Can You See the Light?

Great moment - Entering the cab at Hopkins Airport on Sunday night around 10:30PM, I ask the cabbie how the Tribe is doing. He utters the three sweetest words I've heard in some time, "We're killing 'em".

Let's recap - the Wahoos beat Johan Santana, knock Carlos Silva out after one inning, and sweep the Twins right out of playoff contention. And, they win in a large way in front of 38,000+ (though as Cy has stated, 20,000 of which have jumped the bandwagon), to show Cleveland what they've been missing all summer (or at least since the All-Star break). What a weekend for the Friends of the Feather.

Perhaps realizing that the OSU loss and the Browns' continued misery has put Cleveland in its normal September Sunday night doldrums, the Indians came to the rescue. First, Grady hits a triple to start the game, then puts on a display, offensively and defensively, that should make the naysayers that say that "the team has no known players" want to learn about this talented bunch. But the people who read this already knew that.

A few things though pondered while out of the Eastern Time Zone:

While tailgating before the Wisconsin-Temple game in Madison (which is without a doubt the craziest college town I've ever been to) on Saturday afternoon, my buddy Krems said that he thought that this Indians pitching staff is the best staff that we've seen in our lifetime. I have to agree. From the rotation, which has been unbelievable, to the bullpen, which "locks it up" in the late innings, I can't remember a time when the Tribe has legitimately been in EVERY single game because of pitching. It may be a stretch, but I'll go back to the days of Feller and Lemon to a time when all 5 guys in the rotation are capable of winning games and keeping the team in the game. This staff has been incredible.

They should show the scene in Wedding Crashers when Vaughn and Wilson are telling each other to "lock it up" every time a reliever comes on.
John Beckwith: You better lock it up.
Jeremy Grey: No, you lock it up!
John Beckwith: You lock it up!
Jeremy Grey: You lock it up!
John Beckwith: You lock it up!
Jeremy Grey: Lock it up!

With a lot of travel time, I thought about the holes for next year (which I promise I will take a break from because WE'RE IN THE PENNANT RACE), which are 2 starters, 3 relievers, a RF and a 1B. Now there are different strategies on how to fill holes in a lineup that is more or less solid.

The two main strategies being adding pieces through FA or adding major league ready pieces from the farm:
The two main success stories of adding pieces through FA would be New York (obviously) and St. Louis/Boston (who normally trade their prospects for established players, then sign those established players to long-term deals). These teams started with a core group of young talent (for example: NY with Jeter, Posada, Rivera, and Williams emerging at the same time in the mid 90's), then add proven major league talent, obviously at a premium. The pros of this process is obviously to acquire players that have experience and a track record. The cons are obviously the costs associated with signing premium FA, and signing older players, who may be more likely to incur injuries. Two obvious busts using this strategy in recent years have been the Orioles (Lopez, Tejada, Palmiero, Sosa) and the Tigers (Ondonez, Rodriguez, Percival), who tried to add players to a depleted roster, attempting to create chemistry using the Fantasy Baseball approach.

The other strategy used has been to continue to build from within once that core group of players is established. Two teams that have used this strategy very effectively have been the A's and the Braves. The A's are more of an extreme case, often trading players at the peak of their trade value (Hudson/Mulder), or allowing a FA to move on (Giambi/Tejada), but they always seem to have another player ready to plug in. Whether it's Bobby Crosby replacing Tejada, or using the arms acquired in trades to replace the studs (Haren came in the Mulder deal), they seem to have mastered the art of knowing where their weaknesses will be two years from now and planning accordingly.
The Braves are a bit of a mix of the strategies, but always have seemed to have that player in the minors ready to contribute (Chipper, Giles, Furcal, Andruw, Estrada, and now Francouer) at the exact position that they need help. In the off chance that the minor leaguer is not ready, they'll add that veteran (Brian Jordan, Julio), but never seem to make that huge splash in FA, relying instead on Leo Mazzone bringing out the best in pitching retreads and Bobby Cox mixing vets and youngsters to win a staggering string of division titles. There are obvious teams that have tried this strategy (for the last 10 years) without any luck (Pirates, Royals), but they haven't had that core group of talent to add to.

Looking at the Tribe with all of these models in mind, I hope that they lean more in the way of the Braves than anything else. Shapiro seems to have players ready in the minors, who seem to be available at spots of most need (Garko at 1B) and a ton of arms to choose from to keep the pitching staff well-stocked. If, by chance, they feel at some point in the future, they feel that they don't have anyone in-house or down the pipeline capable of contributing, add a player. But I don't think it's necessary to add a huge signee to create buzz (just ask the Mariners how Sexson and Beltre have worked out). Rather, they should continue to develop strong prospects and add savvy veterans when needed.

We'll revisit how to address the holes after the season, for now let's concentrate on the matter at hand. The Tribe is 82-61 with 19 games to play. If they can go 12-7 (which is VERY doable with their schedule), they finish with a record of 94-68! They have 7 games against KC, which they could go 6-1 in, meaning they could split the other 12 and still finish with 94 wins. Do you think they're going to split the other 12 the way that they're playing? Me neither. 94 wins should put them right in the thick of things for the Wild Card, if not atop it (I'm not addressing the Central until after the first series with the ChiSox).

The Tribe put the nail in the Twins coffin this weekend with the opportunity to do the same to the A's (in the Wild Card at least) early this week.

Coco won the AL Player of the Week with some sickening numbers. Jason Davis and Fausto Carmona were called up from Buffalo, whose playoffs ended on Sunday.

Enjoy Tribetember and The Hunt for October.

HRD (Home Run Derby)

With the Tribe taking 4 in a row from the Tigers, it's amazing that the last 15 runs scored by the Tribe have all come on home runs. All of that with Jhon and Pronk in extended slumps. To show how prevalent the HR has become recently, Casey Blake knocked his 20th HR today!

Before Wednesday's game, The Architect (Shapiro) was on the radio with some interesting insight. The thing about Shapiro's comments is that you often have to read between the lines for his true meaning. The high points and some thoughts:

• Shapiro said that SuperSizemore projected to eventually become a 25 to 30 HR guy, "once his power comes around". He also said that Grady will become the "prototypical #3 hitter". Let's think about this, Grady is having one of the most exciting seasons in recent Indians history, particularly for a 23 year old. Adding 25-30 HR power to what he's already shown may make Gammons sound prophetic when he said earlier in the season that the American League should write Grady's name in for CF in the All-Star Game for the next 10 years! Shapiro's other comment that Grady was the prototypical #3 hitter blew me away. Not in that it was a surprise, but let's do some math. How many current Indians are legitimate #3 or #4 hitters? I count 4 (SuperSizemore, Jhon, Pronk, and Tthe Stick) with another solid young hitter in Coco. I think that makes up 5 of the 9 batters in the lineup. With that kind of talent in the lineup for the next few years, other players (like Boone and Belliard) don't have to be spectacular, only solid. If they do, however, add one more big bat, we're on our way to watching an offensive juggernaut.
  
  
• When asked about Sticky's future, Shapiro said that he'll first find out if Wickman wants to come back. If he does, the Indians will determine if Wickman fits into their plans. When asked about moving a young arm to the closer role, Shapiro firmly stated that the closer role is not one that he would entrust to a youngster. He went on to say that if Wickman did not return, there were some solid options already in the Tribe pen. Translation: Wickman is unlikely to return (either by his choice or the Tribe's choice) and Shapiro will keep someone that he's comfortable with (saw pitch this year) to close games effectively (Howry/Rhodes). He also said that the bullpen's success will be difficult to duplicate. But you have to think that there's only three guys eligible for FA (Wickman, Howry, Sauerbeck). If they bring back Howry and sign a situational lefty, there's Cabrera, Brown, Miller, Tadano, and possibly Davis battling for one spot.
  
  
• Shapiro said that Peralta is going through an adjustment period as pitchers have now seen him and know what he's been successful against. It's now up to Peralta to adjust (as he has at every level to become a consistent presence in the lineup). Coincidentally, it was mentioned in today's PD that Peralta has been to the postseason for the past 5 years in the minors. Did someone say something about an environment of winning?
  

Enough of Shapiro-speak and analysis.

Today's PD also mentioned that with the Tribe likely to pick up Jelly Belliard's option, the only spot for Brandon Phillips next year (when he's out of options) is as a utility IF. Is anyone upset about this? I realize that B-Phil was the big name in the Colon deal, but if he doesn't work out (and it doesn't look like he's going to), are we upset? We only got an All Star LH starter and Stud CF in the deal. I have no problem cutting ties with Phillips this offseason and seeing if we can get something for him, while his stock may still be relatively high.

There's a good analysis of off-season questions, as well as how perceptions and realities change quickly in the analysis of players in Mistake by the Lake Sporting Times.

After a long weekend in Chicago (where I'll miss the Tribe, Buckeyes, and Browns - but will see a baptism), I'll analyze the holes for the 2006 season and the best way to fill them, pitting building from within against adding Free Agents.

On another Cleveland sports-related note, as if the Browns weren't up enough this season, here's more bad news.

Tampa Bay's up 2-0 in the 5th. If the D-Rays hold on, the Tribe moves into first place, all alone, for the Wild Card, with 22 left to play. The Tribe stands at 79-61 with a legitimate shot at 92-95 wins.

Jhonny Be Good

An afternoon win, keyed by our young SS, for the good guys today with the offense and the bullpen coming through to get Westbrook a W despite not having his best stuff.
An interesting note from Justice B. Hill on the official site:

At 64-55, the 2005 Indians have a better record than the 2000 team, which was 63-56 after 119 games. The starting lineup for the 2000 Tribe in game No. 120:
Kenny Lofton
Omar Vizquel
Roberto Alomar
Manny Ramirez
Jim Thome
David Segui
Travis Fryman
Wil Cordero
Sandy Alomar Jr.

Looking at that lineup and reading that the current team has a better record at the same point in the season illustrates a point that has been hammered away at - pitching wins championships. The lineup above boasts 2 probable HOF's and 2 possible HOF's (though Thome's chances are getting very slim). Yet the current incarnation of the Tribe, with two 23 year olds leading the offense has a better record. And the reason is simple: solid starting pitching and a strong bullpen.

Which leads to the question of the day: With Millwood, Wickman, Gonzalez, Elarton, Howry, Sauerbeck, and Hernandez off the books for next year, where do you put the money? Do you invest in a stud starter and fill in the holes on the offense on the cheap? Or do you make a big splash offensively, sign Elarton and another reclamation project and hope for the best for the staff.

If I'm in the front office and I'm given carte blanche, here's the plan (keep in mind that I'm talking ideal situations):

1. Throw a 3-4 year deal at Millwood worth $10 million per to stay. Millwood is 31 in December and will command some big dollars on the market, but make him think about staying in Cleveland. Granted, when Scott Boras is involved, he may ask for one of Dolan's grandchildren in the deal.
2. Offer Wickman the chance to sign another one year deal and when he turns it down, give Howry an offer to close with something like a 3 year, $7.5 million contract.
3. Sign Elarton to a 2 year deal at about $2-$3 million per. His relationship with the Tribe (and Shapiro in particular) is strong enough that a deal like that makes him stay.
4. Promote Cabrera and Davis into the pen full-time and let either Tallet or Traber become your go-to lefty. If neither pans out, find a lefty and trade them.
5. Package some prospects to the Brewers for Lyle Overbay, a solid LH bat to shore up the bottom third of the order.
6. Package a boatload of pitchers who may not fit into the long term Indians' plans for Kevin Mench. The Rangers are desperate for pitching and may take a combination of arms to part with Mench.

Both Overbay and Mench are arbitration eligible this offseason, and both the Brewers and Rangers may be willing to talk about getting some prospects as well as some "major league talent". The Tribe could sign Overbay and Mench to manageable contracts and get two young hitters who would fit in well, not only in the lineup, but in the clubhouse as well. I purposely didn't throw names into the trade options, as I have no idea who Milwaukee or Texas would ask for.

We'll see how the Tribe plays against the resurgent O's this weekend and whether they can continue to make up ground in the tightening Wild Card race.

I'll be cheering from the in-laws house in Milwaukee, where I'll see if Overbay's name hits the local news for trade talks.

Cruisin'

The Tribe motored out of Detroit with a three game sweep, which should get the month off on the right foot. Even Kasey Blake is making a move to have his name spelled correctly, with a 9 game hitting streak. Another big step was taken as the Tribe won while giving some players some days off (Belliard yesterday and Martinez today).

However, with the A's, Angels, Red Sox, and Yankees all staying hot, the Tribe hasn't moved up much in the standings. But they're taking care of their business and can hope that those teams beat each other up through the end of the season. The Orioles are officially out of the Wild Card (barring a miraculous turnaround) and Minnesota's offense is causing the Twins to go south in the standings.

As promised, following is the list of Free Agents after this season, which I've heard called "thin" and "weak". No argument here with only a couple of attractive names. I would say the Indians' needs would be RF, 1B, backup C, and dealing with the FA pitchers to make sure that the staff stays solid in 2006. So, without further adieu:
Catchers:
Ken Huckaby
Gary Bennett
Kelly Stinnett
Todd Pratt
Ramon Hernandez
Benito Santiago
John Flaherty
Brad Ausmus
Eddie Perez
Mike Piazza
Alberto Castillo
Bengie Molina
Pat Borders
Ivan Rodriguez (Poss. Team Void Option)
Einar Diaz
Todd Greene (Team Option)
Gregg Zaun (Team Option)
Paul Bako
Mike DiFelice

First Base/DH:
Rafael Palmeiro
Jose Offerman
Frank Thomas (Player + Team option)
J.T. Snow
John Olerud
Dave Hansen
Brad Fullmer
Julio Franco
Tim Salmon
Doug Mientkiewicz (Vesting Option)
Kevin Millar
Paul Konerko
Dimitri Young (Team Option)
Scott Hatteberg (Team Option)
Eduardo Perez
Robert Fick
Greg Colbrunn
Mark Sweeney
Tino Martinez (Team Option)
Tony Clark
Travis Lee
Olmedo Saenz
Erubiel Durazo
Brian Buchanan

Second Base:
Ray Durham (Player Option)
Carlos Baerga
Damion Easley
Mark Loretta (Team Option)
Frank Menechino (Team Option)(arb.)
Tony Graffanino
Bret Boone
Todd Walker (Team + Player options)
Eric Young (Team Option)
Damian Jackson
Manny Alexander
Marlon Anderson
Mark Grudzielanek
Pokey Reese (Team Option)
Miguel Cairo
Enrique Wilson
Denny Hocking
Dave Berg
Joe McEwing

Third Base:
Bill Mueller
Lenny Harris
Abraham O. Nunez
Jared Sandberg
Wes Helms
Joe Randa
Chris Stynes
Jeff Cirillo
Geoff Blum
Brandon Larson

Shortstop:
Royce Clayton
Ricky Gutierrez
Jose Vizcaino
Chris Woodward
Alex Gonzalez (FLA)
Nomar Garciaparra
Deivi Cruz
Jose Hernandez
Jose Valentin
Luis Lopez
Ramon Martinez
Alex Gonzalez (TB)
Desi Relaford (Team Option)
Rafael Furcal
Benji Gil
Lou Merloni
Chris Gomez
Rich Aurilia
Rey Sanchez
Neifi Perez

Left Field:
Reggie Sanders
Eli Marrero
John Mabry
B.J. Surhoff
Quinton McCracken
Carlos Lee (Team Option)
Bobby Higginson
Rondell White
Randy Winn (Mutual Option)
Jeff Conine
Todd Hollandsworth

Center Field:
Jacque Jones
Carl Everett (Team Option)
Craig Biggio
Preston Wilson
Kerry Robinson
Jay Payton (Team Option)
Marquis Grissom
Bernie Williams
Kenny Lofton
Roosevelt Brown
Johnny Damon
Dee Brown
Peter Bergeron
Trenidad Hubbard

Right Field:
Michael Tucker
Sammy Sosa (Team Option)
Larry Walker (Team Option)
Juan Encarnacion
Gabe Kapler
Matt Stairs
Orlando Palmeiro
Jose Cruz Jr.
Jacob Cruz
Richard Hidalgo
Dustan Mohr (Mutual Option)
Moises Alou (Player Option)
Jeromy Burntiz (Mutual Option)
Brian Jordan
Matt Lawton
Brian Giles

Pitchers:
RHSP:
Steve Sparks
Pedro Astacio
Andy Ashby
Woody Williams (Team option)
Matt Morris
Scott Elarton
Ariel Prieto
Elmer Dessens (Mutual Option)
A.J. Burnett
Jeff Weaver
Jason Schmidt (Team Option)
Jeff Suppan (Team Option)
John Thomson (Team Option)
Steve Trachsel (Team Option)
Brett Tomko
Kevin Brown
Brian Moehler
Jason Johnson
Paul Byrd
Joe Mays (Team Option)
Aaron Myette
Jamey Wright
Jose Lima
Ismael Valdez
Kevin Millwood
James Baldwin
Rick Helling
Esteban Loaiza (Mutual Option)
Aaron Sele
Roger Clemens
Scott Erickson
Ramon Ortiz (Mutual Option) (arb.)
Tony Armas Jr.
Greg Maddux (Vesting Option)

LHSP:
Dennys Reyes
Kazuhisa Ishii (Team Option)
Tom Glavine (Mutual Option)
Al Leiter
Brian Anderson
Mark Redman (Mutual Option + Player Option)
Jamie Moyer
Kenny Rogers
Kirk Reuter
Ted Lilly
John Halama (Mutual Option)
Shawn Estes
Jarrod Washburn
Glendon Rusch (Player Option)

LHRP:
Jamie Walker (Team option) (arb)
Donovan Osborne
Scott Eyre
Valerio de Los Santos
Mike Stanton
Mike Remlinger
Felix Heredia (Team Option)
Alan Embree
Joey Eischen
Ricardo Rincon
Scott Sauerbeck
Terry Mulholland
Mike Myers
Jason Christiansen (Team Option)
Chris Hammond
John Franco
Mike Matthews
Buddy Groom
B.J. Ryan
Tom Martin
C.J. Nitkowski
Gabe White

RHRP:
Bob Howry
Dan Miceli
Danny Graves (Team Option)
Byung-Hyun Kim
Grant Roberts
Mike DeJean
Kyle Farnsworth
Cal Eldred
Steve Karsay
Russ Springer
Ryan Dempster
Julian Tavarez
Tim Worrell
Felix Rodriguez
Paul Quantrill
Tom Gordon
Mike Timlin
Scott Sullivan (Team or Player Option)
Doug Brocail
Shigetoshi Hasegawa (Vesting Option)
LaTroy Hawkins (Player Option)
Matt Herges
Lou Pote
Rudy Seanez
Jason Grimsley
Todd Jones
Shingo Takatsu (arb)
Al Reyes
David Weathers (Team Option)
Antonio Alfonseca (Vesting Option)
Brian Meadows
Terry Adams
Chad Fox
Roberto Hernandez
Scott Williamson (Team Option)
Jay Witasick
Antonio Osuna
Ricky Bottalico
Steve Reed (Mutual Option)
Jay Powell
Jeff Nelson
Jim Mecir
Kerry Ligtenberg

Closer:
Trevor Hoffman
Octavio Dotel (Rehab)
Braden Looper (Team Option)
Billy Wagner
Jose Mesa (Team Option)
Bob Wickman
Eddie Guardado (Mutual Option + Player Option)
Ugeuth Urbina
Matt Mantei
Danys Baez (Team Option) (arb)

After viewing the list, I was struck at how many of the more attractive names (Millwood, Howry, Sauerbeck, Elarton, Wickman) are OUR players.
Terry Pluto's column this morning mentioned that Elarton is inclined to re-sign with the Tribe, as reward for sticking with him. It doesn't hurt that Elarton is represented by Shapiro's father's agency.
I still would like to see them re-sign Millwood, to make that big splash for the fans. I would give him a 3 year deal worth $9-$10 million per.
Wickman's possible return seems more based on his willingness to pitch another year and Howry may have pitched himself into closing for someone next year (maybe at the corner of Carnegie and Ontario?)

As for the position players on the list, no name jumps off of the screen. Jacque Jones, Juan Encarnacion, Preston Wilson, Reggie Sanders and Brian Giles all would look nice in RF; but we're not talking Vlad Guerrero here. That's why I'm more inclined to think that Shapiro will make a deal (giving up some young pitchers) to acquire a young bat to fit into the lineup. The Rangers reportedly broke off contract extension talks with Kevin Mench, which means that he may be available in the offseason.
Additionally, I don't see a 1B that is an automatic, leading me to believe that Broussard and Garko will platoon next year, if Garko isn't given every chance to win the job in Spring Training.
As for backup catcher, Josh Bard (as bad as he is offensively) rates pretty comparably to those listed.

The next 6 games are against the Royals (who just made wholesale call-ups from the minors) and the lowly Devil Rays. The Indians stand at 60-52 with 22 games remaining in August. With the weakness of the schedule, there's no reason they can't go 15-7 in that stretch (at the worst) to end the month at 75-59. We'll see if that's enough to pack the Jake in September.

Did someone say we'd be contending in 2005?

Little by Little

Tough loss today for the Crooked Cap and the Tribe as they ran into a buzzsaw in Roy Halladay. Though it would be nice to rip off 10-12 in a row and get right into the thick of things in the Central, let's be a little more realistic. A VERY good sign is that the Indians have won 3 of their last 4 series, most against playoff caliber teams (MIN, LAA) while the team seems to be hitting its stride.

Interesting that the players getting hot and carrying this team recently are Coco, Sizemore, Jhonny, and Broussard. With the exception of Broussard (who has 2 years 33 days in the majors), all have less than 2 years ML experience. With the young guns seemingly adjusted to pitching, all we need is for The Stick and Pronk to find their strokes and we'll be rolling. The interesting thing is that these young guys seem to have said, "well, the veterans haven't exactly shown us the way, let's figure it out for ourselves."

The lineup is still in flux and the White Sox are still steamrolling through the AL, but my confidence is much higher than it was after the KC series.

With a work trip to Chicago this week in the works (where I will catch a White Sox game at the Cell on Tuesday, accompanied by a work associate from Minneapolis, who happened to coach Joe Mauer in Little League - so I should be up on our Central rivals), I thought that I should do a little comparison of players signed by the Tribe in the off-season, compared to players on their radar, who signed elsewhere. I've narrowed it down to a starter (Millwood), a closer (Wickman), and an outfield bat (should be Gonzalez, but I'll compare Sizemore and Ludwick to the FA crop, as they're the ones who have benefited from the Hamstring from Hell). Also, I'll take a look at Vizquel vs. Peralta. I won't get into your boy A. Boone.

Player W-L ERA WHIP BAA
Millwood 1-3 3.54 1.30 .313
Clement 4-0 3.06 1.40 .338
Lieber 5-2 3.31 1.18 .291

So, what does this tell us? Other than that the Tribe brass targeted the right FA pitchers, Millwood and his salary represent the best bargain. While both Clement and Lieber would be nice in the rotation, not a bad call by Shapiro.

Player S ERA WHIP BAA
Wickman 11 3.77 1.26 .310
Benitez 4 5.79 1.61 .366
Percival 3 3.65 1.14 .308
Hermanson 8 0.00 0.76 .222

Given that Benitez and Percival are both on the DL, not a bad call to take the Sticky One. Even though the appearances are wet and wild, hyperventilating seems to help him with the last 3 outs of the game.

Player BA HR RBI OPS
Sizemore .269 3 14 .724
Ludwick 200 3 4 .774
Alou .271 3 12 .865
Burnitz .287 6 21 .848

This is a tough one to call, though who really expected Juan Gone to play this year. Keep in mind that Grady is 22 and plays center field like he's covering a kick-off. Giving Sizemore at-bats is a plus for the maturation of this club. I could take or leave Ludwick.

Player BA HR RBI OPS Fielding
Peralta .268 5 10 .886 .950
Omar .283 0 14 .748 .983

Keep the Thome Rule in mind here (broken down early with a long-term contract) and I like the way that Jhonny has settled into the lineup. Omar was and is a great player, but Peralta still is only 22 years old, so I'll take the Honey P.

Call me the Eternal Optimist, but I think that the Tribe made some good choices. Sure there are better ones out there, or else they wouldn't be 10 games back in mid-May, but we have to be patient. Victor and Pronk haven't yet hit their strides and Boone HAS to start hitting (doesn't he?)

I'll see you in Comiskey on Tuesday night. I'll be the one encouraging the shirtless drunk onto the field.

The Reason I Don't Manage the Tribe

After debating whether to make the trip to the Jake last night, WEWS' Chief Meteorologist Mark Johnson (he of the plastic hair and uneasy sense of humor) convinced us not to, because Hurricane Andrew was supposed to sweep across the North Coast. After a 15-20 minute downpour and an hour rain delay, the Tribe came back on the field and hung onto victory against the Jays. Should've been watching Tanchak.

When the game started, the lineup looked like a disaster. I see Hernandez batting clean-up and Ludwick hitting 5th while the Indians are trying to put together a winning streak and get some offensive momentum on a crucial homestand. I think to myself, "looks like Wedge picked the wrong week to quit sniffing glue." Then, the Atomic Wedgie makes me look like an idiot as the top of the order goes nuts in the first and Bono Broussard (have you heard his cover of U2's With or Without You?) comes through with the big bases-loaded hit. That's why the Atomic Wedgie and his mustache make out the lineup card, not me.

Westbrook still looked shaky last night, though early errors didn't help him. He doesn't seem to be throwing with the same confidence and at the same breakneck pace as he did last year. Maybe his rhythm is off, or maybe he lacks that swagger that he had after owning the Tigers to burst out of the gate in 2004. But, at least Elarton wasn't on the mound.

JDangerously looked like he was going to let it come unglued, instantly giving up the HR to Rios, then bore down and went 2 1/3 of decent ball. Why Wedge would use 5 pitchers, and sap his bullpen, on the first day of a 5 game homestand is beyond me. Maybe so he could have the cameras on him while his face twitched uncontrollably. But, again, I don't make out the lineup card.

Did you notice that a few of the players singled out in the Things That Can Happen at the 40 Game Mark from Monday - Coco and Bono - went absolutely nuts in the Angels series. I mean, I know they want pub for their new CD, but that was unreal.

So, let's see if I mention the Sub-Mendoza boys again, if we can get the reverse jinx going on them:
I don't think Boone and Blake are long for the Tribe Lineup.
There, let's hope that will get them above .200.

Harold Reynolds said the other night on Baseball Tonight that the White Sox are by no means a lock to take the Central. He said that they will lose 6 of 10 or 8 of 10 at some point, just because of the nature of the MLB season. The Tribe just needs to make sure that they're hot while the ChiSox are not. Watching them beat up on the Orioles though, it makes you wonder if they're ever going to slow down.

The Jody Gerut situation will be an interesting one to watch. While the logical move would be to send a struggling Boone to find his stroke (Gerut to RF, Blake to 3B, Boone to Buffalo), Shapiro is unlikely to send Boone to Buffalo; you have to wonder where else Gerut would find a spot. Unbelievable on a team whose offense has struggled so mightily that it seems difficult to find a position for a player who led the team in RBI's 2 years ago, but that seems to be the case. One option would be to platoon Gerut and Blake in right, but after giving Blake a contract over the winter, you have to think that the commitment would be stronger to Casey. Or, you bring Gerut up to take Ludwick's spot. But Ludwick is a Wedge favorite, so Gerut will probably have to prove his worth in upstate NY. Stay tuned to this as Gerut was obviously upset about the assignment to AAA. He may pull a B-Phil and pout (unlikely) or he may pull a Coco and just mash (more likely), forcing Shapiro's hand.

More tomorrow on a comparison of the potential Free Agent signings of the 2004 off-season vs. the actual Free Agent signings of the 2004 off season.