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By Sheldon Ocker
Beacon Journal staff writer
POSTED: 12:08 a.m. EDT, Jun 04, 2009
MINNEAPOLIS: It shouldn't be a big deal when the 2008 American League Cy Young Award recipient wins a game. Unless it's Cliff Lee.
As if to show that he needs them as much as they need him, Indians batsmen have delivered the slimmest support imaginable this year for Lee, who lifted his record to a meager 3-6 Wednesday night, despite a 2.96 earned-run average.
Since struggling in his first two starts of the season, Lee has pitched almost as effectively as he did last year, when he posted a 22-3 record and 2.54 ERA. But instead of piling up the victories, Lee has been forced to fall back on traditional baseball axioms to maintain his sanity.
Continually, perpetually, insistently, Lee will repeat the following: ''I have no control over the offense. My job is to keep us in every ballgame and go deep into games. I think I've done my job.''
And so he has, even though the 10-1 win over the Twins at the Metrodome was only the second win in his past nine starts, a span that includes four losses and three no-decisions. In 12 Lee starts overall, the Tribe has scored five or more runs three times and three or fewer runs eight times.
Lee repeated the mantra after the game, and his words were reinforced by manager Eric Wedge, who said: ''He does a nice job of controlling what he can do and keeping us in ballgames.
''He threw the ball well again today. He was real efficient and made pitches when they started to get something going.''
Lee, naturally, was pleased to have runs to work with.
''It was nice to have a lead, and then we added on to it,'' he said. ''I was able to throw strikes, locate my fastball and make them swing the bat. The defense made a couple of double plays behind me, and [Luis] Valbuena made a couple of good plays.''
The Tribe's inability to score is all in the past, at least until the next time Lee pitches. Against a rookie starter, Anthony Swarzak (1-2, 4.76 ERA), the Indians' attack mounted a fearsome offensive in the third inning. It culminated in a five-run rally that began with two consecutive outs.
But Ben Francisco followed with a soft line single to center. Jamey Carroll and Victor Martinez both dumped bloop singles to center, Martinez's driving in a run. Shin-Soo Choo singled home the second run, and Jhonny Peralta hit a fly ball that cleared the fence in left-center for his second home run of the season, a blast that brought home three runs.
Carroll's single drove in run No. 6 in the fourth inning after Francisco doubled, and Martinez doubled home two more runs in the eighth. In the ninth, Kelly Shoppach's two-run double completed the Indians' scoring.
Lee said the scarcity of wins on this year's record has not affected his positive outlook.
''I'm still just as confident as I ever was,'' he said. ''All I can do is throw the pitches. I'll probably never have a season statistically like I had last year.''
Lee not only dominated the Minnesota lineup for eight innings, but he also enlivened the Twins' half of the fifth inning, after Carlos Gomez flied out. Lee, who appeared to start it, and Gomez began yelling at one another, and Gomez had to be (lightly) restrained by Martinez. Fisticuffs did not appear to be in the offing, but the incident was a game brightener, nonetheless.
''I don't know,'' Lee said when asked what provoked the hostile words, then added: ''I just want to leave that alone. I'd rather not comment.''
Wedge called it, ''Just some competitive jawing back and forth.''
Hard feelings might have been seeded in a game last season in which Gomez bunted on Lee.
Coincidentally or not, Minnesota pitchers hit three Tribe batters, and Lee plunked Jason Kubel with a fastball.
When Ryan Garko stepped to the plate in the sixth, R.A. Dickey, who throws 86 mile-per-hour fastballs and has a knuckleball in his arsenal, struck him with what looked like a curveball. Two batters later, Shoppach stood in the box and took a 70 mph knuckleball to the shoulder.
Shoppach was hit again, by Luis Ayala in the eighth, to load the bases with nobody out. Shoppach has been struck 11 times by pitches to lead the league. Garko is among the top 15 with five.
Lee gave up seven hits, walked only one and struck out five. Until the seventh inning, only one Minnesota runner reached second base. Gomez drove in the run against Lee with a single in the eighth.
Sheldon Ocker can be reached at socker@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Indians blog at http://www.ohio.com/tribematters. Follow the Indians on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/ABJ_Indians.
MINNEAPOLIS: It shouldn't be a big deal when the 2008 American League Cy Young Award recipient wins a game. Unless it's Cliff Lee.
As if to show that he needs them as much as they need him, Indians batsmen have delivered the slimmest support imaginable this year for Lee, who lifted his record to a meager 3-6 Wednesday night, despite a 2.96 earned-run average.
Since struggling in his first two starts of the season, Lee has pitched almost as effectively as he did last year, when he posted a 22-3 record and 2.54 ERA. But instead of piling up the victories, Lee has been forced to fall back on traditional baseball axioms to maintain his sanity.
Continually, perpetually, insistently, Lee will repeat the following: ''I have no control over the offense. My job is to keep us in every ballgame and go deep into games. I think I've done my job.''
And so he has, even though the 10-1 win over the Twins at the Metrodome was only the second win in his past nine starts, a span that includes four losses and three no-decisions. In 12 Lee starts overall, the Tribe has scored five or more runs three times and three or fewer runs eight times.
Lee repeated the mantra after the game, and his words were reinforced by manager Eric Wedge, who said: ''He does a nice job of controlling what he can do and keeping us in ballgames.
''He threw the ball well again today. He was real efficient and made pitches when they started to get something going.''
Lee, naturally, was pleased to have runs to work with.
''It was nice to have a lead, and then we added on to it,'' he said. ''I was able to throw strikes, locate my fastball and make them swing the bat. The defense made a couple of double plays behind me, and [Luis] Valbuena made a couple of good plays.''
The Tribe's inability to score is all in the past, at least until the next time Lee pitches. Against a rookie starter, Anthony Swarzak (1-2, 4.76 ERA), the Indians' attack mounted a fearsome offensive in the third inning. It culminated in a five-run rally that began with two consecutive outs.
But Ben Francisco followed with a soft line single to center. Jamey Carroll and Victor Martinez both dumped bloop singles to center, Martinez's driving in a run. Shin-Soo Choo singled home the second run, and Jhonny Peralta hit a fly ball that cleared the fence in left-center for his second home run of the season, a blast that brought home three runs.
Carroll's single drove in run No. 6 in the fourth inning after Francisco doubled, and Martinez doubled home two more runs in the eighth. In the ninth, Kelly Shoppach's two-run double completed the Indians' scoring.
Lee said the scarcity of wins on this year's record has not affected his positive outlook.
''I'm still just as confident as I ever was,'' he said. ''All I can do is throw the pitches. I'll probably never have a season statistically like I had last year.''
Lee not only dominated the Minnesota lineup for eight innings, but he also enlivened the Twins' half of the fifth inning, after Carlos Gomez flied out. Lee, who appeared to start it, and Gomez began yelling at one another, and Gomez had to be (lightly) restrained by Martinez. Fisticuffs did not appear to be in the offing, but the incident was a game brightener, nonetheless.
''I don't know,'' Lee said when asked what provoked the hostile words, then added: ''I just want to leave that alone. I'd rather not comment.''
Wedge called it, ''Just some competitive jawing back and forth.''
Hard feelings might have been seeded in a game last season in which Gomez bunted on Lee.
Coincidentally or not, Minnesota pitchers hit three Tribe batters, and Lee plunked Jason Kubel with a fastball.
When Ryan Garko stepped to the plate in the sixth, R.A. Dickey, who throws 86 mile-per-hour fastballs and has a knuckleball in his arsenal, struck him with what looked like a curveball. Two batters later, Shoppach stood in the box and took a 70 mph knuckleball to the shoulder.
Shoppach was hit again, by Luis Ayala in the eighth, to load the bases with nobody out. Shoppach has been struck 11 times by pitches to lead the league. Garko is among the top 15 with five.
Lee gave up seven hits, walked only one and struck out five. Until the seventh inning, only one Minnesota runner reached second base. Gomez drove in the run against Lee with a single in the eighth.
Sheldon Ocker can be reached at socker@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Indians blog at http://www.ohio.com/tribematters. Follow the Indians on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/ABJ_Indians.
Comments
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Naples, FL
Posted 06:03 AM, 06/04/2009
Don't know what started the jawing match between Lee and Gomez, and Lee may have been at fault, but Gomez has already shown he is one of the biggest "hotdogs" in MLB and has done little to back it up offensively. Give it to him Cliff!
Tallmadge, OH
Posted 07:53 AM, 06/04/2009
OMG is taking bets that Lee will be gone and traded by All Star time for a bunch of maybe some day players. Any takers?
Posted 10:23 AM, 06/04/2009
Can the condition of you losing mean you never come back here?
Farragut, TN
Posted 11:31 AM, 06/04/2009
That would be all Indians' fans would need. First, a pathetic spring training record, followed by loss after loss in April and May, topped off by a fire sale of the better players on the roster in June or July. Why would any person with an ounce of self-respect tolerate organizational conduct like that? It tells fans that they just don't matter very much.
Akron, OH
Posted 12:46 PM, 06/04/2009
Takers? Probably the Red Sox.
