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Left-hander goes distance for milestone shutout win
By Sheldon Ocker
Beacon Journal sports writer
Published on Tuesday, Sep 02, 2008
CLEVELAND: Cliff Lee was pleased, happy even, to become the first 20-game winner in the major leagues this season.
Not that anyone could tell from his body language or his facial expression (what expression?). But he said so, and everyone within earshot in the Indians' clubhouse was prepared to take his word for it.
More than just win the game, the left-hander punctuated his accomplishment by throwing his fourth complete game and second shutout of the year, as the Chicago White Sox fell 5-0 Monday night at Progressive Field.
''That has a nice ring to it; I like the sound of it,'' Lee said, referring to his feat of winning 20 games. ''It's nice to get it out of the way and behind me. Now, I'll do everything I can to get ready for my next start and finish strong.''
It has been his mantra all year. The same words in the same order, game after game after game. In a nutshell, Lee's credo is living in the moment, ignoring the last game, resisting the tendency to think farther ahead than his next start.
The game ahead is the only one that counts. The next inning, the next pitch is all he should be thinking about. And who's to argue? The man is 20-2 with a
2.32 earned-run average that continues to go down.
Of course, Lee learned all this from manager Eric Wedge and pitching coach Carl Willis.
''This is one of the toughest things to do in the game of baseball right now,'' Wedge said of winning 20. ''I think learned from C.C. [Sabathia] and Fausto [Carmona] learned from C.C. how to handle things.''
Even when the White Sox began the game with consecutive hits, Lee stayed the mental and emotional course.
''After those guys get on, there's nothing I can do about it except face the next guy,'' Lee said. ''It's the same as everything else: it's the next batter, the next pitch.''
Lee began the first inning by giving up consecutive singles to Orlando Cabrera and A.J. Pierzynski. But he struck out Carlos Quentin and Jermaine Dye ripped a line drive to Asdrubal Cabrera at second, and he doubled up Cabrera at the bag.
''I was trying to get Quentin to hit a double-play ball and struck him out instead,'' Lee said. ''I would rather have had the double play. Then I got lucky with Dye. It was a fastball away and up, a ball he could drive. But he hit it right to Asdrubal. It's not the kind of double play I want, but I'll take it.''
Kelly Shoppach might have been more on edge than Lee before the game.
''I was a little anxious and nervous more than he was,'' the catcher said. ''We know it's a big moment. It was like a playoff atmosphere. I'm very proud of Cliff.''
Lee seemed most pleased that he no longer would have to answer questions that relate to wanting to win 20, how stressful it might be to pitch for his 20th and how it would feel if he did or didn't succeed.
''It's nice not to have to answer questions matching up with Gaylord Perry,'' he said. ''But I feel happy and pleased about the way things went. I couldn't have asked for anything better. Maybe a perfect game, but a lot of things have to go your way to do that. So this was a neat experience.''
During one stretch, Lee retired 19 batters in a row and never was in any real trouble. As any Northeast Ohio fan knows, Perry is the last Tribe pitcher to win 20 games, and that was back in 1974.
Lee gave up only five hits, didn't walk a batter and threw 109 pitches, only six in the seventh inning, which included a strikeout.
The only annoyance from the White Sox side of the field came from Pierzynski, who is masterful at getting under the skin of other players, opponents and teammates alike.
When Pierzynski popped to the shortstop in the fourth inning, he slammed his bat and yelled something. After that, the story is disputed.
''He ran down the line and yelled something and stared at me,'' Lee said. ''I just stared back. Then I heard him chirping from the dugout [later in the game]. It gave me a little extra energy. I appreciated it.''
When the game was over, Lee pointed to the visitors' dugout.
''That was just excitement,'' he said.
According to Pierzynski, when he hit the pop fly, he yelled because he was angry with himself, not Lee. It was just miscommunication, he said.
In three weekend losses to the Seattle Mariners, Shin-Soo Choo stood out as one of the few productive Tribe hitters. He continued wielding a hot bat against the White Sox, with three hits in four at-bats and one RBI. In the past four games, he is 8-for-14 with two home runs, two doubles and five RBI.
Sheldon Ocker can be reached at socker@thebeaconjournal.com.
CLEVELAND: Cliff Lee was pleased, happy even, to become the first 20-game winner in the major leagues this season.
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