Cleveland Sports Forum

Just goes to show that all the talk and bullshit about attendance means absolutely nothing. (I'm referring partially to all that bull about how fan's feelings were hurt over the dealing of veteran players. And by statements from management)

Big freaking deal.

If you win, they will come, period. If not, they won't. Pretty darn simple. And it's the same in every sport.

So when the team dealt vets, sacrificing the present, they expected crap crowds for awhile. And rightfully so. Smart move.

It's a precious few markets where they will come if you don't win, Wrigley is an exception.

Remember the guy who almost no hit us last season? He's pitching for the Reno Aces today.


Galarraga to pitch for Aces tonight


It was a year ago next week when Armando Galarraga shot to national fame after his perfect game was robbed by an umpire's blown call.

Galarraga is a long way from that acclaim today, as he prepares to take the mound for the Aces tonight against visiting Sacramento.

It's been a strange 12 months since umpire Jim Joyce kept Galarraga from a perfect game on what should have been the final out June 2 in Cleveland. Galarraga, who was with Detroit at the time, received a car as a consolation price, was lauded for the sportsmanship he displayed in handling the situation, wrote a book with Joyce in the offseason and then was traded to Arizona in January.

It is with the Diamondbacks where things went awry for the 29-year-old Galarraga. He was 3-4 with a 5.91 ERA in eight starts for Arizona.

The final straw was when the right-hander gave up eight runs in five innings May 16 against San Diego. Galarraga was designed for assignment three days later.

"I don't look at the past. I'm a person who turns the page real easy," Galarraga said Friday, sitting in the Aces dugout. "Whatever happened in the past, happened in the past. It already happened, you know, so I can't do nothing about it. I just need to move on."

As much as Galarraga says he's ready to turn the page, he is clearly not happy to be in Triple-A and not happy with how he arrived here.

"This year, I had four bad starts," said Galarraga, who was leading the majors in home runs allowed at the time of his demotion. "But the first three games I won. I didn't struggle the whole year. Nobody can say that. You win your first three games, you're good. Then I lost the next four and they want to send me down here.

"I don't think there's anything specific I need to work on. Whatever they say, I don't care."

Galarraga also made no bones about why he accepted the assignment to Reno when he could have become a free agent.

"The money," Galarraga said. "They have to pay me $2.3 million to come here."

That is what Galarraga is due this season, the final one in which he is under contract.

"I remember last year, at the beginning, I was up and down, kind of struggling," Galarraga said. "Then I started pitching really good."

Galarraga obviously was really good that night in Cleveland. He didn't get a chance to right the ship in Arizona. Perhaps he can with the Aces.

"I just want to go out there and pitch, you know?" Galarraga said. "I'm already here, so I need to work hard to get out of here.

"I'm not going to be like, 'Why am I here?' I'm going to try and win games and throw strikes."

Good stuff from Pluto:

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

Terry's column is full of interesting stats. E.g. Hannahan ranks among best AL 3rd baseman offensively Santana and Marson team up to be superb defensively. Indians ranked their IF defense worst last year and toward the top this season. (Anyone want JP back?) Mitch Talbot is even worse statistically and historically than he appears. Zach MacAllister has only walked 10 and allowed only 2 homers in AAA. Jeanmar Gomez is still only 23; David Huff is fading at 26 and ERA 1 point higher than Gomez and 2 points higher than ZachMac.

Tony Lastoria usually a Pollyanna is all worried about Alex White.


Whiteout

The Indians suffered a big blow last weekend when right-handed pitcher Alex White sprained the middle finger of his pitching hand. He was immediately placed on the 15-day disabled list and is expected to miss up to six to eight weeks to recover from the injury. He will not throw a ball for four weeks and no surgery will be performed at this time as the Indians hope rest and rehab will get him back to 100%. Not only is his loss a big one to the starting rotation, but the injury is definitely a big concern.

While the Indians are downplaying the injury right now, there is certainly some concern that this could be the Adam Miller situation all over again. Miller had other complicating factors involved with his middle finger sprain he initially suffered back in May of 2007, but back then he was initially diagnosed with a “slight” sprain of his middle finger and not considered “serious” and expected to only be out for six to eight weeks.

To go back in time and recollect what Miller initially went through with his middle finger sprain in May of 2007, here is an excerpt from Miller’s scouting report from my 2008 Top 50 Prospects listing:

Miller was scratched from a scheduled start in May with a slight strain on the last digit of the middle finger on his pitching hand, an injury commonly found among rock climbers. The Indians put him on the disabled list and he was out of action for 45 days as a precautionary move. The Indians caught a big break in that the finger injury was not serious, and the Indians were extremely conservative with Miller's progression back and followed the recommendations and protocols of hand specialist Dr. Tom Graham. After returning to the rotation in late June from the finger injury, Miller was shutdown for a month because of inflammation in his pitching elbow.

Sound familiar?

The same thing is being said right now about White as the injury is similar to Miller’s in that it is uncommon in baseball and commonly found in rock climbers. Also that the Indians are cautiously optimistic he will be okay and that rest and rehab will get him back in six to eight weeks.

Miller certainly had some other complicating factors that were involved, but as we know his career took a turn for the worse as he had multiple surgeries and missed almost three full seasons before making his triumphant return this year. His case was an extreme one, but also one where with him and White sharing the same uncommon injury that White’s status for this season and beyond could be in jeopardy.

Lineup decisions

With the return of outfielder Grady Sizemore from the 15-day disabled list on Friday, manager Manny Acta unveiled a new lineup. Instead of inserting Sizemore back into his customary leadoff spot he has been placed in the sixth spot in the lineup, which is a testament to how well outfielder Michael Brantley has been playing and how comfortable the Indians are with him settling into the leadoff spot on a more permanent basis.

It also means that the Indians are trying to give the middle of the lineup a boost. With designated hitter Travis Hafner out a few more weeks, the Indians could really use some more thunder in the middle of the order and Sizemore is the best answer for that in the short term. Depending on the matchup it looks like Sizemore could hit either fifth or sixth in the lineup until Hafner returns or Carlos Santana gets things turned around.

Speaking of Santana, the Indians finally made the decision to slide him down in the order. The move should help take some of the pressure off of him hitting in the cleanup spot so that he can get things straightened out and most importantly gain his confidence back. He is still one of the most dangerous hitters in the lineup, but he is clearly over-swinging at a lot of pitches and pressing so the shift to the seventh spot in the lineup will do him some good.

With Santana out of the cleanup spot it does leave an interesting quandary of sorts for the Indians to work through. Right now they lack really any right-handed bat that should be hitting in the middle of the lineup. First baseman Matt LaPorta is an option, but he is not ready for the burden to hit fourth or fifth in the lineup. They have also tried reserve player Shelley Duncan in the fourth or fifth spot since he is a right-handed bat and can break up the lefties, but a player like him in that spot of the lineup simply will not cut it. Finding a run producing right-handed bat is clearly a need for the team if they wish to contend the rest of this season and do any damage in the playoffs if they make it there.

With the offense in a funk and some key players still struggling or hurt, the Indians really have their hands tied behind their back right now to put a lineup on the field that can consistently score runs and give the team a chance to win. That means some desperate measures will need to be taken in the short term with the lineup, which is what we are seeing this weekend in Tampa.

Santana’s struggles

Carlos Santana is struggling through the pains of his first full season in the big leagues. While he is technically no longer a rookie, he came into this season with just 46 career games in the big leagues under his belt so is pretty much in the rookie camp. Very few players hit on all cylinders out of the gates when they reach the big leagues, and with him we are likely seeing the adjustment period so many young players have to make when moving up from the minors to the big leagues.

In 45 games Santana is hitting .209 with six homers, 22 RBI, and a .716 OPS. He has shown flashes of the power and has drawn 33 walks and has a solid .344 on-base percentage. He ranks 5th in all of baseball in walks and he leads all of baseball in total pitches seen per at bat, so he is putting up good at bats. The problem is his swing is out of whack and needs to be simplified and toned down some so he can make more consistent, hard contact.

Victor Martinez went through a similar slump early in his career. After a very good first full season in the big leagues in 2004 where he hit .283 with 23 homers, 108 RBI and a .851 OPS, he struggled massively at the start of 2005 where up to the All Star break he hit just .236 with nine homers, 35 RBI and a .692 OPS. The light switch flipped on for him after the All Star break where he hit .380 with 11 homers, 45 RBI, and a 1.027 OPS in the second half, numbers that Santana himself is certainly capable of putting up to level out his performance this season.

There is no denying Santana’s talent as he has a gifted arm, a powerful bat, and is one of the best young hitters in the game. But right now he is simply just pressing and trying to do too much as he is struggling both at the plate with his hitting and behind it with his throwing. The Indians have given him a few days off recently as “mental health” days, something which is more useful for players than people think. That along with reducing his role in the lineup hopefully will spark him because over the course of the rest of the season the Indians are going to really need his bat.

Attendance concerns

While the Indians are seeing more people at Progressive Field of late, the attendance is still nowhere close to what should be expected from a team that is in first place and putting up some of the most memorable finishes on a nightly basis not seen in a long time. The Indians rank 27th in the league in attendance this season as they are averaging 18,574 fans a game. That average will continue to rise as we get into the hot summer months, especially if the team continues to play well.

It has been reported that the Indians cable TV network SportsTime Ohio has seen over a 100% increase in their ratings this year. This comes as no surprise and shows that people are interested in the team and watching, they just choose to spend their entertainment money elsewhere.

One thing that may be affecting the attendance is the proximity of so many minor league affiliates for the Indians. A little over ten years ago the only local affiliate in town was the Double-A Canton-Akron Indians. Since then, Canton-Akron moved to a new ballpark in Akron in 1997, the Indians short-season Single-A affiliate Mahoning Valley moved to Niles in 1999, their Low-A affiliate Lake County moved to Eastlake in 2003, and their Triple-A affiliate moved to Columbus in 2009. So in a little over ten years they went from one minor league affiliate in Ohio to now four affiliates all located in Ohio.

With fans looking to stretch their dollars during tough economic times, some may be opting for the less expensive and more kid friendly atmosphere of minor league baseball where they can still enjoy baseball and follow the Indians at a lower level.

June swoon?

The Indians have been exciting to watch all season and a fun ride for all of those who have jumped on board their bandwagon. But there are still many skeptics out there who wonder if they will be able to keep up their late inning heroics and great pitching all season.

With well over a 100 games still left in the season, anything can still happen. Thankfully for the Indians their strength lies in pitching and they have lots of it and it is the real deal. This alone will keep them competitive all season, even in the wake of a few significant injuries. Some national baseball pundits may not agree with my view on the Indians pitching quality, but there is no denying it when you consider the performance, youth, and impact the pitching has made so far not only in Cleveland but at Triple-A Columbus as well. To say otherwise is pure ignorance.

Right now it appears a lot of people are waiting for the proverbial other shoe to drop. With the team winning such a high percentage of one run games at home, winning so many games in their last at bat, and with the lineup struggling and looking to be a major issue going forward, the skeptics expect the Indians to regress and begin their nosedive in June and eventually out of playoff contention by late August or early September.

There may be some truth to this as the Indians look like they are in their first rough patch of the season, something every team goes through at some point in the season. The key will be finding a way to minimize the losses and not letting them mount up where all the work they put in to get where they are now goes out the window with a few five or six game losing streaks.

The team may be a year early as they were not expected to contend until next year, so with that they have not had time to get the lineup where they truly want it to be as several of their long term alternatives are still in Columbus. So it is possible they may ultimately not make the playoffs this year, or may struggle a lot in the second half.

But don’t worry about all of that. There is nothing like winning baseball on a daily basis throughout the summer and fall, so just enjoy the ride and whatever happens, happens.

Draft time!

The 2011 Major League Baseball Draft kicks off a week from Monday on June 6th at 7:00 p.m. EST with the first round. Rounds 2-30 will be held on Tuesday June 7th starting at 12:00 p.m. ET, and then rounds 31-50 will be held on Wednesday June 8th starting at 12:00 p.m. ET. The Indians have the eighth pick in each round.

As always, this stie will have up to the minute draft results as picks are made over the course of the three days of the draft. I along with a few other site contributors will provide immediate analysis, scouting reports, video, news and other information on all the Indians picks as they happen.

Also, at the conclusion of the draft I will be tracking all the news and rumors with regard to signings and so on. If you are into the MLB Draft or curious about it and want to see who the Indians pick up, there is no better place to follow it on-line than here at the IPI.

With fans looking to stretch their dollars during tough economic times, some may be opting for the less expensive and more kid friendly atmosphere of minor league baseball where they can still enjoy baseball and follow the Indians at a lower level.

No arguement there. I'd much rather go see a game in Bowie than Baltimore or DC.

Finding a run producing right-handed bat is clearly a need for the team if they wish to contend the rest of this season and do any damage in the playoffs if they make it there.

Two words - CASEY BLAKE.

No argument there. I'd much rather go see a game in Bowie than Baltimore or DC.

I haven't seen the city of Bowie in print in years. It was the site of a historic horse race track that closed 1/4 of a century ago.

Indians continue to prove the baseball experts wrong

ROBERT MACLEOD | Columnist profile | E-mail

Toronto— From Monday's Globe and Mail

Published Sunday, May. 29, 2011 9:39PM EDT

When Jayson Nix came over from the Cleveland Indians to the Toronto Blue Jays in a cash deal just before the start of the regular season he wasn’t overly optimistic about his old team’s chances heading into the new year.

Neither were a lot of other baseball pundits who were predicting another long and dreary season for an Indians outfit that had won fewer than 70 games in each of 2009 and 2010.

So far it has been Cleveland that has been enjoying the last laugh through the first two months of the schedule, the unexpected owners of the best record in the American League.

“I don’t know if surprised is the right word I’d use to describe what the Indians are doing,” Nix said. “I definitely didn’t expect it, I don’t think anybody did except, perhaps, their players.”

The Blue Jays will get to witness first hand the resurgent Indians, who arrive in Toronto on Monday to play the first of a three-game set at Rogers Centre.

Shrewd trades, improved pitching and defence and a balanced attack are all to be credited for the turnaround that has landed Cleveland in first place in the A.L. Central with a record of 31-19.

Not bad for a franchise sporting baseball’s No. 26-ranked payroll at $49-million (U.S.) that has parted ways over the years with such stars as C.C. Sabathia and Cliff Lee because of financial considerations.

“They’ve done it in a very typical Cleveland way – quietly – and all of a sudden they’ll spring it on you,” Tampa Bay Rays manager Joe Madden told MLB.com. “When you look at it, what they’re doing isn’t really that surprising.”

The Indians are being led this year by switch-hitting shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera, who sports the best offensive numbers of any A.L. shortstop with 10 home runs, 61 hits and 35 runs batted in heading into play on Sunday.

Cabrera, 25, has developed into an all-star calibre performer who was still a minor-league prospect when the Indians acquired him in 2006 from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for veteran Eduardo Perez, who left the game at that season’s end.

Of the 30 Indians currently on the 25-man roster or disabled list, 14 have been acquired in trades.

That list also includes Shin-Soo Choo, who was also buried in Seattle’s minor-league system with Cabrera in 2006 before being dealt to the Indians.

The outfielder has since developed into one of the game’s most complete players, coming off consecutive 20 home run, 20 stolen base seasons.

No team in the A.L. features as balanced a scoring attack as the Indians who currently sport seven players with at least 22 RBI. The New York Yankees rank second with five.

The only disappointment so far to the season for the Indians has been the response of the home-town fans.

After averaging a MLB-low 17,435 fans a year ago, attendance is up only marginally to 18,574 through 25 home dates in 2011.

Cleveland has proven in the past that it is a solid baseball town, selling out for 455 consecutive games between June 12, 1995 and April 4, 2001, drawing a total of 19.3-million fans.

“It’s a whole different animal now,” said Toronto shortstop John McDonald, who started his Major League career with the Indians in 1999.

A new stadium and a solid team that made the playoffs in six of seven years between 1995 to 2001 (including two trips to the World Series) helped prop up the fan base, McDonald said.

A rebuilding phase, combined with the economic downturn that has struck the rust belt city extra hard, has meant a slow recovery for the baseball club.

“I know the fans in Cleveland are watching,” McDonald said. “They’re watching, they’re listening on the radio, they’re very passionate about their team.”

Hafner still not close to returning to lineup

By Dawn Klemish / Special to MLB.com | 05/29/11 2:31 PM ET

ST. PETERSBURG -- Sure, Cleveland has managed without its star designated hitter. But it's not like the Indians don't miss Travis Hafner.

Hafner was hitting .345 in mid-May when a right oblique strain sent him to the 15-day disabled list. Though he'll be eligiblef to be reinstated on Thursday, the 33-year-old is still in the early stages of returning and will likely be out at least another couple of weeks.

"Right now he's still in a recovery period," Cleveland manager Manny Acta said. "He hasn't resumed baseball activities, so it'd be silly for me to [talk about it]. It's too far away right now for me to give you updates."

At the time of his injury, Hafner's .345 batting average through 32 games was third-best in the American League. The left-handed power hitter also had eight doubles, five home runs and 22 RBIs. He also had a .409 on-base percentage.

In Hafner's absence, Cleveland has plugged the DH hole with Shelley Duncan, who's hitting .246 with six doubles and a homer this season, but has struck out 19 times in 65 at-bats.

Beyond run production and clutch hits, Acta said Hafner's mere presence at the plate was a lift.

"He's an intimidating figure in our lineup, even when he's not hitting," Acta said. "This year he came out swinging and doing everything. A guy like him and [Carlos] Santana, they bring a lot to the table because they walk, too. They have that ability to draw walks. That means not giving up extra outs, and extra traffic on the bases."

This is Hafner's sixth trip to the DL in a 10-year career that has been hampered by injuries over the past three seasons.

Sizemore to play in the field early next week

ST. PETERSBURG -- Grady Sizemore is right on schedule.

After a trio of games in the designated hitter's spot against the Rays this week, Sizemore will definitely play at least one game in the field during the upcoming stint against Toronto.

Cleveland manager Manny Acta wasn't certain which of the games against the Blue Jays that Sizemore would play in the field, but said that he has seen definite progress from his center fielder since Sizemore came off of the disabled list.

A loss of timing at the plate was the main concern for the 28-year-old, who has gone 0-for-8 with three strikeouts after being reinstated prior to Friday's game at Tampa Bay. Sizemore has been able to hit in the batting cages since a knee contusion sidelined him, but was quick to point out the difference between batting practice and live games.

"I think four or five games, and he'll be able to click for us," Acta said.

Sizemore was hitting .282 (22-for-78) with six homers and 11 RBIs when he slid hard against Tampa Bay on May 10, sustaining a deep contusion around his knee. Though he remains hitless in his weekend return, Acta said he has already seen flashes of the Sizemore of old.

"He's getting there," Acta said of Sizemore. "It's a tough task. You come off the DL and have to face [Tampa Bay starters David Price and James Shields] right off the bat. Yesterday he made contact and took a couple of good swings, and he just missed a pitch."

Carmona's woes limited to few rough outings

By Jordan Bastian / MLB.com | 05/31/11 7:07 PM ET

TORONTO -- Indians manager Manny Acta hesitated when asked how he would characterize Fausto Carmona's performance up to this point this season. Acta did not want to describe the pitcher's showing as being inconsistent.

Toss out three ugly outings, and Carmona's season would look totally different.

"That's why I can't come out and call him inconsistent," Acta said on Tuesday. "He's had more good ones than bad ones. It's just that when he's had the rough ones, the amount of runs have really gotten to him.

"When he has struggled, he has struggled badly in those three games."

The three games Acta referred to were the April 1 and May 19 meetings with the White Sox, and Monday's loss against the Blue Jays. Combined, Carmona surrendered 25 earned runs over 12 innings.

In Carmona's other nine starts this season, the big sinkerballer has fashioned a 2.80 ERA (20 earned runs in 64 1/3 innings) for Cleveland. Another way to look at: Carmona has allowed 56 percent of his earned runs this season in only 16 percent of his total innings pitched.

Overall, Carmona -- the Tribe's No. 1 starter -- has gone 3-6 with a 5.31 ERA in 12 starts this season.

Carmona has, however, shown some improvement when it comes to WHIP (1.26 this year, compared to 1.31 in 2010), walks per nine innings (2.6 compared to 3.1), strikeouts per nine innings (5.9 compared to 5.3) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.27 compared to 1.72).

"I think he's done very well with keeping himself under control," Acta said. "It's not like he's walking a ton of guys or anything like that. It's been an inability of making certain pitches or not having consistency with his breaking balls."

I'm glad somone is not concerned about Carmona's inconsistency. What Fausto has certainly proven is that he is not a No. 1 or No. 2 starter for a contending team. Maybe Masterson is; Carrasco could be, but not this season. Tomlin's stuff isn't No. 1 or 2 material but he apparently can be a solid mid-rotation starter

Tribe needs Carmona to perform like ace

Published: Wednesday, June 01, 2011

By Jim Ingraham

JIngraham@News-Herald.com

How are they doing this?

How is this possible?

-- How are the Indians in first place in the Central Division, with, at the start of play Tuesday, the best record in the American League, when all of the following is true?

-- Their No. 1 starter, Fausto Carmona, is 3-6 with a 5.31 ERA. In his last three starts, he is 0-3 with a 10.06 ERA.

-- They have played 51 games and Grady Sizemore has started in center field in only 17 of them.

-- No. 3 hitter Shin-Soo Choo is hitting .250.

-- No. 4 hitter Carlos Santana is hitting .214.

-- Their starting third baseman, Jack Hannahan, is hitting .227.

-- All of their left fielders combined are hitting .231 with one home run and 13 RBI.

-- Going into Tuesday's game, in May, Sizemore was hitting .111 (5-for-45), Orlando Cabrera .229, Hannahan .178, Shelley Duncan .190 and Lou Marson .167.

-- Since Travis Hafner went on the disabled list, their record is 8-9 and they have scored three runs or fewer in 10 of those 17 games.

-- In their last seven losses, they have been shut out three times, outscored, 50-7, and Carmona has been the starting pitcher in three of those seven games.

It all comes back to Carmona.

And it should.

To get to the postseason, the Indians need a No. 1 starter, and right now, they don't have one. It's certainly not Carmona, who looks like he's regressed again to his little-boy-lost-in-the-woods years of 2008 and '09.

The problem with Carmona is there is no middle ground. He's either really, really good, or he's Jason Johnson.

In his two really good years, 2007 and 2010, Carmona was a combined 32-22 with a 3.41 ERA. In his two really bad years, 2008 and 2009, he was 13-19 with a 5.89 ERA.

So far this season, it's been Schizo Carmona — his hot and cold career in miniature.

In Carmona's three wins this season, he has a 1.64 ERA and opposing batters have hit .197 against him.

In his six losses he has a 10.19 ERA, and opposing teams have hit .314.

Why is this important? Because — cliché alert — you win with pitching, and the Indians' bullpen has been off-the-charts nasty.

How nasty? This nasty: Going into Tuesday's game, in a combined 81 appearances, the Indians' four top relievers — Rafael Perez, Vinnie Pestano, Tony Sipp and Joe Smith — are 7-2 with a 1.43 ERA.

How do you have the best record in the American League, despite all the negatives listed above? You have a bullpen with ERAs that look like this: Smith 1.88, Pestano 1.42, Perez 1.37 and Sipp 1.19.

The four relievers are the main reason why, from the sixth inning on, the Indians have outscored their opponents, 117-80.

And that doesn't factor in closer Chris Perez, who is 14-for-15 in save situations.

A bullpen like that will keep you in the race. But to win the race, you need a productive starting rotation led by a thoroughbred No. 1 starter — which to this point Carmona is not.

The Indians' winning percentage is more than 200 points lower in games Carmona starts than it is in games started by someone else. The Indians are 5-7 (.417) when Carmona starts, and 26-13 (.667) when anyone else starts.

That's about as ugly a profile as a No. 1 starter can have. The guy who is supposed to be leading the rotation is in reality holding it back.

In other words, so far this season, the Indians are winning in spite of their No. 1 starter, not because of him. That does not bode well for the Tribe's long-term lease on first place. Teams that win division titles almost always have big winners at the top of their rotation.

Carmona was one himself once. In 2007, the Indians won 96 games and the Central Division title with Carmona (19-8) and CC Sabathia (19-7) at the top of their rotation.

Since 2000, the team that has won the American League Central Division title has had at least one pitcher win 15 or more games in 10 of those 11 years. In eight of those 11 years, the division winning team has had a least one starter win 17 or more games.

It's June 1 and Carmona is 3-6. Does he look like a pitcher headed for 17 wins? If not, somebody is going to have to pick up the slack.

Justin Masterson? He didn't lose a game in April, but didn't win one in May. Josh Tomlin? Winning 15 to 17 games is a lot to ask of a pitcher in his first full season in a major-league rotation.

So while it may be hard at this point to envision Carmona winning 15 to 17 games this season, it may be impossible for the Indians to win if he doesn't.

Sheldon Ocker on the same subject:

Carmona is a puzzle on his bad days
By Sheldon Ocker
Beacon Journal sports writer

POSTED: 10:30 p.m. EDT, May 31, 2011

TORONTO: In two of Fausto Carmona's past three starts, he has given up a total of 15 earned runs, including Monday night, when he lasted only four innings in the Indians' 11-1 loss to the Blue Jays.
''But the time before that he worked eight solid innings [giving up four runs] against a very good [Red Sox] lineup,'' manager Manny Acta said. ''He was getting pitches up, and his breaking ball was nonexistent.
''But he's had more good outings than bad ones, so I can't call him inconsistent. It's just that in the bad ones, he's given up a lot of runs. When he's struggled, he's struggled badly.''
Acta does not think that the root of Carmona's problem lies with an inability to keep his emotions in check when things aren't going well, as was the case in past years.
''I don't think that's the case this year,'' the manager said. ''I think he's done a good job of staying in control, because he hasn't given up a ton of walks. I think it's just a matter of making pitches.''
What happened?
In the Jays' seven-run fourth inning Monday night, Orlando Cabrera couldn't find the handle on a ground ball with the bases loaded and knelt on one knee with his back to the infield, seemingly berating himself while two runners scored.
''I knew I couldn't get a double play on that ball,'' Cabrera said. ''But at least I wanted to get the guy going to second. When I couldn't pick the ball up and then had my back to the infield, I just lost focus. It was more frustration than anything.''
Did his teammates shout at him to look around?
''I didn't hear anybody yelling,'' Cabrera said. ''But nobody has to be yelling. I should know how many runners are on base.''
Feller honored
Film stars and Coast Guard veterans Beau, Jeff and Lloyd Bridges, Navy veteran and C-SPAN founder Brian Lamb, World War and Korean War Marine combat aviator and former Yankees player Jerry Coleman plus World War II Navy veteran and hall of famer Bob Feller will be honored for their service to country and community at the United States Navy Memorial's 2011 Lone Sailor Awards Dinner Sept. 22 in Washington, D.C.
The Lone Sailor Award is given to sea service veterans who have excelled in their civilian careers while displaying Navy values.
This week's winner
Akron first baseman Matt McBride has been selected Indians Minor League Player of the Week by the club.
McBride batted .370 (10-for-27) with four runs, two doubles, two home runs and seven RBI in seven games last week.
Farm facts
Scott Barnes (3-1, 5.12 ERA) gave up one earned run and four hits in five innings, and Luis Valbuena had three hits and one RBI, but Columbus lost a 7-4 decision to Durham. Jason Kipnis and Cord Phelps each had two hits, and Jared Goedert homered. . . .Clayton Cook (5-3, 3.42 ERA) worked six innings, allowing one run and one hit, as Kinston defeated Wilmington 9-1. Casey Frawley hit a grand slam.

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Sheldon Ocker can be reached at socker@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Indians blog at http://www.ohio.com/tribematters. Follow the Indians on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/ABJ_Indians. TORONTO: In two of Fausto Carmona's past three starts, he has given up a total of 15 earned runs, including Monday night, when he lasted only four innings in the Indians' 11-1 loss to the Blue Jays.

''But the time before that he worked eight solid innings [giving up four runs] against a very good [Red Sox] lineup,'' manager Manny Acta said. ''He was getting pitches up, and his breaking ball was nonexistent.

''But he's had more good outings than bad ones, so I can't call him inconsistent. It's just that in the bad ones, he's given up a lot of runs. When he's struggled, he's struggled badly.''

Acta does not think that the root of Carmona's problem lies with an inability to keep his emotions in check when things aren't going well, as was the case in past years.

''I don't think that's the case this year,'' the manager said. ''I think he's done a good job of staying in control, because he hasn't given up a ton of walks. I think it's just a matter of making pitches.''

What happened?

In the Jays' seven-run fourth inning Monday night, Orlando Cabrera couldn't find the handle on a ground ball with the bases loaded and knelt on one knee with his back to the infield, seemingly berating himself while two runners scored.

''I knew I couldn't get a double play on that ball,'' Cabrera said. ''But at least I wanted to get the guy going to second. When I couldn't pick the ball up and then had my back to the infield, I just lost focus. It was more frustration than anything.''

Did his teammates shout at him to look around?

''I didn't hear anybody yelling,'' Cabrera said. ''But nobody has to be yelling. I should know how many runners are on base.''

Sizemore, Santana help Tribe get back on track with win over Blue Jays
By Sheldon Ocker
TORONTO: That's more like it. This is the way a first-place team is supposed to play.

The Indians stitched together a fine garment of a game with efficient pitching, timely hitting and (semi) solid defense to defeat the Toronto Blue Jays 6-3 Tuesday night at Rogers Centre.

For the first time since his return from the disabled list last Friday, Grady Sizemore swung like the hitter who tore up American League pitching through mid-April, and Carlos Santana interrupted (or ended) his season-long slump with three hits.

In addition, Michael Brantley made his major-league debut at designated hitter pay off by delivering a double, triple and single.

Mitch Talbot looked like a different pitcher than the one who gave up eight runs in three innings to the Boston Red Sox last week. Talbot was charged with one run and six hits in 62/3 innings.

''On defense, we looked alive,'' Talbot (2-1, 4.50 ERA) said. ''On offense, we looked alive. That's what we did earlier in the season. Hopefully, we're getting back on track.''

The Tribe came into the game with five losses in the past six games.

''We bounced back and swung the bats better,'' manager Manny Acta said. ''The first three innings Mitch was a little shaky with his control, but later on he threw more strikes and got deep into the game.''

With a little better judgment by Orlando Cabrera and Shin-Soo Choo, Talbot would not have given up a run, nor would have Joe Smith, who followed him to the mound.

Talbot's only real problem was keeping leadoff batter Yunel Escobar off base. Escobar singled once and drew all three of Talbot's walks. This is not a big deal in and of itself, but it enabled the 2011 version of Babe Ruth, Jose Bautista, to come to the plate four times with at least one runner on base.

Allowing this to happen is the baseball equivalent of playing Russian roulette with an AK-47.

Asked if he ever tried to pitch around Bautista, Talbot said, ''No, for the most part I tried to go right at him and make him hit my pitch.''

Bautista started the game with a major-league high 20 home runs and a .356 batting average and got a chance to drive in five runners. To Talbot's credit, only one of the runners reached the plate, ironically because of a Bautista single that never left the infield.

With two outs and Corey Patterson on second in the seventh inning, Bautista slapped a ground ball deep in the hole at second off Smith, who had just relieved Talbot.

Cabrera did a good job catching up to the ball, but instead of holding onto it, he tried to make an impossible throw that was wide of first for an error, allowing Patterson to score and Bautista to take second.

Had Cabrera eaten the ball, there would have been runners on first and third and still two outs. The next batter, Juan Rivera, hit a lazy fly ball to short right field that Choo misjudged. The ball fell to earth in front of him for a tainted single that scored Bautista with an unearned run.

In the end, all of this didn't matter, except to make the lines of Talbot and Smith look a little more messy than was necessary.

As a footnote, when Escobar came up in the ninth, he didn't fool around, hitting his sixth home run of the year off Tony Sipp with nobody on base.

For most of the evening, the Tribe's defense was admirable, in particular Jack Hannahan's leaping catch of Jayson Nix's line drive to third and Matt LaPorta's flying catch of Eric Thames' scorching liner down the first base line.

''Those are the kinds of things that got us here, defense and pitching,'' Acta said.

The Indians took a 3-0 lead after three innings, but the killer inning for the Tribe was the fifth. That's when a walk to Travis Buck, RBI doubles by Santana and Sizemore and Cabrera's run-scoring single put three more runs on the board.

''The main thing is that all those good at-bats came with two outs that inning,'' Acta said. ''We needed as many runs as we could get, because they can swing the bats.''

Santana delivered two doubles, a single, two RBI and he scored twice. Sizemore doubled twice, had two RBI and scored a run.