Can I Get a Kipnis?

Did you see what I did there? Don't forget "We Are All Kipnesses"!

After last night's epic snoozefest-win, today's game was all full of awesomess!

First there was Ubaldo Jiminez, who kicked ass and took names the first 3 innings, faltered a bit in the 4th and then ended up going EIGHT innings for us, totally saving the bullpen. Six strikeouts, only one walk and just those 3 hits. He was totally an ace and I can't wait to see him again!

Our new hero Frank Hermann came in to throw 9 goddamn pitches and shut 'em down in the 9th. Wahoo!!!

So, pitching rocked for the second night in a row. What of batting?

What of batting?!

First did you notice ---> Everybody Hits! Hell yeah! I was actually considering switching up the sidebar with something more abundant, such as "walk-off wins" (9 I think it is?) but now I am convinced there will be a lot more before the end of the season and we'll have smiley stars for everyone.

Not only did everyone hit but we got a season-high-tie 7 doubles tonight!

Zeke led off tonight and he got one of those doubles. A surprise bit of power off the right field wall. It was an RBI double and then he also came around to score...

...On Kipnis's 6th home run, which was his second hit of 5 for the night. Dude got a double, a homer and 3 singles. Three RBI and he scored 4 runs! He matches Asdrubal this year in 5-hit games and is the first Indian rookie to do it since 1952.

Wahoo again! I didn't know we had this big bat in the minors, or that he would accelerate so fast. Did you?

Asdrubal went 1 for 3 and got hit by a pitch. Then he left the game! Because he was gimpy where he got hit in the foot. But I'm pretty sure he's just going to ice it and be back tomorrow. Luckilly we could totally afford to lose him for a few innings tonight and replace him with Jason Donald.

Hafner went 2 for 4 with an RBI. His average is creeping back up to .300, sitting right now at .297. He got to leave a little early, too, and was replaced by LaPorta.

Santana was pretty sweet tonight, at the plate at least. He went 2 for 5 with a double, RBI and 2 runs scored. He wasn't so hot in the field, again, but at least he wasn't bumbling behind the plate.

Fukudome! Obviously got the elbow-nick of his career last night because he was absolutely on fire tonight. He went 3 for 5 with TWO doubles and an RBI. Hot stuff!

Oh man - Shelley Duncan! So glad he's still here, but only because he's not embarrassing me. He's being good! He was our last to get the "Everybody Hits" tonight but he pulled it out in the 6th with an RBI single! And he didn't get charged with an error when he missed a ball in the outfield. Go Dunc Tank!

Chisenhall, another sprout with a double (all 3 of them got a double tonight, actually) and a multi-hit night going 2 for 4 with a run scored!

And last but not least....Sweet Lou. Back behind the plate where we want him, hitting .222, and he broke an 0-for-19 slide by hitting a double and then scoring a run. Woooooooo Looooouuuu!!!

So we got 18 hits and only 8 LOB. HOLY COW!

Now, if we can keep up this hitting craziness and Good Fausto shows up, we have a fighting chance against Verlander tomorrow. YOU HEARD ME!

The Tribe has won 13 in a row against the Tigers in Cleveland. Why should that change tomorrow?

Such a big game tho. We'll either be 1 behind them or 3 after tomorrow. I am so on edge, for real. Tomorrow is going to be such a long day. Oh yeah and I am waiting for my best friends' baby to be born (yeah that was the right punctuation - two friends' baby!) and he needs to get here fast because I don't think I can worry about him AND the Indians both at the same time.

All right everyone get some sleep and we'll all meet back here tomorrow at 7:05, aight?!

Radio Chatter:
"It'll take a triple to score Cabrera."
- Tom Hamilton on the slowness of Miguel Cabrera

"When was the last time that happened? Maybe when he was at Old Dominion."
- Tom Hamilton on the idea of Verlander being due for a bad outing

"Boy you can't understate the importance of finding a way to win that game last night."
- Tom Hamilton

"Wow it's 9:45. At this time last night we were in a rain delay."
- Tom Hamilton

"That'll get Dave Krepop digging through the archives to find out what rookie last had a 5-hit games for the Indians."
- Tom Hamilton after Kipnis' 5th hit

#bullpenmafia Brought to You By Red Bull

So I was AT this game. I was up in the bleachers, being both bummed and elated about just how full the bleachers were. Then I was in the flash rainstorm (where it was raining on 1st base but not on Eagle Ave.) and then I was standing inside with lots of other hot and smelly fans. Then I was outside again only to be rained on again (this time it rained first on the left side of the bleachers then the right) but then the bleachers weren't as full. And then I sat and watched no-run baseball for many, many hours.

What fun! And no, I'm not being sarcastic.

The game started out pretty awesome with the Tribe getting 2 runs right away in the first inning. Everyone looked sharp and like they were hitting to win.

Unfortunately the Tigers looked pretty sharp in the 2nd inning and got 2 off Masterson. It's sorta maybe possible that those 2 runs could have been prevented by throwing to home instead of getting the sure out at 1st, but that's not traditionally the 2nd inning strategy.

Then the rains came and the longer we waited the more I knew there'd be no more Masterson. I was right, and the delay was 2:20.

Thus began the rest of a seriously long night. I would like to give a shout-out to all the fans who stayed because there were a LOT of us. More people than most of the games in April!

Especially my friends who came with me to the game, who let me stay til 1 AM! I was ready for them to want to leave at 9 and they were all "what, we've got nothing else to do!" and I was all "WOW YOU GUYS ROCK!" then they had lots of fun watching me yell at Carlos Santana to, for God's sake, STOP TRYING TO STEAL.

Anyway, a lot of us fans seemed to be wearing orange and holding signs about Brennan Boesch but...well, plenty of Tribe fans left, I tell ya. Plenty!

Nothing really happened for the next 12 innings after the rain delay, except we had the treat of seeing every single guy from the bullpen trotted out for an inning or two, knock down 3 to 6 Tigers, and then wonder who'd come out next.

Chris Perez is my favorite pitcher but I must say he was the most TIGHT of all the guys who came out (which was actually all of the guys). He put 3 down in 13 pitches, it was pretty awesome.

Hermann got the win and he was pretty awesome too because he pitched between like 1:30 and 2 AM. I'm just a regular person doing nothing but standing in the bleachers yelling and I was dead tired by 1 AM, so I can only imagine how tired he was. Then he had to throw a ball 90+ MPH? Woah.

The Tigers' bullpen was pretty much matching ours all night. Both teams struck out 13 total and we walked 4 while they walked 3. They gave up 7 hits and we gave up 10.

Looks like the Tigers' pen got worn down first, because the bottom of the 14th was sloppy and we ended up winning on a walk, single, intentional walk and hit-by-pitch. I love how Fukudome is now part of an Indians' walk-off win. Ha!

It was a super-weird, super fun game. I am glad I left my OMG ASDRUBAL!!! sign in the car, even though I had sprayed it with clear coat in anticipation of rain (yep).

So that's one down and 2 (or 11) to go. Last night was the most even matchup EVER so it will be interesting to see tonight who's got the stamina to come out ahead.

It's also Ubaldo night! So, see you then!

Oh? Oh!? Ooooh.....

Looked really promising today, folks. Like, REALLY promising.

Then the promise was violently yanked from beneath our hovering toes as we all crashed to the ground in a gigantic heap of woe.

Or, whatever. Looked good but just not good enough.

Tomlin had a very very strong outing. Seven shutout innings with 4 strikeouts, only giving up 2 runs in the 8th before he was pulled. Best outing for him since the 4th of July.

They put in Smith after Tomlins 2 runs and guess what happened? No, not "lights out" as scripted. He in fact gave up 3 runs and got nobody out. I KNOW, RIGHT?!?!! Joe Smith!!!

He just said on Twitter:

Tomlin was awesome. Great defense. Brantley rakes. I was absolutely awful. Off day to get our legs back. #wewinathome

So at least he knows, and is ready to move on.

Brantley does indeed rake (??), and perhaps also rocks. He got 2 of tonight's 3 RBIs with a triple and a homer. He was hitting them pretty far all night. Wrist: fixed.

Both Kipnis and Asdrubal ended their hitting streaks tonight (7 and 9) but Kipnis did get on with a walk and then stole 2nd.

Hafner got his hitting britches back on tonight after being shut out yesterday, and managed to score after some slow and steady work by Santana, Fukudome and finally Chisenhall.

And that was all. Three one-runs innings spaced out over Tomlin's lovely 7 shut-out innings. And then we lost and I made a funny face. Well actually, right at the end of the game my dog farted and I said "Oh, REALLY?! How apropos, dog!"

We did finish the road trip 3-4, which is what everyone said we needed to do. Still 4 games behind Detroit but 12 games left to play against them - three of those games being this week, starting Tuesday.

I'll be at the game Tuesday! With my OMG ASDRUBAL!!! sign, too. Look for me in the top right portion of the bleachers.

Radio Chatter:
"No lead is ever safe at Fenway, and that's even more true in this ballpark."
- Tom Hamilton

"That had extra bases written all over it."
- Tom Hamilton on Asdrubal's smash to Hamilton in left

"You don't break up a battery that is throwing a shut-out."
- Tom Hamilton on why Marson did not come in to hit instead of LaPorta

"The way this road trip has gone, this game is far from over."
- Tom Hamilton in the bottom of the 8th

We Are All Kipnisses

What do you think about that little slogan? Perhaps too soon, but interesting to think about. Someone drew up a poster already. I didn't come up with the slogan or anything - just seeing it on Twitter.

Missed posting last night because I was having an awesome time with my friend M, listening to the game on the radio. That's the ultimate right there, I say. I love listening on the radio but usually the television is the preferred mode for catching the game as a pair or a group. If you can find a friend who enjoys listening as much as you do, well - hang on to that friend.

Anyway, listening with a friend does not lend itself to taking notes so I got to re-listen to the game this morning. That also turned out to be pretty awesome because there's no afternoon game today (I'm guessing they don't play afternoon games in Texas in August because it's probably 125 degrees). So I get to sleep in then get up and listen to some baseball and still have time for a nap before the game tonight. What? It's Sunday - we nap!

Ok so I bet you're just about tired of reading about me wax poetic about how and when I catch Indians games and would rather read me waxing poetic about JUST HOW FUCKING AWESOME WAS THAT GAME?!

Very little went on during the first 6 innings of the game. We got 3 hits and a walk, and nobody scored. Oh yeah - nobody scored for Texas, either!

Carmona was rock solid in this game - OMG! He was like the Carmona we imagine him to be.  Only 2 strikeouts but 13 ground outs! He eventually did give up 2 earned runs in the 7th (2 un-earned as well) but IMHO it was past his time, due to the heat.

Wanna see a funny exchange from Twitter?

hoynsie (Paul Hoynes): It's 106 degrees and Fausto Carmona hardly looks like he's sweating. What gives? #Indians.
MarkSchwab (Mark Schwab): @hoynsie There's an "ice water in his veins" line somewhere in there
positivetribe (The Positive Tribe): @MarkSchwab Is that why he's prone to melting?
MarkSchwab: @positivetribe Ba-doom, CHING! (Canned laughter)

Ha ha! Look at me being clever on the Internet!

After Carmona was Sipp, Hermann and Chris Perez. Luckilly, also after Carmona was 4 runs scored by the Indians. Because for some reason, even though Sipp and Pestano were lights-out, Chris Perez saw fit to give up a run in the 9th.

I think I officially hate the All Star Game now. Asdrubal and Perez have only been percentages of themselves since they got back from Arizona. Asdrubal went to the break with 7 errors and has made 6 errors (one tonight, which resulted in 2 un-earned runs) since the break. Perez had given up 9 earned runs before the break, and already 7 since.

So yeah, while I was excited to see my two favorite Indians representing...I am now thoroughly disgusted. Being alongside the greatest players in the game is no place for a Cleveland Indian!

All right so what of the exciting offense that ensued tonight? I shall explain!

In the 7th, Fukudome and SHELLEVY DUNCAN teamed up to score the night's first run. Not a homer for Duncan but a double! Then Shelley was pulled for Carrera as a runner.

Chisenhall didn't get a hit but he moved Carrera over to third. Sweet Lou walks and then there's a pitching change. And...the pitcher just dropped the ball for a balk! So Zeke walks in from 3rd. I do believe this is the FIFTH run we've scored this year off balks.

Then with a guy in scoring position, Evildoer Michael Young helps us all out with a bad throw and Lou scores. That's how we got our 3 runs in the third - messy, but in the books.

Then yadda yadda we're down 3-4 in the 9th.

Once again, Fukudome got on base and scored, thanks to the genius of Zeke being there to bunt him over and then Chisenhall getting his second hit of the night to finish the deal (recall in the 7th Shelley was there to double Fukudome in and Zeke came in to run for him). A little veteran-on-sprout team action, there and the game is tied!

Brantley, who we love and miss dearly, showed us his wrist was just fine and gets his first hit of the night to get Chisenhall in with the go-ahead run. He hit the ball so hard that it just popped out of Nelson Cruz's glove!

Pitching change.

Jason Kipnis goes DEEP for his 5th homer in 7 games (now in 3 different parks) to score 2 runs and put us up 7-4!!!! I am just amazed at this kid, really. He's got a 7-game hitting streak with 10 hits and 5 homers in those 7 games. Exciting to see him - and of course his fellow sprouts - play every day ESPECIALLY this late in the season where that sort of stuff is EXACTLY what we need!

Asdrubal was up after Kipnis and he had been having a shitty night, including an error. But he did get a single and extend his own hitting streak to 9.

Then Perez, one run, BALLGAME!

Spectacular team effort tonight, even if we did commit 2 errors. Young guys and old guys alike did their jobs and made runs happen. Everyone said it would be awesome if we left this road trip 3-4 and we've got our 3...I seriously can't wait til tonight when we try to make it out of there 4 and 3!!

Tomlin versus Colby Lewis, which on paper is quite an even matchup. Except Tomlin has become our weak spot but maybe he'll be inspired by Masterson and Carmona's last starts and Take Care of Business in a big way.

Tonight at 8:05 - see you there!

Radio Chatter:
"If Brantley hits one down the right field line, he could walk to third."
- Tom Hamilton on the shift for Brantley

"Carmona throwing one of his best games of the year, when you consider where it's at and who it's against."
- Tom Hamilton

"This house of horrors continues to haunt the Indians."
- Tom Hamilton

"Kinsler can crawl home."
- Tom Hamilton on the length of Hamilton's sac fly in the 7th

"Wow what an inning!"
- Tom Hamilton in the top of 9th inning

"Every time you say 'That's the biggest win of the Indians' season' about a week later you're looking at one thinking 'uh-oh, THAT might be the biggest win' and that is what we might be looking at here tonight."
- Tom Hamilton

"This would be the understatement of the year, but I'll say it anyway. You can't lose this game tonight after you come back with a 4-run 9th to take the lead against Neftali Feliz. [...] If you don't, you really wonder what is going to happen to this ball club the rest of the way."
- Tom Hamilton in the 9th as Perez struggles

"Indians fans, you can breathe! The Indians have survived 7 to 5."
- Tom Hamilton after the last out

The Problem With A Hitter's Park...

...is that the other team is hitting there too.

Tribe looked pretty great today at the plate. Through the first 3 innings at least!

The first was great, when Kipnis (6-game hitting streak) got on with a single and Asdrubal was all "8-game hitting streak!" and got on too. And then Carlos Santana bombed one out of here. Booya!

Then in the second, Kearns walked (yay Kearns on base!) and Donald singled (!!) and Kipnis got Kearns in on a FC. Asdrubal gets on with an error and Carlos Santana bombed a 2-run single. Booya!

Then in the third, Shelley Duncan was all "REMEMBER ME?!" and got a solo homer! Not bad, because he was totally DHing for Pronk's night off tonight.

Then nothing happened until the 10th.

Well not nothing. Fukudome and LaPorta got hits. Both Kipnis and Carrera rocked out on some Web Gems. Carrera's might be at the top for the week!

Ok so what of Ubaldo Jiminez?! Good enough so far. I mean he didn't pitch a shut out and he did give up 5 runs but it was his first start in a new place with a new team. And it was 105 degrees outside. He only gave us 5 innings, but that's enough to get the win. Next time he'll be even better.

Durbin, Smith and Pestano came in to keep things straight for 3 innings and Chris Perez did the unthinkable and gave up 2 runs in the 9th to tie the game. Fuck fuck fuck fuck.

As fans we at least deserve some video of Rage destroying something in the clubhouse or the tunnel. Please?

Anyway, we held on for 2 more innings then we lost. I won't describe how we lost because it's FAR from positive. While I enjoy getting extra baseball for my money, it is very sad when you can't come out ahead at the end of all that.

I'll just leave it at sad trombone.

Same thing, same time tomorrow. Only not with our pal Ubaldo but instead Fausto. I just don't know what to expect from Fausto so I don't know how excited to be or what. I might be busy tomorrow so you might have to wait until Sunday to get my post but you know what? The game's at 8 on Sunday! Weird!

Ok, get some sleep. See you tomorrow. (!)

Radio Chatter:
"A 3-run lead in the first inning in this park means absolutely nothing."
- Tom Hamilton

"Boy, Texas...they don't buy the fact that he hit homers in the last 4 games as they are awful shallow in the outfield."
- Tom Hamilton on Jason Kipnis

"That's just dumb baseball. Trying to steal third with 2 outs. I guess you have to live with that part of the package from Carlos Santana."
- Tom Hamilton

"Six to one Indians, and not to be paranoid, but Rosie it's only the 2nd inning."
"It's not paranoid if you've seen it before."
- Tom Hamilton and Jim Rosenhaus

"If you go jogging tomorrow at 4 o'clock, I'll buy you an ice cream cone."
- Tom Hamilton wants Rosie to prove he used to be a runner

"Welp, nobody is warming up so this is either a pep talk or a lecture. Doesn't look like a pep talk. It's a one-sided conversation and Manny Acta is not happy."
- Tom Hamilton on Acta's visit to Pestano in the 8th

"Josh Hamilton may have struck out three times tonight but he's still a lethal weapon."
- Tom Hamilton, before Hamilton got a 2-out single in the 9th

"Welp, nothing you can really say here."
- Tom Hamilton after the game is tied up in the 9th

"There are frustrating losses and there are heart-wrenching losses. I think tonight's game qualifies as the latter."
-Tom Hamilton

Doin' Stuff

The Tribe was doin' stuff tonight. Striking guys out, getting hits, stealing bases, not making errors, smashing balls off the Green Monster. All sorts of stuff that win you a game.

An win we did! A crucial win to split the 4-game series with the Red Sox and pick up a whole game on the losing Tigers.

First off, Masterson was even BETTER than usual getting NINE strikeouts over 6 innings *boggle* He even got 4 strikeouts in one inning which does do a lot to raise your K total.

The #bullpenmafia was back to true form tonight. Pestano, Sipp and Perez. Zero hits and zero runs over 3 innings. Goodnight!

Tons of hits for our sleepy-hitting lineup tonight, too. And the big stars of tonight weren't the sprouts!

Speaking of sprouts, Kipnis did not get a 5th homer in t a row. He did get a hit, tho, for a 5-game hitting streak.

Asdrubal extended his hitting streak to 7 with just one hit but he got on base enough to score 3 runs - thanks in part to 2 more stolen bases!

Hafner went 3 for 4 and is back up to hitting .300. They're basically calling his min-slump over again. He smashed two huge doubles off the Green Monster.

Santana went 3 for 4 as well, with a couple singles, a walk and 2-run homer in the 6th. Unfortunately his catching sort of stunk...but maybe it's ok if it stinks and we win. It drives the point home to Acta and we also end up with the win.

Fukudome woke the fuck up today! He went 3 for 5 scoring a run and getting a RBI. I watched the game on TV today and boy does his swing look weird. Just really awkward. Maybe he's not trying to swing like that but he always seems to be reaching and leaving the box. But, he made contact. He also had some nice patient at-bats.

LaPorta wasn't too bad today, getting two hits. He even got an RBI. So today he was wishy. 

Jason Donald - who is a sprout I'm not yet excited about - got a hit, and then was traded for Hannahan in the 9th, who struck out. Yaaaaawn...

Justin Masterson got the backing of SEVEN runs (well, 6 by the time he left) and 14 hits. Finally got his 9th win!

UBALDO tomorrow!! Who's stoked? I hope the team keeps their hittin' and Ubaldo does some magic and it's an awesome game. Can't wait - sad it's not on TV and that it's not until 8:05. Ugghh...I might seriously just go to the gym longer just to keep myself busy while I wait.

I did something different today and didn't hang on every word of the radio. I did chores and stuff. The furnace filter doesn't clean itself, you know. And the dog certainly doesn't brush herself, oh no. Anyway, I only have one Radio Chatter for you.

See you tomorrow. UBALDO!

Radio Chatter:
"Boy you won't hear a much quieter Fenway park than you do now."
- Tom Hamilton in the 6th inning after we had 6 runs

More Sweet Stuff from the Sprouts

So the Tribe is .500 right now for the first time since April 5. We're 4 games out of first place. Last night, Bob Frantz was pondering whether or not "this is it."

GROAN! First off, no this isn't it. There are 2 more months left. We've got three more players left (Sizemore, Choo, Jiminez) an the possibility of signing someone off waivers.

All that AND our new guys are kicking ass!

Kipnis tonight with his 4th home run in as many games!

Lonnie with a big double late in the game, coming in to score when...

Zeke batting leadoff (love him but BOY did we need Brantley tonight!!) gets a ground-rule double and RBI to tie the game in the 8th.

The only other producers tonight were our steadfast Asdrubal and Hafner, who followed up Kipnis's solo shot with a single and an RBI double.

No help from any other guys. I heard someone say earlier, I think on the radio, that Santana was going to strike out and hit a home run. Well the guy was half right - 4 times!

Now that some of the chaff has been cleared from our lineup (Orlando, Buck - sorry guys!) Austin Kearns sort of sticks out like a sore thumb of badness, doesn't he? Swell guy and his kid is getting good treatment at the Autism Center but...well maybe he can just retire and stay in Cleveland?

If we're going to have guys suck in our lineup let it be the fresh new Fukudome, the wishy-washy LaPorta or Carlos "For fuck's sake stop wiggling your foot at the plate!" Santana. Kearns just isn't doing it for us anymore.

Carlos Carrasco composed himself today and only gave up 2 earned runs. He went as far as the bottom of the 8th, too. Not bad at all - someone must have had quite a talk with him. He definitely had opportunity to melt down, especially after Kearns' run-scoring error in the 1st, but he did just fine. That coolness we saw all through June that had completely evaded him through July.

Our man Sipp looked good in the 8th, striking out 2. Not sure how Smith let the game go but ... well I know how and the answer is FUCK BOSTON ARGH!!

Turns out the game wasn't on WKYC today but it is tomorrow! Not bad because I forgot to tune in until halfway through today anyway.

Still have a chance to split the series. Tomorrow's gonna be a great game between Masterson and Boston's new stud Erik Bedard. Well it'll be awesome as long as Ellsbury doesn't bat in the 9th - amirite?

Only 2 more days until Ubaldo!

See you tomorrow at 7:10!

Radio Chatter:
"Boy oh boy - with Gonzalez at the plate, not quite sure where Pedroia was going."
- Tom Hamilton on Pedroia getting picked off

"He forgot his pre-game plan against the knuckeballer was to hit from the left hand side."
- Jim Rosenhaus on Carlos Santana switching from a right-handed batting helmet to left-handed

"You are living a charmed life in this ballpark when you have 2 runners on in almost every inning."
- Tom Hamilton

"It used to be 'Jim Wisenhaus' when he was in Buffalo but now it's 'Rosenhaus' since he's in the big leagues."
- Tom Hamilton mocking the change in the pronounciation of Marco Scutaro's name when he left Cleveland

"Neil Diamond recorded that song when he had his own hair, and it's become a Fenway tradition."
- Tom Hamilton on "Sweet Caroline"

"You come to Fenway Park and you'd better not go into the 9th tied with the Red Sox coming to bat."
- Tom Hamilton