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A's edged by the Indians

The A's had a couple of compelling firsts Thursday. Ryan Sweeney had his first career five-hit game, and Mike Gallego absorbed the loudest boos he thinks he's ever received in Oakland.

It looked as if the A's might beat the Cleveland Indians for a second straight game on Sweeney's fourth hit, a single down the line in short right field in the bottom of the 10th inning with the score 2-2. Conor Jackson, who was running from first base on the pitch, was rounding third when Indians right fielder Shin-Soo Choo finally retrieved the ball and fired toward home.

But third-base coach Gallego held up Jackson even though the ball was cut off, and when the A's subsequently failed to score, many of the 14,353 in attendance at Overstock.com Coliseum rained down their disapproval of Gallego's decision. They no doubt still were muttering about Gags' call after the A's ultimately lost 4-3 in 12 innings.

"That could have been the top (number of boos) I've ever received here at the Oakland Coliseum," said Gallego, a former A's infielder. "I appreciate the fans, no doubt about that. Hey, they all want to win, we all want to win. It's a horrible feeling, but that's part of the game. Believe me, if I think there's a chance of sending somebody, I'm sending him."

Simply put, Gallego didn't think Jackson had a chance.

"That ball was on line, Choo's got the best arm in the game, he wasn't very deep, and the reason they


cut it is because I held him," Gallego said. "If they don't cut it and they let it go, I feel Conor's out by 10 feet."

Most observers not in the stands, including Jackson, believed Gallego made the right call. But in a game where Brett Anderson threw nine stellar innings and Sweeney had five hits to no avail, even manager Bob Geren, who usually can find plenty of positives in any loss, was sounding particularly bitter.

"That's a tough one to lose," Geren said. "That's a game we could have and should have won. We had a couple of chances to win the game and didn't do it."

Whereas the A's had 11 hits, they also stranded 12 base runners -- seven of them in scoring position, including the potential tying run in the 12th. Oakland's ongoing failures at the plate in key situations once again wasted a strong starting effort, and they also allowed the Indians to escape with their first series win in Oakland since 2002.

The loss dropped the A's back to .500 as they head out on a six-game road trip to Kansas City and Texas.

ESPN
The Cleveland Indians are for real
With a strong lineup and strong bullpen, the Indians are contenders

Grady Sizemore has been a big reason for the Cleveland Indians' early-season success.

If you were looking at the MLB standings this morning you could be forgiven if you did a double take when you got to the AL Central. We're more than a month into the season and that division's standings are currently the opposite of what many people would have predicted before the season began; the Cleveland Indians are in first, followed by the Kansas City Royals, Detroit Tigers, Minnesota Twins and Chicago White Sox.



When the Indians first started playing well, it was easy to write them off as an early-season fluke. But as the Tribe's lead grows, it's come time to start taking them seriously. Not only are they are a lot better than they were given credit for in the preseason, but, more importantly, their competition is a lot worse.



In ESPN The Magazine's MLB preview, the ZiPS projection system pegged Cleveland for a 71-91 record and a fourth-place finish. However, that was based on a couple of assumptions that appear to be false. For example, ZiPS projected the oft-injured Grady Sizemore to have just 373 at-bats and post a .793 OPS. Sizemore, who currently has a 1.058 OPS, missed the season's first couple of weeks, but if he stays healthy would easily bypass that playing-time projection. Sizemore playing a full season and producing at an All-Star level easily adds a few wins to the Indians' projection.



Another reason to think Cleveland would struggle is its bullpen, but it has been one of the best units in the league with a 3.04 ERA. And that's not a fluke: The Tribe's bullpen FIP is 3.25, which is second in the AL. Both Vinnie Pestano and Joe Smith are whiffing more than 10 men per nine innings, and lefties are 0-for-14 against southpaw Tony Sipp; the entire unit has allowed just four homers in 80 innings. Bullpen performance is extremely hard to predict and it was hard to foresee the Indians having one of the best units in the league, but so far it appears they do.



The most remarkable aspect of Cleveland's hot start is that Carlos Santana and Shin-Soo Choo have barely contributed. Most expected them to be the team's best two players in the preseason, but Santana is slugging just .383 and Choo's OBP is a paltry .317. In other words, the Tribe's record is not based on unsustainable performances across the board. So when Jack Hannahan and Shelley Duncan come back down to the earth (and they will), Choo and Santana will be there to pick up the slack. And with those two, as well as Sizemore and Travis Hafner, hitting well, Cleveland has a legitimately strong lineup.



Let's assume that the Indians' true talent level is that of a 78-win team (and that might be conservative). If so, that means they will win roughly 65 of their remaining 135 games. Since you can't take away any of the 20 wins they've already banked, that would put them at 85 wins. And that brings us to the main reason we need to take Cleveland seriously: the AL Central stinks.



Even before Joe Mauer went down and Magglio Ordonez and Adam Dunn forgot how to hit, there was no clear-cut favorite in this division. ZiPS picked the White Sox to win the Central, but with just 86 wins. So no matter what, this was going to be a dogfight. And as we've seen thus far, the Twins, Tigers and White Sox are all probably a little worse than most thought they were. Even if they're not, we have to revise our expectations of each of them after their slow starts. If Chicago is really a .530 team, as projected in our preview, that means they will end up with roughly 81 wins if they play that way the rest of the year. Using the same method, the Detroit and Minnesota, which were both projected for 83 wins, are now on pace for about 79 wins. (And so as not to exclude the Royals, they are now on pace for 75 wins based on their current standing and preseason projection. However, they are probably a bit better than that, particularly when you consider they could get help from prospects such as Eric Hosmer, Mike Montgomery and Mike Moustakas later in the year.)

The Twins and White Sox are both at least 10 games behind the Indians. For a little perspective, just three times in the wild card era has a team that was 10 games back at any point in the season come back to win its division. Minnesota fans can take solace in the fact that the Twins were one of those teams; they came back from 10 games back in August of 2006 to win the AL Central with 96 wins. Of course that club featured vintage Johan Santana and Francisco Liriano, not to mention full, healthy seasons from Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau, who finished sixth and first in the MVP voting, respectively. And while Liriano's no-hitter last night is certainly promising for Minnesota, he had six walks, two strikeouts and a game score of 83, tying him with Lefty Chambers for the lowest Game Score in history for a nine-hitting no-hitter according to Baseball Reference. In other words, it was far from a dominant outing.



The one saving grace for the Twins and White Sox is that according to ZiPS' preseason projections, April was their toughest month in terms of scheduling. The Indians' April schedule, however, was their easiest. Minnesota and Chicago's weakest month is September, which happens to be Cleveland's most difficult and that could be a big factor down the stretch. It's certainly worth noting that some of the Indians' early success can be attributed to their soft slate, as they had a total of 11 April wins against the Royals, Mariners and Orioles. That said, the Tribe's run differential currently sits at plus-50, which is the best in baseball (by a full 12 runs) and a strong indication that they aren't winning ugly.



It's way too early to call this division for Cleveland, but it's too late to simply be dismissing the Indians as an early-season fluke, either -- the rest of the division is far too weak. Let the dogfight for the AL Central crown begin.

I find the statements about Duncan and Hannahan as guaranteed to come back down to earth as a bit amateurish. First, Duncan is doing what he has done in the past - he's hitting left handers. Better than his career averages to be sure but I don't think what he is doing is earth shattering. Second, has it occured to anybody that Hannahan may be better than people give him credit for? The Casey Blake experiment showed that there are AAAA players out there we are legit major leaguers but because the AAAA lable may be the hardest lable to shake in all of sports, it is very hard for them to get sustained chances to show what they can do.

Hannahan only had one season before this year where he got more than 400 at bats and yes he only hit .218 but that was also three years ago. He does have a good minor league track record and it just might be that a combination of injuries and bias against guys in their late 20s doing well in AAA caused scouts, coaches, and GMs to not give him a second look when they should have.

Yankees Claim Jess Todd
By Ben Nicholson-Smith [May 6, 2011 at 1:19pm CST]

The Yankees claimed right-hander Jess Todd off of waivers from Cleveland, the Indians announced. The Indians had designated Todd for assignment on April 30th.

Todd, 25, arrived in Cleveland two years ago when the Indians acquired him and current closer Chris Perez for Mark DeRosa. In eight appearances at Triple-A in 2011, Todd has allowed 18 hits and 6 walks in 9 innings, striking out 6. However, he has averaged more than one strikeout per inning in his five-year minor league career. Todd has 28 1/3 innings of big league experience and his 7.62 ERA is unimpressive despite a strong 29K/12BB ratio.

Great article about the Tribe's base running this year - players doing a good job going from first to third and second to home. These aspects of the running game are so much more important that stolen based but do not get anywhere near as much attention:

http://www.cleveland.com/tribe/index.ss ... d_has.html

Today's View from Pluto:

http://www.cleveland.com/pluto/blog/ind ... _term.html

cleveland.com


Chuck Hinton homer in 1965 is a cherished moment for Brooklyn man: Tribe Memories


Published: Saturday, May 07, 2011, 10:50 PM Updated: Sunday, May 08, 2011, 12:54 AM
Special to The Plain Dealer By Special to The Plain Dealer

This spring, we asked readers to tell us their best memory at an Indians game. More than 600 responded. The five finalists and winner were featured during the week leading up to Opening Day. All season long, The Plain Dealer will publish other fan memories -- one each day the Indians are scheduled to play. Here is today's essay by Art Kropp of Brooklyn:

The Plain Dealer's Grandstand Managers game on June 22, 1965. I was 10 years old, tickets were free and I begged my father to take me to the game. I begged him even more to stay until the end of the game, as it went into extra innings. Chuck Hinton hit a home run in the 10th inning and the Indians won.

My father passed away the next year. It was the only ballgame we ever went to.

I really believe I remember that Hinton homer against the Twinkies. I don't think I missed many games on radio in the summer of '65.

For reasons unknown, I was a Tony Oliva fan.


I cheated, but Sam McDowell had a rare relief appearance in that game, as Gary "Ding Dong" Bell picked up the win.

http://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-sco ... 6506220CLE


Over 20,000 in Municipal that night.

For a real hoot, check the Top 40 songs for that day:

http://www.musicradio77.com/Surveys/196 ... n2265.html

From Sam the Sham and "Wooly Bully," to "Theme from 'A Summer Place'" by The Letterman, to "I'm Henry the VIII, I Am" by Herman's Hermits, to "Satisfaction" by The Stones.

But wait....there's more!

Who didn't know this was coming?

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Milton Bradley-Eric Wedge pairing is now zero-for-two.

Bradley has been designated for assignment by the Seattle Mariners, who are in their first season with Wedge as the manager.

Wedge managed the Cleveland Indians from 2003 to 2009. Bradley hit .321 in 377 at bats for the Indians in 2003, but things didn't work out after that.

From a Seattle Post-Intelligencer report about Bradley being designated for assignment:



The Seattle Mariners designated the mercurial outfielder for assignment on Monday, recalling outfielder Carlos Peguero to take Bradley’s place on the roster.

The move comes just hours after the team designated Ryan Langerhans for assignment in order to make room for outfielder Mike Wilson on the Major League roster.

Seattle now has 10 days to release, trade or outright Bradley’s contract.

This was a move that needed to be made. Not only was Bradley no longer productive at the plate, he was a defensive liability and his off-field issues were a distraction the entire time he was with the Mariners.

Bradley was hitting .218 with two home runs for the Mariners.

After Wedge was hired by Seattle during the offseason, Plain Dealer Indians beat writer Paul Hoynes recalled the first time that Wedge and Bradley tried to co-exist.

Wrote Hoynes on Dec. 10:



"He and I have a great advantage this time around," said Wedge on Wednesday. "He knows what I'm all about and I'm very familiar with him. Obviously, we have some history, but I think we're going to work that to our advantage this time around.

"I know that's what he wants and I know that's what I want. That was many moons ago."

Wedge and Bradley did not mix well when they were in Cleveland. After Bradley didn't run out a pop up in a spring training game in 2004, Wedge confronted him and Bradley lost his temper. He stormed off the field and took a cab back to where he was staying in Winter Haven, Fla.

Before the start of the regular season, Bradley was traded to the Dodgers.

Who didn't know this was coming?

I'm sure it comes as a total surprise to TFIR...

Hell, they didn't even mention that the guy was injured every time you turned around. With REAL serious issues like strained muscles, and colds.

Not sure if this will post or not but this photo of Wedge and Bradley is priceless.

http://l.yimg.com/a/p/sp/tools/med/2011 ... 984424.jpg

TDU wrote:Not sure if this will post or not but this photo of Wedge and Bradley is priceless.

http://l.yimg.com/a/p/sp/tools/med/2011 ... 984424.jpg

excuse me while I wipe the spittle off the screen from laughing at that picture. It is kind of like a picture of kenm being pulled away from a tribe winning streak!

Grady Sizemore's return has provided a big boost -- offensively and defensively.The Cleveland Indians were quiet this past offseason. No sexy free-agent signings, no wheeling and dealing. When I arrived to Indians camp in spring training, I spent considerable time with rookie GM Chris Antonetti and second-year manager Manny Acta. Both were convinced that if everything went as planned the Indians could contend as early as this season -- even though this was a team that hadn’t had a winning record since 2007 and had lost 93 games in 2010 and 97 in 2009. Contending? Really? How?

Antonetti, one of the youngest and brightest GMs in baseball, broke it down this way for me on that hot Arizona March day: "To contend we need the following to happen: (1) We need our key players to get healthy, specifically Grady Sizemore, Carlos Santana, Asdrubal Cabrera and Travis Hafner; (2) We need our other young players on the roster to continue their development with meaningful contributions on the field. This list of players includes Justin Masterson, Carlos Carrasco, Josh Tomlin, Chris Perez, Michael Brantley, Matt LaPorta and our young bullpen arms; (3) We need our veterans to contribute and provide leadership on the field and in the clubhouse, including Orlando Cabrera, Sizemore and Hafner."

Check, check and check, Mr. Antonetti.

This Indians team is not only contending but has the best record in the American League. Are they for real? Yes, they’re for real. I’m not saying they’re going to win the division, but what I am saying is that if they stay healthy, this team will contend into September and should win more games than they lose. The main reason this team is for real is the pitching and defense. The starting pitching is solid, the bullpen underrated and the infield defense is the best the Indians have seen since Jim Thome, Roberto Alomar, Omar Vizquel and Travis Fryman played together.

Josh Tomlin is 4-1 with a 2.43 ERA and a 0.81 WHIP through six starts this season.The starting rotation is led by Fausto Carmona, who won 13 games last year and is capable of winning 13-16 again this season. Masterson, one of the pitchers acquired in the Victor Martinez trade with Boston, is emerging as a solid No. 2 behind Carmona. Masterson has great size and stuff. His four-seam fastball goes up to 97 mph while the two-seamer sits between 89-94. He mixes in a slider and change from a deceptive lower arm angle and has great downward bite. His command in the lower part of the strike zone has improved due to the fact he solidified his delivery. Most importantly, Masterson continues to develop the understanding of how to best utilize his stuff to attack left-handed hitters, a weakness throughout his career. Masterson has quickly become one of the better pitchers in the league, starting 5-0 with a 2.11 ERA.

Carrasco just spent time on the DL for the first time in his career, but the Indians are not concerned as he is set to return to the rotation this week. In my discussions with Shin-Soo Choo, Santana and Acta, they raved about Carrasco’s potential. They think he’ll develop into a 15-game winner. That brings us to Josh Tomlin, who wins everywhere he goes. His minor league career record is 54-21 and his major league career record is 10-5, including 4-1 this year. Here is Antonetti’s scouting report on Tomlin that he gave me this week: "Great competitor. Won’t beat himself. Pounds the zone. Good four-pitch mix. Understands how to pitch and get hitters out." No argument from me. He might not chalk up a lot of strikeouts each night, but he’ll get the groundballs and get the outs to win games.

That brings us to the infield defense. When you have a rotation that pounds the lower part of the strike zone, but doesn’t always miss bats, then you better catch the ball in the infield with range. This infield catches the ball with range. Jack Hannahan, the journeyman infielder, has done a tremendous job defensively at third base, catching everything with soft hands and an accurate arm. Asdrubal Cabrera is quickly becoming one of the best all-around shortstops in the American league, a very good offensive and defensive shortstop with power, quick hands and feet and a strong arm from the hole. He also has great baseball instincts. He exchanges the ball from glove to release as quickly as anyone. Orlando Cabrera was the one major free-agent signed by Antonetti this offseason and here’s his assessment of Cabrera: "He has made an impact both on the field and in the clubhouse. He has great baseball intelligence and understands what it takes to win." In fact, it seems wherever Cabrera goes his teams win (see: Reds, Twins, Red Sox).


Behind the plate Santana has helped lead the Indians' staff to the third-best ERA in the AL. He has well above-average arm strength and eventually will be able to stop the running game when he gets more experience. He’s off to a slow start with the bat, but he can hit and hit with power from both sides of the plate. He’s a legit future All-Star.

The outfield defense matches the infield defense. Choo is one of the best right fielders in baseball. He gets great jumps, angles on balls and has a strong arm. He can also hit and hit with power. Sizemore is back diving for baseballs and Brantley covers everything in left field like a center fielder. Not a lot of balls are going to be falling in the the gaps at Progressive Field this summer.

The Indians' starting pitchers are pitching deep into games, their offense has put up quality at-bats and has manufactured runs in a variety of ways, thanks to the shrewd managing of Acta, and the bullpen has done a great job of closing games when they get leads as closer Chris Perez has saved 10 of 11 opportunities while Tony Sipp, Vinnie Pestano and Rafael Perez all have ERAs under 2 setting him up.

More Indians and Rays
Our Indians and Rays bloggers previewed this big series showdown at their respective sites. Check out their takes at The Ray Area and It's Pronounced "Lajaway".
Remember, this first-place team is doing it without much production from the heart of the order as Choo and Santana have struggled to get past the Mendoza line and top hitting prospect Lonnie Chisenhall is in the minor leagues getting additional seasoning. But we all know that will change, and all three will be productive offensive weapons by season's end.

Hafner and Sizemore are competing for the Comeback Player of the Year Award. Hafner’s shoulder is finally healthy and according to Acta, that allowed him to weight train for the first time in years in the offseason. The result is that Hafner’s bat speed is back, as shown by his .347 average and .932 OPS.

The farm system is also about to add another wave of young talented players as well. Rookie starter Alex White made his debut recently with a win, Nick Hagadone and Drew Pomeranz aren’t far behind ( not to mention Jason Knapp, Zach Putnam and Bryce Stowell) and Chisenhall will probably be taking over third base by the middle of this summer. Chisenhall has a chance to be a .290-to-.300 hitter in the big leagues with 15-20 home runs and 40 doubles. He can really hit and is adequate and improving defensively at third base.

Acta is not only one of the best-dressed managers, but he’s also quickly becoming one of the most respected young skippers in the game. He’s done a phenomenal job in developing the Indians' young arms the last two years and his ability to communicate and motivate are special.

The Indians -- if they stay healthy -- are for real and should produce a summer of winning and continued improved parity in the American League Central.

Thanks for reading and as always I appreciate your comments and feedback. Follow me on Twitter @JimBowdenESPNxm and feel free to send me ideas for future blogs.

Uncle Dennis wrote:

TDU wrote:Not sure if this will post or not but this photo of Wedge and Bradley is priceless.

http://l.yimg.com/a/p/sp/tools/med/2011 ... 984424.jpg

excuse me while I wipe the spittle off the screen from laughing at that picture. It is kind of like a picture of kenm being pulled away from a tribe winning streak!

Yep, that was worth the click. Wedge's look was holding Bradley back was priceless!