A Series Snapshot: Cleveland Indians
Boston Red Sox (0-3) at Cleveland Indians (1-2)
Progressive Field
Cleveland, OH
In Beckett we trust…….
It’s hard to believe but in just the fourth game of the season, Red Sox Nation will collectively be holding their breath on Tuesday night, when the Red Sox open up a three game series in Cleveland against the Indians. Still looking for the first win of the season, the Red Sox are coming off a drubbing at the hands of the Texas Rangers where they were swept out of the Lone Star state. Outscored 26-11 over the three games, the Red Sox looked like a minor league ball team and now they have everyone in baseball precariously watching them to see how they will bounce back.
Perhaps a trip into Progressive Field is just what the doctor ordered to cure this nasty bug of a start. A young ballclub that has young pitching, the Red Sox will be looking to get their high power offense in gear. The Indians were able to salvage one game of their opening three game set against the highly offensive Chicago White Sox. However the first two outings, the Indians surrendered a combined 23 runs against. They did however manage to put up 20 runs on the board over the course of the series. This is a team that can put up some crooked numbers on the scoreboard, so once again, pitching is going to be vital to the Red Sox success.
Tuesday, April 5
Boston – Josh Beckett (2010 6-6, 5.78 ERA)
Cleveland – Josh Tomlin (2010 6-4, 4.56 ERA)
To add a little more tension to the Red Sox woeful start, they’ll have Josh Beckett starting and no one is really sure what to expect of the former World Series MVP. An injury plagued 2010, saw Beckett struggle with his command. There were outings where he was dominant but the key for him is to stay away from those big innings. A solid spring from Beckett has renewed optimism within the organization, but you have to wonder how long Terry Francona will wait if Beckett struggles early. His career numbers against Cleveland aren’t exactly comforting either, 3-4, 5.56 ERA.
Tomlin is 0-1 lifetime against the Red Sox, so taking a few pitches to see what he’s got is a good strategy. Last season he proved he can provide quality starting pitching, lasting at least 5 innings in each of his first 12 starts.
Wednesday, April 6
Boston – Daisuke Matsuzaka (2010 9-6, 4.69 ERA)
Cleveland – Mitch Talbot (2010 10 – 13, 4.41 ERA)
Similar to Beckett, no one can say for sure which Dice-K will show up on Wednesday. He did manage to put three dominant starts together to end spring training, which leads one to believe that maybe, just maybe we’ll see the Dice-K that we saw in 2008 when he won 18 games.
Talbot has only faced the Sox once before, going 7.1 innings with an ERA of 7.71. The Red Sox hit him hard and this one could turn out the same as inexperience could prove to be too much.
Thursday, April 7
Boston – Jon Lester (0 – 0) 8.44 ERA
Cleveland – Fausto Carmona (0-1) 30.00 ERA
Both starters are the number one guys on their respected teams and both struggled on Opening Day, Carmona more than Lester. For Lester, it’s become the norm with him to struggle in April. Red Sox fans are anxiously hoping that this game is his game to turn it around and right the ship. Lester will struggle against a potent offensive lineup if he leaves his pitches up again, so early command is crucial. Lifetime against the Indians, Lester is 3-1 with a 4.52 ERA in 45.2 innings of work.
Expect a better performance from Carmona, although the Red Sox will be hungry at the plate and could provide another offensive onslaught. Carmona is 2-3 lifetime against Boston with a 4.25 ERA.
Red HOT Sox:
Adrian Gonzalez – the prized acquisition went 5 for 13 (.385 avg) on the opening weekend, with 3 RBI’s, thanks in part to 2 multi hit games.
David Ortiz – after belting 2 home runs on the weekend, Big Papi appears to have found his early season swing and is driving the ball extremely well.
Not So HOT Sox:
Jarrod Saltalamacchia – 0 for 10, with 5 strikeouts to start his career with the Red Sox, Salty didn’t envision this kind of start for his new ball club.
Marco Scutaro – he’s been given the title as the regular shortstop, but if this type of performance continues at the plate he may find himself as a backup. An 0 for 8 start in his 2 games isn’t something to brag about, so we’ll keep tabs on Scutaro and see what he can do going forward.
Carl Crawford – “he’s trying too hard.” A quote from Terry Francona on Crawford’s first series as a member of the Red Sox. Well, whether he’s trying to hard or not, Crawford went 2 for 11, and it wasn’t until Sunday when he was in the number 7 spot that he picked up 2 hits. Batting .182 with 5 strikeouts, has earned Crawford a lot of attention.
Daniel Bard – for a guy who relies on his high velocity, Bard didn’t have much of anything. In just 0.2 innings of relief work, the hard throwing righty gave up 4 hits to go with 4 earned runs.
Who’s Hot for Cleveland:
Orlando Cabrera – the Tribe’s second baseman had a big series against the White Sox, going 5 for 12 (.417 AVG), with 1 home run and 4 RBI’s.
Carlos Santana – 6 for 13, .462 AVg, 1 home run and 3 RBI has Cleveland fans forgetting about former catcher Victor Martinez awfully quick.
Jack Hannahan – the third baseman hit .364, 1 homer and 3 RBI’s and proved to be a tough out at the plate.
Who’s Not for Cleveland:
Shin-Soo Choo – a tough weekend for the outfielder, Choo struggled going 1 for 12 (.082 AVG), while striking out 6 times.
Fausto Carmona – the designated “ace” of the staff, Carmona struggled on Opening Day only making it through 3.0 innings of work, giving up 11 hits and 10 runs, all earned.
Carlos Carrasco – the number two starter in the rotation also struggled in his debut, working 6.2 innings, allowing 7 earned runs over 10 hits, whiling only striking out 2.
The Walking Wounded:
Boston:
– Felix Doubront – day-to-day, left elbow tightness, mid-April return
– Junichi Tazawa – 60-day DL, torn ulnar collateral ligament
Cleveland :
– Trevor Crowe (RF) – 60 day DL, right shoulder surgery – possible return in August
– Jared Goedert (3B) – 60 day DL, abdominal strain – possible May return
– Jason Donald (SS) – 15 day DL, fractured left index finger – late April return
– Grady Sizemore (CF) – 15 day DL, left knee surgery – mid April return
– Joe Smith (P) – 15 day DL, abdominal strain – possible April return
– Anthony Reyes (P) – out indefinitely, right elbow surgery – possible April return
3 Big Questions
Indians Insight:
Thanks to Jon Rudder, staff writer for Deep Left Field, who took time to answer 3 Big Questions surrounding the Cleveland Indians and the series with the Red Sox.
Question #1: 3 games into the season and the Tribe proved they can put up some offensive numbers. What type of consistency can Indians fans expect to see from their batting line up this series and over the course of a season?
Answer: I was very pleased with the offensive production the Indians got in the first series, especially against an opponent like the White Sox, a team that could potentially take the AL Central Crown. Coming into the season the thinking was that the lineup was going to be able to hold their own with the additions of Santana and Asdrubal Cabrera from injury and the signing of Orlando Cabrera, and that the pitching would be a weakness. That certainly held true in the first series. That being said, the task only gets more difficult against a club like Boston. It’s no secret that the Red Sox have quality starters in their rotation and they will definitely have their work cut out for them.
Question #2: A fairly young team, the Indians will rely on veteran presence such as Hafner and Sizemore. With Sizemore out of the line up until mid April, how will that impact this team in the early part of the year?
Answer: I think that’s one of the reasons they brought in Orlando Cabrera. He’s been to the post season the past four years so it helps to bring in a person with a resume such as Cabrera. Regardless, it’s difficult to replace a Grady Sizemore. Whenhe’s healthy he’s proven he can be one of the best outfielders in the league. Even from an organizational standpoint not having Grady in the lineup hurts the Indians because, other than perhaps Choo, he’s the most marketable player the Indians have. If Cleveland can make it through April without Sizemore, adding him to the lineup when he’s healthy will do nothing but help.
Question #3: Most years, seeing the Red Sox on the calendar, young teams would use this series as a measuring stick against a team that many have pegged as the favorite to win it all. 3 games in and a struggling Red Sox team, what’s the mood like in Cleveland and what is your prediction on the series?
Answer: That’s entirely too small of a sample size to base anything off of. Point in case, Pittsburgh was off to an 11-5 start last year and they still lost 100 plus games. Boston is one of the best teams in Major League Baseball and for a rebuilding organization it can always be used as a way to measure progress. But that’s not to say the mood in Cleveland is overjoyed. The Tribe belted out 10 runs on opening day and they still found themselves playing from behind. Taming a lineup like the Red Sox is going to be tough to do for a young and relatively inexperienced group of Indians starters.
The Stat Pack:
– Mike Cameron is only 4 stolen bases shy of 300 for his career.
– David Ortiz became the all time RBI leader for a designated hitter with 1,004, thanks to his 4 runs batted in over the weekend.
– In the past 95 years, only 2 teams have started the year 0-3 and gone on to win the World Series.
– Of the past 80 playoff teams, only 3 started 0-3. That means, if you go by the history numbers, the Red Sox have a 3.75 percent chance of making the play-offs this year. I recall there was a time when no team had ever come back to win a post season series when trailing 0-3. For some reason, I still like the Red Sox chances this season.
For all the latest news and analysis from BoSox Injection, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, or with our RSS feed.