The Indians’ bullpen is about as stable as the first little pig’s house right about now. It’s not a question of when a blowup will occur but who will administer it. It’s almost as if there is a pool of gasoline on the pitcher’s mound and it’s just a matter of which Tribe reliever will bring the matches to torch the game.

Cabrera, Betancourt, Carmona, Mota, you name it. Unless a Tribe starter goes a complete game, there’s no real reason to feel comfortable about the team’s pitching. Jason Davis, who got his first save the other day, is probably the only Tribe reliever you can feel good about at this point. And even he can have his ups and downs. When the time comes to relieve their starter, Eric Wedge and Carl Willis really have no solid option. They might as well throw all the bullpen members’ names in a hat and choose it that way. It would be about as effective as any method they’ve used thus far.

The confusing thing about this part of the team is that they really do have some tremendous arms out there in the pen. Carmona, Davis, and Cabrera all can throw in the mid to upper 90s and have above average secondary pitches. They have the stuff to totally dominate the opposition at the end of games. So, what’s the problem? Is it the pitchers themselves or is it the coach? Guys like Mota, Cabrera, and Betancourt have all been successful in the past and have gone to crap this season.

While the blame should mostly be placed on the shoulders of the players, is it reasonable to say that Carl Willis deserves some of the criticism as well? It sure isn’t Wedge’s fault because all he can do is call for a certain reliever. It is Willis who works with these guys as the pitching coach. At least he’s supposed to.

With the Tribe bullpen, no lead is safe. They built a 5-0 lead going into the bottom of the fifth but could not hold it as they lost 7-6 Friday night in Detroit. They have no problem getting off to good starts but finishing has been the issue. A three-run first gave the Tribe the early lead. In three of the last four games now, the Indians have scored at least two runs in the first inning. Travis Hafner hit another home run and Andy Marte ended his hitless streak by getting two hits and an RBI. Victor Marinez added three hits and Choo stayed hot, going 2-for-4 with two RBI.

Cliff Lee was cruising until he ran into some trouble in the sixth and seventh. Lee ran into a wall and couldn’t get out of the seventh, but the Tribe still held a 6-4 lead. Then came the always interesting Tribe bullpen. Rafael Betancourt relieved Lee and let up two quick singles to start the eighth. Fernando Cabrera then entered and, after giving up a sac fly, surrendered the game-deciding two-run homer to Craig Monroe.

“I made a mistake and I paid for that,” said Cabrera, after sitting facing his locker with his face in his hands after the game. “I was aggressive with him and I didn’t hit my location.”

The coaches poll is out, and the Buckeyes are ranked #1, followed by Texas with Notre Dame and USC tied for the #3 spot.

This should not be a surprise. The Buckeyes are loaded on offense. While they’ve lost tons of talent on defense, they have some great young players ready to step up. It should be a fun season!