Results tagged ‘ Cleveland Indians ’

It’s 3:00AM – Opening Day

A couple years ago I started this blog, and for the my short time keeping up with it, I really enjoyed it.  However, my MLBlogging was short lived. I suppose I could say a lot was going on back then that was preventing me from giving the appropriate amount of attention to this blog to make it the least bit worthwhile.  Yeah, we’ll go with that.

But alas, it is 2011 and I’ve decided to give this another shot.  And what better time do so then at 3:00 AM on Opening Day.  I’m awake like a kid on Christmas Eve waiting to unwrap all that baseball goodness on my newly renewed MLB.TV subscription.  I can’t wait.
And yes, I’m still a displaced Tribe fan.  But now, I’m displaced even further.  Since my last post, I have moved from Michigan to Georgia to pursue some new ventures.  I’ve only been here  a short amount of time, but I can confidently say I don’t see myself hating Braves fans as much as I hate Tigers fans.  However, I do miss the friendly heckling all my Michigan buddies would give me for being a Tribe fan.
But let’s not forget, the Braves and Indians have quite the history themselves.  The other tribe of the South gave my Indians a blow in the ’95 World Series.  I was young, but I still remember the devastation.  It was heartbreaking, but at the same time fueled my love of the game.  But that little inter-league rivalry has had plenty of time to cool off.  So we’re cool for now, Atlanta. 
That felt good.  I’m a little rusty, but it’s nice to be back MLBlogs.

The 5th Starter

 I’m feeling pretty good about this year for the Tribe, but if I had to pick something I’m a little concerned about, then it’s definitely our starting rotation.  Cliff Lee looks to somehow, some way match his incredible 08 Cy Young season, but expecting that would just be silly.  Fausto Carmona needs to bounce back from a somewhat disappointing 08 season.  When both are on, they  can be a lethal 1-2 punch in the rotation, for sure.

Carl Pavano and Anthony Reyes are locks for the 3 and 4 spot, but that 5th spot is pretty much an open door, and three lefties are battling for that spot.

Aaron Laffey, Jeremy Sowers and David Huff all have a good shot at filling that void, but of the three, I think Laffey should (and will be) given the first chance at it.  If one thing is certain, it’s that the Indians have a significant amount of depth as far as the 5th spot goes, so it will be easy to call up/send down anyone if need be.  Honestly, I think we’ll see all three of these
guys at some point in the year. 

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Westbrook is due back somewhere around the All-Star break, so depending on how well everyone is doing, they all might need to take a back seat in AAA when Westbrook gets back.  It certainly will be interesting to see. 

Wedge: “DeRosa and Wood already becoming leaders”

With Spring Training well underway, the new faces in the Indians clubhouse are finding themselves becoming easily adjusted.  It appears as if they’ve already made an impact on the team, and from what Eric Wedge has been saying, he expects it to continue throughout the season. 

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When the Indians signed Kerry Wood, I was ecstatic.  He is, after all, the first big name closer the Tribe have had in quite sometime.  I was by no means an all out Borowski hater, but he certainly was frustrating far too often.  Wood will be closing games with his overall pitching ability and cannon of an arm.  Borowski relied far too much on taking risks and aiming his pitches, and the outcome was often disappointing.

Hearing that Wood is showing leadership so early on in the pre-season is great news as well.  I’m sure he will have a great deal of effect on the younger pitchers in the Indians organization, and the whole team will benefit from that.

derosa.jpgAs for Mark DeRosa, well, it seems as if he is filling the Casey Blake void, and then some.  It’s no question that the Indians plans for Andy Marte weren’t going to pan out, so when the they traded Blake to the Dodgers, I was concerned.  Casey Blake is by no means a hall of famer, but he was a phenomenal teammate and seemed to always be making the big play or getting the big hit when it was needed.  He is a ballplayer through and through. 

Enter Mark DeRosa, IF pickup from the Cubs, and an all around “do what’s best for the team” kind of guy.  Oh, and did I mention his offensive numbers are far better than Blake’s? 

Can’t wait to see the impact these two have during the season.  Should be interesting.

’97 World Series: Tribe vs. Fish

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Since 1/1/09, when I turn on the TV, it’s pretty much been all MLB Network, all the time.  Just recently on their Classic World Series Film program, I caught a look back at the ’97 World Series featuring the Cleveland Indians and the still brand new franchise the, Florida Marlins.

I was just a kid the last time the Tribe played in a World Series, but I remember it well.  In my youth, I was pretty spoiled as a baseball fan.  The Cleveland Indians in the mid-nineties were feared by all across Major League Baseball.  In ’97, they wanted it more than ever having lost to the Atlanta Braves just 2 years before in the ’95 World Series in six games. 

The thing I remember most about watching the ’97 World Series was Moises Alou.  He just couldn’t miss.  It felt like every time he walked up to the plate he was hitting a HR, or driving in another run.  He really made the Tribe work hard, and was a huge reason why the Florida Marlins were able to win the series. 

It hurt, badly.  It was a back and forth battle, but one thing was certain:  After game 7, a new champion would be introduced to the world.  That team was the Florida Marlins.  The Tribe would make it back to the play offs a handful of times after ’97, but haven’t played in a World Series since.

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Behind only the Chicago Cubs, the Cleveland Indians have the longest World Series crown drought, dating back 60 years to 1948.  What an incredible thing it would be to see the Cubbies and Tribe try to end their respective droughts head to head one day.

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