It’s Pat! Browns sign former Delaware quarterback Pat Devlin
August 27, 2015Francisco Lindor on Terry Francona: “I’m blessed to play for him”
August 27, 2015The Cleveland Indians completed their two-game home set with the Milwaukee Brewers with a 6-2 victory to secure the sweep at Progressive Field. Coupled with splitting the two game set in Milwaukee, the win also wrapped up the season series win for the Indians.
Both teams have struggled this season, but anytime that the Indians send Craig Counsell home unhappy (manager for the Brewers) it makes me happy.
Keys of the Game
Eight Walks, Five Steals:
I mean, really? No, really? Really. Yes, the Cleveland Indians walked twice in the first inning, twice in the second inning, twice in the third inning, and twice in the fourth inning. Even in a game where the Brewers bullpen would not allow a walk and starter Jimmy Nelson only pitched an out past three innings, the Indians managed to obtain eight total free bases via the walk. Whoever said consistency is the key to pitching obviously was not thinking about Jimmy Nelson.
And, if a pitcher is going to be giving out free bases like he’s throwing candy to the crowd in a parade, then he probably should at least make sure that the runners stay on those free bases, right? I mean, those guys should be grateful for the gifts and all, so perhaps Nelson just felt he didn’t need to pay attention to them. They wouldn’t get greedy, would they?
Well, Francisco Lindor was as greedy as Homer Simpson working as the late night security guard in a donut factory. After walking in the first inning, he stole second base. After beating out an infield dribbler to Nelson in the second inning, Lindor stole second base. Then, after walking again in the fourth inning, Lindor stole second base. Lindor did not even attempt to hide his steal attempts as he stole second base on the second pitch to Michael Brantley all three times. So, in a span of four innings, Francisco Lindor doubled his MLB career stolen base total.
In addition, Abraham Almonte looked to get in on the fun. He is built more like a running back than your typical MLB center fielder, and the aggression he plays with also seems suited for the stadium a mile North of Progressive Field. After singling in the second and fifth innings, Almonte stole second. The steal in the fifth inning was actually off Tyler Thornburg, which was the only gift base (walk or steal) that the Brewers bullpen gave up on the night. But, the biggest surprise of the evening was that Almonte walked in the third inning and watched a six pitch Jerry Sands plate appearance (spoiler: he walked) without stealing second.
Finally, it didn’t count as a stolen base, but Lonnie Chisenhall was able to take home on a wild pitch from Nelson in the third inning. It was one of the worst all-around starting pitching performances that I have seen this year, and I am happy that the Indians were the beneficiary.
Non-teenage Dirtbag:
If a player gains the moniker of dirtbag, then you know that they must love playing after a nice rainfall. Well, the North coast provided the rain to dampen the field, so Jason Kipnis was right at home playing in the mud. After a couple walks, a stolen base, and, hey, even a hit in the second inning, the bases were loaded for Jason Kipnis. But, Kipnis doesn’t like people standing around on base when they could be having fun in the dugout, so he promptly cleared the bases with a double. He only received two RBIs for helping score three runs (Jose Ramirez officially scored on an error by left fielder Khris Davis), but I don’t think Kipnis minded.
Apologies, but Will Smith entered the game as a reliever for the Milwaukee Brewers. I had little choice but to write what you will find below. Enjoy, or don’t. Either way, you were warned.
If Kipnis did mind, then he sure took it out on the Fresh Prince in the eighth inning. Yes, Kipnis swung hard and the ball sailed to the Wild, Wild West and fireworks went off as if it were Independence Day. The Indians were the Men in Black(uh, Midnight Blue), but no one wanted to erase the memory of that home run swing. However, I could not determine with certainty if Will Smith’s mother got scared from the one little swing and demanded that he be traded to Los Angeles.
All hail DIVERSITY!:
Jeff Manship (1-0) threw 19 pitches and earned the victory with one and one third innings pitched, zero runs allowed, and a strikeout. However, for Manship, his first victory as a member of the Cleveland Indians has been a season-long accomplishment. Manship has now thrown 24.1 innings for the Indians in 19 appearances. He has yet to yield more than one run in an appearance. He has only allowed a run four times. He has also struck out 17 batters with only four walks.
Bullpen arms who do their jobs rarely get the acknowledgement that they should receive for pitching well at the MLB level. So, with this win, please take the time to tip your cap to Jeff Manship and applaud the job he has done.
Out of the 237 RP with 20+ IP this year, exactly 4 have a better ERA and FIP than Jeff Manship.
Betances, Wade Davis, Capps & Justin Grimm
— August Fagerstrom (@AugustFG_) August 27, 2015
Bullpen:
Really, this game was all about the bullpen. With Carlos Carrasco heading to the DL, Cody Anderson had to make this start without a rehabilitation start in the minors. That meant he would be on a tight pitch count, and the bullpen was on high alert. Anderson did his job getting into the fifth inning only giving up two runs. The bullpen did the rest collecting seven strikeouts, allowing one walk, and zero runs in over five innings of work.
- Kyle Crockett made his fourth consecutive one out appearance.
- Jeff “Old Wooden” Manship was covered above.
- Zach McAllister made things interesting, but left the seventh inning unscathed.
- Bryan Shaw gave up hits on all balls in play, but there were only two while he struck out three.
- And, Cody Allen locked down the ninth for the save.
Key Scorecard:
Milwaukee Brewers: Going home with their tail between their legs.
Cleveland Indians: Panting Happily.
The Numbers
There are some good things and some bad things that came out of this game, here they are in numerical format
Since being called up from Columbus on July 30 and becoming a MLB right fielder, Chisenhall has brought back memories of his first half to the 2014 season.
.388/.438/.552
Five doubles, two home runs, two stolen bases, nine runs, 12 RBIs
Francisco Lindor AL SS Ranks (min 200 PA)
wRC+ (2nd, Carlos Correa-Astros)
Batting Average (2nd, Xander Bogaerts-Red Sox)
OBP (2nd, Jose Iglesias-Tigers)
UZR/150 (2nd, J.J. Hardy-Orioles)
DRS (1st — this is a cumulative statistic and he has far less innings than most counterparts making this all the more impressive)
Statistics courtesy of both fangraphs.com and baseball-reference.com
21 Comments
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Im riding this Lonnie train in my fantasy baseball playoffs.
Keep on trucking, little engine that could (give us continual spurts of hope every season)
My favorite part of the game last night was when Brantley grounded out to 1st to end an inning, but also tripped out of the box. Kipnis, who was on 3rd, made it to home plate and just stared at Brantley, with a look on his face that said, “Really? You’re a professional athlete?”, as Brantley tried to get up. It was comedy gold. This team really is extremely likable. Wish we could like them in the post-season.
There’s a chance! Good barometer this weekend against the Angels.
Love the optimism, but 6 games under .500, 5 games back of Minnesota, and needing to pass up 6 teams to claim the 2nd WC is not the most promising of positions to be in.
Just not enough time left in the season.
Can I be in your league next year?
Now who’s a party pooper?
http://i.imgur.com/N7tCp0B.jpg
Angels are not playing well so I don’t know what kind of barometer they will be actually.
Its filled but we always have someone drop!
Just because I have Lonnie spot starting, doesn’t mean we don’t know what we are doing.
Average 4.5 pts over his last 15 games, pretty good production! As compared to Mike Trout on my team, averaging 1.9 in his last 15.
4-6 in their last 10, but that lineup can come alive at any time with Trout and Pujols in the middle.
Trout’s been struggling as of late, so hes due for an explosion.
because……baseball
the kind for any team gunning for WC2 in the AL. a pretty sad overall field really.
It is a sad field can’t wait for say they add a third wild card or something.
True but their pitching has stunk especially Santiago unfortunately for Indians he pitched last night.
LoL oh ok well sometimes you need a hot bat if you have a spot.
Oh its the worst. Miggy Cabs coming back has been huge for me. He’s absolutely raking right now.
I think in most years, this is the correct number. And, I love that it gives meaning to actually winning your division.
Could always go NHL-style and just let everyone into the playoffs.
“He is built more like a running back than your typical MLB center fielder, and the aggression he plays with also seems suited for the stadium a mile North of Progressive Field.”
You think maybe … ? Naaah.
Hey, the Indians don’t look to be playing in October, so if Almonte needs a way to stay in shape in the offseason…
Can he play PF and grab offensive rebounds? TT’s job is in jeopardy all of a sudden.