Author: JEC (Page 41 of 46)

Despite the ninth-inning collapse, let’s not lose sight of one very important indicator today:

Kevin Millwood
6 IP, 4 hits, 2 BB, 0 ER, 88 pitches

I would’ve liked to see more than one strikeout, but Millwood was really throwing the ball well today. He consistently hit 92-93 with his fastball and he made some great pitches throughout.

First Westbrook, now Millwood. Sure, the Tribe is 0-2 but there have been some very good early signs in those two losses.

Bob Wickman has always scared me. ALWAYS. His meltdown this afternoon (4 hits, 4 ER, 1 out, 1 blown save) will not be the last of the season. I mean, the Sox were teeing off on Wickman in the ninth — Paul Konerko crushed his homer and Jermaine Dye sent his shot into orbit. Even Juan Uribe sent Casey Blake to the track in right with the bases loaded.

The good news is, Arthur Rhodes mowed down Chicago’s hitters in his 1.1 innings of work, striking out two and giving up just one hit in an efficient 19 pitches. There are several good arms in the bullpen, but if Arthur Rhodes can start pitching like he was with Seattle a couple years ago, he’ll be the best of the lot.

One thing’s for certain — Wickman better recover quickly or he’ll find himself demoted. There are too many talented guys behind him that could take over the ninth inning if he’s ineffective for long.

An ESPN Insider article (subscription required, unfortunately) by John Hollinger offers some compelling analysis of the Cavs’ backcourt problems, concluding that the team’s best option is to play Eric Snow and Jeff McInnis together. Hollinger suggest that, rather than relying on ineffective players like Lucious Harris, Jiri Welsch, Ira Newble and Sasha Pavlovic, McInnis should be starting at the two alongside Snow, not bolted to the bench (‘DNPs-Coach’s Decision’ each of the last two games). Plus, you’ve also got LeBron creating instead of running the point, and the Cavs are a much better team when LeBron’s not bringing the ball up the court.

Hey, they’ve lost nine of 12 and are plummeting out of the playoff race. This makes more sense than playing Jiri Welsch 16 minutes a night.

ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith is reporting that the Cavaliers will fire GM Jim Paxson within the next 48 hours. The writing seemed to be on the wall last month when Paul Silas was fired and, during the ensuing press conference, team owner Dan Gilbert refused to address Paxson’s future with the Cavaliers.

The question now (assuming the report is true, of course) is who does Gilbert bring in as the new GM? Considering his track record, especially during the draft, it shouldn’t be too difficult to find someone better than Paxson.

By the way, did the Cavaliers really lose to New Jersey by 31 points Tuesday night? Ugh.

The Indians announced that catcher Victor Martinez has agreed to a five-year, $15.5 million contract extension with a club option for the 2010 season. This is fantastic news for Tribe fans. Martinez at $3 million a year is a huge bargain, and at 26 years old, the All-Star catcher will only improve throughout the length of this deal. Props to Mark Shapiro for getting it done.