Category: Cleveland Indians (Page 45 of 96)

The Tribe looked like they were headed for their seventh straight defeat until Grady Sizemore’s leadoff home run in the bottom of the ninth tied the game.

“I think we knew then that we were going to win,” Sizemore said. “I was just trying to do something to get us going, but when I saw it go out, I was pretty fired up.”

Then with one out and Jhonny Peralta at first, Travis Hafner ended it with one swing of the bat. Hafner’s 12th homer of the season gave the Tribe a 6-4 victory over the Kansas City Royals, snapping their six-game losing streak. Paul Byrd ran into some trouble out of the gate, giving up three runs in the first inning, but managed to settle down. Betancourt, Mota, and Jason Davis each pitched a scoreless inning in relief for the Indians.

I would say we needed this win but that would probably be an understatement. The monkey is off everyone’s back now so hopefully they’ll just go out, relax, and play the kind of baseball that they are capable of.

A key defensive error and some missed opportunities with runners is scoring position keyed another Indians loss Sunday afternoon. Mike Maroth once again was able to defeat the Indians in a one-run battle, 3-2. He has now gone 13 innings without surrendering an earned run against the Tribe, who lost their sixth straight. Jason Johnson was solid, giving up two earned runs in six innings. The turning point of the ballgame occurred in the seventh when Eduardo Perez muffed a grounder, scoring two runs to make it 3-1. The Indians failed to make the most of their chances on offense. Victor Martinez grounded into a double play in the fourth with two on and no out. He also struck out with runners on second and third and no out in the eighth. Hafner had a chance in the bottom of the ninth to tie it up but flied out to deep center. The sweep was Detroit’s first in Cleveland in almost 16 years.

“Everybody in this clubhouse knows we’re better than this,” starter Jason Johnson said.

It just keeps getting worse for the Tribe. Errors and lack of focus on both ends continue to kill us. The Royals are coming to town which I normally would say is a good thing but not so much anymore.

C.C Sabathia had another strong outing but unfortunately Tigers’ starter Jeremy Bonderman was just a little better as he and the Tigers shut out the Tribe 3-0 Saturday night. Indian hitters could only manage three hits off Bonderman through eight innings. He even had a no-hitter going until Todd Hollandworth’s double in the fifth. Sabathia and Bonderman, two of the best power pitchers in the American League, combined for 18 strikeouts in the game. The fielding errors for the Tribe continue as they committed three more Saturday, including two in the sixth.

So when our offense was hot, we couldn’t get any pitching. Now our pitching is improving but the punch is not there from the bats. Go figure.

The Indians organization obviously has seen enough of 32-year-old reliever Danny Graves. The club has designated him for assignment and is recalling Fausto Carmona to replace him in the bullpen. Graves, who had a 5.79 ERA in 13 appearances, never got into a consistent rhythm this season. As for Carmona, he has been up once before when he filled in for Sabathia in the rotation. Although the Indians feel Carmona’s role with the team in the future will most likely be in the rotation, they really have no choice and need somebody to stop the bleeding in the bullpen.

“We’ll work him in somewhere in the middle,” said Wedge. “We’re looking to get the bullpen in shape. For us it’s a need right now.”

Rafael Betancourt may be joining the club in the next few days. Out for nearly a month with an upper-back strain, Raffy will go on a rehab assignment Sunday and may return in time for Tuesday’s game.

These two moves may not solve our bullpen issues but it’s a start. Betancourt coming back is a big plus and Graves, well, he had to go. I’m just surprised it took them this long to cut him loose.

Cliff Lee was cruising through the first six innings until the seventh when he ran into trouble. He gave up three in the inning as the Tribe fell again, this time to the Detroit Tigers 5-4 at the Jake. With the game tied at two, Craig Monroe put the Tigers up with a two-run homer in the seventh. The Tribe battled back but it once again wasn’t enough as they lose their fourth straight. Casey Blake homered twice in the game for the Indians, giving him six on the season.

We are really pressing right now. As Wedge mentioned after the game, the players may be putting too much on their shoulders and think they have to get the job done themselves.

“We’re in one of those stretches right now and have to work our way out,” Indians manager Eric Wedge said. “Some guys are trying to do a bit too much. If they just do what they are capable of individually, it will work out as a team.”