If the Indians were contending, Rafael Perez or Hector Ambriz might be in trouble.
View full sizeIndians reliever Rafael Perez.Clubhouse confidential: The Indians dreadful record has been a good thing for a number of pitchers in the bullpen. If they were in contention, and Rafael Perez and Hector Ambriz were pitching as they have been, the front office might be forced to make a move with them regardless of their "protected" spots on the roster. Perez is out of options and Ambriz is a Rule 5 pick from the Arizona Diamondbacks.
With the Indians in the tank, and the pen in a funk outside of Chris Perez and Frank Herrmann, releasing or offering Ambriz back to Arizona doesn't make a lot of sense now.
The Indians feel Rafael Perez is showing improvement and they still like Ambriz's arm. But they're not going to wait forever.
Horror show: Left fielder Shelley Duncan shook his head in disbelief. He watched the video of himself sliding into the grandstand wall chasing a fly ball by the Phillies' Raul Ibanez in the third inning Thursday.
"I'm lucky I didn't get really hurt right there," said Duncan. "I hit right under the padding. It scared me more than hurt me."
Stat of the day: The Indians entered Friday's game against the Reds leading the AL with 53 errors. Overall, they had the fifth most errors among MLB's 30 teams.
-- Paul Hoynes