DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Tailgate Forum Indians April Thread

I guess I'll start what could be a very short thread....

http://espn.go.com/mlb/preview?gameId=300407104

Peavy ready to make season debut against Indians

The acquisition of former Cy Young Award winner Jake Peavy last season had Chicago White Sox fans excited over the prospect of a powerful 1-2 punch atop the team's rotation. They needed to be patient in order to get a chance to see it.

Peavy makes his season debut Wednesday night against the Cleveland Indians and Fausto Carmona, who is looking to regain his dominant form of 2007.

Acquired from San Diego on July 31, Peavy (3-0, 1.35 ERA) was out at the time with an ankle tendon injury that limited him to 13 starts with the Padres. The right-hander, though, returned in September and won all three of his starts in dominant fashion, giving the club hope that he would anchor the pitching staff along with Mark Buehrle this season.

"I'm excited to start this chapter of my career," said Peavy, the 2007 NL Cy Young winner. "I'm part of something that we hope is going to be special and we believe in the group that we have assembled. We believe we can accomplish some cool things, and that starts with winning the [AL] Central."

Peavy will be looking to match the performance of Buehrle in the White Sox's opener Monday, when the left-hander pitched three-hit ball over seven innings of a 6-0 home win over the Indians.

Paul Konerko homered and Alex Rios added a solo shot for Chicago.

While Peavy is looking to return to his workhorse ways, Carmona hopes to recapture the form that allowed him to go 19-8 with a 3.06 ERA in 2007. He struggled with his command the last two seasons and was 5-12 with a 6.32 ERA last year, when Cleveland sent him to the minors for nearly two months to work on his control.

Carmona was recalled on the same day Peavy was dealt to the White Sox. While he continued to struggle at times, he turned in strong outings in each of his final two starts, the last a 5-1 victory over Chicago on Sept. 30 in which he gave up one run in seven innings.

Carmona appeared to carry his late-season success into spring training, going 3-0 with 1.38 ERA.

"I'm ready to go," Carmona told the team's official Web site. "I'm taking it easy on the mound and throwing strikes. I'm not trying to do too much. I want to do the same thing here that I did in spring training. I'm not going to change anything."

The Indians would like to change their results at the plate after being shut down in the opener. Their last 10 batters to face Buehrle made outs and the club totaled four hits -- all singles.

Cleveland will look to center fielder Grady Sizemore and second baseman Mark Grudzielanek to continue their success against Peavy. Sizemore is 3 for 3 with a home run and a triple off him, while Grudzielanek, who went 1 for 3 on opening day, is 5 for 11 with a double and a triple versus the right-hander.

While Carmona only faced the White Sox once last season, he has won his last four starts against them with a 2.03 ERA. He will be trying to shut down third baseman Mark Teahen, who has batted .370 (10 for 27) against him, and catcher A.J. Pierzynski, a .375 hitter (6 for 16) versus the right-hander.

Pierzynski has a seven-game hitting streak against Cleveland, batting .367 (11 for 30) with two homers and four RBIs in that span.

Peavy, 1-1 with a 5.91 ERA against the Indians, has not faced them since 2005.

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I didn't see any of the opener other than Buerle's jaw dropping play on the news. I'll take a deep breath, hold my nose and watch the game tonight and see what the kids are all about.

j/c

I hope we can keep this thread about the Tribe and whats hapenneing on the field and not turn it into a thread about how cheap Dolan is, how baseball sucks etc.

I think we all know we are in for a long season, but regardless of what I think about how baseballs structured and where the Tribe is at right now, I am still a fan of the game and the team.

Hopefully we can discuss some of the few positives we see during the season.

Agreed.

It will be interesting to see how Fausto does tonight. He's looked good this Spring so, hopefully, he can be consistently good this season. We need somebody on the staff to step up and take that #1 job. I'd love to see Fausto make that happen. When he's on, he's a lot of fun to watch.

I agree, he has some nasty stuff. I guess Redmond is going to be his personal catcher this year. Would love to see a great outing from him tonight, keep his confidence up.

He usually pitches well against the White Sox from what I can remember.

Ignore the fact that our pitchers are walking way too many batters and not striking out nearly enough batters.

Ignore the fact that our hitters are striking out too often and not eating up enough with the pitchcount, and not getting enough walks either.

Why?

Cuz Fausto just out-dueled Peavy
Cuz our hitters played smallball tonight
Cuz I got to see it with MLB-Pass being free this week
Cuz the Tribe is .500 on the year so far and can still win this series

Our bullpen looked good tonight too. Also, Carmona settled in a little bit as the game went on. You can't walk 6 guys though. At least he only gave up one hit and we only gave up 2 as a team...

Nice play by Marte at the end there, I wonder if Laporta would have made the play?

Great win overall after the game was a little on shaky ground in the beginning.

Get the series tomorrow, go Tribe!!!

Fausto gives up 6 walks and one hit in 6 innings. What a line. Great bullpen work and a couple of timely hits tonight. Go for the series win, Tribe!! Come on Masterson. Bring the "A" game.

On a side note...How do you guys put up with those announcers? I watched last night with the free pass on Directv and those guys almost put me to sleep.

Which announcers are you talking about? I could only watch the local telecast last night. The Directv feed was cut out.

The Sox TV guys are awful, I can't stand them. The Sox radio guys are amazing. As much as I dislike the Sox, I can listen to them every day.

Aside from that, great game last night. Fausto was a little wild but totally unhittable. I seem to remember this is how he pitches when he's on. And it was great to see Laporta get the go-ahead hit.

Good game last night. I was getting worried we may not score this season..lol j/k Love Tribe baseball...hope they win but a fan nonetheless.

And Happy Birthday Punch!

j/c

How 'bout Brantly battling Peavy for that RBI single with the bases juiced?

Should be fun this season seeing these young kids go out there and play. No doubt there will be a lot of lows and rough patches, but I really like some of these kids.

Agree, because letting the youth play, develop, and have fun, is the only way the small market can even come close.

Hawk is a riot.

Quote:

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then if they're ANY good at all, here comes the Yankees and Sox to buy you out. It stinks.

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We have a separate thread for that discussion:

https://www.dawgtalkers.net/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/675302/an/0/page/1#Post675302

Who is the guy who says, " he gawn"?

makes me want to stab my ear with a knife. What a hilljack.

Sorry I didn't get back to this last night. I was watching the STO telecast. I can't stand listening to the SOX. Hawk drives me nuts. That whole "HE GONE" crap gets old in a hurry.

Wow, this is the worst umpire I've ever seen in my whole life.

i cant believe we didnt lose in the 9th, taking this game into the 10th is progress in my book

So, one series in the Tribe is tied for 1st in the central. I would guess Ammo will wait a few games to start complaining?

j/c

Another good win, way to take the first series!

What is going on in this game? They might never get out of this inning

you play a late game in CST that goes to extra innings and turn around and play an early day game in EST. and, both games on the road.

completely unfair to the Tribe that they scheduled it this way, but you gotta play when they are scheduled.

I have to admit I'm more of a Brewer fan than a tribe fan since I have gotten to see more of their games over the years but does it seem odd to anyone else to see your SS wearing #13 and not being name Omar?

Peralta, oye....

http://www.cleveland.com/tribe/index.ssf/2010/04/opening_stardom_is_never_forgo.html

CLEVELAND, Ohio - Ballpark vendors barking that "You can't tell the players without a scorecard!" may actually have a point this season.

Welcome to Indians baseball 2010: The Wonder Years. After Oakland, the Indians field the second-youngest team in baseball.

For seven Indians -- pitchers David Huff, Tony Sipp and Mitch Talbot, catcher Lou Marson, second baseman Luis Valbuena, first baseman/outfielder Matt LaPorta and outfielder Michael Brantley -- this afternoon's home opener against Texas will be their first.

They've already experienced Opening Day in Chicago and Detroit. But Indians of seasons past say they'll never forget hearing their name announced to the home crowd for the first time and springing from the dugout to take their place along the foul line with their teammates.

It means they made it. They finally made it.

"The whole day was just kind of special," said Joe Charboneau, who delivered one of the most memorable home debuts in Indians history on April 19, 1980. "You can't really put it into words."

The Indians started the season 1-5. Charboneau, a first-year outfielder who only made the big-league club because of injuries, had struggled at the plate. But 61,753 fans packed old Municipal Stadium for the home opener anyway.

"I remember it was like 76 degrees or something. It was beautiful," he said.

And it got even better.

Charboneau, who was voted American League Rookie of the Year that season, walked the first time up, then stroked a double, home run and single, driving in two runs to lead the Indians to an 8-1 thumping of Toronto.

"I think I was in shock," he said. "You hope to hit a home run or something, but I never expected a standing ovation. It's just like a script was written that day."

On April 8, 1988, Scott Bailes wrote another one. The left-hander was the Indians' fourth starter that season and only got to pitch the home opener because the team played its first three games in Texas.

It was an early Friday evening. Baltimore was in town, with almost 54,000 fans at the old Stadium.

Bailes, who now works for the minor-league Springfield (Ill.) Cardinals, appeared headed for an early shower, walking two in the top of the first. The Orioles had runners on first and third with one out, when Brook Jacoby turned slugger Eddie Murray's rocket to third into a double play.

"So I almost didn't get out of the first, I was so nervous," Bailes said. "It was a blur."

But he settled down, and the game was scoreless through 61/2 innings.

"My most vivid memory of it was, A, my minor-league roommate Johnny Farrell telling me, 'Can you believe this?' It was the first time anyone kind of talked to me the whole game," Bailes said. "He was telling me to take it one out at a time. He was already being a pitching coach."

In the last of the seventh, second baseman Julio Franco hit a two-out single to score Mel Hall and Jay Bell. The Indians added another run to win, 3-0, on Bailes' complete-game three-hitter, striking out Fred Lynn to end it.

"The roar was so loud," he said, "that you could almost feel it press against you."

In nine seasons with the Indians, lefty Rick Waits lost more than he won. But for some reason, he became Cy Young in home openers.

"It's like no other game for me in my career," he said. "I think I had three openers."

The second was the Charboneau moment in 1980, in which Waits pitched a complete-game six-hitter to beat Toronto. The third was actually an 8-3 loss to Texas in 1983, when he only lasted until the fifth.

"The first one," he said, "was probably the most special, probably one of the best games I ever pitched."

It was cold and rainy on April 7, 1979, but 47,231 fans turned out to watch the Indians and Boston. Waits had to face a lineup of future Hall of Famers Carl Yastrzemski and Jim Rice, and sluggers George Scott and Lynn. On paper, the Indians were overmatched, but the fans were blind with optimism.

"The fans on Opening Day thought that this was going to be their year," he said, "and they showed that in the way they cheered."

Waits, who now works as a minor-league pitching coordinator for the New York Mets, outdueled Mike Torrez, tossing a one-hitter to beat the Red Sox, 3-0. The Indians scored all their runs in the bottom of the eighth, as second baseman Duane Kuiper drove in two runs with a two-out double.

After the game, Waits dined with family and friends at the former Greenhouse Restaurant in Little Italy, which became a post-home-opening ritual.

"It was a tradition every year," he said.

Indians outfielder Cory Snyder got called up from the minors in June 1986, so he didn't play his first home opener until April 10, 1987. Municipal Stadium was rocking with 64,540 fans and Baltimore in town.

"I got fired up," he said. "I got pumped."

Snyder was a promising first-round draft choice. Manager Pat Corrales penciled him in at right field and batted him eighth.

Bailes barely lasted into the third inning as the Orioles raced to a 4-0 lead. Snyder drilled a double in his first at-bat to trigger a five-run inning. He led off with another double in the fourth as the Indians rallied from behind again.

The Indians lost, 12-11, in 10 innings, but Snyder was 3-for-5 and scored twice. To this day, he said, there was nothing like the electricity of that first home opener.

"The crowds are packed. They're excited to have us back," he said. "It's exciting. It's fun. It's kind of like being a kid again."

Like the kids in your scorecard today.

Wish I could be there today, doesnt matter how talented or where the team is projected to finish, the home opener is a day like no other.

hope everyone going has a great time, lets try and win one today!

Gonna be at the game today. I was e-mailed by the Indians on Thursday night about attending the game sitting in their new "Social Media Deck." Apparently I was one of 10 people chosen to sit there for my work in the social media field. Very humbling.

This is my first Opening Day, can't wait!

Wish I could go this year. Opening Day is always a blast (win or lose). This "work" thing gets in the way of a lot of fun stuff!

Speaking of the Tribe, that last loss was flat-out U-G-L-Y. Unfortunately, I'm afraid we're going to see plenty of games like that (at least through the first half). Our bullpen is just... ugh. Manny is going to have his hands full with the whole staff this season. Let's hope some of these kids "grow up" and can help right the ship as the year goes on.

Yep,....'Pen looking ugly,...