Indians players are trying to prove they belong, while it's a critical series for the Red Sox in the standings.
Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell (center) holds back Adrian Beltre (left) after Indians pitcher Jensen Lewis threw a pitch behind Beltre on Tuesday night.The Cleveland Indians' roster includes several fringe major leaguers trying to establish themselves as everyday position players or as reliable pitchers, and many youngsters trying to establish themselves as legitimate big leaguers.
They have a 45-62 record, but the Indians usually play with some spirit, as demonstrated during Tuesday night's 3-1 loss to the Red Sox in Boston.
Baseball has traditionally been a game in which players, managers and coaches are quite sensitive to being "dissed," "shown up" or challenged. That was on display Tuesday night, when the Tribe and Red Sox' antipathy for each other resulted in an eighth-inning brouhaha that resulted in three ejections.
Plain Dealer Indians beat writer Paul Hoynes writes about the scuffle and the events leading up to it in his game story.
We'll see what, if any, residual effect remains from Tuesday's edginess. The teams play again tonight in a game previewed on cleveland.indians.mlb.com. Right-hander Justin Masterson (3-10, 5.55) pitches for the Indians while lefty ace John Lester (11-6, 3.05) takes the mound for the BoSox.
Check The Plain Dealer and cleveland.com for Paul Hoynes' Indians Insider and Indians Chatter, featuring an update on catcher Carlos Santana's knee injury. Cleveland and Boston have split the first two games of the four-game series, with the Indians winning, 6-5, on Monday night.
Lewis vs. Beltre
Referring to a pitch by Indians reliever Jensen Lewis, part of what Sheldon Ocker writes in his game story for the Akron Beacon Journal:
The pitch was a fastball that rocketed over the ducking head of Adrian Beltre, who hit two home runs and had five RBI Monday night and took offense at what he considered an intentionally menacing pitch.
''It was a fastball inside that just got away from me,'' Lewis said. ''The guy hit two home runs, so he wants to get [his arms] extended.''
Beltre began walking toward the mound, yelling at Lewis. He was intercepted by the umpires, but players from both dugouts ambled onto the field in case hostilities developed. Soon, Beckett was trying to charge one of the Indians (possibly Shelley Duncan).
Germano joins in
The BoSox are at a critical point in their season. Peter Abraham writes about Tuesday night's game for the Boston Globe:
The Red Sox trail the Yankees by 5 1/2 games in the wild-card race with the teams getting ready to start a four-game series in New York on Friday.
That there is still fight left in this Sox team was evident in the eighth inning, when the benches cleared.
Beckett had hit two Indians during his outing and Cleveland clumsily tried to retaliate.
Justin Germano threw a pitch behind David Ortiz in the seventh. Jensen Lewis then did the same in the eighth with Beltre up. That prompted the teams to assemble on the infield once Beltre took a step toward the mound.
Lewis was ejected, as was Beckett for trying to get at Cleveland left fielder Shelley Duncan. Indians third base coach Steve Smith was tossed as well after he and Francona had to be separated.
“Interesting day,’’ Francona said.
Huff and puff
Jim Ingraham reports for the News Herald and Lorain Morning Journal:
The loss goes to Huff, who is accumulating some interesting if not impressive numbers. In the last two years at Columbus, over 14 starts, he has a record of 11-1 and a 4.06 ERA.
However, this year with the Indians, his record is 2-10 with a 5.97 ERA.
"Huff had a lot of traffic (on the bases) and a lot of pitches for 5 1/3 innings, but I'll take the three runs for the time he pitched," said Acta.
And...
Indians notes by Jim Ingraham for the News Herald and Lorain Morning Journal.
The Akron Beacon Journal's Sheldon Ocker reports on the condition of Carlos Santana's knee and writes his Indians notebook.
Where the Indians began the week on ESPN.com's power rankings.
Sports Illustrated's SI.com has a photo gallery of some players whose contracts are being paid by a former team, including an ex-Indian.