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I didn't get to see the game, but from the looks of this recap, looks like Borowski is up to his old tricks. Now, maybe all these baserunners weren't his fault, so please correct me if I'm wrong. But I've said it before and I'll say it again: Borowski is not good. Yeah, he had a lot of saves, but he's pretty much guaranteed to put a runner on base, if not give up a run, or in this case, 4. JMHO



ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) -From the moment he signed with the Los Angeles Angels , Torii Hunter said he and the Rally Monkey would be close friends and would go everywhere together. There's even one hanging in his locker.

Hunter got some good vibes from the stuffed animal he calls Rusty on Monday night, hitting a game-winning grand slam off Cleveland closer Joe Borowski in the ninth inning and a solo shot in the eighth to lead the Angels to a 6-4 victory over the Indians.

''I'm still trying to fit in and go out there and just be myself,'' Hunter said. ''I'd say 75 percent of this game is mental, and I was so emotional back there in Minnesota. But when I came back here, I felt some peace and I was able to calm down and be myself a little bit. And it shows.''

Hunter, who signed a five-year, $90 million free-agent contract with the Angels in November after leaving the Minnesota Twins , has 11 hits in his last 23 at-bats after opening the season 0-for-10 at the Metrodome.

Hunter hit a leadoff shot in the eighth off Rafael Betancourt to give the Angels a 2-1 lead, but Cleveland rallied for three runs off Angels closer Francisco Rodriguez in the top of the ninth.

Victor Martinez and Jhonny Peralta hit consecutive RBI doubles against Rodriguez after a leadoff walk to Travis Hafner . Borowski, whose 5.07 ERA last season was the highest ever by a pitcher with 40 or more saves, then gave it right back.

The right-hander surrendered a one-out walk to Gary Matthews Jr., a single to Vladimir Guerrero and another walk to Garret Anderson before Hunter drove a 1-0 slider just inside the left field pole for his 10th career slam, setting off a pulsating celebration.

Hunter was mobbed my his teammates at home plate, and the fans led a sustained ovation. When his teammates returned to the clubhouse, they doused him with beer.

''It was a nice celebration,'' the two-time All-Star said. ''These are my new teammates, and it was a great thing. That's how chemistry starts.''

It was the first game-ending grand slam by an Angels player since April 28, 2002, when David Eckstein did it against Toronto.

''Certainly Torii is capable of just about anything. He's an extremely good athlete and he's one of the best centerfielders around and he's a great hitter,'' Cleveland third baseman and former Minnesota teammate Casey Blake said. ''I've played with Torii and played against him for a long time now, and nothing he does surprises me.''

Rodriguez, looking for his fourth save, has been experiencing ankle problems after slipping off the top step of the dugout last week and tweaking his right ankle - the one he pushes off with. It has caused him to alter his mechanics.

''It's really painful,'' Rodriguez said. ''I couldn't locate my fastball and I had no power in my legs to push off. As soon as I lift my leg, all the pressure and all my weight is on my ankle, so I was trying to do it all with my arm.''

Hunter's homer also allowed a streak of consecutive victories by the Angels in which they led after eight innings to continue. It is now at 162. They haven't lost under those circumstances since April 19, 2006, at Minnesota.

Rodriguez blew the lead three times last season when the Angels led after eight, but they came back to win every time to keep that streak intact.

''It's good to know that when you don't get the job done, those guys are going to pick you up. That's a good feeling,'' Rodriguez said.

Scot Shields (1-0) got the victory in his second appearance off the disabled list. He relieved Rodriguez in the ninth and gave up an RBI single to Blake before completing the inning.

Peralta homered in the fourth inning against Joe Saunders , who allowed a run and four hits over eight innings after pitching eight innings of four-hit ball in a 1-0 victory at Minnesota on Wednesday. The left-hander struck out five and walked two.

Martinez was back in the Cleveland lineup for the first time since straining his left hamstring on opening day, going 2-for-4.

Cleveland starter Fausto Carmona allowed an unearned run and four hits over six innings in his first career start against the Angels. The right-hander struck out three, walked five and escaped bases-loaded jams in the third and fifth innings - one of them with the help of a blown call by first base umpire Larry Vanover.

Notes: The Angels stole five bases against Martinez, who threw Matthews out trying to steal in the seventh. ... The way the Cleveland rotation is set up, the Angels won't face C.C. Sabathia in this series. Only once since 2002 has a reigning Cy Young winner pitched against the Halos in Anaheim. That was on July 6, 2005, when Johan Santana allowed nine hits and six runs over 6 1-3 innings and gave up a three-run homer to Anderson in Minnesota's 7-6 loss. ... Angels 2B Howie Kendrick left the game with a jammed right thumb after he was retired on a comebacker for the last out of the fourth.

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Poor old Tribe DOH!

Stayed up for that crap last night...

I went from thrilled to angry in the matter of 5 minutes...

I can't watch Borowski.When he comes in I turn the game off. He puts so many guys on base that even when he's successful I'm frustrated for having to suffering though the drama over and over again.

I agree 100%. Have you ever heard of a closer who put as many guys on base as him?

Why don't the Indians put Perez as the set up guy and Betancourt as the closer?

9th inning is a whole different situation, even for a setup man as good as Raffy. I believe his career numbers as a closer are terrible. Something like 12 for 29 on save opportunities. I mean just think about what teams did to Carmona as a closer, who has some of the best stuff in the majors. He just got trashed trying to finish off games. Some people just can't cut it when it comes to coming off the bench and trying to get the last 3 outs.

The Indians likely need to bite the bullet and trade a prospect or two for a good young closer, I'm just not sure if Shapiro will. It's never really been his style to trade young talent, mainly because of our payroll situation. Unfortunately, we need to keep all the young prospects we have because we'll continue to lose all the stars we develop to free agency.

In terms of mentality, Jensen Lewis seems to have the makeup of a closer but Borowski saved what, 46 games last year? He's really going to have to implode to get the hook. Unless he blows 6-7 saves in a row, he's going to be the guy. Wedge sticks with players for better or worse. Sometimes it works, sometimes it blows up in your face.

Good point, Nas. I had forgotten about Carmona.

I just don't think Borowski is the answer as a closer. Maybe there's just not much out there that's better, though. I mean, think about it. If a team has a strong closer, they're going to do whatever they can to keep him. If a guy's available, it's because his price tag is super high or he just isn't that great.

Yeah, that's really the problem. Closer's are incredibly valuable in baseball so teams aren't only going to consider it based on one of two things:

1.) Having a viable second option.
2.) Getting 1-2 of the best MLB prospects in a teams farm system.

The only guys that become readily available are the Brad Lidge and Eric Gagne types who have bottomed out. Maybe every now and then a small market team will unload a guy that they know they can't resign but even those situations are rare.

Out best option is to start grooming a player like Lewis. Giving him a few save opportunities here and there to see how he performs. If I had to take a guess, I think Borowski is probably done after this year so I would guess it's in the back of Wedge's mind. We need someone to eventually emerge as a legitimate option, wether it's a guy on the current MLB roster or someone in AAA. I kind of feel like Lewis is the guy but we'll see what Wedge does. I would even give a guy like Adam Miller a look. I know he's considered a front line starter but we have plenty of starting pitching. If he could help us in the bullpen right now, that would be ideal.

Joe Bo is Bob Wickman with an extra finger and less flab. How many one run saves did he have last year?

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Stayed up for that crap last night...

I went from thrilled to angry in the matter of 5 minutes...

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Me too. God that made me sick. Reminiscent of the Yankee game early last season. I still think Joe will get the job done this season but that one just killed me. We rally for 3 in the 9th after our bats were silent for most of the game and then to lose it like that.. wow. Just a crazy 9th inning as a whole. There's not really any excuse for Borowski but Jhonny probably shouldn't have tried to take the extra base (although I can't fault him at all for the aggressive baserunning especially considering there wasn't anyone covering third when he broke for it) and I personally think Grady got absolutely hosed on two of the strike calls when he was up with the bases loaded and one out. Oh well. We've got to shake it off and come out and win this series. The beauty of baseball: there's always a game the next day no matter how crushing of a defeat you take the night before.

I'll also agree with some of the posts in this thread and say that a long term solution at closer is a need. I'd like to keep the Rafe's (sp?) as our 7th and 8th inning guys so I'm not sure what we'll do. Ideally someone down on the farm can fill the role and maybe we can find one more dominating late inning guy to pair with Betancourt and Perez... Ideally.

Maybe we should keep our eye on the Cardinals and see how they do this year. I've heard that they might be looking to deal Isringhausen if they show no chance of winning the NL Central.

Pronk with the 2 run homer in the top of the 9th!

Woo

Westbrook gives up 3 and goes the distance as the tribe win 4-3!

well were even they stole mondays game and we stole last nights,

Best way to avoid Borowski implosions? Throw a complete game. Way to go, Jake!

When the umpire is working with Westbrook, he is a very tough pitcher to beat. When the umpire isn't giving him the low ones and the corners, he doesn't have the junk and speed to beat a lot of teams.

Last night, he just did a great job, plain and simple. I mean, pitching a complete game and not getting 100 pitches? Heck, he only had 45 in the top of the sixth!

The umps last night missed some calls, but it really went both ways, so I think it balanced.

And anything bad I've ever said about Pronk, I take back. Man, what a blast! And what an at bat by Cabrera to get that walk. I don't know how he laid off that last ball.

Oh the mood swings from one night to the next...

The irony of what Underwood was saying right before Hafner jacked that thing into right field. (ex: "Wouldn't this be a good time for Hafner to break out?)

I'm kinda nervous with Byrd on the mound today as I think he may be this year's Cliff Lee, we'll see. I just want these bats to wake up. Dellucci and Michaels are dead weight as far as I (and many others) are concerned...I don't wanna wait for Choo to be healthy so they can make a decision on him THEN bring up Francisco...I want Francisco up now.

Yeah, they made a good point last night that Gutierrez, Michaels and Delucci aren't contributing much at all in the hitting department. Those guys have to pick it up.

Could be worse...we could be 0-7 and playing the Red Sox. A lot of people would be up on the ledge if this were the case.

The thing that we can't lose sight of right now is that we're only 8 games into the season. We all pretty much knew that the LF platoon wasn't going to give us amazing offensive production. It's, by far, the biggest weakness in our lineup. I'm not as concerned with Franklin. He'll come around and hit his .270-.280 with 20 some HR's and drive in a fair amount too. He'll also provide outstanding defense in RF.

It's also hard to basically start the season with a west coast trip. The weather isn't that warm out there right now and we've faced pretty good pitching... Things will even out as we get into the season. This team knows how to win and probably has the best chemistry in the entire league. If we get Jake a couple more runs in his first start and the Angels don't hit a walk off grand slam this team is 6-2 right now. Plus our biggest competition for the division is sitting with the worst record in baseball. That's certainly a good thing. I don't think many people, myself included, see the White Sox and Royals continuing at their current pace. I know this post is all over the place but I think that I'm just trying to say it's early. C.C. sure as hell is going to get better, the bats will warm up with the weather, the bullpen should at least be as good as it was last year, and the fact that Cliff, Jake, and Fausto have all looked great should be very encouraging.

Now let's go out today and win this series. Splitting the West coast trip and winning a series against the Angels is something I can live with.

GO TRIBE!

You're exactly right, Optimist. In fact, my dad and I were laughing today because we talked about how poorly the Tigers are doing, and I said "They only have 155 games to get things straightened out."

I think this Tribe team is pretty solid. I have problems with a few of the guys (Borowski, for example), but if they can produce, I won't complain (well, too much).

And, if you can at least split each series, and then win 2 of 3 or 3 of 4 here and there, you're going to be sitting pretty at the end of the year.

Is this the game thread???

No score thru 1.....

Top 2 - Due Up: D. Dellucci (.111, 0 hr, 0 rbi), J. Michaels (.056, 0 hr, 0 rbi), C. Blake (.174, 0 hr, 4 rbi)

Dang, what would the over/under be on hits in this inning from those three? I'd set it at .5 and then take the under.

If anyone else took the under, please go to the window to cash your ticket.

Blake grounded out to shortstop.
Michaels flied out to center.
Dellucci grounded out to first.

I'm glad we have both Delucci and Michaels in the lineup today. We might as well have Byrd hitting.

...or give up a grand slam to the catcher hitting 8th.

Is it too early to say, "and that's the ball game".

or give up a grand slam. That's just as good as getting people out.

Could be a long day if the pitching is going to be like this and we're going to strand runners like we did last night.

Why with 2 outs and 2 strikes on Hafner are the Angels trying to pick off Cabrera at first and pitching out? What's the strategy behind that?

*Edit* I realize the strategy now. It was to lull Hafner to sleep so he would strike out swinging. Another man LOB.

Paul Byrd is the bomb.

Can someone please call the Indians dugout and get a message to Byrd that this isn't batting practice!

Mike Napoli (3) Grand Slam to left center off Byrd, Hunter, Kotchman, Izturis scored.
Garret Anderson (2) solo shot to right off Byrd.
Casey Kotchman (2) solo shot to right off Byrd.

6-0 end of 3rd.

Dang, I wanted this last game to send us home with a 3-3 west coast trip. Looks like it's 2-4. We'll need some home cooking.

I think Byrd's career is toast. MLB could do us a favor and suspend him for 20 games for last year's steroids and lets get one of the kids up here as the #5.

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We might as well have Byrd hitting.

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That wouldn't be as painful as watching him pitch.

Well, I'm still hoping we see him pitch like last year (15-8 / 4.59 ERA). While those numbers aren't great, but him sitting behind CC, Fausto, Westy and Lee in the rotation make them look AMAZING!

Just like Boro, I haven't given up on him yet. He needs to just eat innings and keep the game close. I know that's the high-level job of every pitcher but you don't expect much from your 5th man in the rotation.

Man, does this team need to work on getting runners home or what? 6 LOB already and it's only the bottom of the 5th?

The LF, RF and 3B are killing this team.

Peralta goes yard! Now into the meat of our lineup!

And, as I'm typing that, Dellucci gets a hit!

I think the left 9 on base last night if I remember correctly.