And Now - 1000 Words On Hot Dogs

I told my friend that it's getting sort of hard to write these blog posts during this losing streak. Not just because we're losing, but nothing too exciting is happening. He asked me if I had done a thorough review of hot dogs yet and I said no, but that sounds like a good idea.
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Here's the deal with hot dogs at Progressive Field: there are two main kinds. There are the $3 hot dogs, which are the same as the $1 hot dogs on Dollar Dog nights. Then there are some huge hot dogs, I think 1/4 lb, which are $5 or $5.50. The cheap dogs are also what you're going to find in the "All You Can Eat Seats." As far as I know, you can get the bigger dogs anywhere you can get hot dogs, but I may be wrong. I usually shoot for the bigger concession stands that have everything.

If it's Dollar Dog night, or you're buying hot dogs for kids then the cheaper dogs are a no-brainer. They're no different than gas station dogs but they get the job done. Plus, you're really just there for the Stadium Mustard anyway - who cares what goes on underneath it?

Now, if you are a person of substantial size (ie a Clevelander) then you will enjoy the bigger dog much more. There's a lot of hot dog there. And you can taste it around the mustard, which is fine, cuz it's good. If you have been waiting since lunch you can probably manage 2 dogs and some fries (should I do another post all about the fries? The fries are awesome!) If you're a normal-sized person, perhaps visiting from out of town, one big dog will do you. But get the fries too.

One issue I have with the big dogs is that they are super freaking hot. I've had to take them apart and eat them bunless when I'm being good and watching my carbs (best and possibly only low-carb treat at the ballpark!) and they burn my fingers. When I get them in a bun, of course they don't burn my fingers but even after a walk from the concession stand to the condiment bar to my seat they're still blazing hot! This makes me unhappy because as much as I like eating hot dogs, I like cheering for the Tribe even more and that's hard to do with a tray of hot dogs on my lap. I gotta hold on to the napkins, and keep drinking pop, and make sure I don't get ketchup all over my jersey. It totally impedes on my clapping ability (and I have a wicked good clap). So it sucks to have to go slow and not burn my mouth on these damn big hot dogs. It also sucks to go fast and burn my mouth on the damn big hot dogs. It's one of the only bad things about dinner at the ballpark!

These hot hot dogs do beat the cheap dogs at the All You Can Eat stands, which in my experience are cold by the end of the game. Boo!

Unfortunately the hot dog vendors that come to the seats only sell the cheap dogs. If you would like to have the very baseball experience of having someone sell you a hot dog from an insulated box while you sit at your seat, then by all means get those cheap dogs. There's definitely something special about that - so special that they send around the hot dog guys in the old timey vendor outfits and everything. Unfortunately I don't think they squirt your condiments for you anymore but in reality I think that saves everyone some trouble.

You actually have more hot dog options at The Prog, including the foot-long hot dog. These are sold in the stands by vendors (with the funny outfits) and according to this site they're also at a fancy hot dog concession stand that sells veggie dogs and mega condiments. I've never seen this stand, but to be honest my friends and I are generally not trawling for food (we find stuff and eat it. End of story.) I'll have to look for it next time I'm out there, though, as the foot-long guys don't come to every section.

The foot-longs are pretty good. They seem like more than just double the cheapo dogs. I was prepared to be unimpressed but by the time I was done with the one I had (from a vendor, noless!) I was like "huh, that was worth it!" I don't remember the price on those, it's been a while, but I know they still have them for sure. If you see a vendor come by and you're wanting a hot dog - try a foot-long!

Of course there's tons of other food at The Prog and I've written about it before, as I try it, but I always come back to the hot dog. I don't know if our hot dogs are anything to write home about but the Indians do have the best mustard in the big leagues (™ maybe?) which I never, ever eat at home (although I think every NE Ohio fridge has a bottle, just in case, from that one time you had a bbq at your house) but I make a beeline for it at every game.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention The Hot Dogs in my report - and I mean the hot dogs that race in the Hot Dog Derby.

These hot dogs.

 I'm a big fan of Mustard, myself. Never trusted that dang cheating Ketchup. I'm ambivalent about onion - I'll cheer for her if Mustard is out of the race. I've been known to give Ketchup some sass if I see him walking around the park. One time he did something rude to me, I forget what. Like a hand gesture or punched my arm or something. I will admit it was pretty hilarious to be heckled by a hot dog. I'm very excited that I have a Mustard magnet on my fridge now! Some day I might even buy myself a Mustard doll.

My best friend that I go to games with is a big fan of Ketchup. Odd - we are politically opposed as well. Does the cheating Ketchup appeal to the Right and the sideways-hat-wearin' Mustard appeal to the Left? Hmm. That is a question bigger than us all! However I WOULD like to know why the hot dogs that represent Cleveland includes a bright YELLOW Mustard. I don't think I can ever take them truly seriously until Mustard gets some soul.
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There you have it - my treatise on hot dogs at Progressive Field. Widely researched and poorly executed but research is on-going.

As for today's game against the Yankees - how about that Drew Stubbs? He broke a no-hit streak last night then came in tonight to go 2 for 3 with a 3-run homer! He got 2 of the team's 3 hits and all of the team's RBI for the night. Oh yeah and he's not too shabby in the field, either!

Oh and how about that Nick Hagadone? Coming in with bases loaded and 1 out and I bet you were all holding your breath (like I was) and then he gets Robinson Cano, of all people, to hit in to a double play. Wow!

No word on where you can buy the BROHIO shirt yet. It's definitely getting a lot of attention, according to the blog's stats. As soon as I figure out where you can buy it I'll post a link. Damn the burgeoning custom soft tee manufacturing market in Cleveland! They make one-off tees like nobody's business! Of course now I'm already on to wondering what shirts these were that Mark Reynolds and friend were wearing in the clubhouse today. Did the mullet barber bring them? What do they say? Don't worry, boffins - I'm on the case. I Tweeted Kipnis for us!

Tomorrow's an afternoon game in New York, a 1:05 start. It'll be Kluber versus LHP 3.71. A Cy Young Award winner - our favorite!

See you there!

Radio Chatter:
"Those folks...they don't want to take a chance on bruising their hands while clapping, or getting a sore throat from screaming."
- Tom Hamilton on subdued Yankee fans in the expensive seats

"The only thing that A-Rod likes more than himself is money."
- Tom Hamilton

"Fans here fully expect someday to see Derek Jeter walk across the East River."
- Tom Hamilton

"When you're down 4, you don't think there's anything cheap about a home run."
- Tom Hamilton about Stubbs hitting a "cheap" homer

"Terry Francona went to Nick Hagadone and said 'Look kid, I still believe in ya. Now prove me right.' And boy did he!"
- Tom Hamilton

At Least We've Got Ubaldo?

Never thought I'd be saying that! I don't think we've had a game this season - or any season - where Ubaldo came off like a shining star amongst some crap batting and crap relief.

Was it crap batting or amazing pitching? The other guy didn't walk any of our guys, and struck out 7. I suppose if we're going to say Ubaldo did great with similar stats, then so did Leake. It doesn't get our batters off the hook, though - if they can manage all those Cy Young guys they can manage some dude from Cincinnati!

Ubaldo went 7 1/3 innings before he had thrown enough (108) and was done. In that time he only struck out 6 (I'm getting greedy with my strikeouts, thanks to Justin!) and gave up 2 earned runs. His ERA is actually the third lowest it's been all season already, thanks to the long outing. He is throwing in the low 90s, as prescribed, so that's cool. He didn't hit anyone today but he did have a wild pitch and gave up a home run to the leadoff hitter, Choo, in the first.

Best news - no meltdown!

Jiminez didn't have much help from Santana, who had 2 passed balls (one for Jiminez, one for Hagadone). Good thing Santana is hitting pretty well yet - I think everyone is chomping at the bit to get Gomes in there as our catcher and it seems like the minute Santana does something "off" he gets extra scolded for it. It's a weird spot to be in, though. There are a lot of possibilities as to who can play where and when but I'll be darned if I can tell you what the best one would be!

Hagadone was called up from Columbus today, after just being sent down to Columbus whence I said "Good, he needs to go to Columbus." He was brought up because Perez is momentarily disabled in the arm. Hagadone is not that good, but he's all we got. He started off good with an ERA under 3 all through April and the beginning of May only giving up 2 runs in 10 appearances. Then he gave up 3 runs in 1/3 of an inning. Then he did it again. Then they sent him away but they had to bring him back. Today he was back and he immediately got bitten by this bug where our relievers are giving up home runs.

Our relievers are giving up home runs.

Hagadone gave up a 2-run homer to Joey Votto in the 8th and that was that. Bryan Shaw, who is bug-free, finished off the 8th with no fanfare. What can you do about Hagadone? He's the only guy ready enough in Columbus to come up, I guess. Does he have a sore arm too? Anyone else we can try? Can Bauer do more relief? I'd like to see that.

It was "only" a 2-run deficit going in to the 9th but considering the team's take for the first 8 innings was only 2 runs, it didn't look promising that we could come back on this one. And we didn't. Perhaps if Swisher had let Chapman hit him in the head when Chapman threw at his head in the 9th we'd have had a chance at some game-tying homer. But also we might be down one Nick Swisher and the guy is really growing on me.

Speaking of growing on me - Jason Friggin' Giambi. I hate to see him up anymore, he's like Damon or Thome. Blech. But then every 10th at-bat or so (actually, he's 3/61 so I guess it's almost exactly every 20th at-bat) he hits a homer and it's some game-changing homer (today: game-tying) and I'm all "woohoo! I knew he had it in him!" It'd be so much easier if I didn't have to think about it, you know?

In other news, Kipnis and Asdrubal are keepin' on with their hitting, despite the rest of the team's poor performance. And despite their own "relatively" weak showing. Both went 1 for 4, Asdrubal with a double - extending his hitting streak to a Brantley-like 7 games.

Asdrubal also stole third! It doesn't seem like they are some huge stealing threat (although we have two of the fastest dues in the league) but it's sort of a round-robin of who might be running on you next. The Tribe is 3rd in the league in stolen bases and they've been running a lot more in recent games. Maybe because Bourn is back and Kipnis is getting on base more? The only regulars with no stolen bases are Giambi, Gomes and Chisenhall. Leading the team in SB is Kipnis with 10 but Bourn - who's got 60 fewer at-bats - is catching up fast with 8!

Reynolds got the only other hit, and Santana got the other run via sac fly. The end.

Tomorrow's another day is about all we can say about this, huh? We TOTALLY have to win tomorrow because my Negative Nelly friend said we'd go 1-5 on the road trip. Please please win tomorrow to prove my friend wrong! Also, because I'm tired of losing. Terry Francona is too. There better be some major heart-to-heart at tonight's Skyline Chili eating contest where Tito whips these knuckleheads in to shape and gets them back on the win train.

Tomorrow at 7:05 is McAllister versus RHP 3.17. Guy's given up 15 runs in his last 4 starts. Let's hope they can coax some more out of him tomorrow!

No Radio Chatter today. I was up at dawn (or what seemed like dawn) to go to the local parade and I crashed hard in the middle of the game. I had a good nap, and it would seem I didn't miss much of anything.

But, see you tomorrow!

But Then Nothing Happened

I made a pledge not to talk about Ubaldo anymore in my posts, lest I lose the whole "positive" angle thing I've got going here. So the first two innings are moot.

Cody Allen had been rotting away in Columbus but he got to come up, and thank goodness he did because he was quite useful today! He did give up 3 of the other guy's runs, but his line looks clean. Three innings, four hits, no runs and SIX strikeouts! Everyone was kind of adjusting their ties and saying "we have no long relief" but it looks like Allen is willing and able to fill that role. Well, maybe not LONG relief - I guess that may have been 5 innings instead of 3? I don't even know - you ball players and your jive! But Allen had a great showing, hopefully he keeps it up.

In fact the entire bullpen was great and didn't give up any runs. They combined for 15 strikeouts! Nick Hagadone took over the 6th and 7th and was lights-out, giving him an ERA of 0.00 over two games now. Rich Hill and Bryan Shaw struck out six more to finish off the game.

Everyone is now adjusting their ties and bemoaning the "overuse" of our bullpen today, after such a long rest (??) but geez....four guys over 7 1/3 innings. What would Bob Feller say? (Oh, something you wouldn't want to repeat to your mother, that's for sure.)

But then, nothing happened.

Terry Francona pointed out that our team really fought back after the second inning debacle. And they did! They had the bases loaded with one out! Then the bases loaded with Mark Reynolds up! Terry noted that that was great, even though nothing happened.

I think we should call that The Cleveland Gut Punch.

Anyhow, we only got 6 hits today but we also got 6 walks. They were patient, they were scrappin, they almost got it done. There were also some really good plays on Boston's part *shakes fist*

Michael Bourn got a bunch of stitches in his hand. Pants! Drew Stubbs led off and he's not half bad. He's only half of Bourn tho, going 1 for 3 with 2 walks. Bourn would have gone 2 for 3, sucka! But Stubbs was on base a heck of a lot and that's all we ask. His friends never hit him in, though.

Asdrubal got a hit! It was only one hit, and he paired it with a strikeout, but hey man it's better than 2 strikeouts and no hits, right?

Kipnis is still out and I think they are just playing it safe with him. Why play Kipnis when it's Ubaldo on the mound, eh? Eh?

Santana was back today. They sent Santos down. Santana didn't come back with the same punch he left with but oh well. He went 0 for 4.

Good ol' Swisher was out there getting it done today, tho. He went 1 for 3 with a walk. No one on our team got any extra bases tonight but here's a fun fact: No one on Boston got a home run! Woah!

Mark Reynolds did not get us the grand slam we wanted. HOWEVER, in defense of Mark Reynolds, he did not strike out today. He walked twice, like a grown up and a good role model for Santana.

Cousin Michael is still hot hot hot! Not sure how his average dropped below .300 but .282 will do. Today he went 2 for 4 with no strikeouts. Unfortunately he was not up at the right times for anyone to capitalize on those hits. Love how he's staying hot even when the team is ice cold!

Mike Aviles is still grinding it out, too. He's at second base still. He went 0 for 3 but he did get a sac fly and got one of our two RBIs on the night.

Lonnie Chisenhall, on the other hand, is still stuck in the very rut that Asdrubal is in. This is no good because I told everyone he's the guy to watch this year. Get going, Chiz!

Ryan Raburn took over as the solid 9th batter, instead of Stubbs who was playing the exciting first batter today. He went 1 for 2 with a walk before being taken out for Cord Phelps. Hey Cord Phelps! Cord didn't get any hits.

It was just a rough game today. We did ALMOST so well against the top team in the AL East. In fact if it weren't for 1 2/3 innings of nameless baseball, we would have won. But, we didn't.

Tomorrow I'm going to the game and I'm PUMPED!! I was not looking forward to going to a cold, rainy game surrounded by a bunch of faux-Boston-fans but now I'm excited to be 1 of 10,000 fans in attendance. There will be Perez and there will be screaming. And I will be next to the bullpen so everyone will friggin hear me. EVERYONE!!

I was wondering if I should bring a whistle but I bet that is probably not a good idea. I wish I had a cowbell, I'd bring that. I might actually waltz into the Team Shop and get me some sort of clapping device. I'll be able to afford it because hot dogs are cheap. BAM!

Hmm there might be no Perez tomorrow because Justin's already up again! Huh! He's facing RHP 6.75. No contest, right?

Can't wait - see you there!

Radio Chatter:
"Send that script to Hollywood and they'd say 'We're not going to use it.'"
- Tom Hamilton on the unbelieveably true story of Daniel Nava

"Unfortunately for Ubaldo Jiminez, this inning represents all of the struggles he's had in the past."
- Tom Hamilton on the 2nd inning

"'Crisp' wouldn't be the best adjective to describe today's pitching performances by Jiminez and Doubront."
- Tom Hamilton

"Homeplate umpire Lance Diaz must be mumbling to himself 'Can anyone here throw strikes tonight?'"
- Tom Hamilton

"It's like an epidemic tonight. The virus is called 'Lack Of Command.'"
- Tom Hamilton

"The only guys playing tonight are the pitcher and the catcher."
- Tom Hamilton

"John Adams is now pounding on his forehead."
- Tom Hamilton

Getting What We Paid For

I'm so tired, friends. I just got home from a lovely wedding and wedding reception that had a really great DJ and I danced and moved in ways that were not meant for me. I should have gone to bed 2 hours ago but I saw the box score from tonight's game and I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to hear how we got those nine runs!

Zach McAllister had a great start today! He went 6 1/3 innings only giving up one earned run and striking out 6 (Masterson struck out 7 in his complete game). Do we have a second awesome starter?? I cannot WAIT to see him again to see if this is a new trend!

Bryan Shaw came in for his third try at relief, and he gave up a homer. Not cool! I didn't really cover his last two appearances where he actually did pretty well. His first time up was against Toronto where he gave up one hit in one inning, and then he came in versus Tampa Bay for two innings and also gave up one hit but struck out three. Tonight was his first run given up, so so far not too bad. I got my eye on you, Shaw!

Nick Hagadone was up from Columbus to be dazzling in the 8th. He got three outs on 10 pitches. Next up was Joe Smith for the 9th and you know what Joe Smith did. That's right! Shut 'em down! It'd be pretty sweet if Hagadone is as tight as Smith, Pestano and Perez then we've got a huge, huge bullpen. I'm not sure what Hagadone's status is, though, as Albers is merely on paternity leave.

The Tribe batters seemed to have no problem with near-Cy-Young-Award-winner Chris Sale, who normally totally has our number and shuts us down. Of course this is not the same old Tribe lineup he was able to intimidate in 2012.

He did shut down Bourn and Brantley, which is odd because they're our best hitters, and Brantley usually doesn't have problems hitting lefties. Bourn struck out twice and Brantley reached by getting hit by a pitch.

Asdrubal went 1 for 4 with a walk and came around to score. He's still not warmed up, it'd seem. But any day now.

Kipnis wasn't in today, as he's got some shoulder soreness. Instead Ryan Raburn was playing second base. I didn't know he played second! Raburn also went 1 for 4 with a walk, and he came in to score twice. One of his hits was a double but from how I heard it, it would have been a homer on a warmer day!

Nick Swisher - as advertised! Today I was in a Denny's (the worst Denny's in NE Ohio, I think - on Mentor Ave.) and there was a #33 baseball pillow in the claw arcade machine. I thought that was pretty impressive as far as claw arcade machine stocking goes - that's some dedication to current events!

Anyway Nick Swisher got a two-run homer in the first inning to tie the game. On his way into the dugout he gave a big "O-H"! That'd be pretty cool if he does it every time, so keep an eye out for that - and be sure to "I-O" him! He also got a double and walked, and came around to score both times. Literally.

Even bigger than Swisher, as far as acquisitions go, is Mark F'n Reynolds. He had a GRAND SLAM today in the 5th! He leads the team in homers and RBI and totally does not lead the team in strikeouts. Is he turning the corner?  He's in the top 3 in the league in homers and RBI, too, and not in the top 30 in the league for strikeouts. Since he came via Arizona, I was sternly warned about him by my Diamondback-fan uncle, but he keeps hitting more and striking out less than I'm expecting so I'm pretty cool with him. All right, super cool with him since he got a grand slam. w00t!

After Reynolds hit his grand slam, Chris Sale hit Brantley with a pitch. And the umpire said "tsk, tsk, don't anyone do that again" and went about his business, not throwing anyone out or suggesting any suspension. Huh. I guess it really is a matter of reputation, after all.

Chisenhall was out as well, and I thought he was hurt but he's not on the injury list so maybe I confused him with Kipnis. Anyway, Aviles was in for Chiz at third. He went 1 for 4 and is keeping his average over .250.

Catching tonight was Yan Gomes, who happened to be the catcher for Masterson's awesome game. Hmm....is he an awesome catcher? He's from Brazil, didja know? Today he got his first hit and it was a home run. Gooooone! Gooooooooooooooooooooooomes! I'm kind of interested in checking this guy out a little longer before 'Los and Lou come back. Santana is "possible" for Sunday, though, but Gomes will be our backup if that's the case because Lou isn't "possible" until April 24.

Drew Stubbs had a ho-hum Drew Stubbs kind of game. He went 1 for 3 with a walk and no one was around to bat him in. Oh well.

Super exciting game all around, though! Every game with a grand slam is big fun, don't you think? And we got two other home runs, and our starting pitcher was top-notch? This is what we were all expecting on April 2!

Tomorrow is Brett Myers versus RHP 5.56. Oh man, Brett Myers...He's like Ubaldo, only shorter.

The game's at 1:05 so see you there!

Radio Chatter:
"If you ask him, I'm sure he'll come share that steak dinner with you at Bob Evans."
- Tom Hamilton on Swisher's home run and the "Winner, Winner Steak Dinner" promo

"Some folks still coming in to the ballpark. They're dressed like they're going to go see Santa Claus after the game and tell him what they want for Christmas."
- Tom Hamilton

"Here come those cards and letters! Postmarked Winterhaven."
"Yep, they're getting out their box of crayons..."
- Jim Rosenhaus and Tom Hamilton after Hamilton had some digs in on Winterhave, Florida

"Boy, that was no wall-scraper. That was a third of the way up the bleachers."
- Tom Hamilton on Reynolds' grand slam

"The White Sox have raised the white flag [...] So Cabrera will not be taking off [for second base] here. If he does, somebody else will get hit."
- Tom Hamilton

"If the general manager is saying three months, that's not a sprained ankle folks. If it is, Jose Reyes has the slowest healing power in all of sports."
- Tom Hamilton

Nick Hagadone Is Your Daddy

How about that guy? Brought up in late April for our west coast trip and kept on the roster (Lopez eventually went down) and has pitched 9 1/3 innings since then and given up just 1 run giving him an ERA of .96. And tonight? Struck out the side. The side including Adam Dunn who, according to all accounts, does not suck anymore.

Fact: Did you know that Hagadone's birthday is New Year's Day? I bet you will think about that next New Year's Day.

Carlos Santana! He's creepin' up towards .300, tonight going 2 for 3 with 2 walks. He almost decapitated John Danks with a two-out, two-RBI double, which is no easy feat because that guy is nearly invisible when sideways. Santana also stole a base and I was surprised to hear it was his first. Seems like he's been doing everything this year.

Speaking of creeping averages, Casey Kotchman is feeling a groove. He's no longer "Oh, Kotchman's up..." he's more like "Ok Casey, do it again!" He went 2 for 4 tonight and he will soon - SOON! - be batting over .200!

Jack Hannahan also had a nice night going 2 for 4. Unfortunately he didn't have people to bat in, otherwise who know he may have gone 4-4 out of pressure! His average is hovering under .300 at .289.

Otherwise it wasn't really the best game for us. Danks really had our number and conversely Masterson was NOT the hot stuff I was predicting him to be and Perez fell off the wagon. But they were saying on the radio yesterday that Perez was sort of begging to not have to pitch yesterday so I'm wondering if that carried over til today too?

Josh Hamilton hit 4 home runs tonight in Baltimore. I guess Rocky Colavito hit 4 in Baltimore once too. Curse of the Rock weighing on us tonight?

Lulz! Just kidding! Hitting and pitching sucked!

I had a crummy day today and couldn't focus on the baseball so I didn't get any Radio Chatter quotes. Sorry about that. I listened to the whole game but nothing really jumped out at me - maybe it wasn't even my fault, maybe Hammy and Rosie didn't say anything worth noting!

Hopefully everyone got their sillies out tonight, and tomorrow can get back to winning. Honestly it was a decent game since they showed the ability to come back. It just started and ended poorly. The bit in the middle? Awesome!

Tomorrow is Jeanmar against Jake Peavy. Let's hope Jeanmar stays on the same track he's been on. Another 7:05 game - see you there!

At Least They Homered?

I think having Johnny Damon on the bench lit a fire under Shelley Duncan. He must be in fear for his job so he's back to hitting like a champ. Or, he doesn't like hitting in Cleveland.

Whatever the case, Duncan went 2 for 3 today with a walk, 2 runs and a RBI. In the form of a home run. The team's first home run since April 17! I guess that's some sort of slump record. Most games w/o a homer since the Angels went 14 in 2003? Man I totally pulled that trivia out of my very tired butt so it's probably not exactly true. Perhaps maybe close.

Also having a great night tonight was...Jason Kipnis! He went 3 for 4 tonight with an RBI. Dude has 15 hits in his last 10 games! Not sure why he was down at #7 while Donald (.184) was #2 but Kipnis sure did complement Duncan and the #8 guy - Aaron Cunningham - who is the only other guy to get a hit! Yay Aaron Cunningham!

The only other highlight of the game was Jairo Asencio's 2 1/3 innings where he struck out 2 and didn't give up any hits. Our man from Columbus Nick Hagadone came in for the 9th and he did great, keeping his ERA at 1.69.

Otherwise...I dunno, I don't wanna talk about it. Ubaldo Jiminez makes me mad and when we do poorly on defense it makes me really sad. Especially when Asdrubal makes an error.

I am really honestly stoked about Shelley both hitting and hitting a home run. So that made the long wait worth it. I also appreciated the long wait! 9 PM is pretty nice for a starting time - it gives me enough time to go to the gym, take a shower and eat dinner before the game starts. And it's over by midnight, so that's cool.

I'm glad we had baseball today too. Because two days without is just unbearable!

We're back with the White Sox tomorrow and good news - Ubaldo Jiminez will not be starting! Neither will Chris Sale! It's Josh Tomlin and his facial hair against Philip Humber who, as it turns out, is not as great as his two-starts-ago-no-hitter would have lead you to believe. He gave up 3 homers and 9 earned runs in 5 innings. GIGGITY!

So we'll try again tomorrow at 8:10 PM, and it'll be a lot better. Maybe you'll all get to see Johnny Damon play, you Damon-lovers.

See you there!

Radio Chatter:
"Donald has a swing like a guy who is going to hit 35 home runs this year. He's a line-drive hitter and is not going to be hitting 35 home runs."
- Tom Hamilton

"How in the world can you play a baseball game with the smoke so thick nobody can see a pop up on the infield?"
- Tom Hamilton is furious

"It isn't Jiminez's fault we're losing, it's Rosie's."
- Tom Hamilton commenting on the score since Jim Rosenhaus took over

"I tell you what, the Indians are playing defense today like it's the first day of spring training."
- Tom Hamilton as Santana misses a popup

For You, Justin

Hey did you notice I updated the Everybody Hits box, like a few hours ago? Because everyone had a hit by the 7th inning. And it turned out to be the game-winner, too!

Crazy game tonight. West coast night games always seem crazy, just listening to baseball at midnight. The craziest part was that Justin Masterson sucked. No wait - the craziest part was that Justin Masterson sucked and we still won!

Masterson was fine for the first two innings. He had nine pitches in the first. In the third he walked a guy then gave up a homer and never seemed to recover. In the 4th he gave up 6 runs. Yeah - Justin Masterson gave up 6 runs! He walked a run in, he hit a guy to get a run in. Fucking crazy...but, hey, he's good. We know he's good. He'll get good again. He was amazing in his last game and the rest of the team lost it for him so we owe him one.

In comes Nick Hagadone for relief. Why he wasn't already up here before today, I do not know (but I'm sure people who know things knew why). I thought he was great last year. They opted to bring him up from the minors when Asdrubal had to cut out on a 6-day bereavement leave (his abeulo died. That's Venezuelan for grandpa). SMART move by whoever made that move and I was already applauding it before Masterson had his meltdown. Our bullpen is not "the bullpen" yet and a good fresh arm was just what it needed.

Anyway so Hagadone - who is from Seattle - no not acquired from the Mariners, I mean he grew up there - got off a plane just today and is back pitching in the big leagues. He pitched an inning and a third and struck out two. In that third of an inning the bases were juiced and he got out of it. Welcome back!

They had to employ the rest of the bullpen for 4 innings, which is not how we wanted to start this trip, but they did good pitching about 20 each and not giving up any runs. Chris Perez tho, man...he got himself into one hell of a pickle. Of course it was partly to blame on a grounder off Jason Donald's face but a closer shouldn't have to worry about guys on 3rd base. Yeesh!

So yeah the boys were back hitting like madmen again today. Brantley once again got on base out of the gate and was like "let's go everybody!" He was so excited he stole a base and was able to score off that move on a single from Hafner. Hafner once again hitting singles and making them COUNT! He went 2 for 5 tonight, keeping that average up over .300.

So it was scary and sad when Masterson gave up two in the third and then six in the fourth. We came up in the fifth down seven runs. Mother! That is not a deficit the first-week-of-baseball Indians could overcome. Now, it's sort of no problem for the against-the-Royals Indians to handle but as you could tell from the distinct lack of barbeque smell in the air, we were not in Kansas City anymore.

Turns out the guys brought their bats to Seattle. Even without Asdrubal and having both Donald and Kipnis in the lineup they still got it done.

Casey Kotchman did not have a home run nor did he steal a base today. Ah well, perhaps only on weekends.

Carlos Santana, on the other hand, DID have a home run. A big, beautiful 3-run home run that brought us within ONE run of the Mariners and all but erased Justin's shitty start.

After careful contemplation, Duncan walked and Supermanahan got him to third with a double (yes, good, do not send Duncan in that situation). Then Jason DONALD of all people came up and did the right thing by hitting a sac fly and got Shelley Duncan in and the game was tied.

Later on, Travis Hafner had another productive single. After careful contemplation, Shelley Duncan walked again. Tom Hamilton would later go on to say that his fielding is just fine, maybe even great. TOM HAMILTON KNOWS THE SCORE.

Hannahan and Kotchman failed to do anything, but then came Jason Donald and we all said "erp, Jason Doald." Then he proceeded to get a single and hit in the go-ahead run after graciously hitting in the tying run just innings earlier!

I will now cease mentioning his greasy hair and goofy smile because he did that. And he did not completely suck at short. But he does have weird greasy hair. And look at this shit:

Otherwise, we love you Jason Donald!

So there was that and it was only the 7th inning when that happened and we had to wait aaaaaaallll the way until the 9th inning and through 3 relievers and until 1:30 to finally hear that sweet sweet "BALLGAME!" meaning "you can go to bed happy tonight."

Tomorrow is Lowe which means good things for us because so far we have proven that he can pitch and the team can hit so it's a match made in heaven, like a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. I predict another 8-inning game for the old man. We're also already slipping super way behind in home runs so we need like...4 home runs tomorrow. Maybe Jason Donald will hit one!

Good night and good job to all of you who stayed up. See you later today!

Radio Chatter:
"Kevin Milwood - you can tell he's 37 years old. The fast ball is 88, 89 miles per hour."
- Tom Hamilton

"You have to earn your home runs here. There are no cheapies."
- Tom Hamilton

"We hear some boo-birds among the paying customers here."
- Jim Rosenhaus

"He's come to the right city. They just open up a vein and pour the coffee in you in this city."
- Tom Hamilton on Nick Hagadone's rush trip to Seattle

"[Seattle catcher] Montero looks like Rosie in the kitchen when his wife flips him a red hot potato from the oven."
"How do you know what we do for evening entertainment?"
- Tom Hamilton and Jim Rosenhaus

PUMPED!

I think it would be sweet if we could play the worst team in the league at the end of every season. Do you think we could somehow manage that?

I'm just so PUMPED about tonight's win! And the DH sweep! And winning 4 in a row! And Diet Dr Pepper tastes just like real Dr Pepper!

Tonight they honored Mike Hegan for his 12 years of broadcasting with the Indians. He grew up in Cleveland and went to St. Ignatious, then went to college for football but ended up playing baseball just like his dad Jim Hegan (who played here for 10 years). Mike Hegan never played here but he did come back here once he retired and did TV and radio.

I am so honored that I got to meet him this summer. Super nice guy and amazing commentator - he was the baseball guy to Hamilton's fan guy. I was very sad when he became ill last year and missed him when he was out. Hegan didn't do any away games this year and sometimes the games he did do you could really hear his voice struggling.

Mike Hegan has been in baseball for 50 years so I agree with Tom Hamilton when he says it's time for Hegan to be able to enjoy summer like the rest of us do. I wish him well and hope to see him again sometime soon!

Ok so, on to the game!

Mitch Talbot got pushed out the door and on to the mound tonight. He wasn't quite ready in the first or in the second (gave up 3 runs) but  then settled down enough to keep us in the game. Er, until the 6th when he couldn't hang on to whatever he had anymore and let three more runs slip by.

Boy who are these new Twins? Revere, Dinkleman, Tosoni, Butera? They are going to be pretty scary in 2012 if they can fill some gaps!

But for now, we'll just go on having beaten them 8 times in a row!

After Talbot left his friends Judy, Hagadone, Sipp! and Chris Perez came in to shut those Twins down and make a picnic out of it! The new guys are really shaping up - the two Wins from today went to Putnam and Hagadone!

Tonight's game was much like this afternoon's game in that we didn't get any home runs and put together our runs with a lot of small ball. We did more hitting tonight and got one more double but that's about it. Oh yeah - and we came back from a 0-6 deficit to win 7-6. YEAH WE DID!

Asdrubal left the game today with a "right elbow contusion." I guess it was because of getting hit in the elbow Friday night. I guess I'll put my sign in the car tomorrow and try to find out if it's worth bringing in or not. Hope hope hope...

Jason Donald came in for Asdrubal and ended up going 1 for 2, giving him 20 hits in 18 games in September. And September isn't even over yet!

Carlos Santana was not only hitting tonight (2 for 4 with a double) but he was really truckin' it around the bases. Not bad for a fella who caught 9 innings just a few hours before and was back to play 9 more at first! He didn't get any RBI but he came in to score two. Very nice team playing there, Carlos Santana! I am warming back up to him. And when I say "warming" I mean I am less indifferent about him now than I was earlier in the season.

Now, someone who DID get some RBIs tonight was - SHELLEY DUNCAN!

Who, me?

Dude has SIX RBI JUST TODAY! If he's not on the roster next April I am going to write a sternly-written letter to the front office. I am.

He also tried to make an awesome catch out in left field, jumping up against the wall hoping that the ball landed in his glove, but it didn't and it turned into a triple. Gold!

Anyway, he totally came through in the clutch again and put us on the board in the 6th then came back in the 7th and WON THE GODDAMN GAME!

I just Tweeted him that he is so awesome. You can too - @shelldunc.

This evening's LaPorta to Duncan's Duncan was Chisenhall who started at 3rd and looked pretty good in the field. Hannahanish. He went 2 for 2 tonight with a double, 2 walks, a run and an RBI. He is fighting a good fight when it comes to the 2012 roster, that's for sure.

Following Big Shell and Lonnie was Sweet Lou who also got a RBI in that awesome 6th, and then Cord Phelps who not only broke his dry spell of not getting a hit since June 27 he also made this one COUNT with an RBI!

Zeke got in on the fun too, going 2 for 4 tonight and getting the final RBI in the 6th.

I hope nobody goes out partying tonight because tomorrow we MUST SWEEP. We must, because I am bringing my sad little red foam broom and am gonna wave it like a maniac and I do not want to be disappointed.

Tomorrow is also "Fan Appreciation Day" and the players will be greeting the fans at the gates. WHICH PLAYERS AT WHICH GATES?!?!

I have my 2011 Topps Chris Perez and Asdrubal Cabrera cards all ready to go, along with some special pens even. I have my Shelley Duncan foul ball. I have my 2011 team photo too in case I can't find any of those other guys.

It finally occurred to me, on the eve of my 11th game, that I have a Tribe backpack and I could be carrying around pens, baseball cards, balls, foam brooms and my "Tribe Time Now" towel all the time, at every game. And buy more junk when I'm there. Doh! Next year - super fan!

So tomorrow, 1:05. Keep an eye out for me and OMG right behind the plate (if Asdrubal plays). Well just off to the first-base side of the plate. The third row.

See you there!

Radio Chatter:
"Ron Gaedenhire looks like he has managed 330 games this year."
"With all of those injuries, he may have written 330 lineups"
- Tom Hamilton and Jim Rosenhaus

"Now you see why the twins have lost 97 games this season. That was a high school mistake."
- Tom Hamilton on Revere running to 3rd and getting tagged out on a ball hit to the shortstop

"When is this season over?"
- Jim Rosenhaus has had enough of Tom Hamilton's abuse

"That would be like me getting a bowl of ice cream then ushering the ice cream using the same spoon."
- Tom Hamilton on the prospect of sharing a score card with Jim Rosenhaus

"If you expect me to comment on this ball game so far you got another thing coming."
- Mike Hegan upon returning to the booth from his family suite in the 6th

"Tell these people at this ballpark tonight that this game isn't important."

- Tom Hamilton likes the crowd's electricity

"This is why Ron Gardenhire can't manage a winning team. There is no one in his bullpen that he can trust."
- Tom Hamilton after the Twins' bullpen gave up 5 runs

Lou Marson Said 'Hi' To Me!

That was pretty sweet! He was warming up before the game and I had seats out by him and I'm like "HI LOU MARSON!" and he smiled and waved! Then Chris Perez came by a little while later, with some other guys, and I'm like "HI CHRIS PEREZ!" and he didn't say nothin!

I think Grady was enjoying people yapping at him from the bleachers during the game. He sorta waved at them or something.

Some older dude in a Carmona jersey came down to where I was sitting, before the game while Carmona was stretching and was all "HEY CARMONA! CARMONA! CAN YOU GET ME A BALL?!" like the starter was going to interrupt his damn stretches 5 minutes before the game to get you a ball, dude.

I think it was that guy's fault that Carmona was distracted. Boo!

But Nick Hagadone looked pretty great, striking out 3 over 2 innings and only giving up one hit. 

Oh so my "OMG ASDRUBAL!!!" sign was on the big board FOUR times tonight. I think just me, the "We are all Kipnisses" and the "BOO TIGERS!" signs, both right next to me, were the only signs in the joint. But hey, that's a good strategy. Just like last time - go on a Tuesday night and be visible. Perhaps I will finally become "a thing"!

Asdrubal was all right this game. He did about 3 sign-worthy feats! Before the game the usher told me I couldn't put my sign up during the innings, only inbetween. He was nice enough so I minded him. Well sorta. One time Asdrubal had a nice play to end the inning so I just shot right up with the sign and left it up for a bit. Another time he got a hit so I just flashed it. Same with the third time. No one in my section seemed to care so that was good.

Fukudome! What about that guy, huh? He doesn't seem to care how good or bad we're doing, he's just going to get on base, get a hit, get a home, get an RBI, whatever. Tonight he hit his third homer as an Indian compared to three as a Cub in twice as many games. Plus, he was running all over the place out there in right. Nice stuff!

Kipnis was back today! I didn't know I'd get that treat. And since he's awesome he just came right back and got a hit! He also looked mighty fine out there at 2nd.

You know what tho? They took him out - for Valbuena! No shit! The guy behind me noted that his average isn't even as much as he weighs (I suspect maybe he was a skinny guy). And then, if wonders never cease - he had both a great play AND a clutch hit! He must have felt everyone steaming at him.

So that's about it for tonight's game. Much funner being there than watching or listening, I guess. The weather was awesome. The sky was Tiger orange and blue, I swear to God!

It was sort of ominous...but no rain in sight. And I got to wear my new swanky Indians sweatshirt I bought at the last Tigers game I went to.

Unfortunately the radio archive is not available online right now and I'm not going to stick around to wait for it, so we'll have to go without radio chatter tonight.

Tomorrow is Masterson versus Verlander at noon. Just be glad there is baseball tomorrow, ok?

No Heroes Today

For however tired our team might have been today, Oakland is technically more tired due to rain delays and previous schedule. So we can't really blame our performance today on too many innings last night.

They did roll out the same lineup as last night - aside from Thome who can't play a day game after a night game due to back issues - and that is pretty ballsy. But, now is not the time to decide you're tired. There is a lot of baseball to be played!

We were shut out today, which is thankfully unusual. Only 5 hits and no extra base hits. Jeepers!

Fausto started and he was all meh. Three earned runs (with a 4th un-earned run) over 6 innings. Not what we really want. Although in the end it was a wash.

Nick Hagadone and Corey Kluber were brought up today due to the bullpen being wrecked from last night. Hagadone gave up 3 in 1 1/3 innings and now his ERA is over 16. OOPS! No idea if we'll see those kids more or what.

Shelley Duncan was in today for Thome and he got a hit! I forgot to mention that the foul ball I got on Monday was hit by Shelley Duncan. Kind of disappointed in myself for not being more excited about that! See how awesome Shelley Duncan is??

Fukudome is still hot, getting another of our 5 hits today. He is basically the veteran on days like this, along with Hannahan, when Thome isn't around and Asdrubal isn't performing.

Speaking of Asdrubal they did give him the 8th and 9th innings off. Good call.

Oh so Sweet Lou specifically asked to catch today, after catching all 16 yesterday. Such a stud! And he was rewarded for his awesomeness - or rather, we were awarded for his awesomeness - by him going 2 for 3. He TRIED to be the hero but...no go.

That's about it for today's game. Everyone keep an eye on the DET/KC game going on right now which is 10-8 KC in the 7th. But it's "only" the 7th...

We face the Royals next, and they are hitting some. Having very little issue with the Tigers, really. What's really going to suck is that the Tigers and White Sox play each other next. One of them has to lose every night. We have to win, of course. There is no choice!

So, Central Time tomorrow, 8:05 PM for Big Nasty versus Bruce Chen (ugh).

See you there!

Radio Chatter:
"I'll tell you what, Coco Crisp, the calendar says he's 31 but he runs like he's 21."
- Tom Hamilton

"Gio Gonzalez is the sort of guy you look at and say 'How in the world did he get traded so much?' But they were always big trades."
- Tom Hamilton

"The fan says she's ok...she gets an early start on some firewood for the fireplace this winter."
- Tom Hamilton describing a fan being hit by a bat

"Right now for Carmona, he can't buy a break."
- Tom Hamilton in the 7th after bases are loaded

"Well why should today be any different? The Indians have not done anything easily this year. [...] If the Indians were a little league team they'd be well under .500 this year. But because we play 7-8-9, they are in the hunt."
- Tom Hamilton

"While you would like to have Victor Martinez in the middle of your order, from an importance standpoint, would you rather have him right now or Justin Masterson and Nick Hagadone?"
- Tom Hamilton

"If the Indians were voting today, Gio Gonzalez would be on his way to Cooperstown."
- Tom Hamilton