The Indians had won two games in a row and were on the verge of a sweep until a ninth inning meltdown lost it for the Tribe Wednesday night. Given the Indians’ track record the last month, a sweep was probably too much to ask for from this club. The Tribe were down 3-1 going into the eighth but managed to score three to take the lead. Bob Wickman entered in the bottom of the ninth with a one-run lead and that’s when the ugliness began for the Tribe. So Taguchi hit a pop-up to catcher Kelly Shoppach, who dropped the ball in fair territory, leaving Taguchi at second on the error. After an RBI double that tied the game, Jhonny Peralta’s poor throw to first on a grounder helped score the winning run for the Cardinals. Jake Westbrook pitched a solid ballgame, giving up three runs in six innings of work. Grady Sizemore provided some punch at the top of the order and had four of the Tribe’s 10 hits on the night.
The Tribe were riding a modest win streak going into the final game of the series and actually had some momentum for the first time in quite awhile. But, as they have done all season long, found a way to lose and failed to close it out thanks to the disappointing ninth inning.
“It was a total defensive collapse,” Wedge said. “We gave it back to them a lot easier than we took it from them. It was an embarrassing ending to what potentially could have been a real big game for us.”
