Cleveland Sports Forum

5-2 Tigers in the bottom of the 5th...

The hits are flying all over the field for the Tigers. 9 of them so far with none out in the 5th. I guess I ought to give up on this game too which could again inspire a Tribe comeback.

6-2 now...

I think Acta's experiment with Santana in the two hole is officially a bust. It was done because of his walks, but that has to be offset by his strikeouts and double plays, a deadly combo in the two hole.

It's a final. Back in 2nd place.

Did I bail out too late today? I'll try again tomorrow, assuming we get behind by 3 in the first 3 innings.

May 23: 15 games above .500
June 16: 5 games above .500

J.R. wrote:May 23: 15 games above .500
June 16: 5 games above .500

We just need to stay in sniffing distance of the Division lead to make this a fun season.

We will.

I really think we will.

Perhaps the best is yet to come.

8 games ahead of the Twins. is Blyleven right?

Perhaps the best is yet to come.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmf1AYgYj6I

Indians DH Travis Hafner activated; Travis Buck optioned to Class AAA Columbus


Published: Friday, June 17, 2011, 2:37 PM Updated: Friday, June 17, 2011, 4:53 PM
By Dennis Manoloff, The Plain Dealer




The Indians have struggled at DH since Travis Hafner went on the DL.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Pronk is back -- and not a moment too soon.
The Indians activated designated hitter Travis Hafner from the disabled list this afternoon. Travis Buck was optioned to Class AAA Columbus.
Hafner is in the lineup and batting cleanup tonight as the Tribe opens a three-game series against the surprising Pirates at Progressive Field.
Hafner suffered a strained right oblique May 18 in Chicago. He felt pain during a batting practice swing as the Tribe prepared to play the White Sox. He was placed on the 15-day DL on May 20 (retroactive to May 18).
Hafner is hitting .345 (39-for-113) with eight doubles, five homers and 22 RBI in 32 games for the Indians.
Hafner's rehabilitation assignment consisted of games for Class AA Akron on Tuesday and Thursday. He took batting practice each afternoon and went a combined 3-for-6. He swung free and easy.
The original plan had been for Hafner to play one more game in Akron tonight and, if all went well, be activated Sunday.
"I wanted to be in Cleveland as soon as possible and was pushing for that,'' he said. "I woke up this morning and felt pretty good. I'm ready to go.''
The major-league club desperately needs him. Its offense largely has been brutal the past several weeks. In the 28 games Hafner has missed because of the oblique, the Indians are 10-18 and their DHs are hitting .183 with three homers and 12 RBI.
"You never want to miss games, and I know the guys are battling,'' Hafner said. "We were one of the best offenses in the league to start the year and, hopefully, we can get back to that.''
On the afternoon of May 20, Tribe manager Manny Acta said of Hafner's absence: "What makes it easier for us is, we have a little cushion. It's easier to absorb the blow than if we had been playing way below .500 and were chasing three, four teams."
The Indians were 26-15 at the time, five games in front in the AL Central. Entering tonight, they are 36-31, one game behind in the division.
By not waiting any longer with Hafner, the Indians can squeeze up to six games out of him -- realistically, four or five -- during a homestand against Pittsburgh and Colorado. The Indians then have a nine-game trip in three National League ballparks, at which point Pronk becomes a very expensive pinch-hitter.
Hafner said he likely will be off Saturday and play Sunday.
"From there, I should be pretty much good to go,'' he said.
Buck has hit .226 (21-for-93) in two stints with Cleveland this season.
Here are the lineups for tonight's game:
Indians -- 1. Grady Sizemore cf; 2. Michael Brantley lf; 3. Asdrubal Cabrera ss; 4. Travis Hafner dh; 5. Shin-Soo Choo rf; 6. Carlos Santana c; 7. Matt LaPorta 1b; 8. Orlando Cabrera 2b; 9. Jack Hannahan 3b; and Josh Tomlin rhp.
Pirates -- 1. Jose Tabata lf; 2. Xavier Paul rf; 3. Andrew McCutchen cf; 4. Neil Walker 2b; 5. Garrett Jones dh; 6. Lyle Overbay 1b; 7. Josh Harrison 3b; 8. Michael McKenry c; 9. Ronny Cedeno ss; and Kevin Correia rhp.
Umpires: P -- John Tumpane; 1b -- Derryl Cousins; 2b -- Ron Kulpa; 3b -- Jim Wolf.

How long can the Indians go before trying another hitting instructor? This is terrible .Bring up JoeZ's
guy- I think he is the columbus manager. Many guys are worse than they were before.

That guy with the terrible contract just drove in another key run.

Now we've got four, let's go for more....

That's the first MLB run scored for Cord Phelps.

5-1