Mister Twenty

If you caught any of that awful series against the Seattle Mariners, after each commercial break you were greeted with a brief advertisement to watch Cliff Lee as he goes for win number 20. Worry not that the Indians were about to be swept by the worst team in the American League – just tune in on Monday night to see if Cliff Lee makes history.

Thankfully, if you did succumb to said advertisements or simply wanted to catch a Tribe game on a gorgeous Monday evening, you were not let down. Lee looked as if he was going for win number one yesterday as he never seemed to be under pressure. He threw only 109 pitches in nine five-hit, shutout innings against the AL Central leading White Sox. Though fanning only four, Lee walked no one en route to becoming the first 20-game winner since 1974. And while continue to be simply amazed by what Lee has beeen able to do since “winning” that fifth spot in the rotation, Big League Stew has gone on to deem Lee of the Godzilla type: “a 50-foot-tall beast climbing the side of the Empire State Building with a hot blonde in his hand.”

Works for me. Now get your Cy Young ballots ready.

What others are saying about Lee:

“After losing a series in Beantown, the last person the White Sox wanted to see on the hill was Cliff Lee. The future Cy Young winner won his 20 game of the season and made the Sox look like a junior varsity tee-ball team.” – The Heckler

“Lee shakes off his catcher about five times a game, showing that he and Shoppach aren’t just on the same page — but the same sentence. In the past, he was prone to coughing up big innings and long home runs — he averaged 25 homers allowed from 2004 to ’06, his last full seasons with the Tribe. But it’s only eight in 194 1/3 innings this season — and one since Aug. 1. […] And good, as in 20-2 good, as good as Tribe fans have seen in a long, long time.” – Terry Pluto

“Once the Indians scored in the second, Cliff Lee had all he needed. What followed was a pitching clinic; he made the powerful Chicago lineup look like weaklings.” – Let’s Go Tribe

“Chicago’s notorious antagonist Pierzynski that lasted until the final out. Lee retired Pierzynski for the first out in the ninth and after getting the double play, looked into the White Sox dugout and pointed. A number of Chicago players remained in the dugout, including Pierzynski, as Lee was receiving his congratulations. “He popped up and slammed his bat down (in the fourth inning) and stared at me,” Lee said. “So I gave him a little stare back. He was chirping from the dugout the whole game. It gave me a little extra motivation. I want to thank him for that.” – The Chronicle-Telegram

“How does this happen? One year ago at this time, the Indians were giving Clifford Lee a courtesy recall from Buffalo knowing full well he was not going to help them down the stretch. Today, this all-man lefty is a 20 game winner and he took a bite out of the White Sox last night, chewed them up and spit them out and taunted them too.” – Dump David Dellucci