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Reds embarrass Indians again. Upcoming road trip is pivotal
By Sheldon Ocker
Beacon Journal sportswriter
Published on Monday, Jun 30, 2008
CLEVELAND: When the leaves begin to fall and the afternoons turn chilly, there will be time to reflect on the past season and make a proper accounting of the Indians' most embarrassing losses of 2008.
Surely, last week's defeat to clueless Barry Zito and the San Francisco Giants will be in the running for a top-10 berth. But no more so than Sunday's 9-5 loss to the Cincinnati Reds at Progressive Field.
The Tribe was up against Bronson Arroyo, who in his last outing, against the Toronto Blue Jays, was shelled for 10 runs in less than two innings. In his preceding start, he allowed ''only'' six runs in 61/3 innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Coming into Sunday's game, Arroyo's overall record was 4-7 with a 6.52 ERA. Even the offensively challenged Indians figured to make Arroyo sweat a little.
Instead, Arroyo (5-7, 6.19 ERA) permitted only two runs, (one earned) and five hits in six innings. In his first five innings, Arroyo allowed just two hits.
''We have a different lineup, with guys taking on different roles,'' Indians manager Eric Wedge said. ''It's been that way for three or four weeks now. Teams have made adjustments to these guys, and they have to adjust back.''
This was not a game in which Aaron Laffey could afford to be much less than his best. But he was, if only for one lethal inning.
Neither team had scored through the fourth, but Laffey gave up five hits, including Edwin Encarnacion's two-run homer and Jeff Keppinger's RBI double that sparked a five-run rally.
''I know that Aaron isn't pleased,'' Wedge said. ''But one thing he has to be able to do is control damage. He's done a great job of that, but this was just one of those days when he didn't.''
Laffey (4-5, 3.24 ERA) cited a bloop single and a double just inside the line as ''bad luck'' elements. He also threw a wild pitch.
''The ball to the backstop changed the inning,'' he said of the delivery that enabled the first run to score.
With Sunday's game, interleague play mercifully ended for the Tribe, which posted a 6-12 record, 1-5 against the Reds, who hold last place in the National League Central Division.
The Tribe has not fared so poorly against all last-place teams. It's record against clubs at the bottom of their respective divisions is 12-12. Maybe that's only fitting, inasmuch as the Indians, themselves, share the Central Division cellar with the Kansas City Royals.
Maybe what the Indians need is a stretch of games against contending teams. If so, an eight-game trip to Chicago, Minneapolis and Detroit that begins tonight will prove that point or end the club's faint hopes of saving the season.
''This is what it's all about, playing a lot of games in our division,'' Wedge said. ''This road trip is going to make or break us. It's pretty simple stuff. It is going to tell everyone what they want to know.''
Wedge seldom if ever attaches such importance to a specific stretch of games. But with a team that's eight games under .500 and has two starting pitchers and its two best hitters on the disabled list, there's little reason to parse his words.
If the team falls flat on its face this week, General Manager Mark Shapiro will have an easy time deciding what direction to go before reaching the July 31 trading deadline.
The offense continues to struggle against mediocre pitching, and the bullpen remains inconsistent, with closer Joe Borowski getting little work to remain sharp.
What would it take to turn the season around?
''I think if we can rattle off several wins in a row, we can get a ton of confidence built up,'' first baseman Casey Blake said. ''I feel like we have a lot of hope, like we're hoping to do the job rather than knowing that good things are going to happen.''
Of course, that's what occurs when bad things happen over and over and over.
For example, the Indians didn't lay a glove on Arroyo until Grady Sizemore led off the sixth with his 19th home run of the season. By the time the inning ended, the Tribe had scored another run on Ben Francisco's walk and a double by Shin-Sin Choo that was mishandled by center fielder Jerry Hairston, allowing Francisco to score.
''What we've had issues with more than getting people on base is getting a hit with runners in scoring position or stringing hits together,'' Wedge said.
That happened in the first inning, when Sizemore led off with a bloop single and stole second, and the next three batters struck out flailing.
The Tribe stranded nine runners, seven in scoring position. In the final two games of the series (both losses), the Indians left 21 runners on base, 14 in scoring position.
Sheldon Ocker can be reached at socker@thebeaconjournal.com.
CLEVELAND: When the leaves begin to fall and the afternoons turn chilly, there will be time to reflect on the past season and make a proper accounting of the Indians' most embarrassing losses of 2008.
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