Patched-up lineup wraps up win

Patched-up lineup wraps up win
Carroll, Choo, Shoppach lead offense by those not on Indians' disabled list

By Sheldon Ocker
Beacon Journal sportswriter


Published on Friday, Jun 13, 2008

CLEVELAND: Now that seemingly half the team is on the disabled list, maybe the Indians can catch fire and go on a winning streak.

So who needs Travis Hafner, Victor Martinez, Fausto Carmona, Jake Westbrook and Josh Barfield, all of whom are on the disabled list? And so what if Asdrubal Cabrera and Jensen Lewis are back at Buffalo for further seasoning, and Jason Michaels was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates?

What's left of the team that began the year put a 12-2 hurt on the Minnesota Twins on Thursday night at Progressive Field.

''It's no secret around here, and even nationally, that our guys come to play,'' manager Eric Wedge said. ''They're tough and they're feisty, and they try to find a way to win ballgames. And that's what they're going to continue to do.''

The here and now is what counts. That means guys who have filled in for the infirm and for those who are still learning or departed must carry the load. In that respect, they got a lot of practice against Minnesota.

''You look around, and it's just us,'' Casey Blake said. ''Tonight was a good ballgame. We got a lot of key hits. That's what we need to keep it going.''

Wedge talked about players stepping up in the wake of the club's tattered roster. Ladies and gentlemen, here are your stepper-uppers:

Shin-Soo Choo, who did not make the team out of spring training because he was rehabbing a surgically repaired elbow, got the most telling blow of the night. In the five-run third, Choo whacked a three-run homer over the wall in right to give the Tribe a 6-1 lead.

Jamey Carroll contributed four singles, scored a run, drove in one and reached base five times, the last when he was hit by a pitch. Carroll made the team as a utility infielder, but now replaces Barfield as the everyday second baseman.

''He's a strong professional player,'' Wedge said.

Carroll isn't sure when he last had four hits in a game, but he does remember this:

''I had back-to-back four-hit games two years ago in Colorado,'' he said. ''But I don't remember if I've had any more recently.''

Carroll tries to be ready for all situations, from pinch hitting once a week to playing every day.

''When a situation like this happens — and you don't want it to — you have to be ready,'' he said. ''Hopefully I can take advantage of it and help the team win.''

Kelly Shoppach, the reliable backup to Martinez at catcher, moved up to become the regular Thursday night by driving in two runs with singles.

Ben Francisco is another of the latecomers to the roster, though he has been on the team for a little over a month. He also made his presence felt by amassing four hits (including a double), driving in three runs and scoring one.

''We have to be tough with our two biggest hitters out of the lineup,'' Francisco said. ''But we feel confident in the lineup we have.''

Aaron Laffey almost has lost his newcomer status, but he began the season at Buffalo, getting his chance for promotion when Westbrook strained his intercostal in late April. He made his ninth start of the season Thursday night, holding the Twins to one run and five hits in six innings.

Laffey's shakiest inning was the first, when he quickly retired the first two batters and just as quickly loaded the bases on two singles and a walk. But Laffey (4-3, 2.83 ERA) took back control of the game and induced Jason Kubel to bounce to the first baseman to end the threat.

The newcomers didn't have all the fun. Grady Sizemore hit his 14th home run of the season with nobody on in the fourth inning. He also singled and scored. Blake doubled, singled, walked and scored two runs, and Jhonny Peralta singled home two runs in the fourth inning, when the Tribe took a commanding lead before going on to accumulate 18 hits, a season best.

An exchange of hit batters — Carroll was hit first, then Alexi Casilla — escalated when Denys Reyes hit Andy Marte leading off the eighth, and umpire Ed Hickox warned both benches. That ignited a shouting match between Wedge and Twins manager Ron Gardenhire from their respective dugouts, but that's as far as it went.

''I could hear Gardenhire saying that it was Wedge who told him [Edward Mujica] to hit that guy,'' Marte said. ''I didn't know I got hit on purpose until they started yelling at each other.''

Asked about the incident, Wedge said, ''I'm not going to talk about that.''

In beating the Twins twice in three games, the Indians won a series for the first time since May 13-15, when they swept the Athletics in a three-game set.

And that wasn't the only good news for the Tribe. The Chicago White Sox lost for the third straight time to the Detroit Tigers, leaving Cleveland 61/2 games behind the first-place Sox.




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Sheldon Ocker can be reached at socker@thebeaconjournal.com.


CLEVELAND: Now that seemingly half the team is on the disabled list, maybe the Indians can catch fire and go on a winning streak.

So who needs Travis Hafner, Victor Martinez, Fausto Carmona, Jake Westbrook and Josh Barfield, all of whom are on the disabled list? And so what if Asdrubal Cabrera and Jensen Lewis are back at Buffalo for further seasoning, and Jason Michaels was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates?

What's left of the team that began the year put a 12-2 hurt on the Minnesota Twins on Thursday night at Progressive Field.

''It's no secret around here, and even nationally, that our guys come to play,'' manager Eric Wedge said. ''They're tough and they're feisty, and they try to find a way to win ballgames. And that's what they're going to continue to do.''

The here and now is what counts. That means guys who have filled in for the infirm and for those who are still learning or departed must carry the load. In that respect, they got a lot of practice against Minnesota.

''You look around, and it's just us,'' Casey Blake said. ''Tonight was a good ballgame. We got a lot of key hits. That's what we need to keep it going.''

Wedge talked about players stepping up in the wake of the club's tattered roster. Ladies and gentlemen, here are your stepper-uppers:

Shin-Soo Choo, who did not make the team out of spring training because he was rehabbing a surgically repaired elbow, got the most telling blow of the night. In the five-run third, Choo whacked a three-run homer over the wall in right to give the Tribe a 6-1 lead.

Jamey Carroll contributed four singles, scored a run, drove in one and reached base five times, the last when he was hit by a pitch. Carroll made the team as a utility infielder, but now replaces Barfield as the everyday second baseman.

''He's a strong professional player,'' Wedge said.

Carroll isn't sure when he last had four hits in a game, but he does remember this:

''I had back-to-back four-hit games two years ago in Colorado,'' he said. ''But I don't remember if I've had any more recently.''

Carroll tries to be ready for all situations, from pinch hitting once a week to playing every day.

''When a situation like this happens — and you don't want it to — you have to be ready,'' he said. ''Hopefully I can take advantage of it and help the team win.''

Kelly Shoppach, the reliable backup to Martinez at catcher, moved up to become the regular Thursday night by driving in two runs with singles.
Ben Francisco is another of the latecomers to the roster, though he has been on the team for a little over a month. He also made his presence felt by amassing four hits (including a double), driving in three runs and scoring one.

''We have to be tough with our two biggest hitters out of the lineup,'' Francisco said. ''But we feel confident in the lineup we have.''

Aaron Laffey almost has lost his newcomer status, but he began the season at Buffalo, getting his chance for promotion when Westbrook strained his intercostal in late April. He made his ninth start of the season Thursday night, holding the Twins to one run and five hits in six innings.

Laffey's shakiest inning was the first, when he quickly retired the first two batters and just as quickly loaded the bases on two singles and a walk. But Laffey (4-3, 2.83 ERA) took back control of the game and induced Jason Kubel to bounce to the first baseman to end the threat.

The newcomers didn't have all the fun. Grady Sizemore hit his 14th home run of the season with nobody on in the fourth inning. He also singled and scored. Blake doubled, singled, walked and scored two runs, and Jhonny Peralta singled home two runs in the fourth inning, when the Tribe took a commanding lead before going on to accumulate 18 hits, a season best.

An exchange of hit batters — Carroll was hit first, then Alexi Casilla — escalated when Denys Reyes hit Andy Marte leading off the eighth, and umpire Ed Hickox warned both benches. That ignited a shouting match between Wedge and Twins manager Ron Gardenhire from their respective dugouts, but that's as far as it went.

''I could hear Gardenhire saying that it was Wedge who told him [Edward Mujica] to hit that guy,'' Marte said. ''I didn't know I got hit on purpose until they started yelling at each other.''

Asked about the incident, Wedge said, ''I'm not going to talk about that.''

In beating the Twins twice in three games, the Indians won a series for the first time since May 13-15, when they swept the Athletics in a three-game set.

And that wasn't the only good news for the Tribe. The Chicago White Sox lost for the third straight time to the Detroit Tigers, leaving Cleveland 61/2 games behind the first-place Sox.