Giles called a 15 year career to an end Thursday, citing the inability to play the game at the level he expects of himself, a decision that is not heard of enough in professional sports today.

Drafted at the age of 18 by the Cleveland Indians in 1989, Giles would first reach the major leagues in 1995 with a six game cameo appearance for the club.  By 1997, he had become a regular in the Indians’ lineup and was beginning to develop as a reliable outfielder and hitter.  Playing all three outfield positions and DH over the next few seasons, it was his arrival in Pittsburgh (via trade for Ricardo Rincon)  in 1999 that was a turning point in his career.

Giles would thrive as a member of the Pirates from 1999 through August of 2003.  Becoming one of the best hitting outfielders of that time frame, he would reach two all star games and solidify his offensive numbers.  In 1999, Giles broke through at the plate posting a career high .315 Batting Average while clearing the fencing 39 times (another career high) and driving in 115.  The following season in 2000, he would post 123 RBI, the most of his career, while tying a career high Batting Average of .315 and hitting 35 home runs.  He would continue that level of play in 2001 hitting .309 with 37 Home Runs and 95 RBI.  Showing that his offensive output was not a fluke, he would hit .298 with 38 Home Runs and 103 RBI in 2002.

2003 would bring change to Brian Giles career and the ballpark he would call home for the remainder of his major league career.  In August of 2003, Giles would be traded to the San Diego Padres.  Many fans have forgotten the details of the trade or just how highly sought after Giles was at that point in his career.  On that day, the Padres would send Oliver Perez, a player to be named later (Corey Stewart) and Jason Bay to the Pirates in exchange for Brian Giles.  Giles would patrol the outfield for the Padres for the remainder of his career, from August 2003 until 2009.

His numbers never quite reached the level that they did in Pittsburgh.  He would consistently hit in the high .200’s and post home run totals between 12 and 23 home runs as a member of the San Diego squad.  In 2009, he would be limited to only 61 games due to injuries to his knees.

He accepted a non-roster invitation to the Los Angeles Dodgers’ spring training in 2010 and stated immediately that it would not take long for him to determine if his knees would allow him to continue his career.  On March 11, 2010, Giles decided that he could not compete at the level that he holds himself to, and would retire from major league baseball.

His career numbers feature a .291 Batting Average, 1897 hits, 287 Home Runs, 1078 RBI, and three all star appearances.  Giles path from here will not lead him into Cooperstown, but for Pirates and Padres fans, he will remain in stories from father to son to grandson for years to come.

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Bill Ivie is the Content Editor for the St, Louis Cardinals on BaseballDigest.com. Follow him on Twitter — twitter.com/poisonwilliam

• Justin Masterson, RHP, Boston.  Masterson is more or less a known quantity at this point, as he has posted a 3.76 ERA in 160 1/3 MLB innings.  Masterson has primarily pitched out of the bullpen for the Red Sox, but will likely be given every chance to win a rotation spot in Cleveland for 2010.  Masterson was 2-2 in his 6 starts for Boston in 2009, with an ERA of 5.48.  His overall ERA for 2009 is almost a full run lower at 4.50.  Prior to 2009, Baseball Prospectus’ prospect guru Kevin Goldstein listed Masterson as the #6 talent in the Red Sox organization aged 25 and under, ahead of Daniel Bard, Michael Bowden, Josh Reddick and Ryan Westmoreland.

• Nick Hagadone, LHP, Low-A Greenville.  Hagadone had Tommy John surgery in 2008, and the Sox have been understandably careful with him since.  A 6′5″, 230lb southpaw out of the University of Washington, Hagadone sits between 94-96 with his fastball, and can touch 98.  He compliments that heat with a curveball that projects to be plus, and is developing a changeup as well.  Hagadone was the Sox 1st round pick in 2007 (sandwich pick, #55 overall), and a guy that many scouts are high on.  Back in May, Peter Gammons was suggesting that the Sox would never move Hagadone because of his high ceiling.  His main issue at this point is commanding his pitches in the strike zone.  He is 0-2 with a 2.52 ERA in 10 appearances this season, and all 7 of his earned runs were given up in 2 of those appearances.  He has 32 K’s and 14 BB in 25 his 25 innings.  Hagadone just started pitching again in June, and will likely report to Low-A Lake County or High-A Kinston.  If he makes it through 2009 healthy, he could jump straight to AA Akron next year out of spring training. 

• Bryan Price, RHP, High-A Salem.  Price is a power righthanded arm who pitched primarily out of the bullpen in college at Rice, but the Red Sox were convinced his future was as a starter so they moved him to the rotation.  A supplemental 1st rounder in 2008 (#45 overall), Price throws a fastball that sits between 92-95, and he mixes in a power slider that can flash plus to go along with a still-developing changeup.  He started 2009 in Low-A Greenville before being moved up to High-A Salem.  His numbers in Greenville were much better than Salem, as he posted a 2.45 ERA in Low-A vs. a 6.54 ERA in High-A.  In 96 1/3 combined innings, Price has struck out 97 and walked 31. 

Rafael Betancourt, Ryan Garko, Cliff Lee and now Victor Martinez have all been moved in the past few weeks as Indians GM Mark Shapiro has gone into full-on rebuild mode.  If you look at the players coming the Indians way, you will see an extreme emphasis on power pitching.  This is in stark contrast to the guys like Jeremy Sowers, Aaron Laffey, Scott Lewis and even David Huff who have been the Indians pitching prospects in the past couple of years.  Shapiro has gone to great lengths to acquire a number of projectable arms who have demonstrated an ability to miss bats.  I support the change in philosophy, and I think that several of these guys have the ability to make an impact at the major league level in the near future.  There is a new “plan” in place, and Shapiro is going all-out to rebuild with an eye on 2011.

·     Carlos Carrasco, RHP with AAA Lehigh Valley.  Carrasco was struggling in AAA this year after a strong performance there to close out last season.  His line this year is a so-so 6-9 with a 5.18 ERA and in 20 starts.  He does have 112 K’s and 38 BB in his 114 2/3’s innings pitched, which is impressive.  Carrasco will likely report directly to Cleveland and slot into the Indians rotation for the rest of 2009. Carrasco was rated as either the #1 or #2 prospect in the Phillies system entering 2009, but his disappointing campaign at AAA has him pushed down to the #4 or #5 ranking at this point, as he has been passed by Kyle Drabek and others.

·     Lou Marson, C with AAA Lehigh Valley.  Marson is a puzzling acquisition for the Indians on the surface.  Marson is a low-power, high-OBP catcher who profiles as a Jason Kendall type guy in the majors.  Marson is now the 4^th best catcher in the Indians system behind Victor Martinez, Kelly Shoppach and Carlos Santana.  With defensive specialist Wyatt Toregas having a solid offensive season at AAA Columbus and super-utility guy Chris Giminez finding playing time in Cleveland, it is difficult to see where Marson fits in the organization at this point.  The inclusion of Marson in the deal makes me think that Victor and or Kelly Shoppach will also be on the move before the calendar reads August.

·     Jason Donald, IF with AAA Lehigh Valley.  Donald had a solid AA campaign last year, hitting 14 HR and posting an OPS over .800.  This year in AAA though, he has just 1 HR and an OPS under .700.  Donald is a solid but not spectacular defender at 2B, SS and 3B and profiles as a utility infielder at the big league level.  Look for him to be a cheaper, taller version of Jamey Carroll for the Indians, possibly as soon as this year if Carroll ends up getting moved. 

·     Jason Knapp, RHP with Low-A Lakewood.  Knapp is really the key to the deal and has the highest ceiling of any of the players the Indians received.  Knapp has been shut down with arm issues, but prior to that he struck out an eye-popping 111 batters in 85 1/3 innings.  Knapp is a big, young, projectable power arm and basically serves as a lottery ticket for the Indians at this point.  The payoff could be huge, but it will be well down the road if ever.  As Indians fans have seen with Adam Miller, all the talent in the world doesn’t assure success if the injuries start to pile up.  Knapp has star potential, but a lot could happen between now and then. 

This trade is not playing well in Cleveland right now, and for good reason.  Unless GM Mark Shapiro has a couple of surprise moves in store, the team is basically admitting that they won’t be contending in 2010.  This is a frustrating turn of events for a team that was picked by many to win the Central Division in 2009.  As I alluded to earlier, the addition of Marson means it is likely that we will see Victor Martinez pack his bags and be the next man out of town (likely to Boston), which will be an even bigger blow to a frustrated fan base.  Martinez has stated his love for Cleveland and his desire to retire as an Indian, which isn’t something that Cleveland fans get to hear too often.  If Vic is moved, look for Marson and Toregas to hold down the catching position until super-prospect Carlos Santana is ready.

I am as optimistic of an Indians fan as you will find, but even I am struggling with the logic of this deal.  It seems like a straight salary dump for a team that I really thought could contend in 2010.  The package Philly gave up was not a “Godfather” offer along the lines of the Bartolo Colon deal in 2002.  I have a lot of trouble thinking the Indians couldn’t have gotten a similar package next year at this time if the 2010 team struggled.  A Cy Young caliber pitcher with an affordable team option for 2010, Lee should have been moved only if there was a Kershaw-type pitcher included in the deal.  I just don’t see the necessity to pull the trigger on this deal at this time. 

Now that the Indians have started the selling process, look for Victor Martinez, Kelly Shoppach, Kerry Wood, Jamey Carroll and Carl Pavano to be aggressively shopped before the deadline.  Shoppach, Carroll, Pavano and even Wood could be moved in August as they would have a decent chance to clear waivers.  In the meantime, Indians fans will at least be treated to the development of Matt LaPorta, Michael Brantley, Luis Valbuena and the rest of the young, exciting players in the organization. 

I had a chance to talk to the Bowie Baysox coaching staff before last night’s game to get their thoughts on Carmona.  By way of background, Baysox manager Brad Komminsk managed the Aeros when Carmona was pitching in Akron, so he has a history with Fausto and has seen him at/near his best.

When I asked Komminsk what he thought about Fausto’s start, the first thing he said was, “that is just not the same Fausto.”  He said that Fausto used to be a power pitcher, aggressively attacking hitters with his fastball to set up his devastating sinker as his out pitch.  He thinks that Carmona is a good 8 MPH slower on average with his pitches, and is trying to be a finesse guy.  He mentioned a couple of times that all Carmona really did was do a good job getting a poor-hitting AA team out for 7 innings (Bowie’s roster doesn’t have much in the way of position player prospects now that Brandon Snyder has been called up to AAA).  I asked both he and hitting coach Moe Hill if they told their hitters to make any adjustments for Fausto (lay off the sinker, make him throw strikes etc), and they both said no.

Komminsk, Hill and pitching coach Larry McCall all said that his sinker was nothing special Tuesday night.  McCall did say that Carmona’s slider was better Tuesday night than he remembered, but he couldn’t understand why Carmona has gotten away from throwing his changeup, which McCall thought could be an out pitch for him.  McCall and Hill agreed with Komminsk that Carmona had gotten away from his power-pitching mentality;  McCall even went as far as to say that Carmona looked like a “right-handed Jeremy Sowers out there.”  Ouch.  Komminsk and Hill both said that the strike zone was “huge” in the game for Carmona, and Komminsk said he thought that Carlos Santana framed the ball well enough behind the plate to get Carmona a number of borderline pitches that shouldn’t have been called strikes.

Komminsk seemed almost frustrated with Carmona’s outing.  He said that Carmona was one of the best pitchers he has coached, and can’t understand why he has gotten away from the power pitching mentality that made him so successful.  McCall closed our conversation by telling me that he thought Carmona was better when he saw him pitch for the K-Tribe several years ago in Kinston than he was last night.

On a lighter note, Komminsk talked a little bit about some of the Aeros alumni currently with the Indians.  He said that Victor was one of his favorite players ever, and saw his success at the major league level coming a mile away.  He said that Sizemore will “play through anything,” which is why he must have really been hurting to go on the DL this year.  I was going to ask him for his thoughts on Jhonny Peralta but he beat me to it, bringing him up with a smile and saying he enjoyed coaching him.  Komminsk thinks that if Sizemore comes back healthy next year, the Indians are contenders.

Special thanks to the Baysox PR staff for setting up the interview and many thanks to the Baysox coaching staff for taking the time before the game to talk.

• After struggling at Kinston and Lake County this year, John Allman has hit in six of the first seven games for Mahoning Valley and been on base in all seven.  Allman was signed as an UDFA out of Kansas in 2008 and hit .315 in 27 games last year in the Gulf Coast League.  The 24-year old OF/DH was a walk-on for the Jayhawks, but managed to play his way to a 2nd team All-Big 12 selection his junior year.  Allman is a “grinder” in every sense of the word…he works hard, plays good defense and does everything he can to maximize his talent.  The odds are against him making it to the bigs as a UDFA, but all he can do is continue to hit and take advantage of the opportunities he is given. 

• The Indians 9th round pick in 2008, Clayton Cook has started two games for the Scrappers this year, and has been impressive.  Cook has allowed just one ER in 10 2/3 IP, and has struck out 12 and walked 4.  Cook was selected out of Amarillo High School in Texas, and doesn’t turn 19 until next month.  His fastball sits in the low 90’s, but he will likely add velocity as he matures and fills out his 6′3″ frame.  Cook had a 2.52 ERA last year in the Gulf Coast league, and struck out 26 in his 25 innings there.  If he can continue to pitch this well in Mahoning Valley, look for him in Lake County before the end of 2009. 

• Saving my favorite for last, Nick Weglarz has been red hot for Akron lately.  He has hit in 17 of his last 21 games, including 10 of his last 11.  During those last 11 games, he has gone 15-36 (.416) with 4 HR, 17 RBI and 10 walks.  He has homered in 3 straight games, and now has 11 on the season.  Wegz has put together two very productive months after an April that we’d all like to forget, and his season OPS is up to .898 with no signs of slowing down.  To give you an idea of just how bad his April was, his OPS in April was lower than his OBP in either May or June.  His walk rate is at a fantastic 17.2%, and his batting average w/RISP is .377 on the season.  I could go on all day about the big Canadian’s performance this season, but I don’t want him to take out a restraining order before the Aeros come to Bowie next week to take on the Baysox.  Be sure and tune into or set your DVR’s for the Future’s Game in St. Louis on July 12 at 2pm to see both Weglarz and Carlos Santana playing for the World Team. 

Three Down:

• Kinston left-hander Ryan Morris has struggled of late, giving up 14 ER in his last 19 2/3 innings.  Morris has dropped three straight decisions, and is 3-8 on the year with an ERA of 5.59.  A soft-tossing lefty that needs to be able to spot his pitches to be successful, Morris has walked 43 batters in 67 2/3 innings this season.  Morris is still just 21 playing in high-A Kinston, so some struggles are almost expected.  Morris will likely remain in Kinston for all of 2009 so he can work on better locating his secondary pitches.

• Carlos Santana has been in a bit of a funk lately, hitting just .188 with a HR in his past 10 games.  He is hitting .227 in June, but his OPS for the month is a robust .866, so he is still producing.  Tabbed as a top prospect and hitting in the middle of the Akron order has pitchers focusing more on Santana this year than in the past, and he is being pitched very carefully on a nightly basis.  To his credit, Santana has remained patient, with 50 walks against just 35 strikeouts keeping his OBP over .400 for the season.  Santana will be fine long-term, and will join his Akron teammate Nick Weglarz on the World Team for the Futures Game in St. Louis.

• Aquired as part of the C.C. Sabathia trade last year, Zach Jackson has struggled mightily in his last four starts.  The Zach Attack has allowed 17 ER in 21 IP, and has dropped four straight decisions to run his record to 3-6 on the year.  With Jeremy Sowers and David Huff up with the Indians, the continued struggles of Jackson leaves Chuck Lofgren as really the only “prospect” in the AAA rotation this year. 

• Alex White got the start for UNC against Arizona State on Sunday in the CWS, and the righthander did not disappoint. White went 9 innings, struck out 12, walked 3 and gave up just one earned run. Oh, and he threw 131 (!) pitches. While I am sure Mark Shaprio and company didn’t appreciate the pitch count, they had to have liked what they saw out of their 1st round draft pick. White worked ahead in the count for most of the day and did an excellent job of using his fastball to set up his other pitches. His splitter had great down action. ASU really didn’t get anything going on him all day except for the 2nd inning, and even after giving up a run White came back to get a strikeout to get out of a jam. Tribe fans got a nice treat Sunday, as we were able to watch 2nd round pick in the game Jason Kipnis as well. Kipnis went 1-4 with a double off of White in the 1st inning.

• Beau Mills and John Drennen are both riding modest hitting streaks right now for the Aeros. Mills is in the midst of a 6 game hitting streak while Drennen has hit in 7 straight. Both are and identical 10 for their last 24 (.416). Mills has a HR and 4 RBI during his streak, bested slightly by Drennen’s HR and 6 RBI. Surprisingly, the slower Mills has one SB while the CF Drennen has none.

• Wyatt Toregas has made his name more behind the plate than at it, but the defensive-minded catcher has been hitting well lately. Toregas is hitting .324 in his last 10 games, with 2 HR and 7 RBI’s. Chris Giminez got the call to Cleveland because of his versatility, but Toregas profiles very well as a #2 catcher in the bigs. He is an excellent receiver with a great feel for the game, and as he is showing with his .822 OPS in Columbus this year, he will hit enough to be effective. This is his 2nd time through AAA, and should be a September callup this year. The Indians have as much depth at the catcher position as anyone in baseball, with Martinez, Shoppach, Giminez, Toregas and Santana in the organization.

Three Down:

• Last year’s 1st round draft pick Lonnie Chisenhall is cooling off after a red-hot start for the K-Tribe. Chisenhall is hitting just .217 so far in June with 2 HR, and his OBP is .260. This can be at least partially explained by his BABIP numbers. Chisenhall hit .372 on balls in play in May, an almost unsustainable average. So far in June, his BABIP is .250. His liner rate dropped from 22% to 11%, so the BABIP naturally followed. His liner rate in 2008 for Mahoning Valley was 21%, so look for Chisenhall to get back on track before too long. His season numbers are still very good (.287/10/46), especially in the pitcher-friendly Carolina League.

• The well-documented struggles of Carlos Rivero continue at AA Akron, as a slow-start has manifested itself into a season-long slump for the SS. Rivero is hitting just .122 so far this June, and is below the Mendoza Line at .198 on the season. His season OPS is a paltry .537, and he has hit only 1 HR so far this year. Rivero is just 21 years old and has yet to repeat a level in his minor league career. Expect that to change if this keeps up.

• After giving up just 3 runs in his first 8 appearances (14 IP) for AA Akron, Zach Putnam has been touched up for 9 runs in his last 4 2/3 innings including an ugly 8 ER in 2/3 of an inning against Reading. Moved to the bullpen to fast-track his arm through the system, Putnam began the season in Kinston as a starter after graduating from That School Up North. He remains a long shot to make the bullpen for the Indians this year, but with a strong 2nd half could put himself in the mix out of Goodyear next spring.

Three Up:

• Matt LaPorta has not let his struggles at the major league level effect his mindset in AAA, as he has picked up right where he left off in the middle of the Clippers lineup. LaPorta is hitting .366 (11-30) in his last 8 games, with 2 HR and 7 RBI to boot. Sometimes players who yo-yo between the minors and the Show can fall into a funk when they get sent down; it is good to see LaPorta is not suffering from any such issue. If he keeps hitting (and he will keep hitting), LaPorta will be in Cleveland again this year, possibly as soon as Sizemore returns from the DL and Trevor Crowe’s defense in CF is no longer a necessity for the Indians.
• Ryan Edell is in the midst of a hot streak on the mound for Akron. In his last 3 starts, Edell has recorded 17 2/3 IP and given up just 5 earned runs while striking out 19 and walking 6. Edell has posted solid numbers since moving into the Akron rotation on May 17, and if the command-and-control lefty can keep this up, he will be in line for an audition in the Cleveland bullpen at some point this year simply because he is left handed and can throw strikes.
• Beau Mills is starting to heat up for the Aeros, hitting an even .300 with 2 HR and 3 RBI in his past 10 games. The big lefty is still just 22 and used a strong 2nd half performance in 2008 to propel himself to the Carolina League MVP, so there is no need to fret about his slow start. Mills will hit in his sleep, its just a matter of getting him untracked.
• A bonus “up” for this week…congratulations to Chuck Lofgren for recording his first W at AAA Columbus this past Friday. Lofgren threw 7 innings of shutout baseball against the Atlanta Braves AAA affiliate, striking out 3 and not walking a batter. It is great to see Chuck throwing the ball as well as he has this year, and hopefully he is back on track as a top prospect in the Indians system.

Three Down:

• Jeanmar Gomez has struggled since his record-setting perfect game. In his last three starts since the perfecto, he has given up 15 ER and 27 hits in 16 IP. Quite a contrast to his prior 4 starts where, including the perfect game, he threw 29 innings and gave up just 1 run on 9 hits. I have not personally seen Gomez pitch these last three starts, so I could only speculate as to the issues he is having. But if he is healthy, I am confident that this is just a temporary bump in the road, and Gomez will get back to his successful ways sooner rather than later. He should pitch in Akron this Thursday against New Hampshire.
• Ron Rivas is scuffling at the plate down in Kinston, hitting just .200/0/1 in his last 10 games. Rivas has been playing every day at SS for the K-Tribe, but just can’t seem to string anything together at the dish. Rivas is just 20, but he did hit .291 for Lake County last year, so his season average of .247 is a little disappointing.
• Kirk Sarloos/Jack Cassell combine for the final “down” of the week. Both of these journeyman starters have ERA’s over 5.50, and WHIP’s of over 1.60. They are eating innings in Columbus, but that’s about it. If they haven’t been called up to Cleveland at this point after the rash of injuries in both the starting rotation and the bullpen…it probably isn’t happening. Good to see the younger guys like Lofgren get called up and have their shot at pitching at the AAA level. If and when Rondon, Gomez and others are ready, there is no reason for guys like Sarloos and Cassell to stand in their way.

Three Up:

• Lake County southpaw T.J. House is just 1-5 on the season, but has really pitched well and has been the victim of some poor run support. So far this year, House has a 3.10 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and has a K/BB ratio of more than 2 to 1 (42/19). In his most recent start on Saturday, House took the ND, going 6 1/3 innings and giving up just one run, striking out 5. T.J wont turn 20 until after his season is finished at Lake County, and is a guy to really keep an eye on as a potential fast-mover in the Indians system.
• Another 19-year old at Lake County, Abner Abreu, has really come on in the last couple of weeks. After a slow start to the season that saw him hitting just .208 in April, Abreu has gone for .405/3/5 in his last 10 games to help raise his average to .293 on the season. He is still striking out a lot (54 in 184 AB’s this season) and not walking enough (just 8 BB on the year), but the kid can hit. Standing at 6′3″ and 170lbs, if Abreu fills out his frame and develops some plate discipline, look out.
• Although his season numbers aren’t eye-popping by any means, Michael Brantley has started to show signs of breaking out in Columbus. After struggling with some early-season injuries, Brantley has been on base in 9 out of his last 10 games and has his average up to .245. His OBP in those 10 games is an outstanding .421, which is what will eventually punch his ticket to The Show. His 2 home runs are already more than he hit last year, and has swiped 15 bases while being caught just twice. Brantley recently celebrated his 22nd birthday, so he is still young for AAA and is on track to contribute at the big league level sooner rather than later

Three Down:

• Josh Tomlin has had back-to-back uncarachteristicaly rocky outings for the Aeros. His season numbers are still pretty good, with a 4.79 ERA and K/BB ratio of 44/9, but in his last two starts he combined for 8 IP and 10 ER. Both starts were against Erie, so the Sea Wolves’ hitters benefited from seeing a lot of Tomlin. He gave up 15 hits in those 8 innings, and will look to get back on track this week on the road against Reading.
• Jared Goedert had a breakthrough 2006 that saw him hit 20 home runs between low A Lake County and high A Kinston, but has regressed since then. He hit .255 with just 10 HR last year in Kinston, and is struggling at the plate this season in Akron. Goedert is hitting just .198/2/7 on the season, and .184/0/1 in his past 10 games. Goedert has been getting regular playing time in Akron, but is just not taking advantage of it. His .636 OPS is not what the Indians are looking for out of the third baseman.
• Matt McBride was one of the hottest hitters in all of minor league baseball with high A Kinston before deservedly getting bumped up to Akron. He has struggled somewhat with the better pitching at AA, hitting just .214/0/10 in 20 games since getting the call. McBride is also still learning a new position in the outfield, as the Indians made the decision to convert him from catcher to the OF during the Hawaii Winter League this offseason. McBride is an outstanding natural athlete who is scuffling a bit with the better competition, but he is a guy that I expect to have good numbers at the end of the season when all is said and done.

Three Up:

• Carlos Santana is in the midst of solidifying his status as one of the top two or three catching prospects in all of baseball. After last year’s breakout season split between the California and Carolina Leagues, some were suggesting that Santana’s numbers were an aberration. After a merely mortal start, Santana has really come on in the past couple of weeks to stand at .306/7/29 on the season, with an OPS of .989. The comparisons to Victor Martinez are almost too easy at this point, but the switch-hitting converted catcher wearing #41 is putting up stats that make it too obvious to ignore.

• Its all Aeros, all the time here on the inaugural 3 Up. A record of 31-11 will have that effect. I would be remiss if I didn’t touch on the recent hot hitting of Aeros OF Nick Weglarz. Wegz was hitting .085 at one point this April, and even shaved his head to try and shake the early season slump that he was mired in for a month. His season line now stands at .250/4/30, and his OPS is up to .780. Not the numbers we were hoping for out of the big Canadian, but much more in line with what was expected than his month of April. His 30 RBI rank 6th in the Eastern League, and for the 20 games so far in the month of May, Wegz is hitting an eye-popping .391/3/24 with a 1.128(!) OPS, showing why he is seen as one of the top OF in the Indians organization.

Three Down:

• Carlos Rivero was seen by many as the next Jhonny Peralta coming up through the system, especially after a strong finish to his 2008 season in Kinston. The 21-year old is struggling so far in his first taste of AA, hitting just .205 with 1 HR in 151 AB’s. His May OPS is just .532. Rivero’s prospect standing has always been a little more about projection than production, and he is young for the Eastern League, but you have to hope he can put up some better numbers as the weather warms up. The Indians system does not have much to speak of in the middle infield, so Rivero is an important guy to keep an eye on.

• Staying in the middle infield, Cord Phelps has cooled off after a hot start. Phelps hit over .300 in April, but has slumped to .234 in May. The K-Tribe 2B has also seen a .171 point drop in his slugging percentage, from .444 to just .273 this month. Phelps doesn’t have a lot of power, which is fairly typical of players who are drafted out of Stanford (hence the term “Stanford Swing”) so he needs to get on base reguarly to be effective in what has turned out to be a very potent K-Tribe lineup. 

• Some (myself included) expected Jon Meloan to be a primary option out of Columbus if the Indians bullpen struggled this year. While the big league bullpen has been a disaster, Meloan has had his share of difficulty as well, posting a 6.66 ERA (creepy) in 25 2/3 innings of work. He is still striking out nearly a batter per inning with 24 on the season, but those 24 K’s are accompanied by a .313 BA against. Meloan actually started for the Clippers this past Saturday, and gave up 2 ER in his 3 innings of work. In his last 3 appearances, Meloan has given up 6 ER in 5 innings, striking out 3. The struggles of the hard throwing righty combined with the injury to Adam Miller and trade of Jeff Stevens have turned what was once thought to be depth in the AAA bullpen into a serious deficiency.

• AAA: The Columbus Clippers.  The Indians’ AAA affiliate moved from Buffalo to a brand new, beautiful facility in Columbus this year.  The Clippers roster has some of the best talent in the system, including Matt LaPorta, David Huff, Jon Meloan, Luis Valbuena, Wes Hodges and Michael Brantley.  The Clips are currently 9-11, 2.5 games back in the Western Division of the International League.
• AA: The Akron Aeros.  The club formerly known as the Canton-Akron Indians is currently in 1st place in the Southern Division of the Eastern League, with a record of 14-4.  The Aeros roster boasts plenty of talent, including Hector Rondon, Carlos Santana, Chuck Lofgren, Beau Mills and Nick Weglarz.
• A+: The Kinston Indians.  The K-Tribe plays in the pitcher-friendly Carolina League, where they currently sit in 1st place with a 11-9 record.  Last year’s 1st round draft pick Lonnie Chisenhall joins Kelvin De La Cruz, Zach Putnam, Matt McBride and Eric Berger in Kinston this season.
• Low-A: Lake County Captains.  The closest affiliate to the big club as far as geography goes, Lake County currently plays in the Sally League.  That could change as soon as next season though, as a move to the Midwestern League makes much more sense in terms of bus travel. TJ House, TJ McFarland, Alexander Perez, Karexon Sanchez and Abner Abreu are among the more intriguing prospects at this level.  The Caps are sitting at 8-11 right now, in the middle of the pack in the Sally League. 
• Short-Season A: Mahoning Valley Scrappers.  This is where the 2009 Rule 4 draft picks and younger NDFA’s from Latin America working their way up through the system will open up, for the most part.  The short-season starts just after the Rule 4 draft in June, and the players assigned there will get the privilege of playing for former Indians and Tigers all-star Travis Fryman, who manages the Scrappers.

Check back Thursday for a look at how some of the top players on these teams are performing so far in the young season.  Can’t wait till Thursday?  Whet your appetite by checking out my take on the top 20 prospects in the Cleveland organization (I’d move Hodges down if I could re-do the list today).

The 25-year old Sipp was my #13 overall prospect in the Indians system entering 2009.   He is finally healthy after having some pretty serious arm issues, including the dreaded Tommy John surgery in 2007.  He came back towards the end of 2008 and resumed pitching in the minors, but had some shoulder issues that caused the organization to shut him down until spring.  Drafted in the 45th round out of Clemson due to signability concerns, Sipp has long been projected as an impact arm at the back end of the bullpen.  The Indians will be relying on him to be just that, as the relievers this year have mostly been pouring gasoline on a grease fire when they enter the game. 

If Sipp can’t step up and get outs, there aren’t many more lefthanded options in the minors.  Jon Meloan, Randy Newsom, Vinnie Pestano and Frank Herrmann are potential options from the right side if the bullpen continues to struggle.

• Lofgren wasn’t overpowering, but he was extremely effective.  He had the Baysox off balance all day, and seemed to get stronger as the game went on.  He was sitting at around 83 with his fastball in the 1st inning, but cranked it up to 88 mph in his 6th and final inning.  Lofgren didn’t allow a baserunner until a one out walk in the fourth, and didn’t give up a run until a solo HR with one out in the 5th.  Lofgren’s intense competitive streak was on display on Sunday, as he was fired up all game long.  He was really upset with himself after giving up the HR, but didn’t let it effect him as he came back to get the next two hitters.  The only other baserunner he allowed was a bloop single in the 6th.  It was his 2nd good start of the season, and if he keeps pitching like this he will find himself back among the ranks of the top Indians prospects in a hurry.
• 1B Beau Mills had a great day with the bat and in the field.  He was 2-5 with a double and two runs scored at the plate and got a chance to show off his wheels in the 5th.  Running on the 3-2 pitch, he scored all the way from first base on a Carlos Santana single to right that was misplayed by the RF.  In the 2nd inning, he made back-to-back nice plays in the field on the Baysox 4 and 5 hitters.  The 1st play was a simple popup down the 1B line, but as Mills moved over to catch it, Baysox catcher Guillermo Rodriguez literally screamed right in Mills’ face as he was running down the 1B line.  I have never seen anything like that before, and give credit to Mills for hanging in and making the play despite the bush-league antics.  The next Baysox hitter smoked a hard grounder to the hole between 1st and 2nd,  and Mills made a great diving play to get to the ball and even beat the runner back to the bag himself for the out.  Mills can hit in his sleep, and if he can continue to field the ball like he did on Sunday, he will be in Cleveland sooner rather than later.
• Nick Weglarz got off the schnide in a big way, hitting a deep SAC fly to drive in Mills in the 3rd inning and hitting an absolute bomb the other way over the left center field fence in the 5th.  I was sitting right behind the Aeros dugout, and the look on Weglarz’s face when he rounded third could probably be best described as relief.  He is doing a good job staying back on the baseball, as in 3 of his 4 AB’s he hit the ball to the left side of the field.  Wegz may have been pressing just a bit due to the slow start, so hopefully this can get him untracked and he can hit the way we all know he can.
• Neil Wagner looked decent in relief of Lofgren, giving up a solo HR but touching 95 on the radar gun.  Randy Newsom seemed to struggle a bit with his release point and walked a couple of guys.  Fellow sidearmer Vinnie Pestano came on to record the last out of the game for his 5th save of the season. 

I really can’t tell you how enjoyable it is to cover these minor league baseball games.  You get right down on the field to watch the games, you can sit wherever you want in the ballpark, you can hear the players joking back and forth…I highly, highly recommend it to any baseball fan.  I was able to chat with the players before and during the game (Nick Weglarz is a really nice guy), listen to the guys in the bullpen make fun of each other (Randy Newsom is hilarious), and really get a good read on how they react to what happens on the field.  The tickets were cheap, the food was good, and there were no lines for the bathrooms.  A good rule is to try and see twice as many minor league games in person as major league games during the year.  Look for these recaps anytime an Indians minor league affiliate comes to the DC area this season.

The Aeros lost a heartbreaker to the Bowie Baysox last night by a final score of 2-0.  Overall, it was an extremely well pitched game by both teams, and the final time for the game was just over 2 hrs.  It took me almost as long to get to the game in DC traffic than it did for the actual game to be played.   Frank Herrmannstarted for Akron, and was the hard luck loser giving up one run on just three hits in 7 innings pitched.  One of those hits was a fairly routine flyball to center by Bowie leadoff hitter Paco Figueroa that Aeros’ CF John Drennan lost in the lights for a triple.  Two batters later, a sac fly to Drennan plated the Baysox first run, and that was all they would need against an Aeros team that just couldn’t get anything going with the bats.  Bowie’s 2nd run scored off reliever Neil Wagner after a Carlos Santana error.  Baysox starter Troy Patton worked ahead in the count most of the night and kept Akron’s hitters off balance enroute to the combined shutout.  Some quick thoughts about the game:

• Herrmann did an outstanding job changing speeds and mixing in all of his pitches.  He threw all three of his pitches for strikes consistently, walking just one batter in his 7 innings.  He got several Baysox hitters to look downright silly flailing at his changeup, and didn’t have a ball hit hard off him all night.  Of the three hits he gave up, one was a “triple” that got lost in the lights, one was a swinging bunt down the 3rd baseline, and the third was a ball that was fisted down the rightfield line into no-mans land after Herrmann got in on the hands of a Baysox hitter.  He sat at 90-91 MPH consistently with his fastball, and was as high as 94 in the 7th inning.  Most importantly, the seperation between his fastball and changeup was consistently around 10 MPH.  An outstanding job, and a really tough loss for the young righthander.
• Nick Weglarz is struggling a bit at the plate in this young season, and last night couldn’t have done anything for his confidence.  His 1st AB was a hard line shot to the hole between 1st and 2nd on  a 1-2 pitch.  The 2nd baseman made a great play to knock it down, but couldn’t come up with the ball to throw Weglarz out.  The official scoring was an error, but at home I think he gets a hit.  Later in the game, Wegz worked the count full, fouled off some tough pitches, and went the other way with a hard grounder to the right of the SS.  Another great defensive play by a Bowie middle infielder, and Weglarz was nipped by a half-step at 1st.  In his final AB of the game, Wegz came up with 2 on and 2 out in the top of the 9th.  Again the big LF worked the count full before tapping a ball down the 3rd baseline, and again getting nipped at 1st by less than half a step.  The Baseball Gods owe him a couple of cheap hits later in the season.
• Carlos Santana made a throwing error on a perfect bunt in the 8th inning leading to Bowie’s final run.  He actually made a great play to spring out from behind the plate and get to the ball, but his spin throw sailed over 1B for the error.  It was an difficult, athletic play that Santana will likely be able to make with some more experience behind the plate.
• Good to see Josh Rodriguez on base 3 times with 2 singles and a walk.  Both hits were solid line drives, and Rodriguez is hitting .313 on the young season.
• Niuman Romero made a great play diving to his right to rob what would have been a double down the line.
• Beau Mills smoked a double into the gap, and looked adequate at 1B.  His bat is his ticket to the majors, but if he wants to get the call sooner rather than later, his defense has to improve to the point that he is more than a DH.  I think it can, if it hasn’t already.

Check back on Monday for a recap of Sunday’s series finale.  Chuck Lofgren will be starting for the Aeros.

The Tribe jumped out to a 5-1 lead on the strength of a two-run HR fromMark DeRosa and a two-out, two-run double off the bat of rookie Trevor Crowe.  Crowe’s double was particularly encouraging, as he had reacted to his prior K with 2 outs and RISP by Bo Jacksoning his bat over his knee.  The rookie will have his ups and downs, but as I wrote previously, I think he is a better option than David Delucci for the Tribe this year.  DeRosa is now showing signs of life after an ice-cold start, with 5 RBI in the past two games. 

The final margin of victory was provided by a two-run HR by none other than Travis Hafnerand a run-scoring single by Choo, both in the home half of the 8th inning.  Kerry Woodcame on in the non-save situation and mowed down the Jays in the 9th, striking out the side on just 13 pitches.  Wood has pitched two innings so far in Cleveland, and now has six strikeouts.  Cleveland fans are rejoicing as they now have a closer who is consistently in the mid to high 90’s for the first time since Mike Jackson.

Three Up:

1. Anthony Reyes.  Just what the doctor ordered for this Indians club.  Six effective innings, limiting the walks, getting ahead of hitters.  Now we just need the rest of the staff to get on board.

2. Travis Hafner.The man once known as Pronk has 3 HR in 3 straight games this season after hitting 5 all of last year.  I’m not ready to say that Pronk is back just yet, but 3 HR and a double off the top of the fence Friday have me smiling.

3. Indians bullpen.Three innings, no runs, two hits, four strikeouts.  That is the kind of performance a team needs from its bullpen to be successful.  Kerry Wood at the back end gives this team a dimension it has not had in years.  Wickman and Borowski got the job done in the 9th more often than not, but it was usually an adventure.  With KWood in the 9th, opposing teams feel like they have to get it done by the 8th inning or not at all. 

Three Down:

1. The Strikeouts.  Indians hitters struck out eleven times yesterday, including ten in the 4 2/3 innings that Jays starter David Purcey worked.  Outs are outs, but strikeouts are as unproductive as possible and its always better to put the ball in play. 

2. Situational hitting.  This goes hand in hand with the strikeouts.  To win consistently, teams have to do the little things to get runs home.  As the old saying goes, two-out RBI’s will get you to Heaven. 

3. The weather.  I am picking nits at this point, in case you couldn’t tell.  It was chilly, and the sun got in Choo’s eyes on a flyball.  Hopefully there will be many more games where I have to complain more about the weather than the performance of the Wahoo Warriors.

If only he could get his pitching to feel the same way.

Another late offensive surge wasn’t enough for the Indians as they came up just short against Roy Halladay and the Toronto Blue Jays to get off to their first 0-5 start since 1985. After Halladay befuddeled the Cleveland hitters for seven solid innings, the Tribe mounted their comeback against closer B.J. Ryan in the ninth inning.

In the end, Victor Martinez struck out with the tying run of Mark DeRosa on second base. If only they could have saved one run in the previous eight innings.

They had plenty of opportunities.

You can start with Cliff Lee, who definitely looked like the lesser of the Cy Young winners in his head-to-head duel with Halladay.

Lee’s four runs look tremendous compared to the seven runs he gave up last Monday, but he labored through the five innings he pitched. It also pales in comparison when someone like Halladay is the opposition and he’s throwing as well as he did today.

Lee pitched his entire outing from the stretch, letting the leadoff man on four of his five innings pitched. In fact, Lee failed to retire the first two hitters of any of those innings, and only the fifth inning went remotely quick with him facing just four hitters.

In the second is where the Tribe defense squandered an opportunity to save Lee a run when Shin-Soo Choo made a pin-point throw on an Aaron Hill single to right field. Choo hit Shoppach’s glove perfectly, while Shoppach had a perfect block on the plate.

The missing part of the whole thing was that when Shoppach went to tag the lumbering Kevin Millar, he dropped the ball.

Lee’s final line: five innings, four runs, seven hits, four walks, and five strikeouts. Three of the walks surrendered were to Toronto’s leadoff hitter Marco Scutaro.

Freshly added Vinnie Chulk was used to his fullest extent today and he did his best to keep the four run deficit intact. Chulk was charged with the fifth and final run that the Blue Jays scored when Scutaro hit a sacrifice fly off Joe Smith.

Anywhere else the Tribe might have been able to preserve a run or two?

“Doc” was solid for the Blue Jays, but he was far from untouchable. The second inning was the inning of missed opportunities, with not only the dropped ball at home plate, but a base-running blunder by Choo.

Jhonny Peralta’s first double of the year took a tricky bounce that right fielder Alex Rios couldn’t handle. Choo rounded second, but missed the bag and had to return. He ended up on third, but could have surely scored had he not had to go back and touch second.

Offensively, Choo did go 2-4 in the cleanup spot, with designated hitter Travis Hafner getting a day off.

Indians hitters couldn’t get ahead of Halladay and Lee couldn’t get ahead of Toronto’s, making it a long day for the Tribe collectively. Factor in the base-running and defensive miscues, there isn’t really shock to see the Tribe lose a close game.

It wouldn’t have been close had B.J. Ryan not lost all sense of control in the ninth inning. After a double play erased a leadoff walk by Ryan Garko, Ben Francisco singled and Ryan would then load the bases by walking Asdrubal Cabrera and Grady Sizemore.

Mark DeRosa made it interesting by banking a double off the left field wall, bringing home everyone on base and sending Ryan to an early exit with one out left to get in a non-save situation.

It was at that point Jason Frasor came in and struck out Victor Martinez to end the game and give the Indians a new sense of frustration. Frasor picks up his first save of the season, Halladay improves to 2-0, and Lee falls to 0-2.

The Indians will try to avoid their second straight sweep and their first 0-6 start since 1914 on Sunday at 1:00 ET. Anthony Reyes (0-0 0.00 ERA) makes his season debut against David Purcey (0-0 2.57 ERA), who is coming off a strong seven innings against Detroit on Tuesday.

Today at Progressive Field fans will get to view something special – two Cy Young award winners battling it out on the same hill. What makes it even more special is the fact that each of today’s pitchers, Cliff Lee and Roy Halladay, finished #1 & #2 in the award voting just last season, but never faced each other in their quest to win the prestigious award.

Some argue that Roy Halladay was snubbed by BBWAA voters in the voting because of the stiffer competition that he faced in the AL East, and the fact that he threw so many more innings, 246 to 223.1, and complete games, nine to four. And it’s not as if there was a huge difference in ERA (2.54 for Lee, and 2.78 for Halladay) either.

But what Cliff Lee had was a story, a story of perseverance that people latched onto during such a special season. The year before he had found himself demoted to the minor leagues due to his ineffectiveness to get batters out consistently. This left him off of the Indians post-season roster. But the competitive drive inside of Lee kept him working hard to prove to his teammates that 2007 was an aberration and not the true Lee.

What transpired was one of the most impressive performances turned in by any pitcher in recent memory. A 22-3 record, 2.54 ERA, and a very impressive five-to-one K:BB ratio – and this was on a team that finished the season with an even .500 record!

To win over a quarter of your team’s games in a single season is quite an impressive feat, but what Halladay has done over the course of his career is no slouch either. In 12 major league seasons, Halladay has a 132-66 record, a 3.53 ERA, 1289 strikeouts to just 421 walks, and 40 complete games in 1814.2 innings of work. He also has his own Cy Young award from 2003, and three more finishes in the top-5 of the voting for the award in 2006, 2007, and 2008.

Today they will meet for just the second time of their careers. The first meeting was July 6, 2007 when Halladay bested Lee in an 8-6 ballgame where each struggled by allowing five earned runs, but Halladay at least lasted past the fifth inning with the lead to get the victory. Today Lee will look to get the best of his counterpart on the field this time, and get the Indians pitching staff headed in the right direction.

Team Notes:
CLE…The Indians are currently 4-30 with runners in scoring position…The Indians have been hit by pitch five times already this year in four games, they set the MLB record last year by being hit 103 times…The Indians are 0-4 for the first time since 1985, they finished that season with a 60-102 record…The average age of the Indians roster is 28.67, 3rd in AL/7th youngest in MLB. Last year it was 29.33, 7th in the AL, and 13th in MLB…The Indians have been outscored 17-4 through innings 1 & 2 so far…TOR…Friday nights 3 hour 49 minute rain delay was the longest such delay in Toronto history…Toronto won for just the third time in their last 17 games at Progressive Field last night…Toronto scored more runs Friday night against the Indians, 13, than they did in seven games against them in 2008…The Blue Jays are 4-1 for the first time since 2001.

Indians Player Notes:
Scott Lewis failed to win his fifth consecutive start to begin his major league career Friday, which would have made him the first to accomplish the feat since the Angels Jered Weaver in 2006…CF Grady Sizemore has 18 career leadoff HR, tying Kenny Lofton for franchise record…SS Jhonny Peralta remains 1 HR away from breaking Woodie Held’s career HR mark for Cleveland shortstops…Ryan Garko has a 43 game errorless streak…Travis Hafner needs just one more home run to reach 150 career HR…RP Rafael Perez and Masa Kobayashi both have pitched in three of the four games thus far. They should have today off. Should.

Who’s Hot:
CLE…DH Travis Hafner belted his second homer in as many days Friday, hitting a 92mph Scott Richmond offering into the visitors bullpen…C/1B Victor Martinez extended his hitting streak to four games with a 2-5 night last night, and hit his 2nd HR of the season….1B Ryan Garko collected his second hit of the season (.500, 2-4) last night, he also walked three times…TOR…OF Adam Lind continues to destroy the baseball, hitting his third home run of the season, and collecting two doubles in game one of this series…SS Marco Scutaro is hitting .409 as the leadoff hitter for the Jays, and has scored eight runs already this season…3B Scott Rolen collected three hits last night including a 2B, raising his average to .467.

Who’s Not:
CLE…Indians stating pitching has yet to make it into the sixth inning of any start, allowing now 26 runs in 15.1 innings…RP Rafael Perez who is arguably the best setup man on the team, has allowed runs in back-to-back appearances, including five last night to take the loss…OF Ben Francisco struck out an unusually high three times last night to lower his average to .143(2-14)…TOR…C Rod Barajas started three games behind the plate for the Jays, but had just one hit in 10 at-bats (.100)…1B/DH Lyle Overbay hit .200(3-15) against the Tigers, but did hit 2 doubles…RP Brian Tallet threw the ball well last night in relief, but did serve up a two-run HR to Victor Martinez and another solo HR to Shin-Soo Choo to raise his very young season ERA to 6.23.

Pitching Matchup
A year after finishing 1-2 in the AL Cy Young award voting, Cliff Lee and Roy Halladay finally get to face off against each other. Lee took home the prized possession after a 22-3 season with 2.54 ERA, while Halladay finished 2008 with a record of 20-11 and a 2.78 ERA.

Cliff Lee (L) 0-1, 12.60 ERA
Lee is coming back on normal rest after his Opening Day start against the Rangers. He was uncharacteristically wild in the strike zone that day when he allowed seven runs on ten hits in five innings. But if you believe in sabermetrics, Lee’s ERA based on what he could control that day, using Fielding Independent Pitching, should be 4.38. He continued to command the strike zone with five strikeouts and a single walk, and his BABIP against was an unfortunate .497.

Career vs. TOR – (1-3) 4.02 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, 40.1 IP, 44H, 6HR, 13BB, 24K, .277AVG
Career @ Progressive Field – (37-19) 3.92 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, 465.2 IP, 472H, 59HR, 137BB, 363K, .264AVG

VS.
• Aaron Hill – .125(1-8), BB, 2K, GIDP
• Kevin Millar – .364(4-11), 2B, RBI, BB, 2K
• Alex Rios – .316(6-19), 3 2B, 2RBI, BB, 2K, 3GIDP
• Scott Rolen – .571(4-7), 2B, RBI, K
• Marco Scutaro – .353(6-17), 2 2B, BB, K
• Vernon Wells – .250(3-12), 2HR, 6RBI, 2BB, K

vs. Roy Halladay (R) 1-0, 6.43 ERA
Started his seventh Opening Day for the Jays (franchise record) against the Tigers and cruised through the first six innings retiring the side in order five out of the six innings. But in the seventh he was hit hard for four hits including a Brandon Inge 2-run HR. Halladay finished the day with the victory, allowing five runs on six hits in his seven innings of work. He was 0-2 against the Indians last year in two starts, receiving three runs of offensive support.

Career vs. CLE – (5-2) 3.73 ERA, 1.35 WHIP, 72.1 IP, 67H, 2HR, 31BB, 67K, .241AVG
Career @ Progressive Field – (1-1) 4.07 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 24.1 IP, 20H, 0HR, 10BB, 26K, .222AVG

VS.
• Ben Francisco – .500(3-6), 2 2B, K
• Travis Hafner – .286(4-14), 2 2B, RBI, 3BB, 4K
• Victor Martinez – .375(3-8), 2B, BB, 2K
• Jhonny Peralta – .250(4-16), 2RBI, BB, 5K
• Kelly Shoppach – .000(0-6), RBI, 3K
• Grady Sizemore – .176(3-17), 2B, BB, 4K, 2SB

Mash Units:
CLE
LF David Dellucci – Left Calf (15-day DL), IF Jamey Carroll – Left Hand (15-day DL), SP Jake Westbrook – Right Elbow (60-day DL)
TOR
SP Casey Janssen – Right Shoulder (15-day DL), SP Dustin McGowan – Right Shoulder (15-day DL), SP Shawn Marcum – Right Elbow (15-day DL)

On Deck:
Sunday: Indians (Anthony Reyes, 0-0 0.00) vs. Blue Jays (David Purcey, 0-0 0.00), 1:05 ET
Monday: Indians (Fausto Carmona, 0-1 10.80) @ Royals (Zack Greinke 1-0 0.00), 8:10 ET
Tuesday: Indians (Carl Pavano, 0-1 81.00) @ Royals (Kyle Davies, 0-0 0.00), 8:10 ET

And it looked like that was going to be the case after the Indians jumped on the Blue Jays starter Scott Richmond with two quick runs in the first inning on a Travis Hafner laser beam double off of the right field fence. And for added measure Hafner again hit a bomb off of Richmond in the third inning into the Jays bullpen to give the Indians a 3-0 lead. The Indians looked comfortable, and like a different team than the one who was swept by the Rangers in Texas, but that did not last long.

Indians rookie pitcher Scott Lewis after cruising through the first three innings ran into some trouble in the fourth inning when he gave up four straight hits, including a two-run home run by the hot-hitting Adam Lind, and an RBI single by first baseman Kevin Millar. The quick glimpse of hope that the Indians would finally get a quality start from one of their starting pitchers was gone, and what followed was a long night of frustration in a near seven and a half hour ballgame that included a 229 minute rain delay and a 13-7 Indians loss.

The Indians bullpen, which on paper is supposed to be a team strength, again failed them – which when you think of how bad the starters have been too, it is quite amazing how poorly this team has pitched. Each of the four relievers who entered the game gave up at least one run, which makes it very hard for an offense to try and claim a lead.

Despite the Blue Jays tacking on runs consistently, the Indians were able to keep it a close ballgame by continuing to hit the ball out of the park. Shin-Soo Choo and Victor Martinez both homered in the sixth and seventh innings, respectively, to guide the Indians back to a 7-7 tie game headed into the eighth inning with the Tribe’s best reliever on the hill.

But he was not their best this evening. Rafael Perez promptly suffered through one of the worst outings of his career, allowing five very critical runs. Not that it was all his fault however. The Indians botched an infield grounder hit by Millar that Peralta tried to get the force at second without luck, and the relay to first couldn’t even get a slow Millar who tripped over running out of the batters box. It was that kind of an inning.

The Blue Jays would stay aggressive by sacrificing over the runners to second and third, which then the Indians intentionally walked Michael Barrett to load the bases to set up a shot at an inning ending double play. But with the white-hot top of the lineup stepping to the plate, Marco Scutaro would bloop in a single between three defenders behind first base to score another Toronto run, but an overrun of the ball by Shin-Soo Choo cost the Indians another run on the play as John McDonald scored from third on the error.

After that it was all over. The bubble was burst and the Blue Jays scored four more runs on two two-run doubles. One was from Lind…again, and the other from right fielder Alex Rios. By the time Perez and then Masa Kobayashi had completed the inning, six runs had scored and the Indians were on their way to the 13-7 defeat.

Reliever Brandon League, who pitched a third of an inning and blew a save opportunity by hitting a batter with the bases loaded in the seventh inning, actually “earns” the win in this one to go to 1-0. Rafael Perez and his nightmarish inning give him the loss (0-1). There was no save in the game.

Same two teams tomorrow afternoon at 1:05 ET. A pair of Cy Young award winners take the hill. The Indians will send Cliff Lee (0-1, 12.60 ERA) to face off against the Blue Jays Roy Halladay (1-0, 6.43).

It has been a long time coming. Since the end of last season, numerous Indians players have been on the road around the world preparing for the 2009 season. Guys like Jhonny Peralta and Fausto Carmona spent time in the Dominican Winter League, and more recently Mark DeRosa, Shin-Soo Cho and Rafael Perez were a part of the World Baseball Classic. Plus there was an extended Spring Training in a new home in Arizona, and a stressful first series at the Ballpark in Arlington where the Texas Rangers battered the Indians pitching staff en route to a 3-game sweep.

But now the Indians are back home at Progressive Field – where they won 45 games a year ago, and 51 during their division championship run of 2007. The Indians have taken advantage of their home field. Just last season the pitching staff enjoyed a 4.02 ERA at home, as opposed to a 4.92 ERA on the road.

Hopefully the amount of comfort that being in a familiar place brings will be enough to allow Tribe pitchers to just go out and throw their game, because it has been beyond awful thus far. Through three games, Indians starting pitchers have an ERA of 18.00 in 11 innings! Not even the bullpen could hold the powerful Rangers lineup – allowing four home runs in their 13 innings of work (who would have thought that the bullpen would have worked more innings than starters? NOT GOOD!).

It may have only been three games, and certainly nothing to project a season on (the Indians had six 3-game losing streaks in 2007, and 11 last year), but the way they lost these three games by getting pounded really scares you.

Nobody was sure what to expect from Carl Pavano, but not even the biggest pessimist would have thought Pavano would get obliterated for nine runs in a single inning. Then you add in two poor performances from what are supposed to be the rocks to the starting rotation, Cliff Lee and Fausto Carmona, and thoughts begin dancing in your head about the future of this team.

What if everybody is not what we expected them to be? How much will a bad pitching staff effect this teams chances to compete for the Central Division crown?

That is the question because this team will score. No doubt about it. The Indians slammed five home runs in yesterday’s defeat, and if not for an unfortunate day with runners in scoring position Wednesday night (1-16 RISP), they would have exploded for an even larger number that night. The offense will be just fine – especially now that Hafner looks to be swinging the bat as well as we’ve seen since 2007. He is getting better cuts at the ball, and hit his first homer of the season Thursday.

Because of positives like that, there is still a lot to look forward to with this team. It is just time for the Indians to put that first series behind them, and move on to the Blue Jays. Look ahead, because not everybody will have as stacked of a lineup as the Rangers. They were impressive! It wasn’t only the Indians bad pitching.

Toronto is coming to town and they just might be the perfect remedy. In seven games against the Blue Jays last season, the Indians held them to ONLY 8 runs scored total. Not surprisingly enough, the Indians won six of the seven games. And if you remember, the four games played between these two at Progressive Field last May was right in the middle of the Indians streak of 44.1 consecutive scoreless innings by starting pitchers. That was something we will likely never see again, but at the least, the Indians need to get a few quality starts this weekend…please.

Team Notes:
The Blue Jays come into Cleveland having won three of the four games against the Tigers, outscoring Detroit 24-16. The Indians come in having suffered a 3-game sweep by the Rangers. Texas outscored the Indians 29-14.

The Indians are 58-50 all-time in home openers, with this being only the second time against the Blue Jays in 1980. The Indians won that game 8-1…This is the first time the Indians have started a season 0-3 since 1996. They went on to win 99 games that year…The Blue Jays 4-game series victory against the Tigers was the first such occurrence in team history.

Player Notes:
C Kelly Shoppach caught for the second time in three games on Thursday, this time with Carl Pavano, but manager Eric Wedge says don’t expect this to happen all of the time. ”Kelly caught Carl the last couple of times in spring training, and this is a day game after a night game”…OF Trevor Crowe made his major league debut in Right Field on Thursday, he went 0-5 at the plate…IF Jamey Carroll does not need surgery, but will still miss 4-6 weeks with a broken bone in his hand…Toronto manager Cito Gaston still believe in his 1B/DH Lyle Overbay, who is struggling at the plate. He left him in to bat in a crucial situation against the Tigers on Wednesday night when he could have brought in Kevin Millar, Overbay ended up striking out to end a rally…Toronto closer B.J. Ryan continues to exhibit decreased velocity (now just 87-90mph), and blew his first save opportunity Wednesday when giving up a game-tying home run to Detroit 3B Brandon Inge.

Who’s Hot:
CLE…CF Grady Sizemore belted two home runs in the Rangers series finale in an effort to bring the Tribe back into the game…C/1B Victor Martinez is riding a 3-game hitting streak, hitting .385(5-13) with a HR. He also has yet to strikeout….RP Masa Kobayashi has pitched two straight scoreless appearance after a poor spring…TOR…OF Adam Lind hit .438(7-16) with two homers and seven RBI in four games against the Tigers…2B Aaron Hill, who missed most of 2008 with a concussion, is also off to a fast start hitting two home runs with 11 total bases…Blue Jays bullpen has allowed just one run in 10 IP, with K/BB ratio of 9:1.

Who’s Not:
CLE…New 3B Mark DeRosa has been looking rusty at the plate. He has yet to notch his first hit of the season (0-12, 5K)…OF Shin-Soo Choo sat in favor of rookie OF Trevor Crowe Thursday after tallying a lonely single in seven plate appearances…Indians bullpen has allowed 4 HR in 13 IP…TOR…C Rod Barajas started three games behind the plate for the Jays, but had just one hit in 10 at-bats (.100)…1B/DH Lyle Overbay hit .200(3-15) against the Tigers, but did hit 2 doubles.

Pitching Matchup
A couple of fresh talents face off in game one of this series. Both Scott Lewis (25 years old) and Richmond (29) have five career starts or less, and are still considered rookies.

Scott Lewis (L) 0-0, 0.00 ERA
Lewis beat out the competition this spring to claim the last spot in the rotation before allowing 15 runs and 21 hits over his last 6.2 innings. He will be looking to stop the bleeding that the powerful Rangers lineup caused to the rotation. This is Lewis’ first start against Toronto. If he wins today’s start, Lewis will become the league’s first pitcher to win their first five major league starts since the Angels Jered Weaver did it in 2006.

Career vs. TOR – 1st Appearance Against the Blue Jays
Career @ Progressive Field – (2-0) 2.45 ERA, 1.45 WHIP, 11.0IP, 11H, 1HR, 5BB, 11K, .262AVG

VS.
NONE

vs. Scott Richmond (R) 0-0, 0.00 ERA
Richmond, who is just the third Canadian-born starting pitcher in Blue Jays history, also comes in after a sub-par spring (6.63 ERA in 19.2 innings), but did throw 27 respectable innings in 2008 with Toronto. Richmond had an ERA of 4.00 with an impressive 20:2 K/BB ratio. The worst of his five career starts came against the Indians in Toronto, allowing three runs in five innings.

Career vs. CLE – (0-1) 5.40 ERA, 1.80 WHIP, 5.0 IP, 9H, 0HR, 0BB, 5K, .391AVG
Career @ Progressive Field – 1st Appearance at Progressive Field

VS.
• Shin-Soo Choo – 1.000(3-3) 3 2B
• Ryan Garko – .333(1-3), RBI, K
• Jhonny Peralta – .333(1-3), RBI
• Kelly Shoppach – .000(0-3), 3K
• Grady Sizemore – .333(1-3), K, GIDP

Mash Units:
CLE
LF David Dellucci – Left Calf (15-day DL), IF Jamey Carroll – Left Hand (15-day DL), SP Jake Westbrook – Right Elbow (60-day DL)
TOR
SP Casey Janssen – Right Shoulder (15-day DL), SP Dustin McGowan – Right Shoulder (15-day DL), SP Shaun Marcum – Right Elbow (15-day DL)

On Deck:
Saturday: Indians (Cliff Lee, 0-1 12.60 ERA) vs. Blue Jays (Roy Halladay, 1-0 6.43 ERA), 1:05 ET
Sunday: Indians (Anthony Reyes, 0-0 0.00) vs. Blue Jays (David Purcey, 0-0 0.00), 1:05 ET
Monday: Indians (Fausto Carmona, 0-1 10.80) @ Royals (Zack Greinke 1-0 0.00), 8:10 ET

After Brandon McCarthy struck out the side in the top of the first, Pavano took the mound and soon after that his first start with his new team would be over.

Ian Kinsler and Michael Young got the rally going with a single and a double and would soon be followed by new Ranger Andruw Jones. The big damage in the first came from Marlon Byrd, who got the start despite the right-handed pitcher because of his history against Pavano.

Byrd improved on that history, making it nine hits in 21 at-bats with a three run blast that made it 5-0 in favor of Texas.

Pavano would come out for the second inning, but the plug was pulled after he walked Josh Hamilton and former Indian Omar Vizquel, gave up a single to Michael Young, and surrendered another home run, this time to Ian Kinsler.

Pavano’s final line included nine earned runs off six hits and three walks in just one inning of work. He wasn’t able to get his pitches down in the zone to a dangerous Texas lineup, and the Rangers made him pay in the worst way.

If it weren’t for Zach Jackson, the Indians probably could have packed up and went home to Cleveland a little early, but the Indians’ long man did his best to keep the team in the game by going a few innings of scoreless baseball.

With Kelly Shoppach’s first home run of the year in the bank, Grady Sizemore delivered a two-run shot in the third inning to spark a little life into the order. But with the Indians trying to claw back, Vizquel would bite his former team back with a single to make it 10-3. Kinsler would add one more before the end of the inning, and ultimately ending Jackson’s valiant effort.

However Sizemore wouldn’t let the Indians get swept without a fight as he blasted another two-run home run to deep center field. Despite striking out three times, Sizemore knocked in four of the Indians’ seven runs and hit his first two home runs of the year.

Playing first base for the second time in this series, Victor Martinez would be the third of four Indians to homer on the day when he hit a monster shot to center field.

The Tribe would add one more in the eighth inning with a double by Asdrubal Cabrera and another in the ninth thanks to a Travis Hafner home run to right field. But ultimately, they ran out of innings and outs and would have to settle for a 12-8 loss and a three-game sweep, their first since August of last year, which was also at the hands of the Rangers in Arlington.

Kerry Wood did make his much anticipated debut in a Cleveland uniform, but like Pavano, it didn’t go as everyone would have hoped. Already down four runs, Marlon Byrd struck again for his fifth RBI in the game by doubling Andruw Jones. Wood did manage to strike out the side, despite the two hits and one walk surrendered.

The home run barrage wasn’t enough to overtake Texas or their starter Brandon McCarthy, who battled through to give five solid innings. Getting his first win in the month of April since 2007, exactly two years ago, McCarthy is trying to make a successful rebound after missing most of 2008.

McCarthy now stands at 1-0, while Pavano will start out at 0-1 and a bloated ERA fit for a low-scoring basketball team at 81.00.

Need an encouraging stat about the Indians 0-3 start to the 2009 season? The last time they did such a thing was back in 1996; when they went on to win 99 games.

They’ll attempt to win number one back in Cleveland on Friday as they open up Progressive Field for the 2009 season. Local high school product Scott Lewis gets the nod for the Tribe against Toronto’s Scott Richmond. The Indians plan to honor late broadcaster and former pitcher Herb Score before the game with first pitch scheduled for 4:05 ET.