I had plenty of time to think while watching the Tribe overcome a 10-1 first inning deficit Wednesday night. Here are some of the things I was pondering…
Wedge’s handling of the pitching staff. I realize that having a horrible bullpen makes a manager gun shy. What worries me is the extended outings demanded of the starters in a season going nowhere. Last night, C.C. Sabathia threw 122 pitches in his win over Kansas City. The big lefty is the Tribe’s best starter, and putting extra wear and tear on his arm at this point in time in this season is not very smart. The skipper has also extended Jake Westbrook and Paul Byrd in recent weeks. Use the young guys in the pen for an inning at a time and bring them in to start the frame. It does no good to hurt the arm of a Sabathia or Westbrook in a season where you are going to finish fourth. I want Wedge to try to win, but keep an eye on 2007 too.
Cavs sign Scot Pollard. A solid signing for GM Danny Ferry. He gets a veteran who is willing to bang to be the fifth big man in the rotation. The one flaw for Pollard is durability. In the last four seasons, the most game he has played in a campaign was 61 in 2003-04. The last time he played 80 games was five seasons ago. I’m sure Mike Brown is not expecting Pollard to play 70 games this season, in spite of Kenny Roda’s insane thought that Pollard should start. He’s a veteran who knows the league and wants to win. He should help the Cavaliers this season.
Should Edwards play? Why not. If the doctors clear him, then why shouldn’t Romeo Crennel give him a few plays in a live game. He has to get on the field at some point, and do you really want that moment to be in a regular season game. Yes, he could re-injure the knee, but he could get hurt in practice too, or don’t you remember LeCharles Bentley. I’m pretty sure the Browns’ team physicians wouldn’t say last year’s #1 draft pick could play if his knee was in bad shape.
The return of Casey Blake. Blake has had a fine season, although has had to go on the disabled list twice. But, if Eric Wedge is going to put him back in the lineup, and he will, it should be mostly as a left fielder. It would be doing a disservice to the franchise to cut the playing time of Ryan Garko, Franklin Gutierrez, and Shin-soo Choo in order to play the veteran. Again, he need to find out about these guys for 2007, and they need to get as many opportunities as possible. This is something to keep an eye on down the stretch.
Enjoy the start of the high school football season this weekend. Those kids play for the team, not the individual.
KM
Cleveland Sports Perspective 