Twins clinched their sixth AL Central title in nine years with Tuesday night's 6-4 win over the Indians. Cleveland had won six of seven from 1995-2001, and won the Central again in 2007. And, 2011 Tribe starting rotation, Columbus Clippers, etc.
Twins relief pitcher Matt Capps and catcher Jose Morales just after Minnesota clinched the Central Division title with a 6-4 win over the Indians.Cleveland, Ohio -- Well, at least the Cleveland Indians were noticed on Tuesday night.
The Indians, with 27 more losses than wins, have hardly been an "inside baseball" topic of conversation this season. Only when the trading deadline approached did they attract any national attention, and that was solely because some contending teams pursued a few servicable veteran Indians players.
Tuesday night, the Tribe was again the foil for a superior team. The Minnesota Twins rallied for a 6-4 win over the Indians and clinched their sixth Central Division championship in the last nine years.
The Twins, in fact, have dominated the division since the Indians' run of six division titles during the seven-year span of 1995 to 2001. Cleveland also claimed the Central crown in 2007.
So far, the difference between what the Twins and Indians accomplished in their respective runs is that while Minnesota has not been to the World Series since 1991, the Indians got there in 1995 (losing to the Atlanta Braves) and 1997 (losing to the Florida Marlins).
Sheldon Ocker writes about the Twins' division-clinching win over the Indians:
Maybe the loss served as an object lesson to the also-ran Tribe: Teams that have great things to achieve, win the games they need to win. In this case, the Twins rallied from two runs down to hand the Indians' bullpen an infrequent setback.
''The Twins are a good team,'' Indians manager Manny Acta said. ''They just win more games than the other teams in the division. It's not that they had to win. They're good.''
Tribe watch
Plain Dealer Indians coverage includes beat writer Paul Hoynes' story on Tuesday night's Indians-Twins game; Hoynes' Indians Insider; his report on Indians reliever Hector Ambriz's sore right (pitching) elbow.
The Indians play at Minnesota this afternoon. Tribe right-hander Carlos Carrasco (1-0, 2.70) and Twins righty Nick Blackburn (9-10, 5.43) are slated as the starting pitchers. MLB.com previews the game.
Four spots open
When spring training 2011 opens in Goodyear, Ariz., a lot of pitchers will contend for jobs in the Indians' starting rotation, writes Sheldon Ocker for the Akron Beacon Journal:
Manager Manny Acta confirmed Tuesday that Fausto Carmona was the only pitcher with a lock on next year's rotation.
''Our goal in spring training is to put together at least eight starters we'd would feel comfortable with to have enough depth,'' he said. ''That's what we're striving for.''
As the season winds down, at least seven pitchers in addition to Carmona will be logging time as starters when training camp begins in mid-February: Justin Masterson, Mitch Talbot, Josh Tomlin, Jeanmar Gomez, Carlos Carrasco, David Huff and Zach McAllister. Huff and McAllister are currently at Triple-A Columbus.
Clippers champions II
The Indians' farm system achieved some success this season. Several prospects made encouraging progress in their quests for major league careers, and the Class AAA Columbus Clippers (International League) and Class A Lake County Captains (Midwest League) won league championships.
Tony Lastoria writes for Indians Prospect Insider that the Clippers defeated the Pacific Coast League champion Tacoma Rainiers, 12-6, in the Triple-A National Championship Game on Tuesday night:
The Clippers belted out 19 hits as a team, compared to just nine for the Rainiers. (Jason ) Kipnis and Josh Rodriguez joined (Jerad) Head in the three-hit club, and five other Columbus starters had two hits.
The victory marked the end of a strong postseason for the Clippers, who struggled in the final weeks of the regular season and made the IL postseason as the wild card team, then cruised to series wins against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and Durham to win the franchise's first Governors' Cup in 14 years. It all set the tone for a huge finale game in front of a national television audience - leaving Columbus as the undisputed Triple-A champions.
Pestano rewarded
One of the keys to the Clippers' success, right-handed relief pitcher Vinnie Pestano, has been promoted to the Indians for the last 12 days of the season.
Tony Lastoria writes for Indians Prospect Insider:
In 57 combined appearances at Double-A Akron and Columbus he went 2-3 with a 1.81 ERA and 17 saves (59.2 IP, 47 H, 16 BB, 77 K). Since he is currently not on the 40-man roster and the roster is currently full at 40 players, a roster move will need to be made to create space for him. No word yet on what that move will be.
Base knocks
Game story on the Twins' 6-4 win over the Indians by Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
Reports on the individual seasons of Columbus Clippers players, by Tony Lastoria of Indians Prospect Insider.
Impact of the Twins' division title, by Joe Lemire for Sports Illustrated's SI.com.