Player of the Game

Asdrubal Cabrera takes home today's 'Player of the Game' award for his performance against the Seattle Mariners. Asdrubal is the second player to win two 'Player of the Game' awards this season and is now tied with Travis Hafner for the lead. Cabrera hit a solo home run in the first inning off Erik Bedard and later hit an RBI single (he was tagged out trying to turn it into a double). His final 'POG' score was 4.85. Every hitter had a positive 'POG' score, except Matt LaPorta as did every pitcher except Chad Durbin. For the season, only Durbin and Justin Germano have negative total scores. Through 9 games, Asdrubal Cabrera is leading all Indians in total 'POG' points with 21.4 so far this season. The top pitcher is Justin Masterson with 12.9. The final team 'POG' score today was 22.28.

Feathers Up

 INDIANS SWEEP MARINERS! Second series sweep of the season, moves the Indians win streak to 7 games. This is officially the Indians best April since 2002 when the Indians went 11-1.

Asdrubal Cabrera continues to lead the offensive charge. He went 3-4 with a home-run and 2 RBI. The home run he hit in the 1st inning came with 2 strikes.

Shelly Duncan started in left and contributed. Despite having two strikeouts, Duncan hit a very important double which scored Carlos Santana in the first inning.

Jack Hannahan is showing he was a good pickup this off-season. He homered in the 4th off the laboring Erik Bedard. Hats off again to the Indians bullpen. Chad Durbin gave up a home run and the defense gave up a hit, but Tony Sipp and Chris Perez shut down the M's in the 8th and 9th, respectively.

Feathers Down

Eric Wedge's mustache.

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Player of the Game

In today's Cleveland Indians win against the Seattle Mariners, Justin Masterson won his first player of the game. Masterson pitched 6.1 innings, striking out 9 and allowing one earned run, which scored on a hit that was allowed by Rafael Perez. Justin only allowed 4 hits and 1 walk, while earning a win. His 'Player of the Game' score was 7.80. This is the third straight game that the player of the game set the record for highest score of the season. The second place player for the player of the game award was Chris 'Pure Rage' Perez, who scored 2.25 'POG' points. Perez pitched a perfect 9th striking out 2 and earning a one run save. The final team 'POG' score was 14.47, good for the Indians 6th win in a row.

Feathers Up

The Indians win again, their 6th in a row, keeping them in first place in the Central Division. The Tribe has already won this series against the Mariners, giving them two series wins in a row, and will go for the sweep tomorrow.

Justin Masterson pitched beautifully against the Mariners, throwing 6 of shut-out baseball, while racking up 9 K's. Masterson's only run allowed came in the 7th when Rafael Perez allowed an inherited runner to score. Justin did it completely differently than in his first start, which was also a success, by using the strike out for his main weapon, instead of the ground ball. Masterson didn't strike out anyone in his first start.

Tony Sipp and Chris Perez both pitched well in relief again, earning a hold and a save respectively. Expect to see a lot more of this, this season.

Feathers Down

The defense was a little shaky today on two separate plays. The first was a wild pitch that got by Carlos Santana, which in itself wasn't a big deal, but the runner advanced from first to third, because no one ran to pick up the ball by first. This probably should have been Matt LaPorta's play, because Santana had dove on the ground initially trying to stop the pitch. The second bad play was an error by Michael Brantley when he misplayed a single hit to center field.

Rafael Perez came into the game in the 7th with a runner on and walked the first batter. Perez worked his way out of it, only giving up one run, but it could have been much worse. Just about the worst thing a relief pitcher can do is walk the first batter they face.

Final Score: Indians 2 runs on 7 hits, Mariners 1 run on 6 hits.

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Player of the Game

In today's mashing of the Seattle Mariners, every Indians starter had a 'Player of the Game' score of over 1.00. The largest of these scores was, by far, earned by Travis Hafner with a 7.75. All of Pronk's positive points came in one inning, the 10 run 4th, where he hit an RBI single, followed 8 hitters later by a mammoth 3 run home run off the facing in right field. Carlos Carrasco was the top pitcher and second best player overall with a 'POG' score of 6.05, allowing just one run in 6 innings. Carrasco, Hafner and Austin Kearns all had season high 'POG' scores. The team score was the highest so far this season as well at 36.31.

Feathers way up

The Indians scored more runs against Seattle today than in any other game this season, increasing their winning streak to 5. In fact, the Indians scored as many runs in the 4th inning (10) as they did in their previous high scoring game (the opening day loss against Chicago).

Carlos Carrasco and Justin Germano both had great bounce-back games after they both had less than stellar starts to the season. In Germano's first appearance since opening day, he pitched 2 innings, allowing no runs or hits and striking out two. Carrasco had pitched in the second game of the season and allowed 7 runs to score in 6+ innings. Today Carrasco pitched 6 again, but only allowed one run to score and struck out 6.

Travis Hafner and Asdrubal Cabrera both hit home runs today and are now tied for the team lead with 2 apiece. Its always good to know who the power hitters are on a team, and I think now we know.

The Cleveland Indians are now 5-2 to begin this young season and remain in first place.  

Feathers down

Ignoring the ninth inning (which we can do, because there was an 11 run lead going into it) the only problem today was that Ryan Langerhans walked in all four at bats (including one in that ugly 9th). This might be ok if Langerhans was the Mariner's #3 or #4 hitter, but he is their #9 hitter. In baseball its a sin to walk the #9 hitter once, and Tribe pitching walked him 4 times. There weren't really control problems with the pitchers today as Carrasco only walked 3 and there were only 6 total walks in the game. All I can say is that I can't explain this one and luckily it didn't matter.  

Final Score: Indians 12 runs on 17 hits, Seattle Mariners 3 runs on 6 hits (and a Matt LaPorta error).

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Player of the Game

Fausto Carmona now has the highest and the lowest 'Player of the Game' score this season. Carmona scored a 7.40 against the Red Sox by pitching 7 innings of shut-out, 2 hit baseball. Fausto didn't get the win however, because the Indians couldn't score until the bottom of the 8th. The second and third best players today were a pair of Perez's. Rafael scored 2.77 'Player of the Game' points and Chris scored 1.66. Rafael pitched an inning and earned the win, Chris pitched an inning and earned a one run save. The final team 'POG' score was 13.91, which is about the lowest team score possible in a win. Indians show that all that matters in the end is the 'W.' Indians 1, Red Sox 0.

The Indians Sweep!

Feathers Up

 Winning! The Indians have now won four games in a row after losing the first two, most recently sweeping the Boston Red Sox, sending them to 0-6.

Indians pitching has now allowed only 6 runs in the last four games. Fausto Carmona had a great comeback game after losing his first game of the season. He pitched 7 innings, only allowing two hits and no runs.

The defense was spectacular yet again as Rafael Perez, Matt LaPorta, Orlando Cabrera and Adam Everett all had plays worth noting. I think the fans at the game today are still laughing at Darnell McDonald for the play that ended the game. It was especially important today as well, since the offense had such a hard time scoring runs.

Asdrubal Cabrera's squeeze play in the bottom of the 8th was probably the most exciting play for the Tribe this season. With one out and Everett on third and running home, Cabrera was able to bunt a pitch that was about a foot outside and keep it fair down the third baseline for what turned out to be the winning run. A truly amazing play.

Feathers Down

Another player who was asked to bunt earlier in the game did not fair so well. With Shelley Duncan on second after hitting a double, Austin Kearns popped out to the catcher, trying to sacrifice him to third. This was a mistake by either Kearns for not coming through or by Manny Acta for trusting Kearns (*Edit: Postgame, Kearns said he was bunting on his own). This along with other missed opportunities, like Asdrubal Cabrera striking out with a runner in scoring position early in the game, almost lost the game for the Tribe.

Final score: Indians 1 run on three hits (and a squeeze), Red Sox 0 runs on 4 hits.

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Player of the Game

Asdrubal Cabrera won the 'Player of the Game' award for today's Indians win against the Boston Red Sox. Cabrera scored a 7.03, most of which came on one hit, when he blasted a three run home run in the 6th to put the game away. Cabrera also had an RBI single earlier in the game to add to his score. The next two best hitters were Matt LaPorta and Shin-Soo Choo, who each hit their first home runs of 2011 and scored just over 4.00 'Player of the Game' points. Frank Herrmann had the team low score of -2.47 by pitching an inning and allowing a two-run home run in relief. The Indians final team score 'POG' was 24.14, making it their second largest of the season. Remember, any team score over 15.00 is a win, so once they pass 20.00, they're rolling. Indians 8, Red Sox 4

Feathers Up

The 8-4 win gives the Tribe their first series win of the 2011 season. Even better, they kept the Red Sox winless.

Rafeal Perez came on in the top of the 5th with the Indians up by one and runners on the corners with 2 out to get Big Floppy to ground out. He later stayed on to pitch a scoreless 6th.

Shin-Soo CHOOOOOOOOOOO hit his first homerun of the season. It just so happened in the first inning, which was able to give Mitch Talbot some breathing room.

Travis Buck's brain for continuing to run and touch home plate on Michael Brantley's fielder's choice.

Feathers Down

Talbot did not have much success with his best pitch, his two seamer. He threw it 62 times but only threw it for a strike 34 times.

Orlando Cabrera twice ended an inning with a fly ball out. Okay, that was a bit of a stretch, but it was a good game.

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Player of the Game

In today's win against the Red Sox, Josh Tomlin won his first 'Player of the Game' of 2011. Tomlin scored a 6.60 player of the game score by pitching 7 innings and only allowing one run. Tomlin got the win and struck out three. Most impressively, Tomlin got a ton of ground balls and two double plays. Orlando Cabrera came in second with a 'POG' Score of 2.33. Cabrera had a one run single and later scored. The team 'POG' score was 18.17.

Feathers Up

Josh Tomlin pitched a great game, allowing only one run in 7 innings against the great (0-4) Red Sox. He did his job by getting 17 ground balls, and his defense did their job behind him, getting two double plays.

"Chia Pronk" (Thanks, Rick Manning for the new nickname) hit another double today, his first of the season, giving him (along with Michael Brantley and Orlando Cabrera) a hit in every game this season. This is a great start at the plate for a notoriously slow starter and a return to form for Hafner, back to his pre injury days.

The Speed Demons have finally shown up. After going the first series without a steal, the Indians stole 3 bases against Boston today. Michael Brantley, Asdrubal Cabrera and super quick Matt LaPorta had the steals. Brantley also advanced to third on an overthrow on his steal. This could have had to do with Jared Saltalamacchia being behind the plate, but its a good sign either way.

Feathers Down

Chris 'Pure Rage' Perez was not perfect. How dare the umpires call any pitch he throws a ball. He still earned his first save, though and the hair is looking good.

Shin Soo-Choo had another tough start today at the plate. So far he only has one hit this season and that came in the opener. Today, Choo struck out twice and left two runners in scoring position. This hasn't affected his defense, however, as Choo had a great outfield assist to get a runner at home. Nothing to really get worried about yet, but its something to keep an eye on if it continues. No more negatives today as the Tribe got back to .500.

Final score, Indians 3 runs on 5 hits, Red Sox 1 run on 4 hits.

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Player of the Game

Today's player of the game was second baseman Orlando Cabrera with a 'Player of the Game' score of 5.95. Cabrera stole this one away from Justin Masterson, who was winning until the 8th inning, when Cabrera singled and scored. Cabrera also hit a monster two-run homer to give the Indians a one run lead. Masterson finished with a score of 5.13, the first positive score by a starting pitcher this season. It was Cabrera's first 'Player of the Game' of the season and first as an Indian. It was a good day for the Indians as all three pitchers (Masterson, Tony Sipp and Chris Perez) and five hitters (Cabrera, Michael Brantley, Travis Hafner, Lou Marson and Shelley Duncan) had scores over 1. The final team 'POG' score was 25.72 for a strong win for the Tribe against the Chicago White Sox.

Feathers Up

Justin Masterson had 17 ground ball outs; For a guy who allowed 2.41 ground balls per fly ball given up last year, this was typical Masterson. I sure hope the infield defense improves over last year. If it does, Justin's numbers will be much better and games much faster. Masterson and set-up man Tony Sipp held Gordan Beckham hitless. Beckham had 5 hits and scored 2 runs in the first 2 games.

Sipp and closer Chris Perez pitched a perfect 8th and 9th inning. Orlando Cabrera had a very fine offensive day. He came through in numerous clutch situations, most notably his 2 out, 2 run homerun in the 6th with the team down by 1 run.

The triple play turned in the 4th inning was the first triple play for the Tribe since 2008 (Asdrubal Cabrera's unassisted triple play)  and the first one turned in MLB since June of last year.

The Indians move to within one game of .500!

Feathers Down

 Only 8,726 in attendance today, talk about cheap entertainment. Cleveland is home to the greatest front-runners in America.

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Player of the Game

Today's player of the game award goes to Travis Hafner with a 'POG' score of 3.36. Travis showed some of his old power, hitting a solo home run deep into the White Sox bullpen. Hafner also later singled. This is Hafner's first 'Player of the Game' this season. The worst player of the game, for the second day in a row, goes to the starting pitcher. This time it was Carlos Carrasco with a score of -4.81. Carrasco didn't pitch as badly as Carmona did yesterday, but he still allowed 7 ER in 6.2 IP. The overall team score was down from yesterday, as three hitters had negative performances at the plate (A. Cabrera, Choo and LaPorta). Final team 'POG' score was a 2.27.

Today, the Cleveland Indians lost to the Chicago White Sox...again. We're going to try a new way to do the game recap with a segment I like to call, Feathers Up, Feathers Down.

Feathers Up

Jack Hannahan continued his good play from opening day into today's game, by hitting a two run single and playing stellar defense at third. In the second inning Hannahan dove to his left to steal a hit away from Alex Rios and later in the game picked a short hop and made a strong throw to first for the out. (Check out Hannahan's "live-ing" grab here.)

The defense has been solid during the first two games as the Tribe has yet to commit an error. Along with Hannahan, Carlos Carrasco did a good job fielding his position today, when he threw out the lead runner at third on an attempted sacrifice bunt. The only misstep today was when Carlos Santana threw a ball into centerfield on a stolen base, but since the runner did not advance, it didn't really matter.

Travis Hafner showed the power that we all love him for today, when he launched a ball into the White Sox bullpen, or as Matt Underwood called it today, "Souvenir City" (everyone knows how those relief pitchers love their souvenirs).  Considered a team weakness during Spring Training, the team's power hitting has been strong the last two games. Santana, Hannahan and Hafner have all hit home runs already, which is pretty good considering its been in the mid 40's both games.

Feathers Down

Starting pitching has been a real weakness in both games this season. Today it was Carlos Carrasco taking the hit, allowing ten (hits), and two walks in only 6.2 IP. Carrasco allowed 7 of the 8 runs scored against the Tribe (the 7th run came when Chad Durbin allowed one of Carrasco's runners to score in the 7th) The biggest issue is that 5 of those runs were scored in the first two innings, making it very hard to come back. Carrasco settled down and pitched well after the second, but it was already too late.

After the two kids (Herrmann and Pestano) pitched so well yesterday, the relief pitching today was just ugly. Chad Durbin came in the 7th with two outs and a runner on, and proceeded to walk the first hitter and allow a double to the next. This way he gave up not only Carrasco's 7th run, but one of his own as well. Rafael Perez also pitched and had some trouble with his command. He walked two hitters before getting double play and striking out the last batter in the 9th.

I know its only two games into the season, but it would be great if Matt LaPorta could not get out every time the game is close and there are runners in scoring position. In the first two games he has left 6 RISP on base, four of those coming today. The last problem is that after being so proud of the Indians yesterday for only striking out twice, they came back to form today, striking out 11 times, including a silver sombrero (four strikeouts) for Shin-Soo Choo. Who would have thought that Edwin Jackson would pitch better against this lineup than Mark Buehrle?

Final Score: Indians lose to the White Sox (again) 8-3. The Indians are now 0-2, the White Sox 2-0.

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Opening day recap and player of the game: This game started out all bad and ended up pretty good. Fausto Carmona started the game and was knocked around early, giving up 10 runs in three innings. It looked like the home plate umpire was squeezing the strike zone early on, which could have led to Carmona throwing too close to the middle of the plate. Carmona ended the game with a dreadful -12.88 'player of the game' score, by far the worst this season (game) and one of the worst since I started keeping track in 2007. After the poor start the Indians showed what they are capable of, by coming back from down 14, to lose by only 5. A great sign is that after struggling to score runs all last season, the Indians were able to score 10 today. Jack Hannanan and Carlos Santana hit home runs and Asdrubal Cabrera and Michael Brantley doubled. Travis Hafner would have also had a double if Shin-Soo Choo hadn't made a base running error, costing Hafner an RBI as well. This power is good to see, even if it is just one game. The Indians have been notorious for striking out a lot and not getting many strike outs in return, but they turned that around today. Only two Indians hitters struck out, while Tribe pitching struck out 14. Especially impressive were Frank Herrmann and Vinnie Pestano to finish the game, pitching a combined 3 innings while striking out 8. Player of the game goes to (obviously) Carlos Santana for his tremendous performance at the plate. He had two singles along with home run over the left field wall. After all was over he came away with 3 RBI and 2 runs scored, good for a POG score of 7.12. The final team POG score was 11.05. For the most part any team score under 14 is a loss and any score above 16 is a win. Final score: White Sox 15 runs on 18 hits beat Indians 10 runs on 17 hits. For an explanation of the 'Player of the Game' award and stats, check this out http://burningriverbaseball.com/2011/03/30/pog/ no comments