One would think that with the streak the Cleveland Indians have been on, the people who comment on the game would learn something.  Once again, WKNR’s Kenny Roda disproves that theory.  After the Tribe’s 7-6 loss to the White Sox on Tuesday, which by the way was a terrific baseball game, Roda made no sense with his analysis of the game, particularly regarding Ronnie Belliard.

 

The afternoon drive time host was irritated that Belliard swung at the first pitch with the bases loaded in the 7th inning and the Indians leading 5-3.  Belliard hit a smash to third right at Sox’ third baseman Joe Crede, who turned it into a double play.  If Belliard had hit a weak roller or a pop up, the criticism would have been warranted.  But, had Belliard’s bullet been three feet to Crede’s right or left, it would have been a 7-3 lead for Cleveland.  If the first pitch is something you can hammer, you swing at it.

 

Next, Roda was upset when Belliard swung at the first pitch with runners on second and third, and the Tribe trailing 6-5 in the ninth with one out.  The White Sox were playing the infield back conceding the run.  Belliard hit a grounder to second base to tie the game.  THAT WAS HIS JOB!  Get the run in at all costs.  Yes, it would have been nice for him to hit a three run homer, but he did what he had to. 

 

Roda also rants about the lack of bunting by a guy like Casey Blake.  Yes, it would be nice if all major league players were completely fundamentally sound, but they are not.  He jumped on the error by Jose Hernandez which gave Chicago the lead, but ignored the fact that Aaron Rowand misplayed Victor Martinez’ drive in the ninth which allowed Cleveland to tie the game. 

 

Roda also points to Cleveland’s struggles early in the season as proof that Eric Wedge was not managing well.  Anyone who knows the game realizes that your record in one run games is LUCK.  Bad teams can have a good record in one run games.  Heck, Seattle and Tampa Bay have winning records in one run games.  Although Wedge is not John McGraw reborn, he is true to what he believes in.  His patience with guys like Aaron Boone and Scott Elarton are far more important to the success of the Indians than when he chooses to bunt.

 

Lastly, stop comparing Little League ball to the Major Leagues.  There is a different mindset in teaching young people to play the game, than what goes on in the Majors.  All of the Indians were the best players on their respective teams throughout their lives.  A true fan doesn’t care what goes on in your son’s games.  I’m sure he appreciates hearing his dad talk about him on the air, but it is not relevent to Indians’ games.

 

Cleveland baseball fans deserve better analysis than they are getting from WKNR.  Hear’s hoping Kenny Roda can learn something about the game.

 

MW 

 

With apologies to Browns’ GM Phil Savage, who doesn’t like Cleveland’s woe is me mentality (actually I don’t like it either), it is rare that people on the North Coast can celebrate victories by two of its teams in the same day.  The Indians completed a sweep over Kansas City and the Browns gave Romeo Crennel his first win over Green Bay.  A great day indeed, but it’s time to look ahead to a crucial series for the Tribe against the White Sox, while the Brownies get Indianapolis next Sunday.

 

First, the Indians took care of business by sweeping the Royals, and increased their lead in the Wild Card race to 1-1/2 games over the Yankees.  Cleveland plays three in Chicago and then goes to KC for a four game set with the Royals.  The starting pitching continues to be the big story for the Tribe as Scott Elarton, Cliff Lee, and C.C. Sabathia allowed just 5 earned runs in 22-1/3 innings of work. 

 

Eric Wedge’s game by game approach is just perfect for this team.  Baseball is a game in which the starting pitcher has a huge amount of influence.  That is, after all, how Las Vegas sets the odds on the sport.  It isn’t really a momentum sport.  A team could have a horrible loss one day, and the next day the starting pitcher throws a two hit shutout, and negative momentum is averted.

 

If the Indians continue to get the starting pitching they have received over the last month, they will continue to win ballgames.  The White Sox series starts with AL ERA Leader Kevin Millwood going for Cleveland, and winning the series would help the Tribe keep it’s lead in the Wild Card chase.  By the way, the Indians now are tied for the second best record in the American League with the Red Sox.

 

Meanwhile, the Browns picked up win #1 of the season at Lambeau Field.  Trent Dilfer threw three touchdown passes and the defense picked off Brett Favre twice in the 26-24 victory.  One of Dilfer’s TD tosses was an 80 yarder to Braylon Edwards, who caught a 10 yard slant and took it the distance.  That would mean it was the biggest contribution by a Browns’ #1 draft choice since the team came back in 1999, other than Courtney Brown’s three sack game against the Bears. 

 

Let’s face it though, the Packers are not a good football team.  They lost to the Lions in week one, and Detroit was hammered by Chicago yesterday.  Next week, Romeo’s boys get a reality check against Peyton Manning and the Colts. 

 

Enjoy the win, Browns fans.  To top it off, the genius Brian Billick’s Ravens are now 0-2.  I guess he isn’t smarter than everyone else.  Also a note to Phil Savage’s critics:  Billick was the one who wanted Kyle Boller, not Savage. 

 

Hope everyone has plenty of antacids on hand for the Tribe-Sox series this week.

 

MW

 

The Cleveland Indians maintained its lead in the American League Wild Card race by winning the three game series against the Oakland A’s at Jacobs Field.  The series win was huge in that it showed the Tribe can win the type of baseball that is played in the postseason, and against a quality opponent.

 

Once again, the starter pitching keyed the series win.  C.C. Sabathia, Kevin Millwood, and Jake Westbrook allowed just 2 earned runs in 15 innings to match the A’s starters pitch for pitch. 

 

After going scoreless the first 15 innings of the series, the bottom of the order keyed the offense.  Ben Broussard emerged from a 1 for 23 slump to hit two homers on Tuesday, and drove in all five runs in the 5-2 win.  Last night, Ronnie Belliard’s tie breaking three run dinger off of Barry Zito led to the 6-4 victory.  Belliard also played incredible defense in the series, turning several difficult double plays to help the pitching staff.

 

Now, the last place Kansas City Royals come in for a three game set which the Tribe most certainly has to win, if not sweep.  The best case scenario would be a blowout win in one of the games, so Manager Eric Wedge can give some rest to players who are basically going every inning, such as Jhonny Peralta, Coco Crisp, Grady Sizemore, and Victor Martinez.  GM Mark Shapiro has said that fatigue is his one concern going down the stretch.

 

It is curious that with Class AAA Buffalo now out of the International League playoffs, shortstop Brandon Phillips was not recalled to Cleveland.  Phillips will probably be traded during the off season after hitting just .256 in his second season at the AAA level.  The middle infield "prospect" also struck out 90 times while walking just 39 times for the season.  Phillips was passed up by Peralta last season, and Belliard’s performance has likely earned a deal for the 2006 season.

 

Also, fans worried about who will be here next season are missing an exciting pennant race.  Whether or not Millwood, Wickman, etc. will be in Tribe uniforms in 2006 is something to worry about after the season and/or playoffs end.  In today’s baseball, fans have to understand the faces will change on a yearly basis.  It depends on what value each team places on its talent.  Worry about these games, and you can worry about next year when the hot stove league starts.

 

MW

 

All season long, the Cleveland Indians have struggled at Jacobs Field playing just .500 baseball at home.  The team has won at over a .600 clip on the road, and with just seven games remaining as the visiting team the Tribe needed to start playing better in Cleveland to make the playoffs.

 

So far, so good.

 

The Indians have won the first four games of an eleven game homestand, and have virtually eliminated the three time defending AL Central Division Champion Minnesota Twins in the process.  Last night’s nationally televised 12-4 thumping of the Twins raised the Tribe’s record to 82-61, the third best mark in the American League.  Tonight starts a new challenge, a three game set against Oakland, who trails Cleveland by 2-1/2 games in the Wild Card race. 

 

With 19 games remaining on the schedule, Cleveland will be at home for 12 of them, including four against Kansas City to finish the current homestand.  The only road games left are three with the Royals, and three more with the White Sox.  This space still maintains whether or not the Tribe makes the post season will depend on how they fare against the Pale Hose in the six games left.

 

Meanwhile, Cleveland’s nearest persuer, the Yankees have just seven home games left, and have to play 13 more road games.  New York is roughly a .500 ballclub on the road in 2005, and they start a big three game series at Tampa Bay tomorrow.  Of course, everyone by now has read that the Bronx Bombers are just 5-11 versus the Devil Rays this year.  And New York still has a three game series at Fenway Park on the last weekend of the season.  I’m sure the Sox would like nothing better than to knock Steinbrenner’s crew out of the playoffs.

 

Cleveland has won 32 of its last 45 games, but there is no room for a letdown now.  Manager Eric Wedge keeps preaching the importance of winning series, and if the Tribe continues doing that, they will be playing in October. 

 

The pitching continues to be incredible allowing more than four runs in a game just four  times since August 13th.  It’s a lot easier to put together this type of streak when you don’t need to score eight runs to win a game. 

 

Tighten your seat belts, Indians’ fans!  It promises to be exciting right down to game 162.

 

MW

 

 

 

One of the common topics on Cleveland sports talk radio is the weight of Tribe left hander C.C. Sabathia.  Whenever, the big southpaw struggles, as he did in June and July, the reason by both hosts and callers in that Sabathia is fat.  Based on the results C.C. has put up recently, he must have lost 50 pounds since then.

 

The truth of course is that he hasn’t, but he has been on a roll.  Sabathia has won his last seven starts, and his last two appearances were pitching gems.  Last Friday, to start a big three game series against the Twins, C.C. carried a no-hitter into the sixth inning, and would up pitching 7-1/3 scoreless frames in a 6-1 win.  In his next start, the whipping boy of the talk show circuit retired the last 21 men he faced in a complete game 4-1 victory over Detroit.

 

For all of those asking when Sabathia will start pitching like an ace, they have their answer.  He has picked it up a notch during this pennant race.  Does this mean he will never struggle again?  Of course not, but when he does it is due to things like tipping pitches, and not having command of his stuff, not because he is out of shape.

 

After just turning 25 earlier this year, Sabathia now has 63 wins in his big league career.  He has won more than 10 games in each of his five big league seasons, and is reliable pitching over 150 innings per season.  Can pitching glamour boys like Kerry Wood and Mark Prior make this claim?  I don’t think so.

 

The point is Sabathia is still a very young pitcher.  He is still learning his craft.  Meanwhile, the morons calling to trade him to the Reds for Adam Dunn have stopped calling.  If C.C. continues to pitch like this, he may be making his secong post season start this October.

 

MW

 

It is likely that every game the Cleveland Indians play from here on out will be meaningful.  However, it is not time for Manager Eric Wedge to play things close to the vest.  He should manage the same way he has all season long, but there are some exceptions.

 

1).  Don’t be afraid to play recently recalled Ryan Garko at first base against lefties.  The current platoon man there now, Jose Hernandez is in a dreadful slump and should find his playing time decreased.  Garko hit well at Class AAA Buffalo and did the same in spring training.  Give him a shot to see if you can catch lightning in a bottle against southpaws.

 

2).  Don’t be afraid to use reliever Fernando Cabrera in tight situations.  Like in yesterday’s game when a tiring Jake Westbrook giave up a two run single to Shannon Stewart to change a 3-2 lead into a 4-3 deficit.  Cabrera has won two big games in the last month out of the pen, and might have been a better choice at that point in the game.

 

3).  Don’t be afraid to give Victor Martinez a rest.  Josh Bard has played well in his limited chances, and a fresh Martinez hits better.  Playing Bard once a week would not hurt the team, and with Garko available as a third catcher you can pinch hit for the switch hitter earlier in a game if need be. 

 

4).  Don’t be afraid to shuffle the line up.  I know Jhonny Peralta has flourished in the three hole, but he is slumping and the team can’t afford a guy striking out all the time hitting in front of Travis Hafner and Martinez.  Perhaps dropping Peralta to the five spot remedies that problem.

 

With four games against the Tigers this week, Wedge needs to manage like he has to have at least three wins.  Otherwise, the Indians will put themselves in a more difficult position to catch the Yankees and A’s for the Wild Card.  The A’s could fall off the pace soon, after losing shortstop Bobby Crosby for the season. 

 

MW

 

It’s time to change the calendar to September and the Cleveland Indians are just 1-1/2 games out of the American League Wild Card spot.  Tribe fans have longed for the return of meaningful baseball since the last Division winning team in 2001, and this is the year they get their wish.

 

Cleveland has 29 games remaining and I believe it will take more than 90 wins to get into the postseason.  Getting to 90 wins would require a 16-13 record, so obviously winning two of three from here on out will get the Indians 91 or 92 victories.  Of the 29 games left, 14 are versus teams not in the playoff hunt:  Detroit (4), Kansas City (7), and Tampa Bay (3).  Of the remaining 15 games, the Tribe has three against Western Division leading Oakland and six more against the team clinging to post season hopes, the Minnesota Twins.

 

The key to the Indians’ season could be the six games versus the Central Division leading Chicago White Sox.  Cleveland has shown no real ability to beat the Pale Hose this year, going 3-10 against them so far this season.  But, the Sox have been reeling as of late, losing eight games in the standings to the Tribe in the last five weeks.  If Ozzie Guillen’s crew continues to struggle, it could be an advantage for Cleveland.  It also is a factor that the last three games of the year are at Jacobs Field against the Sox.  They should be resting players for the postseason at that point and getting their starting rotation in order.

 

This weekend’s series against Minnesota is crucial for the Twins.  Losing two of three to the Tribe will kill their chances for a four consecutive playoff berth.  The Tribe will see both Brad Radke and Johan Santana in the series, so it will be a difficult chore for Cleveland to win a series it must win.  The Twins have been struggling to score runs, so look for all three games to be nailbiters.

 

Cleveland will be adding Arthur Rhodes and Matt Miller from the disabled list to help strengthen the bullpen.  Bob Howry has handled the additional load excellently, but he will benefit from the help. 

 

Get ready for an exciting month of baseball, Cleveland!   The daily ups and downs that come from a pennant race will seem like you are spending everyday at Cedar Point. 

 

JK

 

 

 

The chants started shortly after back up QB Doug Johnson entered the game, and the volume increased with every incomplete pass…Charlie, Charlie, Charlie.  The Browns’ fans weren’t yelling for the back up, they wanted the third stringer, local product Charlie Frye.

 

I think Charlie Frye has looked very good in the first three exhibitions, with the emphasis on the first two games, but the correct way to handle his career is to let him start very slowly.  That is why the team brought in veterans Trent Dilfer and Johnson to handle the top two spots on the depth chart.  Coach Romeo Crennel doesn’t want to be forced to throw Frye in there as the starter, it would only slow the maturation process.

 

Browns’ fans should remember the story of one of their favorite whipping boys, former #1 pick Tim Couch.  Couch was thrown into the fray way before he was ready, and his career suffered for it.  His play drew the wrath of the fans, and was eventually released by Butch Davis.

 

The correct way to handle the rookie from the University of Akron is to let him sit and watch, and then maybe allow him to get some playing time late in the season.  The fear here is that if Dilfer struggles early, the crowd will start the chant for Frye.  That is unfair to both Crennel and Frye.

 

In reality, the rookie didn’t play all that well versus Carolina.  His biggest play was scrambling out of the pocket for a first down, and he guided the team to a touchdown assisted by a questionable personal foul penalty.  He didn’t do much better than Johnson did.

 

This is not to say I’m sour on Frye.  I think he is this team’s QB of the future.  Many scouting reports said he was a "gamer", not a workout creation, and this has proved to be true.  But it would be fair to let Charlie Frye sit and watch and learn from Trent Dilfer for awhile, and take over the reins in 2006 or 2007.

 

MW

 

The upswing in the Cleveland Indians hitting gets all of the ink because the pitching has been consistent from Opening Day on.  The Tribe has risen all the way to fifth in the American League in runs scored after being near the bottom of the league as late as the end of May.  One by one, the bats got going.  First, Travis Hafner and Grady Sizemore, then Jhonny Peralta, then Victor Martinez started hitting.  But, let’s not forget about the hurlers.

 

Yesterdays 5-4 victory against Tampa Bay marked the ninth straight game Cleveland has held the opposition to four runs or less, and they have won seven of the nine games.  The starters have pitched into the seventh inning in seven of those games as well, giving the bullpen a much needed rest.  This performance didn’t all come against weak offensive teams, as they accomplished the feat versus Tampa (8th in the AL in runs), Texas (3rd), and Baltimore (10th).

 

There have been unsung heroes as well.  Rookie Fernando Cabrera threw 2-1/3 innings of scoreless relief against the Orioles to pick up a victory.  Bob Howry isn’t unsung as he has 20 holds on the season, but he has given up just one run on four hits in 12-1/3 innings over the last month.  Scott Sauerbeck has made up for the absence of Arthur Rhodes (who should be back soon) with quality performances vs. left handed hitters. 

 

The weakest of the starters recently has been Jake Westbrook, but he gutted out six tough frames against Texas, getting a double play ball to escape a bases loaded situation with a 5-4 lead, and gave up four in the first against the Devil Rays, but recovered to pitch into the seventh without allowing anybody else to score.  C.C. Sabathia has rebounded from a tough July to go 4-0 in August, including allowing just 3 runs in 15 innings on the last homestand.

 

The team’s offensive boost has been needed and welcomed, and takes pressure off of the pitching staff.  But, don’t overlook the job the hurlers have done, which is nothing different than what they have done all season long.

 

MW 

 

This weekend, Cleveland sports fans were witness to victories by both the Indians (series sweep against Baltimore) and the Browns (21-13 win against the Lions).  The only thing that would have been better is if the Browns win would have been in a game that counts. 

 

The Tribe moved within a half game of the AL Wild Card lead with the sweep of the Birds, while the Oakland A’s dropped two of three to Kansas City.  The key hit of the weekend was Casey Blake’s three run shot in the eighth inning Friday night to tie up the game after Baltimore took a 4-1 lead in the top of the frame.  Blake’s blast turned what appeared to be a defeat into a win when Ben Broussard hit a walk off homer to lead off the tenth.  Cliff Lee and C.C. Sabathia finished off the sweep with superb pitching Saturday and Sunday. 

 

It was good to see Eric Wedge show confidence in rookie reliever Fernando Cabrera on Friday.  The youngster picked up his first Major League win with 2-1/3 innings of shutout relief.  With Matt Miller and Arthur Rhodes currently on the disabled list, the team needs someone new to step up or the veterans could be dragging down the stretch.  However, Wedge did use Rafael Betancourt in Friday’s game and he made a 1-1 tie into a 4-1 deficit.  Wedge should have learned by now that Betancourt doesn’t pitch well in the second game of back to back outings.

 

This week features four games against Tampa (who swept the Tribe in Cleveland last weekend) and three in Toronto against the Blue Jays who are also in the Wild Card race.  

 

Meanwhile, the Browns showed improvement in practice game #2.  The defense looked better and rookies Braylon Edwards and Charlie Frye showed potential.  Wide receiver Antonio Bryant caught a touchdown pass and threatens to make the trade to get him for Quincy Morgan a heist.  The Browns traded receiver Andre Davis to New England today because of the presence of Bryant and Edwards. 

 

Also, free agent rookie Josh Cribbs continues to look good on special teams.  He ran back three kickoffs very well, and made a tackle as well.  Cribbs could get a bigger role on offense as the preseason progresses as the coaching staff may want to show off a wide receiver option pass since Cribbs played QB at Kent State last year. 

 

More refreshing is the demeanor of Romeo Crennel after the games.  He doesn’t blow smoke up the media or the fans’ collective rear ends.  Here’s hoping the usually unrealistic Browns’ fans don’t start with playoff expectations. 

 

MW