The Indians have won their last 17 games in Cleveland against Tampa Bay. Friday night, the playoff-contending Rays begin a three-game series at Progressive Field.
The Indians' Fausto Carmona will go after his 10th win when he faces Tampa Bay on Friday night.Cleveland, Ohio -- Call today's off day for the Cleveland Indians a reward for coming out of the All-Star break with a six-game winning streak.
Yes, the Indians lost, 6-0, to the Twins on Wednesday in Minnesota, but we'll take 6-1 any time.
Friday night, the Indians begin a three-game series at Progressive Field against an American League playoff contender, the Tampa Bay Rays. Remarkably, the Tribe has won its last 17 home games against Tampa, dating back to 2005. It hasn't mattered if the Indians were good and the Rays bad, or vice versa, but the Tribe has finished on top every time.
Unfortunately, the last Rays win in Cleveland helped cost the Indians a playoff berth. On Sept. 28, 2005, Tampa pitcher Seth McClung beat the Indians and Cliff Lee, 1-0. The victory made Tampa 67-91. The Indians became 92-66 and Lee got his last decision of the season, finishing 18-5. Cleveland's final 93-69 record was two games behind the wild card-winning Boston Red Sox.
MLB.com previews Friday night's Indians-Rays game. Alden Gonzalez writes:
Here's something else that could be playing to the Indians' favor this weekend: In their last 11 home games, the Tribe's pitching staff has posted a 1.76 ERA. And since June 16 -- a span of 13 games and 120 innings -- that pitching staff has allowed just one home run at Progressive Field.
The Rays hope Friday is the beginning of a trend reversal.
"It has to be one of those things where the numbers are way skewed out from where they should be," said Rays starter Jeff Niemann, who will oppose the Indians' Fausto Carmona in the opener. "Hopefully, it's our time to even some things out."
Covered
Plain Dealer Indians coverage includes beat writer Paul Hoynes' game story on Wednesday's loss at Minnesota; his Indians Insider; his Indians Chatter.
Comings and goings
The non-waiver trade deadline is midnight, July 31. MLB FanHouse tracks player movement, real or rumored.
Would Wood go?
Veteran Indians who could be of interest to other teams include starting pitchers Jake Westbrook and Fausto Carmona, reliever Kerry Wood, third baseman Jhonny Peralta and outfielder Austin Kearns.
Speculation is that the Indians would be less likely to trade Westbrook and Carmona than the others.
Jerry Crasnick writes for ESPN.com about nine accomplished relievers who could be on the move, including Kerry Wood, who is in the second year of a two-year, $20 million contract. Crasnick writes:
The obvious questions are: (1) How much money is Cleveland willing to eat to get a deal done; (2) how much can Wood help a team down the stretch? It's almost certain to be in a setup role, since the contending teams are pretty much set at closer.
Between Wood's injuries and the losing in Cleveland, he's had a hard time settling into a groove. Wood looked dazzling during a three-day stretch in late June, when he struck out six in three innings and notched three straight saves against Cincinnati and Toronto. But that was the exception to the rule. "I think he pitches a little tentatively at times and uses his cutter too much," a scout said. "When he stays with his fastball and curveball, he's still got knockout stuff. I've got to believe they can get him to a club that's in need of some depth."
Go at 'em
The series against Tampa begins a seven-game homestand for the Indians. In his report on Wednesday's Indians' loss to the Twins, Sheldon Ocker of the Akron Beacon Journal writes:
The negative: The opponents will be the Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees, who occupy the top two spots in the Eastern Division.
''Hopefully, we learned from the way we played after that other winning streak,'' said Jake Westbrook, who took Wednesday's loss. ''That's how you get better. We have nothing to lose; we're in last place.
''We have a lot of young guys trying to get better. They're hungry to make a name for themselves and establish themselves in the big leagues. I think that's a good attitude to have. And we're playing loose.''
Taking a chance
In major league baseball's long history, many players who began their professional careers as position players found success after becoming pitchers. For instance, the late Bob Lemon, an Indians Hall-of-Famer.
Other players' careers were changed by leaving their mound duties and becoming everyday players. The extreme example would be George Herman "Babe" Ruth, a star pitcher who altered the sport when he went to the outfield and started clouting baseballs over fences more often, much more often, than anyone ever had.
For now, Carlos Moncrief would settle for someday making the major leagues. He's now playing shortstop for the Indians' New York-Penn League Class A team, the Mahoning Valley Scrappers. Tony Lastoria writes about Moncrief for Indians Prospect Insider:
Moncrief came to realize that pitching was just not in the cards for him and that his best chance to get to the big leagues would have to come from his bat instead of his arm. He had a powerful fastball that sat 93-95 MPH and touched 96 MPH as well as a promising slider, but his mechanics still needed a lot of work and did not show much progress in developing his fastball command.
After taking some swings in the offseason in the cages and toying with the idea of moving back to the outfield, Moncrief approached the Indians about moving back to the outfield full time. The Indians were receptive to the idea decided to take a tentative look at him in spring training in the outfield. After evaluating him they quickly settled on the idea to move him back to the outfield.