that just does not happen to Cliff version 2.0. So Tribe fans probably thought this was just one bad inning for Lee and he would settle back into his usual form. Unfortunately, that was not the case on this night.
In the third, a two-out, two-run double off the bat of Chris Getz put the Sox ahead 6-1. In the fourth, Lee was chased after a Jayson Nix double, a Ramirez single, and a Dye RBI single. The lefty’s final line was not pretty: 3.0 IP, 11 hits, seven earned runs. This ended his major league best 47 consecutive starts going at least five innings. Said Cliff after the game: “Bad outing. There’s no way around it. That’s not what my job description is.”
Trying to find Tribe highlights these days is about as easy as trying to figure out why my power has gone out four times in the last month despite the weather being fine. Travis Hafner hit a solo homer in the second. Asdrubal Cabrera cleared the bases with a double in fifth, his first three RBI since coming off the DL at the end of last week.
What else can I say about this one?
The Indians have now lost 12 of 14 and are becoming increasingly more irrelevant by the day. With so many losses so frequently, when do the Dolan’s force Mark Shapiro’s hand and end the Eric Wedge era? At what point do we question whether or not the players have either tuned out or quit on The Grinder?
Next week is the all star break and another opportunity for the owner to make a call on their skipper. Do they finally end “The Grind Tour?”
9 Comments
Shortest TD recap ever? Discuss.
I find that so much of my ability to enjoy my summer is tied to the Indians…I just wish they’d do something to give us a reason to watch the team. Fire Wedge, call up the kids, whatever…just give us a reason to be interested in this team at all.
I’m not saying they have to win…they just have to provide at least the illusion that they’re trying to do things to get better for the future. I find myself much more apt to tune in to watch, say, a David Huff start than a Tomo Ohka start since (in theory) Huff will be around the next time this team is good again. So let’s sit some of the stiffs (Garko…cough…Shoppach…cough), get some kids up here and at least give the fans a reason to watch the team!
Wedge won’t be fired until after the season.
On the topic of irrelevance, Terry Pluto and Les Levine were talking yesterday about how few reporters were covering the team (the fewest since 1991).
“On the topic of irrelevance, Terry Pluto and Les Levine were talking yesterday about how few reporters were covering the team (the fewest since 1991).”
Does this include Starting Blocks?
any way we can shorten this season and call it early like they did the game last night?
I must have some sort of complex that forces me to continue to watch this horrible team…every night I watch I think that they *might* turn it around that night…but inevitably, I just see Garko groundout twice and trip over his own feet 4-5 times…I see a team that has no confidence and are expecting to lose…thats on the skipper…its time for wedge to go…I was a big Wedge advocate, but now, he just seems to have lost this team…
@DK
Two ground outs, tripping over his feet…and Garko was was embarrassed by the birds.
oh yah…completely forgot about that sound bite…good call…
maybe he should thank the birds for one of the few wins we’ve been able to get this year…
[…] off of one of the worst starts of Cliff Lee’s career, we are now also confronted with a recent report by Fox Sports’ […]