At the end of last year, Jordan Brown asked the Indians to trade him. Today he's making his big-league debut at DH for the Tribe.
Updated: 2:12 p.m.
Cleveland, Ohio -- This is a daily briefing of the Indians 2010 regular season. The Indians play the Blue Jays today in the final game of a three-game series at Rogers Centre.
Rogers Centre dimensions: Left field line 328 feet, left field power alley 375 feet, center field 400, right center field power alley 375, right field line 328.
Power from below: The Indians stretched their lead to 5-2 on Jason Donald's two-out homer in the sixth. For Donald, hitting ninth, it was his third homer.
In the lead: The Indians reclaimed the lead, 4-2, with two runs in the fifth. Carlos Santana drew a bases-loaded walk and Asdrsubal Cabrera scored on Matt LaPorta's double play.
Tied up: The Blue Jays tied the score, 2-2, with runs in the second and third innings. Aaron Hill hit a leadoff homer in the second. Then he singled home a run in the third to make it 2-2 off Jeanmar Gomez.
Early lead: Asdrubal Cabrera gave the Indians a 2-0 lead with a two-run homer in the first off Jesse Litsch. Trevor Crowe walked and Cabrera, choked up on the bat, homered to right. The Indians had a 2-0 lead with no one out, but could get no more out of the inning.
The line: Gomez allowed two runs on five hits in five innings. He struck out two, walked two and threw 80 pitches. Litsch allowed four runs on six hits in four innings. He walked two and struck out one.
Pre-game notes:
Game 105: Jordan Brown makes his big-league debut today. He'll DH for Travis Hafner, who is still out with a sore right shoulder.
It has been a long journey.
Last year after Brown won the International League batting title at Class AAA Columbus and didn't get a September call up, he told The Plain Dealer that he wanted
the Indians to trade him..
Brown went to Venezuela to play winter ball and had a great season for Caracas. He came to spring training with the big league club, homered in the first intrasquad game and the next day injured his right knee during an outfield drill.
The Indians called him up Saturday to take the spot vacated by traded Austin Kearns. It's unclear how long he'll be here, but he's enjoying it while it lasts.
"You have to think you're going to get here," said Brown. "It's impossible to play if that's not your goal. Now that I'm here, you might as well stay."
Brown's family is coming to Boston for the Indians four-game series that starts Monday.
Young guys: After the trades of last week, the Indians have only two players on the 25-man roster over 30 -- Shelley Duncan and Hafner.
Following the roster makeover, manager Manny Acta was asked if he has to take a realistic approach to the rest of the season in terms of wins and losses.
"I'm never realistic," said Acta. "I'm an optimistic fool. I come here every single day thinking that it's baseball and on any given day Jeanmar Gomez can beat any of these guys he's facing. That's the way I approach it because it happens in the game.
"In the long term it doesn't usually work out that way, but life is about choices and attitude. I know what's ahead of us and what's in front of me."
Lineups:
Indians (42-61): CF Trevor Crowe (S), SS Asdrubal Cabrera, RF Shin-Soo Choo (L), C Carlos Santana (S), 1B Matt LaPorta (R), DH Jordan Brown (L) LF Shelley Duncan (R), 3B Luis Valbuena (L), 2B Jason Donald and RHP Jeanmar Gomez (1-0, 0.00).
Blue Jays (54-50): RF DeWayne Wise (L), SS Yunel Escobar (R), 3B Jose Bautisa (R), CF Vernon Wells (R), DH Adam Lind (L), Aaron Hill (R), Lyle Overbay (L), C John Buck (R), LF Travis Snider (L) and RHP Jesse Litsch (1-4, 5.48).
Umpires: H Alan Porter, 1B Ed Hickox, 2B Fieldin Culbreth, 3B Gary Cederstrom. Cederstrom, crew chief.
Quote of the day: "About the only problem with success is that it does not teach you how to deal with failure," former Dodger manager Tommt Lasorda.
Next: The Indians open a four-game series against Boston on Monday night at Fenway Park. RHP Fausto Carmona (10-8, 3.92) will face RHP John Lackey (10-5, 4.26) at 7:10 p.m.