That's him. Long ago 2nd rounder, or maybe it was a supplemental 1st rounder

Cleveland Indians construct model loge, could be blueprint for renovation at Progressive Field

Published: Wednesday, July 27, 2011, 10:00 PM Updated: Wednesday, July 27, 2011, 10:25 PM
By Andrew John, The Plain Dealer

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Renovations at Progressive Field, hinted at last year by Cleveland Indians officials, may have begun with construction of a model loge completed last week.

Indians President Mark Shapiro said the organization is treating the suite much like a concept car. He said it will showcase the latest in state-of-the-art technology and luxury, a gauge for feedback before going forward with full-scale loge reconstruction.

Changes include the addition of a 42-inch flat screen TV, a smaller version of the flat screen for the private restroom, a built-in team memorabilia display, updated decor and a floor-to-ceiling sliding glass door that creates an open-air feel to the part of the unit that faces the playing field.

The stadium opened in 1994 as Jacobs Field, a jewel of major league ballparks. But years are unkind to parks, and some believe the stadium is at the age where improvements are needed.
"The shelf life of a new stadium is getting shorter and shorter," said Bill Dorsey, chairman of the Association of Luxury Suite Directors in Cincinnati. "You can get outdated real quick if you don't reinvest in your facilities."

Tribe officials talked last year of the need for looking at upgrading heating, lighting and other internal systems, as well as possibly changes to the park's exterior.

Shapiro said loge improvements may or may not play into the larger picture.

Bob DiBiasio, Indians vice president for public relations, said that the organization paid for the model.
Loges take on a life of their own at sporting facilities, for it is the place where people and companies with money can enjoy the game and entertain guests.

Shapiro said the Indians aren't competing against the newer or updated stadiums in the league, but are battling for the corporate and entertainment dollars in Northeast Ohio.

Dorsey said with the way home entertainment has advanced, luxury boxes are an even tougher sell than they were just 10 years ago. Fans can have a great game-watching experience without going to the park.
And, he said, stadiums are compared with those in other cities.

"In a way, professional sports teams do feel some pressure to keep up with the Joneses," Dorsey said. "They're all trying to find the best way to give fans the best game experience."

Team officials are letting prospective renters tour the new model, but believe the most valuable feedback will come from those who rent the suite for a game.

DiBiasio said the model was constructed to better understand people's likes, dislikes and how they use the suite. He said team officials are hoping it will "contribute to what we hope will be a broader suite renovation and re-design in the coming years."

Progressive Field is now one of the older parks in the major leagues. Of the 30 stadiums, only 11 are older than Cleveland's -- and six of those have either undergone a major renovation or their cities are building new.

Shapiro said plans for a full-scale renovation of Progressive Field haven't made it past the discussion phase.
How major repairs will be paid for has not been determined. Phone calls to Gateway, the nonprofit development group that operates the ballpark and nearby basketball arena, were not returned.
John Kohlstrand, a spokesman for Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald, said he didn't have enough information to comment, but wasn't aware the Indians have asked for county money.

Progressive Field is now one of the older parks in the major leagues. Of the 30 stadiums, only 11 are older than Cleveland's -- and six of those have either undergone a major renovation or their cities are building new.

Hard to believe. Seems like onl yesterday it was brand new!

Ocker:

CLEVELAND: It was almost bound to happen. Not that it was inevitable, but the way the Indians’ attack has been dissolving into near-invisibility, it was no surprise that Ervin Santana threw the first no-hitter of his life against them Wednesday afternoon at Progressive Field.

Not only did the Tribe fail to produce even one single, but also the Woeful Wahoos didn’t hit a ball with authority, nor did a Los Angeles Angels defender have to save the no-no by making a spectacular play.

Even so, the Indians actually led 1-0 before falling 3-1.

Santana has the kind of live arm that lends itself to pitching extraordinary games, but in the past, he has had problems with his command.

Not this time. He threw only 105 pitches, 76 (72 percent) for strikes, which is well above the norm.

“He was terrific,” Indians manager Manny Acta said. “He had a great fastball and slider. Regardless of what our lineup has done [lately], he deserves a lot of credit. He always has had good stuff. Today he was very aggressive in the zone.”

But about that lineup. In the past seven games, the Tribe has posted a 1-6 record and .170 batting average with only seven doubles and two home runs.

During this span, the Indians have scored 13 runs, and only eight have been earned. One of the five unearned runs came in the first inning Wednesday.

Ezequiel Carrera led off with a ground ball to short that was muffed by Erick Aybar for an error. Carrera stole second, took third on Asdrubal Cabrera’s one-out grounder to second and scored on a wild pitch.

At that point, it appeared that Santana would struggle with the kind of issues that have plagued him in the past. Not that he felt the unearned run was a bad omen.

“I didn’t worry about it,” he said. “I just try to put zeroes up on the board.”

He retired the next 22 batters before giving up his only walk, to Lonnie Chisenhall, with one out in the eighth inning. After that, he finished off the Tribe with five consecutive outs, three on strikeouts, of which he had 10 for the game.

“What Ervin did today, well, you have to really appreciate it,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. “It was a close game. He was under pressure the whole time. But his fastball command was as good as I’ve seen it since he came to the major leagues.”

In addition to falling on their swords at the plate, the Indians failed to catch or to throw the ball, committing five errors, and were undermined by Carlos Santana’s passed ball.

Incredibly, the first three errors didn’t affect the scoring, even though two occurred in the same inning, when Cabrera and Chisenhall bungled plays in the third inning. Austin Kearns’ throwing error in the fourth also didn’t help the enemy.

However, David Huff eventually succumbed to his teammates’ blunders.

Before that, Peter Bourjos led off the fifth with a triple, and Mike Trout’s sacrifice fly tied the score. But despite giving up a two-out double to Maicer Izturis, Huff got out of the inning without further damage.

Torii Hunter led off the sixth with a double and took third on Vernon Wells’ one-out single. But Mark Trumbo struck out, and Acta brought in Joe Smith, who watched a pitch get away from Santana for a passed ball that scored an unearned run charged to Huff.

“He dropped it then kicked it,” Acta said of the passed ball.

Huff (1-1, 0.71 ERA) yielded only one earned run and five hits in 5‚ innings. It was his second start since being called up from Triple-A Columbus.

“He’s more aggressive, he has better velocity and has developed a cutter,” Acta said. “It’s only two starts, but he looks good.”

Huff had to sit and watch helplessly, almost as helplessly as his lodge brothers caved in to Ervin Santana.

“Hats off to Santana,” Huff said. “He pitched well. But for me, it’s nice to be able to go out there and throw a fastball by guys instead of having them foul it off.”

Two more errors were to come, both in the ninth inning with Chris Perez on the mound. Santana made one by throwing the ball into center field trying to keep Howie Kendrick from stealing second. Kendrick eventually scored another unearned run on Bourjos’ single. Matt LaPorta also made a throwing error that did not affect the scoring.

Acta indicated that young players making errors should be expected.

“You can’t have it both ways,” he said. “We brought these guys up to help the offense. You can’t expect them to play defense as well as the guys they replaced.”

Of course, this was not the day to emphasize that the Tribe novices are here to put a jolt in the offense.

How did it feel to be the victims of a no-hit pitching performance?

Michael Brantley brought out a time-tested cliché.

“It’s disappointing that we didn’t win the game,” he said. “That’s all I can say. He pitched a great game. They were on, and we weren’t.”

Maybe someday. But will it be soon?

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- When reporters approached Asdrubal Cabrera following Wednesday's 3-1 loss to the Angels, he spread his hands and said, "Not today, guys."

Perfect.

Talk about a straight line to set-up Ervin Santana's no-hitter. A-Cab put this one on a tee. "Not today" covered the offense, which scored an unearned run, but didn't come close to getting a hit.

It covered the defense, which almost made it completely around the horn in posting a season-high five errors. First baseman Matt LaPorta, Cabrera at short, third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall and catcher Carlos Santana (two wayward throws) all made errors. Santana, perhaps trying to break the pattern, added a passed ball in the sixth inning that allowed Torii Hunter to score the go-ahead run from third.

"Not today." Never have two words said so much with so little about a team that is 20-30 since June 1 and seems determined to waste every good pitching effort that comes its way.

Santana, 0-6 lifetime against the Indians before Wednesday, struck out 10, walked one and allowed an unearned run. He threw 105 pitches, 76 (72 percent) for strikes, in completing the first no-hitter of his career.

After Ezequiel Carrera started the game by reaching base on an error by shortstop Erick Aybar and scored on a stolen base, ground out and wild pitch, Santana retired 22 straight before Chisenhall walked with one out in the eighth. Santana (6-8, 3.47) collected himself and retired the last five Indians.

"Santana was tremendous," said manager Manny Acta. "He had a good fastball and a good slider. ... He just attacked the strike zone and we played very sloppy in the field."

Travis Buck pinch-hit for Austin Kearns to start the ninth. Santana threw a called third strike past him. Carrera grounded out to second and Michael Brantley flied out to center to end it.

"It's the first time I've ever played on a team that's been no-hit," said Brantley. "It's disappointing we didn't win the game."

Brantley's one thought in the final at bat was to get on base. "If I get on base, the tying run comes to plate," he said. "I just wanted to get my job done."

Lefties were hitting .258 (74-for-287) with six homers against Santana at the start of the game compared to .239 (58-for-243) with 11 homers by right-handers. Acta put seven lefties in the lineup, including two switch-hitters. They went 0-for-22 with six strikeouts.

"He locked the lefties up with his backdoor slider," said Acta.

The closest the Indians came to a hit was Jason Kipnis' hard grounder to second to start the sixth. Howie Kendrick made a diving stop and threw Kipnis out by a foot.

The Indians clang-fest accounted for two of the Angels runs. Hunter broke a 1-1 tie when he scored from third base on Carlos Santana's passed ball in the sixth. First, Santana dropped Joe Smith's pitch. Then he kicked it down the first-base line.

"Tomorrow is a new day," said Santana. "You have to stay positive."

In the ninth, Kendrick walked against Chris Perez, stole second and went to third on Santana's second throwing error. Peter Bourjos singled to make it 3-1.

"We had five errors," said LaPorta. "Some of them silly mistakes. We just can't have that if we want to be a championship ballclub."

The no-hitter was the first thrown against the Indians in Cleveland since Toronto's Dave Stieb on Sept. 2, 1990. Acta said Santana was good, but wasn't the best pitcher they've faced this year.

"He was really good, but we've guys throw harder," he said. "We've seen guys with good breaking balls, too. The first two guys [Dan Haren and Jered Weaver] we saw in this series have good breaking balls.

"A lot of times on a no-hitter, you do have to have good stuff, but not necessarily your best stuff. But he was terrific today. ... Regardless of how our lineup is doing, you can't take credit away from him."

The Indians have scored seven runs in five games on this homestand.

David Huff (1-1, 0.71) allowed two runs, one earned, in 5 2/3 innings to take the loss.

Indians Very Close To Acquiring Kosuke Fukudome

By Tim Dierkes [July 28 at 9:35am CST]
9:35am: The prospects the Indians are sending are "one upper level, one lower level," tweets Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

9:13am: The Cubs will receive two prospects for Fukudome, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney, and a deal is likely to be done by today's game at 1:10pm central time. Olney adds that the Cubs are picking up more than half of the $4.7MM owed to Fukudome, while SI's Jon Heyman tweets that they'll pay the "vast majority." Jayson Stark tweets that the only hangup is determining minor perks for Fukudome in exchange for waiving his no-trade clause.

The Indians are still working on other things, tweets Olney.

Minor perks for Fukodome?

Where's the best sushi in NE Ohio?
Free pet care while he's on the road?
Back rubs between at bats?

The quality of what we traded is like the quality of what we received last year when we traded Westbrook, Peralta, less than we got for Keans.

The Indians won't improve much with Kosuke Fukudome, but they didn't give up much, Keith Law writes

Subscriber to espn gets more writeup. I'm too cheap.

"We feel we're better today than we were yesterday," said GM Chris Antonetti. "Kosuke Fukudome has a chance to help us offensively and defensively. He has a history of getting on base and is a good defender."
Antonetti said he will continue to try and improve the ballclub. The deadline for making trades without waivers is Sunday at 4 p.m. The deadline for making trades after acquiring waivers on players is Aug. 31.
"We're going to look at anyway we can improve our run scoring and run prevention," said Antonetti. "Fukudome helps us with both those things."
Fukudome is in the final year of a four-year $48 million deal with the Cubs.
When he signed his original deal with the Cubs, Fukudome had a limited no-trade clause. The Indians were one of the teams on Fukudome's no-trade list, but through neogtiation, he agreed to come to Cleveland.
"I won't go into details, but through our conversations with the Cubs, we found out what was important to Fukudome," said Antonetti, regarding negotiations to lift the no-trade clause. "I think the idea of playing for a contender and getting regular at-bats appealed to him."
Fukudome is a free agent at the end of the year. He'll be a Type B free agent. If the Indians offer him arbitration and he declines, they could get a draft pick as compensation next June as long as he signs with another big league club. Of course, that depends on if there are any changes in the compensation rules when a new basic agreement is approved.
The current deal expires on Dec. 11.
Look for Fukudome to start in right field for the Tribe. Since Choo broke his left thumb on June 24 after getting hit by a Jonathan Sanchez pitch, the Indians have been platooning Travis Buck and Austin Kearns.
Buck was designated for assignment shortly after the trade was made official to make room for Fukudome.
"We feel he'll play mostly in right field," said Antonetti.
Choo said Wednesday he expects to be back playing by Aug. 15. When the Indians have talked about Choo's return, they've mentioned early September.
Fukudome has been the Cubs right fielder since 2008. In just over 3 1/2 seasons with the Cubs, Fukudome hit .262 with 37 homers, 169 RBI and 236 runs. He has a career .369 on base percentage, .402 slugging percentage and a .772 OPS with Chicago.
The Indians will get Fukudome when he's hot. He's hitting .429 (6-for-14) in his last seven games. He spent 69 games this season in the leadoff spot, hitting .268 (71-for-265) with 29 runs.
He's hitting .273 against righties and .273 against lefties.
Antonetti said he'll let manager Manny Acta decide where Fukudome hits in the lineup.
"He told me he's comfortable hitting first or second. He's even hit fifth a lot," said Antonetti.
Abreu, 22, is hitting .243 (82-for-377) with 16 doubles, five triples, 12 homers, 34 RBI and 42 runs for Class A Kinston. He's a 6-3, 182-pound outfielder.
Smith, 25, is the brother of former Indians No.1 pick Corey Smith. He's 2-3 with a 4.50 ERA in 34 games at Class AAA Columbus. Smith is 6-1 and 219 pounds. He's been in the Indians system for seven years.



Related topics: chicago cubs, cleveland indians, kosuke fukudome

"After achieving stardom in Japan, Irabu’s contract was purchased by the San Diego Padres in early 1997. Irabu wanted no part of San Diego, however, and a trade to the Yankees was arranged. Irabu earned World Series rings with the Yankees in both 1998 and 1999, but he fell far short of expectations and drew the ire of George Steinbrenner who famously dubbed him the “fat toad.” The Yankees shipped him off to Montreal for Jake Westrbook following the 1999 season.

A Westbrook connection with the Fat Toad! In my best Johnny Carson voice: "I did not know that!"

From cubs.com

MILWAUKEE -- The Cubs began preparations for next season on Thursday when they dealt outfielder Kosuke Fukudome to the Indians for two Minor Leaguers.

The right fielder, who won Cubs fans over on Opening Day 2008 when he went 3-for-3 with a game-tying home run, had a limited no-trade clause and the Indians were one of the teams on the list he did not want to go to. However, Fukudome decided to waive the clause and accept the deal.

"It was a difficult decision to make, and not simply because I was here for a long time, but also it's a different league," Fukudome said Thursday through interpreter Hiro Aoyama.

Fukudome's family gave him the go-ahead. The Cubs approached him about a possible deal after the All-Star break, and he agreed a couple days ago, he said.

"In the end, Kosuke looked at this as an opportunity for him to come to a team that's competing for the postseason and get some regular at-bats," Indians general manager Chris Antonetti said. "I think that was an attractive alternative for him."

The left-handed hitter is owed about $4.7 million for the rest of the season, and the Cubs will pick up all but $775,000 of that.

Moving Fukudome opens right field for Tyler Colvin, the Cubs' first-round pick in 2006 who hit 20 home runs last season. He joined the team in Milwaukee in time for the series finale against the Brewers on Thursday.

"Obviously, [Fukudome] did do some good things here and he played a lot of times very solidly," Cubs general manager Jim Hendry said. "The first year, he made the All-Star team. There were some tough times, too, and bad endings. He didn't play as well in the second half.

"He was a great defender," Hendry said. "In a perfect world, we thought the bat would've played a little larger scale when we signed him. He's a quality guy, good teammate and we wish him nothing but the best. It's a good opportunity for him."

Fukudome said he wants to play baseball in the United States next season.

"It's a good thing for him," Hendry said. "He gets in a pennant race with a good organization and he can showcase himself in a little bit more of a limelight situation since they're in it, and hopefully that helps him for next year. It was a good ending for everyone."

The Indians were in need of outfield help with both Shin-Soo Choo and Grady Sizemore on the disabled list.

Fukudome, 34, was batting .273 in his fourth season with the Cubs, with three homers, 15 doubles, two triples, 13 RBIs and a .374 on-base percentage. He was the Cubs' first Japanese player, signing a four-year deal in December 2007.

In exchange, the Cubs acquired outfielder Abner Abreu and pitcher Carlton Smith. Abreu, a right-handed hitter from the Dominican Republic, was batting .244 in 91 games with high Class A Kinston in the Carolina League. He had 12 homers, 16 doubles, five triples and 35 RBIs.

Smith, 25, a right-handed pitcher, was 2-3 with two saves and a 4.50 ERA in 34 games for Triple-A Columbus. He has 46 strikeouts in 46 innings, and teams are batting .259 against him.

In 2008, Fukudome's first season, he made his only All-Star team and the Cubs made the playoffs.

"The first year we were in the playoffs was something special for me," Fukudome said. "It was the first year I was in the United States and playing for a Major League Baseball team. It was unfortunate I couldn't help much, but hopefully the team is going to do well."

He admitted to not knowing much about Cleveland.

"I know there is a lake, Lake Erie, and I know it looks like Chicago," he said.

"He's the ultimate professional, class act, happy and healthy and ready to play every day," Cubs manager Mike Quade said. "He had respect for the game, for himself and for the organization. I will miss him. For all the lineup changes and the stuff we've done, you could count on him in the leadoff role.

"We'll miss him, and I'll be a big Cleveland fan for the rest of the year. We'll miss him, and I hope he plays well."

There is one thing Fukudome wants to do, and that's say goodbye to the right-field bleacher fans.

"I really enjoyed them, and if I have an opportunity to stand in the same position again, I'd really like to do it," he said.

"I know there is a lake, Lake Erie, and I know it looks like Chicago," he said

True on count one.

Kind of true on count two. I always consider Chicago a really big Cleveland.

Here ya go, Civ. If there is ever anything over at ESPN Insider you want just give me a shout. You post enough minor league info that I will surely pay you back when I can.

.

Keith Law Blog

Indians get marginal gain from Fukudome

July, 28, 2011

12:37 PM ET

The Cleveland Indians have acquired Kosuke Fukudome from the Chicago Cubs in exchange for a couple of fringy prospects.

Fukudome has never produced anything close to the power he was expected to show, preferring instead to go the other way and slap the ball on the ground. His main value as a hitter is in his batting eye, as he's patient and gets on base at a good clip against right-handed pitchers. He's best used in an outfield corner, where his defense is below-average but not fatal, and if he plays every day against right-handers, he should have a caddy at least against tough southpaws. Cleveland could use his ability to get on base with all the injuries they've suffered in their outfield, but this is a marginal improvement that might not add up to an extra win this year.

In exchange, the Cubs get reliever Carlton Smith and outfielder Abner Abreu. Abreu is at least an interesting lottery ticket, sporting awful plate discipline but good bat speed and some power when he gets his arms extended. He's just 21 and is already repeating high Class A, so he's been moved aggressively, but has also shown very little development in his ability to recognize balls from strikes -- and the Cubs have not had success in teaching impatient hitters how to work the count. Smith is a situational right-hander who has given up a .292/.395/.508 line to left-handed hitters this year and might get a few cups of coffee if all goes well.