With everyone feeling down about yesterday’s Tribe loss to Kansas City, it is time to realize that fans have to remember that either the Red Sox or the Yankees will lose at least two games this week. Why do I know that for sure? They play each other this weekend. So, in reality, the Indians can lose one more game and still know they are going to the playoffs.
Last week’s road trip was a success as the Tribe won 5 out of 7 games. However, there were some question marks that arose. After a month of tremendous starting pitching, the rotation took some hits. Cliff Lee and C.C. Sabathia both struggled in their starts against the Royals, but Cleveland won both games. Jake Westbrook had two starts, but could hold leads in either one. The Indians lead the American League in ERA, so figure the pitching to have a strong last week of the season.
Another potential problem is fatigue for Bob Howry. After dominating hitters since the All Star break, the righthander had problems in Chicago and KC. It would be nice with Monday’s day off if Manager Eric Wedge can get away without using Howry until Wednesday. One good thing that came out of the road trip was the usage and performance of rookie Fernando Cabrera. Cabrera showed that he may be a guy that can be counted on down the stretch and into the post season if Cleveland makes it.
Travis Hafner has hit his way into consideration for the American League MVP with his performance against the White Sox in particular. Of course, Pronk has no chance to win because he doesn’t play for an east coast team (like say Boston or New York), but it was good to see him get some attention. The DH needs to get his normal stroke back because he looked like he was trying to yank everything out of the park by the end of the road trip.
Another area for concern is Tuesday’s starter Scott Elarton’s performance against the D-Rays this year. In two starts against Tampa last month, Elarton was hammered. However, he is 4-0 with an ERA of under 1 in the month of September. Since this is the big righty’s last start in the ninth month, hopefully he comes up big one more time.
This is the week for ulcers to start flairing up and fans’ collective stomachs to be in their throats. By this time next week, we will know if the Tribe is in or out of the playoffs. A 5-1 home stand insures a return to the postseason for the first time since 2001.
MW
Cleveland Sports Perspective 