COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. -- Lee MacPhail, the longtime baseball executive who ruled in the celebrated Pine Tar case and later became part of the only father-son Hall of Fame pairing, has died. He was 95.
He was the oldest Hall of Famer, and he died Thursday night at his home in Delray Beach, Fla., the shrine said Friday.

"There's not much I haven't done off the field other than commissioner," he said during a 1985 interview with The Associated Press when he retired after 4 1-2 decades in the sport.
 
In the second generation of one of baseball's most prominent families -- his son, Andy, also was in the front office for several teams -- MacPhail's most well-known moment in baseball came in 1983. He upheld Kansas City's protest in the Pine Tar Game against the New York Yankees, restoring a ninth-inning home run to Royals slugger George Brett -- also a future Hall of Famer.

"Lee MacPhail was one of the great executives in baseball history and a Hall of Famer in every sense, both personally and professionally," commissioner Bud Selig said in a statement. "His hallmarks were dignity, common sense and humility. He was not only a remarkable league executive, but was a true baseball man."
With MacPhail's death, Bobby Doerr at 94 becomes the oldest living Hall of Famer.

"Baseball history has lost a great figure in Lee MacPhail, whose significant impact on the game spanned five decades," Hall chairman Jane Forbes Clark said. "He will always be remembered in Cooperstown as a man of exemplary kindness and a man who always looked after the best interests of the game."

Lee MacPhail was the son of Larry MacPhail, a top executive with the Cincinnati Reds, Brooklyn Dodgers and Yankees.

"Over his lifetime in baseball, Lee made many significant contributions that helped to make the game what it is today," former players' union head Don Fehr said.
Born Leland Stanford MacPhail Jr. in Nashville, Tenn., on Oct. 25, 1917, he was general manager at minor league Reading, went on to work for the Yankees in 1949 and spent a decade as farm director and player personnel director, with players he developed winning seven World Series titles.
He moved to the Baltimore Orioles as general manager in 1959 and six years later returned to New York as chief administrative assistant for new baseball commissioner Spike Eckert. He returned to the Yankees as general manager from 1967-73, and left after George Steinbrenner bought the team to become AL president in 1974.
A member of management's labor negotiating team along with NL president Chub Feeney during the 1981 midseason strike, he also headed the AL when it added the designated hitter for the 1973 season and expanded to Seattle and Toronto for 1977.

After he stepped down as league president following the 1983 season, he served two years as president of the owners' Player Relations Committee, overseeing bargaining during a two-day strike in 1985. He was elected to the Hall as an executive in 1998, 20 years after his father.

In the famed Pine Tar case, MacPhail overruled plate umpire Tim McClelland and crew chief Joe Brinkman and restored a home run to Brett. After Yankees manager Billy Martin argued that Brett's bat had excessive pine tar when he hit a two-run, ninth-inning homer at Yankees Stadium on July 24, McClelland called Brett out, the final out in a 4-3 New York victory.

Brett stormed out of the dugout, eyes bulging, in one of baseball's most replayed arguments. Four days later, MacPhail upheld a protest for the first time as league president, said the home run counted and ordered the game to continue from that point. When the game was completed Aug. 18, the Royals held on to win 5-4.
While the pine tar extended more than 18 inches past the handle, the limit set by baseball's rules, MacPhail said taking away the home run was improper.

"The umpires' interpretation, while technically defensible, is not in accord with the intent or spirit of the rules and that the rules do not provide that a hitter be called out for excessive use of pine tar. The rules provide instead that the bat be removed from the game," he wrote. "Although manager Martin and his staff should be commended for their alertness, it is the strong conviction of the league that games should be won and lost on the playing field -- not through technicalities of the rules."
He retired at the end of that season.

Son Andy became GM of the Minnesot Twins, president of the Chicago Cubs and president of baseball operations of the Orioles. From the next generation, Andy MacPhail IV worked for the Cleveland Indians and is a scout for the Orioles.

The Hall said no services are planned and a memorial will be held later.

Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press

Ortiz and Biting the Hand That Feeds You

Fresh off his new deal with the Red Sox, slugger David Ortiz fired back at former manager Bobby Valentine, who two weeks ago insinuated his designated hitter missed the latter part of the season not because of soreness from an Achilles injury but because his team was out of the playoff hunt.
"Stopping me (from playing) was the decision of the doctors, management, the manager and me," Ortiz told ESPNDeportes.com. "The team doctor recommended that I stop playing to not make the situation worse for the tendon.

"... As a player, the game runs through my veins. In the 10 years I have played in Boston, I have been the heart and soul of the organization and not a second has gone by in which David Ortiz, able to go on the field to do what he knows best, he stayed seated instead."
Ortiz was on the disabled list from July 18 to late August with a strained right Achilles. He went 2-for-4 with two RBIs in a one-game return Aug. 24. The next day, the trade that sent Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Beckett, Carl Crawford and Nick Punto to the Los Angeles Dodgers was made official. Ortiz went back on the DL on Aug. 27. "He realized that this trade meant that we're not going to run this race and we're not even going to finish the race properly and he decided not to play anymore," Valentine said Oct. 23 in an interview on "Costas Tonight" on NBC Sports Network. "I think at that time it was all downhill from there."
The soon-to-be 37-year-old Ortiz emphatically denied that deal had anything to do with him missing the rest of the season and said he ignored a message from Valentine after the interview because he thought he was dealing with someone with "some mental issues."

"No. 1, never bite the hand that feeds you, because in the end that will come back to bite you," Ortiz said. "I was one of those players that always showed support for him. In fact, I held a couple of player meetings.
"No. 2, the day that I returned from the DL, I told him that I was not sure what percentage health-wise I was in, but that I could not be out there without trying to help. When I told him that, I put my career on the side to help him and the team. Being in an incredible amount of pain, I went out there to support them.

"No. 3, after he went on national TV to say what he said, he sent me a text message trying to tell me that it was the media trying to change things. I did not respond to the message and I said to myself, this guy must have some mental issues or needs medicine or something? I said, I am dealing with someone crazy and I am not going to drive myself crazy, so it is better if I leave it alone."

Ortiz said he is only speaking up about it now because he was focused on finalizing a two-year contract with the Red Sox.

"I am a player that has the game in his blood," he said. "In the 10 years that I have (been) in Boston, I have been the soul of the organization and there has never been a second where David Ortiz being able to go on the field and do what he does has decided to stay seated."

On Monday, the Red Sox officially announced Ortiz's return to the team. The veteran designated hitter will get a two-year deal worth at least $26 million, a source told ESPNBoston.com.

Ortiz, who made $14.575 million last season on a one-year deal, will make $14 million in 2013 and $11 million in 2014, and will get a $1 million signing bonus with performance incentives that could bring the total value to $30 million, according to a team source.

Regarding his new contract, Ortiz said that it is the best thing that could have happened to him at this stage in his career. It practically guarantees that he will not wear a uniform other than that of the Red Sox for the rest of his life.

"I feel happy and, on top of that, my mind is at ease because I won't have to move in the next two years. Over the coming two years, I will conclude a 17-year career; not many can accomplish that in this league," said Ortiz, who has had a .285 batting average with 401 home runs and 1,326 RBIs in 16 years with Minnesota and Boston.

Ownership, bad trades combined to sink Indians

Ownership, bad trades combined to sink Indians: Analysis

Published: Sunday, November 04, 2012, 7:00 AM     Updated: Sunday, November 04, 2012, 7:09 AM

 CLEVELAND, Ohio — If a baseball team is built the right way, the advance elements of its incoming talent should blend with the remnants of the old like waves crashing onto a beach. As the old seeps into the sand, the new washes over it.

When the Indians didn’t exercise future Hall of Famer Omar Vizquel’s option at the end of the 2004 season, he represented the last remnant of the franchise’s emergence from the muck and mire of 40 years of disappointment. As Vizquel disappeared into the sand, the next wave had already started to hit the beach to bid him farewell.

CC Sabathia, Jake Westbrook and Cliff Lee were in the rotation. Travis Hafner, Grady Sizemore, Jhonny Peralta, Victor Martinez and Casey Blake were making inroads in the lineup. Bob Wickman and Rafael Betancourt were in the bullpen.

Last week, the wave that said bon voyage to Vizquel finally ran its course. Sizemore became a free agent for the second time in as many years on Monday. Hafner and Roberto Hernandez, who came ashore as Fausto Carmona in 2006, became free agents Wednesday when their 2013 options were declined. Unlike Vizquel, who still had quality baseball left in him, it’s questionable how much Sizemore, Hafner and Hernandez have left. It’s even more questionable if they’ll ever wear an Indians uniform again.

For the last several years, Sizemore and Hafner have been irrelevant from a production standpoint because of injuries. Sizemore didn’t play this year and Hafner was limited to 66 games. Lies and deception cost Hernandez almost the entire season following his January arrest in the Dominican Republic for identity fraud.

The right wave can lead to great things for a ballclub. The Indians appeared to have just that in the surge that dissipated last week at the steps of Progressive Field. It produced two Cy Young winners, a 20-game winner, 14 All-Star game appearances, a 30-30 season, the most productive DH in team history, the franchise leader in saves, two Gold Gloves, three Silver Slugger awards, one manager of the year award and two executive of the year awards.

From all that came exactly one postseason appearance — which explains what’s wrong about the current Indians.

The tease began in 2005. Propelled by a 46-28 record after the All-Star break, the Indians finished 93-69. On Sept. 25 at Kauffman Stadium, they trailed Chicago by 1.5 games in the AL Central. In the ninth inning of a 4-4 tie, Sizemore lost a fly ball by Kansas City’s Paul Phillips in the sun and it fell for a game-winning double. Whatever mojo the Indians possessed vanished.

They lost six of their last seven, getting swept by Chicago at home in the last three games of the season. After former Chicago manager Ozzie Guillen capped the sweep by giving Tribe fans the choke sign, the Indians finished six games out of first and two behind Boston in the wild card. Chicago went on to win the World Series.

Still, the wave was impressive. Hafner hit .305 with 33 homers and 108 RBI followed by Martinez (.305, 20, 80), Sizemore (.287, 22, 81, 111 runs) and Peralta (.292, 24, 78). Lee went 18-5 with a 3.79 ERA followed by Sabathia (15-10, 4.03), Westbrook (15-15, 4.49) and Wickman (45 saves).

The glare of expectations ruined the Tribe in 2006. So did a bullpen with the fewest saves in the league. Wickman was traded in July to Atlanta for a minor-league catcher. They finished fourth at 78-84, 18 games out of first place.

But the production continued: Martinez (.316, 16, 93), Hafner (.308, 42, 117), Sizemore (.290, 28, 76, 134 runs), Blake (.282, 19, 68), Lee (14-11, 4.40), Westbrook (15-10, 4.17), Sabathia (12-11, 3.22).

The crest came in 2007. The Indians won the division — their only Central title in the last 11 years — and tied Boston for the most victories in the league with 96. They beat the Yankees in the division series and took a 3-1 lead over Boston in the ALCS before losing three straight. In Game 7, third-base coach Joel Skinner mistakenly stopped Kenny Lofton, acquired from Texas for the stretch run, at third base for what should have been the tying run. The Red Sox went on to beat the Tribe, 11-2, and sweep the Rockies in the World Series.

It was the last hurrah for the core and it was a good one: Martinez (.301, 25, 114), Peralta (.270, 21, 72), Blake (.270, 18, 78), Sizemore (.277, 24, 78, 114 runs) and Hafner (.266, 24, 100). Sabathia went 19-7 with a 3.21 EA to win the Indians first Cy Young award since Gaylord Perry in 1972. Hernandez was almost as good at 19-8 with a 3.06 ERA. Westbrook and Lee were held back by injuries and poor performances. Lee didn’t even make the postseason roster. 

The lead element of the current wave helped as well. Asdrubal Cabrera (.282, 3, 22, 30 runs) replaced Josh Barfield at second base to assist in the stretch run. Right fielder Shin-Soo Choo played six games, but underwent Tommy John surgery on his left elbow in September after spending most of the season at Class AAA Buffalo.

After the season Eric Wedge was named AL Manager of the Year. Two years later, he was fired. Why couldn’t the wave regenerate itself? Four words: ownership and bad trades.

When the Indians came out of spring training in 2008, Hafner, Martinez, Westbrook and Joe Borowski, who recorded 45 of the bravest — but most unlikely — saves you’ll ever see in 2007, were all playing hurt. They quickly broke down and the season went with them.

Borowski was released on July 4. Sabathia, a free agent-to-be, was traded to Milwaukee on July 7 because the Indians couldn’t afford to keep him. Blake, who went from spring training invitee to core player, was traded to the Dodgers on July 26. Paul Byrd, who won 15 games for the Tribe in 2007, was traded to Boston on Aug. 12.

Sabathia turned into Matt LaPorta, Michael Brantley, Rob Bryson and Zach Jackson. LaPorta has been a bust, Brantley finally put together a solid year in 2012. Bryson and Jackson were non-factors. 

The deal for Blake worked out better as the Indians acquired catcher Carlos Santana.

Amidst the bodies flying off the roster, members of the core were still producing. Lee went 22-3 to win the team’s second straight Cy Young award. Sizemore, meanwhile, became only the second Indian to go 30-30 in a season (38 steals, 33 homers). For Sizemore, 2008 would be his last healthy season. For Lee, it guaranteed that he wouldn’t be an Indian long.

The fire sale continued in 2009 when ownership told GM Mark Shapiro that deals had to be made to offset what at one time was thought to be $16 million in losses. The two biggest deals involved Lee and Martinez, each with a year left on their contracts.

Lee and Ben Francisco were traded to the Phillies on July 29 for Carlos Carrasco, Jason Donald, Jason Knapp and Lou Marson. Knapp, supposedly the key to the deal, was released by the Indians earlier this year after two shoulder operations.

Martinez was traded to Boston on July 31 for Justin Masterson, Nick Hagadone and Bryan Price. The trading continued in 2010 as Peralta was sent to Detroit for a minor-league pitcher and Westbrook to St. Louis for right-hander Corey Kluber, who made 12 starts for the Tribe this season.

A big part of the latest wave is already ashore. Cabrera, Santana, Jason Kipnis, Brantley, Masterson, Ubaldo Jimenez, Zach McAllister, Kluber, Chris Perez, Vinnie Pestano, Joe Smith, Tony Sipp, Cody Allen all played a part in the Indians’ 94 losses this year.

Can they do a better than the previous wave? Will ownership and management give them more to work with than they did the previous core of players? It all depends what the next wave brings in.

 Going, Going, Gone | Timeline of the Tribe's core group


July 25, 2000: Jake Westbrook and Zach Day acquired from Yankees for David Justice and Ricky Ledee. 
July 28, 2000: Bob Wickman acquired from Milwaukee for Richie Sexson, Kane Davis, Paul Rigdon and Marco Scutaro. 
April 8, 2001: CC Sabathia goes 5 2/3 innings against Baltimore in his big-league debut. 
Feb. 23, 2002: CC Sabathia signed a four-year, $9.5 million deal. 
Dec. 18, 2002: Casey Blake signs minor-league contract with the Indians. 
June 27, 2002: Grady Sizemore, Cliff Lee, Brandon Phillips and Lee Stevens acquired from Montreal for Bartolo Colon, Tim Drew and cash. 
Sept. 10, 2002: Victor Martinez goes 1-for-4 against Toronto in his big-league debut. 
Dec. 6, 2002: Travis Hafner and RHP Aaron Myette acquired from Texas for RHP Ryan Drese and C Einar Diaz. 
June 13, 2003: Jhonny Peralta starts at shortstop against San Diego in his big-league debut.
July 13, 2003: Rafael Betancourt lost to the White Sox in his big-league debut. 
April 5, 2005: Victor Martinez signed a five-year, $15.5 million deal. 
Sept. 18-24, 2005: Travis Hafner homers in six straight games. 
March 6, 2006: Grady Sizemore signs five-year, $23.45 million deal; Jhonny Peralta signs
six-year, $13 million deal. 
April 15, 2006: Roberto Hernandez, known as Fausto Carmona, won his big-league debut with a victory over Detroit. 
May 7, 2006: Bob Wickman saved his 130th game as an Indian to make him the team’s all-time leader. 
July 20, 2006: Bob Wickman traded to Atlanta for Max Ramirez.
April 7, 2007: Jake Westbrook signs three-year, $33 million deal. 
May 20-June 17, 2007: Casey Blake hits in 26 straight games, longest AL streak that year. 
July 12, 2007: Travis Hafner signs four-year, $57 million extension, biggest in team history. 
Aug. 8, 2007: Asdrubal Cabrera starts against Chicago in his big-league debut. 
Sept. 28, 2007: CC Sabathia beat Kansas City for his 19th victory on his way to the Cy Young Award. 
Oct. 5, 2007: Hernandez/Carmona pitches nine innings in Game 2 of ALDS against the Yankees at bug infested Progressive Field. The Indians won, 2-1, in 11 innings. 
April 10, 2008: Hernandez/Carmona, signs four-year, $15 million contract. 
July 7, 2008: CC Sabathia traded to Milwaukee for Matt LaPorta, Michael Brantley, Rob Bryson and Zach Jackson. 
July 26, 2008: Casey Blake traded to the Dodgers for Carlos Santana. 
Aug. 25, 2008: Grady Sizemore, facing Detroit, hit his 30th and 31st homer to become the second 30-30 man in team history. 
Sept. 1, 2008: Cliff Lee threw a five-hit shutout to beat the White Sox for his 20th victory on the way to Cy Young Award. 
May 1, 2009: Jhonny Peralta homered against Detroit to pass Woodie Held and become the Indians’ all-time home run leader among shortstops. 
July 3, 2009: Shin-Soo Choo went 4-for-5 with two homers, four runs and seven RBI against Oakland. 
July 29, 2009: Cliff Lee and Ben Francisco traded to the Phillies for Jason Donald, Lou Marson, Carlos Carrasco and Jason Knapp. 
July 31, 2009: Victor Martinez traded to Boston for Justin Masterson, Nick Hagadone and Bryan Price. 
July 29, 2010: Jhonny Peralta traded to Detroit for Giovanni Soto. 
July 31, 2010: Jake Westbrook traded to St. Louis as part of a three-team deal in which the Indians receive Corey Kluber. 
Oct. 29, 2012: Grady Sizemore granted free agency. 
Oct. 31, 2012: The Indians declined the 2013 options on Travis Hafner and Roberto Hernandez, making them free agents. 

Perez rips Front Office in rare Tribe Victory

Cleveland Indians' Chris Perez fires back at Manny Acta; Tribe rallies for 4-3 victory over White Sox

Published: Tuesday, October 02, 2012, 10:42 PM     Updated: Wednesday, October 03, 2012, 7:52 AM

By Paul Hoynes, The Plain Dealer
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CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Closer Chris Perez had a lot better stuff before Tuesday's game than he did during it.

A couple of hours before game time, Perez went up and in on departed Manny Acta and his managerial style. He must have used all his heat, because he didn't have much left against Dayan Viciedo, who hammered a 426-foot homer to center in the ninth inning.

It looked like certain defeat for Perez and the Tribe until Travis Hafner tied it with a two-run pinch-hit homer in the ninth followed by Jason Donald's game-winning single with two out in the 12th for a 4-3 victory over Chicago.

Perez brings drama even when he doesn't pitch well. Perez hit catcher Tyler Flowers with one out and one on, drawing taunts from the White Sox dugout. Perez gestured back at the Chicago players, who have had a running feud with Perez this season.

Plate umpire Paul Schrieber warned both teams. When the inning ended, Perez met Flowers between second and third base and patted him on the back, saying he didn't intentionally hit him.

There was nothing apologetic about the criticism Perez directed toward Acta. In September, Perez criticized ownership for not spending enough money to have a competitive team. Then he criticized the front office for its poor trading record.

Perez said Tuesday that he did not make those comments to get traded.

"A lot of it was heat of the moment," he said. "I was upset. A lot of that walked out the door last week."

 Perez was referring to Acta's firing on Thursday. Bench coach Sandy Alomar Jr. is the acting manager. He's scheduled to interview for the full-time job Thursday followed by former Boston manager Terry Francona on Friday.

In a 15-minute meeting with reporters, Perez listed his complaints with Acta.

• "The Manny [reporters] saw and the Manny we saw were different guys," said Perez. "He's not a very confrontational person.

"In this game we're men. We can handle it. Sometimes we need a kick in the butt. He did it this year, but it was a couple of weeks too late.

"Last year we didn't get it at all. He only gave us two speeches, one at the start of the season and one at the end and we were playing for first place up until September."

Perez said the Indians took on Acta's personality.

"It sounds like a cliche, but a team does follow its manager, good or bad," he said. "If a manager has no activity on the field. If he doesn't argue calls or get upset, why would his team?"

• Perez said Acta seemed to push the panic button in certain series.

"We'd play the Yankees and have to change our whole lineup around," said Perez. "Why?"
He questioned how Acta used the bullpen at times. "OK, it's May and there are only 150 games left," said Perez. "Why use the whole bullpen against Detroit when we're going to play them 15 more times?"

• Perez said he'd go seven to eight days at a time without talking to Acta, unless he was coming into a game in the ninth inning.

"We're a family," he said. "We're together so much. It was just a weird dynamic. I have a great deal of respect for Manny. From what he's accomplished and the charity work he does. I just disagree with some of his baseball tactics and strategies and how he runs the ship."

• Perez said he felt Acta should have been fired on Aug. 8, when pitching coach Scott Radinsky was dismissed following an 11-game losing streak.

"The easiest way to get out of the kind of losing streak we were in is to get a new manager," said Perez. "It shakes things up and gets a new voice. They made the decision with six games left in the season.

"They had their reasons. ... I would have liked to seen what happened if they'd done it after that losing streak when they fired Rad. I would have liked to seen what happened with a month and a half to go. Who knows?
"It wasn't my decision. I stand by what they did. I respect them."

• On Monday, Perez had an hour-long exit meeting with GM Chris Antonetti. Perez did not feel he would get traded.

"I got the impression they were going to build around the bullpen," said Perez.

Justin Masterson made his last start of the season Tuesday. He allowed one run on four hits in six innings. He struck out five and walked one. Shin-Soo Choo gave him a 1-0 lead with a leadoff homer off Jake Peavy. The White Sox tied it on Orlando Hudson's single in the sixth.

Hafner tied the score, 3-3, with his 200th homer in an Indians uniform off Jake Peavy. It was his third career pinch-hit homer, hitting the right-field foul pole.

Lonnie Chisenhall started the game-winning rally with a one-out double off Matt Thornton (4-10). Russ Canzler was intentionally walked and pinch-hitter Jack Hannahan struck out before Donald sent a 1-1 pitch into left field to win it.

Chris Seddon (1-1) was the winner.

Humble Sandy

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Sandy Alomar has moved into the Tribe manager's office ... sort of.
"I'm sitting on the couch, not on the chair [behind the desk]," said the interim manager. "There might be a ghost in that chair."

It could be the ghost of former manager Manny Acta, who was fired last week. But next season, someone has to sit there -- and it's likely to be either Alomar or former Red Sox manager Terry Francona.
I asked Alomar what he thought of Francona, as I'd heard they had a relationship going back to 1988.
"We played winterball together," said Alomar, who then showed his class and did the Tribe a tremendous favor by sounding like a press agent for Francona. He talked about Francona like this: "I don't have the resume that Terry has, that's a slam dunk. ... I wish I had that."

He said how Francona is "a great guy ... a great communicator." About how "no one owes me anything. ... This is a big decision [for the Indians] ... not about who is the most popular guy."

While it almost sounded as an endorsement for Francona, understand that Alomar desperately wants the job. "I feel I'm prepared for it," he said. But he knows that he's never managed a game anywhere until last weekend, when he took over for Acta.

After taking a year off to work for ESPN, Francona brings a strong background with tons of experience that would make him attractive to any team needing a manager.

Hometown favorite
 
Alomar is one of the Cleveland's favorite baseball sons. Many fans want him, and want the staff to include Omar Vizquel, Charlie Nagy and others from the great teams of the 1990s. But those glory days are gone.
The Tribe has lost 90 games for the third time in four years -- something that never happened before in franchise history extending to 1901. So the next manager is not about to work miracles. Nor will he sell many tickets. But hiring the right one is at least something positive for a team needing any sentence that hints of good news.

With Francona and Alomar as the main candidates, the Tribe is in a far better position than their last managerial search. That was in 2009, when the final three were Bobby Valentine, Torey Lovullo and Acta.
Valentine has been an embarrassment in Boston, the Red Sox joining the 90-game loser club. Lovullo is Toronto's first-base coach, and could be a candidate to manage the Blue Jays if current skipper John Farrell replaces Valentine in Boston. Acta will probably join someone's coaching staff next season.
As Alomar said, "This is a business."

The best way to handle the insecurity that is part of the job is to refrain from taking it personally. That's how Alomar is dealing with the possibility of Francona being hired.

The Francona Factor
 
Furthermore, the assumption has long been Alomar would be the next Wahoo manager whenever Acta departed. But Francona's availability and interest has changed all that.

Alomar can put himself in the place of the front office and know that Francona's 12 years of experience, two World Series titles and respect all over baseball make him a very appealing candidate. That assumes Francona's comments to The Plain Dealer's Paul Hoynes about really wanting the job are sincere. There is no reason to doubt Francona's words.

Just as there is no reason to question that Alomar was speaking from the heart when he praised Francona.
While many fans want massive front office changes, it's obvious Francona thinks the situation here can improve -- or he would not be interviewing Friday.

Alomar has a Tribe coaching contract for next season. Obviously, if Francona is hired here and Alomar is offered a chance to manage another team the Indians will permit him to do so. He has interviewed with three teams over the previous two seasons.

But Alomar has wisely put himself in good position, regardless of who is the new manager. Because of his respect for Francona, it sounds as if he'd be content to stay here as bench coach if no manager's job came his way.

That would make the Tribe even stronger -- at least in the dugout -- next season.

Miguel Cabrera and the Tripe Crown

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Miguel Cabrera received a standing ovation after flying out and striking out in his only two at-bats Wednesday night, and leaving the Tigers' game against the Kansas City Royals in the fourth inning with the Triple Crown in sight.

Cabrera high-fived his teammates as he entered the Detroit dugout, then walked back to the top step and waved his helmet as a crowd of mostly Royals fans gave him a standing ovation.

Cabrera finished the regular season with a .330 average, 44 homers and 139 RBIs, wrapping up baseball's first Triple Crown since Boston's Carl Yastrzemski in 1967.

"I would say without question he's enjoyed it. How could you not enjoy what he's done if you're a baseball player?" Tigers manager Jim Leyland said before the game.

 "I would say without question he's enjoyed it. How could you not enjoy what he's done if you're a baseball player?" Tigers manager Jim Leyland said before the game.

"I would also add to that I doubt very much, knowing him, that he necessarily enjoys all the extra attention, and all the extra conversations he has to have, it's kind of out of his realm in personality, to be honest with you."

Only the Angels' Mike Trout provided a threat to Cabrera's second consecutive batting title, and only the Yankees' Curtis Granderson had a chance of hitting more home runs after the Rangers' Josh Hamilton finished with 43 homers earlier in the day.

Cabrera's pursuit of history has occurred largely in the dark, though, overshadowed by thrilling pennant races, the sheer enormity of the NFL -- even the presidential election.

An event that in other years might dominate headlines has been mostly cast aside.

 "The entire baseball world should be here right now," said Tigers ace Justin Verlander, the reigning AL MVP, who may soon watch that award get handed off to his teammate.

Perhaps part of the void has to do with Cabrera's very nature. He's not the boisterous sort, never one to crave attention. He would rather hang out with a couple of buddies than stand in front a pack of television cameras, answering countless questions about what makes him one of the game's most complete hitters.

"He's not a talkative guy," said Tigers catcher Alex Avila. "One, he doesn't speak English that well, but two, he lets his ability carry through."

It takes a special breed to hit for average, power and in clutch situations, which is why there have only been 14 players to achieve baseball's version of the Triple Crown, an honor roll that includes iconic players such as Mickey Mantle, Ted Williams and Lou Gehrig.

Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez never accomplished it, failing to win the batting title, and countless other Hall of Fame players have fallen short of one of sport's rarest feats.

To put it in perspective, consider horse racing's Triple Crown. The last thoroughbred to win the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes in the same year was Affirmed in 1978, more than a full decade after Yastrzemski's magical summer in Boston.

Whether it's on par with Johnny Vander Meer's consecutive no-hitters, Jack Nicklaus' 18 major championships in golf, Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak or Brett Favre's consecutive games streak for quarterback is open to interpretation, and perhaps some bar-room debate.

Those who have witnessed it first-hand certainly have their opinions.

"It's pretty amazing," said the Royals' Alex Gordon, who's watched the drama unfold from his spot in left field. "Honestly, his numbers are like that every year. He has a great average, great home runs, great RBIs. He's a guy who can pull this off, and it's great for the game."

Giants infielder Pablo Sandoval said he was particularly proud that the Triple Crown would be accomplished by a fellow Venezuelan. Cabrera is from Maracay, along the Caribbean coast.

"I'm excited for the country and for the fans that support us every single day. It's a big deal in Venezuela right now," Sandoval said. "It's exciting, especially because of all the things that have happened in his career."
Yes, it seems that every fairytale these days carries a troublesome footnote.

In Cabrera's case, it stems from spring training last year, when he was involved in an ugly drunken driving incident. According to authorities in St. Lucie County, Fla., Cabrera refused to cooperate, directed an obscene gesture at police and even dared them to shoot him.

The Tigers have been careful to keep him from having to discuss his personal issues, but by all accounts, Cabrera has been a model player ever since. This year, he's the Tigers' nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award, given to the player "who best represents the game of baseball through positive contributions on and off the field, including sportsmanship and community involvement."

"This clubhouse wouldn't be quite as good without him," Leyland said.

While the Triple Crown appears all but assured, the MVP award is not. On one hand, Cabrera is on the footstep of history, having dominated the major statistical categories favored by traditionalists, the ones that count toward the Triple Crown.

On the other hand, Trout is being championed by new-school baseball thought, number crunchers who rely on more obscure measures such as WAR (Wins Above Replacement), derived from several other statistics designed to judge a player's overall contribution to a team.

Tigers Hall of Famer Al Kaline said it would be "a shame" if Cabrera didn't win the league's most coveted award, while Royals manager Ned Yost offered a similar sentiment.

"I think they're both fantastic players, tremendous players, both of them," Yost said, "but if Cabrera wins the Triple Crown, he has to be the MVP, absolutely."

Dirtbag Kipnis

Something burns inside of Jason Kipnis.

You can feel it when he stares at you, when he tells you how he "just [hates] to waste an at-bat, I just hate it."

It's there when he says how it's his job "to play as hard as I can, to never go back to the bench and think, 'If I dove for that ball, I would have got it.' "

Kipnis said once -- he can't remember if it was high school or before that -- he jogged to first base on a ground ball.

"I was out," he said. "But I knew down deep that if I had run hard, I'd have been safe."
He never wants that feeling again.

Kipnis plays every game, every inning, every pitch as if he were being paid by the day. He tends to remember the coaches and scouts who didn't like him, the awards he didn't win.

It still eats at him that he was not a first-round pick in the 2009 draft after being the Pac-10 Player of the Year at Arizona State. The Indians grabbed him in the second round at No. 63.

"I played against the some of guys taken ahead of me," he said, shaking his head.

He didn't finish the sentence, but the thought was clear: He knows he was better than some of those guys.

Make it, he's done more than most of the 62 picked before him. But he was passed over because he's 5-10 and a chunky 185 pounds. He was passed over because his nickname is "Dirtbag." It doesn't take more than a few innings for his uniform to be filthy from sliding and diving.

But guys named Dirtbag are not first-round picks. They are guys who have to struggle for every hit, guys who make it with grit and sweat and sheer determination. Dirtbags are respected in the clubhouse for their work ethic, but they don't become All-Stars.

Only Kipnis plays like one, even if many people outside of Northeast Ohio fail to notice. That's part of the reason Kipnis declines to discuss being left off the American League All-Star team.
The second baseman doesn't want to sound like a phony, and say all the right things about Robinson Cano and Ian Kinsler being picked in front of him. Kipnis doesn't say a word about it, but you can be sure he's convinced he belongs among the game's best
.
He went into Tuesday's game hitting .272 with 11 homers, 47 RBI and 20 stolen bases. He was hitting .372 with runners in scoring position, and has committed only three errors at second base.
Cano was voted the starter, Kinsler was picked as a reserve. Kinsler's stats heading into Tuesday were .276, nine homers, 40 RBI, 15 stolen bases and 11 errors.

Tribe manager Manny Acta says Kipnis' glovework is almost ignored because of his offense -- and because he's a converted outfielder who was supposed to struggle at second base.
"He's been fantastic," Acta said. "He has been our best infielder in terms of range, [on pop ups] and on the ground. I don't remember his last error."

It was May 28, 31 games ago.

Or how about this? He's 20-of-21 in stolen bases.

"He just plays the game the right way," Acta said.

The comfort zone
After his first pro season, the Indians asked Kipnis to move from the outfield to second base, which had been a dead zone for the Tribe for years.

"Someone told me that I could be comfortable as an outfielder in Class AA, or I could be uncomfortable and get to the big leagues as a second baseman," Kipnis said. "My ticket up was second base."

The Indians tried to make the same move with Trevor Crowe, but the outfielder (and No. 1 draft pick in 2005) never could make the adjustment. Not everyone can do this.

"For Jason, it came down to hard work," said Brad Grant, the Tribe's scouting director. "When we approached him with the idea, he embraced it. He went to spring training a month early, took extra ground balls every day. He was determined to do it."

Then Grant told this story about scouting Kipnis. The scouting director had been receiving positive reports about Kipnis at Arizona State. Word was Kipnis did everything a little above average, nothing especially well.

Other than hustle.

The dirtbag part of his game always drew the most attention.

As Acta says: "He plays every game like it could be the last game of his career. He knows you can only play until your 40. He just goes all out, it really is 100 percent each day with him."
Or as Grant says, "Any day you see Kipnis play, you see him diving all over the place."
But Grant wanted to see him do something else -- hit with power.

"[Arizona State] was playing at Southern Cal," Grant said. "I watched him take batting practice and there's this four-level parking garage beyond the right-field wall. He had about four to five balls up there.

"Then came the game, and he parked a fastball up there. You look at his forearms, his back, his wide shoulders -- this guy was strong. He wasn't just a singles and doubles hitter. I knew we had to get this guy."

Kipnis wanted to tell everyone that, because he did hit 16 homers for Arizona State.

The complete game

Kipnis can deliver a 400-foot space shot to right field, or drop a 40-foot bunt down the third-base line.

Four times this season, he has bunted for a hit.

"I love to do it after I hit a homer or double," Kipnis said . "The third baseman is playing deep, and never guesses it's coming."

Kipnis is on pace to hit 22 homers, more than he did in any minor-league season. And he's on a clip for 40 stolen bases, far more than any season in the minors.
"I want to beat you any way I can," Kipnis said.

Bat. Glove. Speed. Power. Bunts.

He's been doing it all this season.

Kipnis played for his father in Little League. And he played for Pat Murphy at Arizona State. Both coaches told him that there's only one way for him to play -- the fierce, dirtbag style fans here so love.

"They told me to lock in on every pitch," he said. "Don't waste opportunities."
At age 25, Kipnis knows that there is plenty of time to make an All-Star team. After all, he didn't arrive in the majors until last July 22.
But he hates to wait.

"He's got that Midwestern toughness from Chicago," Grant said. "He wants to prove you wrong. He's a very driven guy."

So Kipnis takes the field with a little anger, a lot of passion and a personality that demands he seize the moment.

"I expect to be a good player," he said. "It comes down to trying to win for your teammates, the city and the fans."

Then he paused, considering what to say next.
"It's a personal pride thing," he said. "In every at-bat, I want to get a hit. On every ball hit, I want to run as hard as I can. In every game, I want to win. To me, that's the only way to play

Remembering Bob Feller on Memorial Day 2012

On Memorial Day weekend, Bill Livingston remembers Bob Feller and everything he stood for

Published: Saturday, May 26, 2012, 5:09 PM Updated: Saturday, May 26, 2012, 5:56 PM

By Bill Livingston, The Plain DealerThe Plain Dealer

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- He would sit in the third row at the end of the middle section of the press box at Progressive Field.

It is a seat no one else will ever sit in because such a local and national legend had warmed it for so long. When something was on his mind, Bob Feller would wave you over to sit and talk about it.
"We had a saying when we'd slaughter pigs on the farm back in Iowa. We'd say we used every part of the pig but the oink. Baseball is selling every part but the oink," said Feller, who wanted such goings-on to stop.

The issue several years ago was a plan to put advertisements for the upcoming movie, "Spider-Man 2," on the bases at major-league parks. It didn't seem that big a deal to me, considering the walking billboards NASCAR drivers resemble and the ads that cluttered the fences of major-league parks in years gone by.

But the opposition of traditionalists such as Feller meant the idea never really got started. Major League Baseball quickly scrapped the idea.

That was Feller. He knew Babe Ruth; pitched to Ted Williams; lived through the Great Depression, the biggest economic mess the country was ever in; and fought in World War II, the biggest conflict in which it was ever engaged. But, even though he was in his 80s when Spider-Man tried to cobweb the bases, Feller stayed as current as each morning's news.

Because sports are mostly a pleasant break from the demands of everyday life, I usually only talked to Feller about baseball. When Jaret Wright was quite the young phenom in 1997, Feller showed me how to throw the overhand curveball that had made Bob such a devastating pitcher. It complemented one of the fastest balls ever thrown. Three times, it made him utterly unhittable in big-league games. Feller thought Wright needed to develop that pitch.

"It's like pulling down a window shade," Feller would say, reaching back, far over his head. That "out" pitch for Feller, of course, would have been a wild pitch, diving into the dirt 55 feet from the rubber, for most men.

I did talk to Feller about his service in the Navy before the 50th anniversary of Pearl Harbor in 1991. Feller had enlisted the day after the 1941 Japanese attack, in the prime of his career, although, with his father dying of brain cancer, he did not have to because he was the sole support of his family.
Extraordinary in what he did over 60 feet, 6 inches of a manicured diamond, Feller always emphasized the comparative ordinariness of what he did as a gun captain of the battleship Alabama.
He never liked being called a war hero.

"The heroes are the ones who didn't come home. I was a survivor," he said
.
On the Pearl Harbor Day of my lifetime, the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001, I called Feller for his reaction. He did not disappoint. Noting that it is impossible to stop some suicide attacks, he said that was because "they think they'll come back after they die as a daisy or petunia or whatever the hell it is they believe."

Politically, religiously and unequivocally incorrect -- that was Feller.

The day after Feller died in December of 2010, I appeared on "NewsHour" on PBS to talk about him. I was honored. Although I disagreed with him on many subjects, Bob Feller was the greatest American I ever knew.

Yet when Veterans Day neared in 2011, another war veterans piece I had planned went unwritten. I rummaged around the house for an information packet Feller's son, Steve, had sent me months before about a planned congressional salute to his father and others. I had misplaced it and was too embarrassed to contact Steve again. I feebly rationalized not writing about it, telling myself it was football season, which was far more interesting than some politicians' resolution.

Now another national patriotic holiday, Memorial Day, draws near. The Indians will be playing the Royals on Memorial Day Monday at the ballpark with the empty third-row seat in the press box. Amid the hot dogs and fireworks, many Americans will remember those who did not come back from war.

Along with a lot of Indians fans, I'll think of one who did. Feller lived here until he died at the age of 91, occasionally riling us, sometimes making us smile, and best of all inspiring us.
Freedom wasn't free in Bob Feller's day, and it won't be free tomorrow or the days after that, either. We occasionally need to be reminded of that. I know I do.

Cleveland Indians closer Chris Perez hits home with comments on fans' lack of enthusiasm: Bud Shaw's Sports Spin

Bud Shaw, The Plain DealerThe Plain Dealer

May 24, 2012, 2:05AM

Build a winner and they still might not come a year after 30-15 became a 15-game deficit.

In a sports town much edgier than this one, pitcher Jack McDowell once earned the nickname "The Yankee Flipper" by making an obscene gesture to the booing hometown fans.

That was actually the nicest thing they called him.
Chris Perez didn't come close to that.

Quick forgiveness followed in New York for McDowell, who later explained that while the media bashed him for his obscenity, "the fans were the ones who actually brushed it off and really made me feel they were fine afterward."

It didn't hurt that McDowell's best work of the season followed. And that'll be the bottom line for Perez.

Pitch well and they will . . . well, they might still not come, but he'll at least have held up his end.
The same message McDowell received as the 1995 season unfolded greeted Perez as he ran out of the bullpen to cheers Tuesday night against the Detroit Tigers. The fact only 15,049 people were in attendance and that some of those wore Tigers' colors helped support his general point. But for one night at least, that was of secondary concern.

Perez was clumsy in how he called out the city for a lack of support. But let's be honest here. The Indians aren't only lagging in attendance. They're dead last. They're dead last by 3,000 per game.
That's not all cold weather. Or the price teams pay for staging games on school nights. I'm sure it will improve, just as it did a year ago. But in the meantime, dead last is difficult to ignore.

While it's never a good idea for a business to criticize its customers, what's the worst backlash possible in this case? The people who aren't coming will continue not coming?

Not unexpectedly, the front office distanced itself from Perez's comments. Just don't believe for a moment everyone in the organization was unhappy that the issue was put out there. The hope was that his words might even beat the drum for a bigger walk-up during the three-game series with Detroit.
Cutting through Perez's misinterpretations of the issue, his message was this:

We're pretty decent this year. We're in first place. We're off to a good start. Again. You know, the kind of good start people said we needed to excite the fan base after so many stumbles out of the gate under former manager Eric Wedge.

Some of the criticism of Perez has been just as clumsy as anything he's said. Namely, Kenny Lofton's smackdown of the Indians closer.

Lofton says the Indians of the '90s connected with fans because they were more involved in the community than the Indians of today.

That's why you loved them?

You mean it wasn't about a great team ending a 40-year stretch of ineptitude?

Or having a lineup filled with All-Stars and dotted with future Hall of Famers?

Or playing in a new park? In one of the highest-scoring eras in baseball history?

Or the fact that for three of those seasons, Cleveland's football team played in Baltimore?
 
All that apparently was no match for the impact a kid could feel spending Halloween night with Albert Belle.

Belle was a top drawing card in a town that made excuses for his behavior. Why? Because he could mash. Period.

After Perez complained about the low attendance and getting booed merely for putting runners on base, Lofton told WKRK FM/92.3 The Fan that Perez doesn't get it.

"You're in first place for a couple of days and you think you're big time? That's not how it works," Lofton said.

Perez never said anything about thinking the Indians were big time.

The Indians were in first for 95 days last year. That's more than a few days. They're in first again.
They finished 24th in attendance. They're last now.

I'm pretty sure that's not how it's supposed to work, either.

Maybe change your name to Bruce

Calling out Cleveland, Part II.
Did Perez's words rally the troops?
Clubhouses. in my experience, don't speak in a single voice.
Some teammates probably agree with him. Maybe even a few more do after seeing Tuesday's crowd.
Some think he should do his job and not worry about the boos or how many people pay to see the team play in a tough economy.
People pay their money. They can boo if they choose.
In a town so starved for a winner, though, why boo first place in the first place?
Perez wasn't the right guy to ask it, but it's a fair question.

Spinoffs

• According to the police report taken after a disagreement that didn't result in any charges being filed, reliever Joe Smith tried to walk into the Round House Bar in Put-in-Bay without showing his ID. When security personnel asked for it, he told them he played for the Cleveland Indians. I'm not sure identifying yourself as a Cleveland Indians pitcher is the best way to clear up any uncertainty about your age. (See: Fausto Carmona).

• Justin Verlander, today's starter for the Tigers at Progressive Field, has a cereal called "Fastball Flakes." Last week, we asked readers to name a Ubaldo Jimenez cereal. The winner -- "High Pitch Count Chocula" -- comes from Bill T., of Lakewood. Like all other Spin contributors, he must be proud. 

Vinnie Pestano lives by the Strikeout

Paul Hoynes, The Plain DealerThe Plain Dealer

May 23, 2012, 5:55PM

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Vinnie Pestano has a direct approach when it comes to pitching. When he takes the mound, he's does so to strikeout the opposing hitter.

He's not pitching to contact. He's not trying to induce ground balls or fly balls. He there for the K, swinging or called.

In Tuesday's 5-3 victory by the Indians over Detroit, Pestano pitched a one, two, three eighth inning. He struck out Alex Avila for the third out. It gave him at least one strikeout in his last 22 consecutive appearances.

It's not Bob Feller setting the club record in strikeouts with 2,581, but it is a team record. Pestano passed Paul Shuey to claim the record for his own. The streak started on Sept. 25, 2011.
"A record is a record, I guess," said Pestano. "Until somebody else comes along, it's mine."

Pestano (1-0, 2.55, one save) has 24 strikeouts in 17 2/3 innings over 20 appearances. Last year Pestano finished fifth in the AL among relievers with 84 strikeouts as a rookie.

"I try to strikeout everybody out that I face," said Pestano, who leads the AL with 11 holds. "I was aware of it. I don't try to pitch to contact. The least amount of opportunity they have to put the ball in play, the fewer amount of hits they're going to get.

"If I can try and keep the ball away from somebody and punch them out, I'm going to try and take that opportunity."

Chris Perez gets cheers, 2012

Closer Chris Perez gets cheers, save as Cleveland Indians beat Tigers, 5-3

By Paul Hoynes, The Plain Dealer

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Tribe closer Chris Perez writes killer endings to games for a living. He does it nightly.

But even Perez, the author of so many walk-off lines, didn't know how Tuesday night was going to end as he ran in from the bullpen to save the Indians' 5-3 victory over Detroit at Progressive Field.
"I didn't know what to expect," said Perez.

Perez criticized Indians fans Saturday for being last in attendance in the big leagues. He ripped them for booing him and blamed them, in part, for the team not being able to attract top free agents.

It didn't take Perez long to realize what the crowd of 15,049 thought of him. As he neared the mound, the fans gave him a standing ovation. The cheers grew louder as he retired Don Kelly to start the ninth. Then things veered off course, as they tend to do during a Perez save attempt.

Ramon Santiago walked, and Andy Dirks singled to put runners on the corners with the heart of the Tigers lineup, Miguel Cabrera and Prince Fielder, due to hit. Perez struck out Cabrera and induced Fielder to hit into a force play at second to convert his 14th straight save in 15 chances.

"I'm truly humbled," said Perez of the fans' response. "It didn't go unnoticed. Trust me. I'm humbled. It was really nice."

The reaction did not surprise Tribe manager Manny Acta.

"The majority of our fans are positive and supportive of this ballclub," he said. "It's just like in everything else, negativity is louder.

"Our fans appreciate it when people want to win and when people care. That guy does. Whether he says what people want to hear or not is another story. He gets out there and gives you everything he's got every day."

Asked if he regretted any of his statements over the past few days, Perez said: "The only thing I would take back is try to keep it away from the team this much. The last thing you want to do is bring undo attention to the team. Especially in this kind of light.

"At the same time, I think it kind of picked us up. The guys kind of said, 'Yeah, we're feeling like that, too. I'm glad you said something. I'm glad you didn't back down.' "

The win moved the first-place Tribe four games ahead of the third-place Tigers in the American League Central. The Chicago White Sox, in second, fell 31/2 games back with a 9-2 loss to the Minnesota Twins.

Indians right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez (4-3, 5.02 ERA) went six innings for the victory. He improve to 3-5 lifetime against Detroit.

Jimenez, despite walking six, allowed just three runs. He struck out two and allowed five hits in 99 pitches.
Casey Kotch
man and Jose Lopez gave the Indians a 5-3 lead in the sixth off Rick Porcello (3-4, 5.29). Michael Brantley opened the inning with a single and stole second. Johnny Damon struck out, but Kotchman singled to center for a 4-3 lead.

Porcello moved Kotchman to second with an errant pickoff attempt at first. Lopez, the only pure right-handed hitter in the Tribe's lineup, brought him home with a double off Brennan Boesch's glove in right field.

Lopez's double ended Porcello's night. Porcello allowed five runs -- four earned -- on eight hits in 51/3 innings.

Kotchman had three of the Tribe's 12 hits. After hitting .149 (10-for-67) in April, Kotchman is hitting .306 (19-for-62) in May.
 
"We found some holes and got great pitching out of Ubaldo and our bullpen," said Kotchman. "Ubaldo gave up three [runs] and kept us in it right there. Our bullpen . . . what more can you say? They just shut it down."

The Indians took a 1-0 lead on Asdrubal Cabrera's double off the center-field wall in the first inning. Jimenez held the lead for all of one out.

After retiring Delmon Young on a fly ball to center to start the second, Boesch doubled, Jhonny Peralta walked and Alex Avila hit a line-drive homer over the center-field wall for a 3-1 lead. Avila came into the game hitting .375 (3-for-8) against Jimenez.

"I learned a lesson," said Jimenez. "I started throwing my breaking ball earlier in the count. They were really aggressive in that inning."

Travis Hafner made it 3-2 with a two-out single in the third. He tied it in the fifth with a sacrifice fly.

Cleveland Indians and their fans get a welcome ... and needed ... win over Detroit Tigers: Terry Pluto

Published: Tuesday, May 22, 2012, 11:35 PM Updated: Wednesday, May 23, 2012, 7:09 AM

By Terry Pluto, The Plain DealerThe Plain Dealer
CLEVELAND, Ohio — For the Indians, this was more than a 5-3 victory over the Detroit Tigers.
It was exactly what the first-place Tribe . . . needed.

I'm going to repeat that phrase again . . . the First-Place Tribe.

Before the game, if someone had told you that Ubaldo Jimenez would hold the Tigers to three runs in six innings . . . would you have signed up for it?

Well, that's what Jimenez delivered.
Don't ask me how.

Not with walking six, bouncing two wild pitches and allowing five hits . . . including a three-run homer.

In some innings, Jimenez was surrounded by more runners than the guy with the starter's pistol at last weekend's Cleveland Marathon. But after six innings, Jimenez had held the Tigers to three runs.
So Tribe fans, take it (along with a couple of Tums for the anxious stomach) and say "Thank you!"
Remember that Jimenez had a 9.98 ERA in his past three starts against the Tigers last season.
Then came Chris Perez out of the bullpen . . . to a standing ovation from 15,049.

This was the hardcore crowd, most of whom agreed with some criticism by Perez about the lack of support for a team that is last in attendance and deserved a larger crowd for this game.

Perez pocketed his 14th consecutive save. Yes, he put two runners on base. He had to whiff Miguel Cabrera and induce Prince Fielder into a groundout to end the game. Those two power hitters are being paid a combined $44 million . . . that is more than all the salaries of the Tribe's starting lineup Tuesday.

When it was over, Perez pumped his fist in the air. The fans stood and stomped and screamed. Suddenly all the attention was back where it should be -- on the diamond -- rather than dissecting the views of Perez on everything from booing to Tribe attendance to the players' opinions of the franchise.

Afterward, Perez seemed surprised by the love he felt from the fans, calling it "humbling."
And hopefully, it also will lead to some healing for those still reluctant to embrace this scrappy team.
If the Tribe is to contend in the AL Central, they need Perez owning the ninth inning.

Baseball is not figure skating. Saves are not "judged" by whether they look pretty. The game is either saved or not -- and Perez saved the fifth victory of the season for Jimenez. He's 14-of-15 in save opportunities this season.

That should make every Tribe fan feel good.

The Indians also need Jimenez (5-3, 5.02) to be at least a respectable starter.

They need Travis Hafner, who entered the evening batting .122 with runners in scoring position. But the Tribe's cleanup man did just that -- knocked in one run with a single, another with a sacrifice fly.
They need Michael Brantley, who broke out of a 1-of-19 slump with a single in the sixth. Then he stole second and scored what became the winning run on a Casey Kotchman single.

They need more than Kotchman's pure glove at first base. He has been Mr. May, batting .307 this month after a soggy .142 in April.

They need more wins like this against the Tigers, who finished last season with a 10-game winning streak against the Tribe en route to the Central Division title.

It seems impossible to believe, but the Tigers have not won two games in a row since April 18. That ended a four-game winning streak for Detroit, making the Tigers 9-3.

Since then, they are 11-19.

You can say that the Tigers seemed clawless early last season. OK, they were 22-20 at this point, compared to 20-22 now.

And the Indians are 24-18, not bad after their 1-4 start.

Yes, it's a long season. And yes, the Indians were 27-15 at this point last season -- and finished 80-82.
But this is a new year. The Indians are playing well. They opened their first of 18 games this season against the Tigers by beating them.

And yes, everyone in Wahoo red, white and blue needed that.

Patience pays off for Jeremy Accardo: Indians Chatter

By Paul Hoynes, The Plain DealerThe Plain Dealer

May 15, 2012, 7:39AM

Clubhouse confidential: Right-hander Jeremy Accardo tried to ignore what was going on with the Indians through the first six weeks of the season when he was at Class AAA Columbus, after coming close to making the big-league club out of spring training.
He has spent a lot of time in Class AAA ball over the past three seasons and knows that can be counterproductive.

“You can’t control what happens above you, you can’t control what happens below you,” said Accardo, after joining the Indians on Monday as their newest reliever. “You just try to go out there, do your job, shut your eyes at night, wake up and do it all over again the next day and hope something good happens.”

Well-ranked: Asdrubal Cabrera has had a quiet, but productive start to the season. He is ranked in the top 10 in the following offensive categories in the American League: average (.315, ninth), doubles (11, tied for seventh), on-base percentage (.411, sixth), home batting average (.333, tied for ninth), night batting average (.371, fourth) and hardest to strike out (one strikeout every 14.3 plate appearances, first).

Perez and the Brass

Closer Chris Perez meets with Cleveland Indians brass, sticks to comments

Published: Sunday, May 20, 2012, 6:19 PM Updated: Sunday, May 20, 2012, 6:27 PM

Indians closer Chris Perez was called into the principal's office Sunday morning to explain himself after comments Saturday night that were critical of the fan base.

Perez told reporters later Sunday morning that he met with Indians General Manager Chris Antonetti. Indians President Mark Shapiro said the meeting also included him.

"I didn't get reprimanded or anything," Perez said. "I'm not suspended or fined or anything. It was a good talk, but I don't really want to get into what we talked about."

Saturday night, long after Perez struck out the side to earn the save in the Tribe's 2-0 victory against Miami, he criticized the fans who booed him Thursday during an appearance in which he didn't allow a run. But he saved his biggest blasts for those who haven't been attending games.
The Indians entered Sunday ranked last among the 30 big-league teams in attendance, with an average of 15,518 fans for 22 dates. No. 29 Oakland was at 19,573.

Perez continued to express his frustration in the dugout Sunday. Because so few reporters had been present for his comments Saturday night, he made himself available to everyone in order to "keep it out of the locker room and do it all at once."

Perez said he wasn't instructed to talk. If he had been, he probably would have apologized to some degree, or backed off his assertions. Instead, he held his line.
"The fans are going to come, I know that," he said. "It's just a slap in the face when you're in first place and last in attendance. Last. It's not like we're 25th, 26th -- we're last. Oakland is outdrawing us. That's embarrassing.

"In 2010, I wouldn't have made those comments [the Indians went 69-93 that season]. We deserved to get booed. We deserved to have nobody here. But we've been building up for this season. We're good. We have a good team. We haven't even played our best ball and we're in first."
Perez said some of his teammates feel the same way about the low attendance, but "they just won't say it."

"I'm not doing anything to bring extra attention to myself or distract from what the team's doing," he said. "I don't have an ulterior motive. I'm here to win. I want to win here. I care. We all care. We want to win. But right now, we're winning for ourselves, basically."

Within five minutes of Perez wrapping his session, Shapiro sat in the same spot and responded to Saturday's flare-up. Because Perez's comments Sunday were similar to those he made Saturday, Shapiro could have been responding to them as well.

"I, myself, and we, as an organization, have a lot of respect and appreciation for Chris," Shapiro said. "He's been one of the more dominant closers in major league baseball this year. What drives him to succeed in that role are emotion and competitiveness and passion, and I think a lot of that was behind what he said.

"In talking with him, and talking with him and Chris Antonetti, it's clear that what's behind the emotion is how great he feels our situation is -- how incredible he feels the team is, the ballpark is, and his desire for more people to experience it. [But] I can tell you that we, as an organization, clearly disagree with him about our fans. We appreciate our fans, we respect our fans."

Shapiro mentioned the word respect several times, including when asked if he worried that Perez's comments might alienate the fan base even more.

"No, I don't," he said. "I really feel like it's a moment in time, a story for right now. The reason I feel like that is, if you polled our players, by and large, and if you talk to our fans, by and large, and if you talk to every single person in this organization, what you'd see is a largely universal appreciation for our fans, a largely universal respect for our fans."

Shapiro was asked if he thought Perez was disrespectful of Tribe fans.

"I don't, but I'm not going to speak for Chris," he said. "He probably spoke to you in pretty clear terms. I'm guessing he was pretty crystal clear in how he felt. Obviously, he's a guy with strong opinions and a smart guy. He had thought out what he said and had reasons behind what he said. We agree on a lot of fronts and disagree on a few."

Perez, as one of the Indians' most accessible players, has been asked numerous times this year about the attendance issues. He has been adamant that he isn't disrespecting fans in any way -- he's just hoping that more come to watch a first-place club.

The reason these particular comments got so much play is because he was still running hot after being booed in the 10th inning Thursday against Seattle. Having entered a tie game with one out, Perez gave up a single and issued a walk on four pitches. When each of the next two pitches were balls, he was lustily booed. After rallying to get a pop-up to right, Perez was greeted with a Bronx cheer.
Perez struck out the next batter to escape unscathed. The Indians won, 6-5, in 11.

"Thursday was the last straw for me, and Saturday night was the first time I'd spoken [to reporters] since then," he said. "I just didn't understand the booing when I hadn't even given up a run. I don't understand the negativity, in general. Why? We have a first-place team. How many teams in the country would want that right now?

"You think the Tigers are happy? The Tigers are in third place. We're in first place. Enjoy it. We could be in last place. We could be the Royals, we could be the Pirates, who haven't won anything in 20 years."

To the surprise of no one, Perez's comments have touched more than a few nerves. Perez has received plenty of support, but the blowback has been intense.

"I expected it, but I really don't care anymore," Perez said. "I'm here to do my job and play for this team. If the fans come, they'll come. If they don't, it will be just like it was in April, so who cares?"
Perez said the perception exists that playing in Cleveland isn't fun, that the atmosphere isn't good. He said it keeps select players from signing -- or re-signing -- with the Indians.

Shapiro respectfully disagrees.

"My experience has been that guys want to be here," he said. "I'm sure there are some who don't, but I think a lot do. You've got two recent examples in Asdrubal Cabrera and Carlos Santana, who signed extensions."

Shapiro doesn't think Perez will be adversely affected going forward.

"He's certainly not one to shrink from responsibility," Shapiro said. "He can handle the heat."

Chris Perez is a good closer, good teammate without much perspective, Terry Pluto writes

Published: Sunday, May 20, 2012, 5:47 PM Updated: Sunday, May 20, 2012, 6:52 PM

By Terry Pluto, The Plain DealerThe Plain Dealer
My brother Tom Pluto coached Chris Perez for a few summers at the IMG Baseball Academy in Florida.

It was when the Tribe's reliever was in his early teens. Back then, Perez was mostly a catcher. A former baseball coach at Cleveland Central Catholic, my brother moved to Florida in 1973 and coached summer teams for decades.

Several times, my brother has said how amazed and impressed he's been by Perez, because the young Chris Perez was a volcano of emotions. His nickname is "Pure Rage," and he earned it with his words, actions and eruptions.

As a closer, Perez is operating in baseball's most pressurized job, one that St. Louis wondered if he had the self control to handle. That's part of the reason Perez was traded by the Cardinals to the Tribe for Mark DeRosa in 2010.

Perez likes to say what he feels, as many people do.

Problem is that what we feel doesn't always match reality, as was clear by the words of Perez the past few days about the fans and the franchise.

Let's start with what Perez had right.

Some fans have been too tough on Perez, as they were on Bob Wickman before him. Those fans believe every ninth inning should be three-up, three-down. They don't like base-runners, they don't want drama. They tend to forget every save and remember every failure.

Perez trashed a 4-1 lead on Opening Day, then saved the next 12 games before he allowed a couple of runners and heard some boos on Thursday.

That really upset Perez, who believes he's earned more good will from the fans.
Since he's 49-of-54 in saves since the 2011 opener. . . .

And 24-of-27 in one-run saves. . . .

And his 90-percent save conversion rate was even higher than Mariano Rivera in 2010. . . .

A GOOD JOB

The guy deserves some grace and patience.

It's understandable when Perez said: "They booed me against the Mariners when I had two guys on. . . . It feels like I can't even give up a base-runner without people booing me. It's even worse when there's only 5,000 in the stands, because then you can hear it. . . . They haven't even scored yet and you're booing me? You're saying, 'Get this bum out of there.' "

I was at that 6-5 win over Seattle on Thursday. Most of the fans were not booing him. The problem is when the crowd is small (12,894) you hear those who scream the loudest -- and some guys were bellowing at Perez.

Was he too sensitive? Perhaps.

But was he wrong? Not really.

Closers are blowing up all over baseball. It's a job that tends to attract strange and outrageous personalities.

No matter what the stats geeks insist, racking up the final three outs of a close game is different than a pitcher trying to get any other three outs in any other inning.

Almost every time manager Manny Acta hands the ball to Perez, the game is in his hands.

And more than 90 percent of the time since Opening Day 2011, he has delivered. In that span, he ranked No. 3 in the American League in save conversions.

WANTING SUPPORT

Perez then talked about the lack of attendance, how the team deserves better support. But he said it after Saturday's 2-0 victory, and two consecutive games where the Tribe had nearly 30,000 fans.

Just as the fans were grabbing on to the team, Perez was angry about them staying away. He sounded a bit like some pastors that I've heard over the years when they finally have a full church for a holiday service -- and they spend part of their sermon complaining how no one comes to church.

I've been told that Perez realizes that his timing was not the best. But he does believe it's
embarrassing the team is last in attendance while being in first place in the Central Division.
And he's right when saying other players agree with him, they just don't say it.

And there is a case to be made for Perez's plea for support.

The problem is the Indians came off seasons of 93 and 97 losses in 2009 and 2010, and they never had back-to-back losing seasons of 90 games before. And there was the trauma of losing Cliff Lee, C.C. Sabathia and Victor Martinez to trades in those seasons.

No team had ever traded back-to-back Cy Young winners before.

The Indians have not had back-to-back winning seasons since 2000-01, and ownership has a major public relations problems in terms of trust with the fan base.

But from the view of Perez, the team was exciting for most of last season (finishing 80-82), and it's been fun this year. So where are the fans?

The trouble is rather than turn it into a plea for more support, it came off like a whine of feeling underappreciated by a guy making $4.5 million who was given a chance to establish himself as a closer in Cleveland. No matter how Perez sees it today, the view of most fans is Cleveland has been the land of opportunity for this young man from Bradenton, Fla.

GOING WRONG

Perez also talked about how players don't want to come here -- and he said it was because of the fans.
He then mentioned Carlos Beltran.

Let's see, Beltran was offered $26 million for two years from the St. Louis Cardinals.
And $24 million for two years from the Tribe.

So he took the offer of more money to play for the World Series champions.
You can't blame the fans for that.

Yes, St. Louis has outstanding fans. And Albert Pujols owned the city and married a woman from St. Louis. The Cardinals did everything possible to make Pujols happy, and he apeared to be happy.
But then Pujols signed for more money with the Angels.

When Sabathia became a free agent, he said he preferred to play in the National League because he also wanted to bat. He was leaning toward the West Coast.

But he signed with the Yankees, an American League team in New York.
Why? Money. Lots of money.

If the Indians had offered Beltran $30 million instead of $24 million, and the Cardinals offered him $26 million, a safe guess is that he'd be in Cleveland today.

Is Cleveland one of the top destinations for players who mostly grow up in the south, the West Coast or Latin countries? You know the answer to that. But when the check is big enough, they will come to the Midwest. Just look at Detroit's payroll.

NOT A BAD GUY

Perez is 26 and a ballplayer, not a 56-year-old statesman who graduated from the Harvard school of diplomacy.

He doesn't look at the world through the eyes of fans who grew up with the Tribe, nor does he understand the different hot spots that some of his remarks have touched.

He's in his middle 20s, and not all of us can say everything we did at that point in our lives was wise and well-spoken.

I know that Perez doesn't run from the media or fans. He is buying tickets to give away. He signed autographs for kids before Sunday's game. He shakes hands and has generally been a good ambassador for the team.

He's not acted as if he can't wait to leave town.

Tribe President Mark Shapiro was correct when said Perez "is driven by emotions, passions and a drive to succeed."

It also can led to frustration and words uttered in anger. He also is active on Twitter. Like other forms of media, it's the most extreme voices that seems to receive the most attention.

I know from my brother the progress made by Perez. And I look at a man as more than what he might say in a weekend of anger, even if all the rage isn't justified.

One day, ballplayers may learn never to complain about the fans -- you always end up doing it in the wrong way at the wrong time.

Keep in mind that what a ballplayers says really doesn't amount to much in the big picture of the team, much less life. What counts is how he pitches and acts with his coaches and teammates.

So far, Perez has done very well in those areas. I disagree with some of his points, but I still like and appreciate guy and pitcher.

Baseball's mound etiquette? Cover your mouth!

Published: Friday, May 11, 2012, 4:04 AM Updated: Friday, May 11, 2012, 4:04 AM

By Bill Lubinger, The Plain Dealer

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Meetings on the pitcher's mound are held under the cone of silence. It's a conference room where lips are not to be shown, where sounds are not to be made unless it's behind the muffled wall of a baseball mitt.

"It's a closed meeting," said Indians reliever Tony Sipp. "Camera's on you at all times. You don't want anyone reading your lips. If you have anything you want to keep in that circle, you've got to cover your mouth."

When players bury their face in a glove while they talk -- which is the rule, not the exception -- they ensure that what's said on pitcher's mound, stays on pitcher's mound.

It is baseball, after all, where some will resort to just about anything for an edge -- corked bats, nail files to scuff the ball, Vaseline to make it dance or even binoculars to steal a catcher's signs. Two seasons ago, Philadelphia bullpen coach Mick Billmeyer was nabbed on television using binoculars to do exactly that against Colorado.

As it turns out, the game's most famous homer -- Bobby Thomson's pennant-winning "Shot Heard 'Round the World" in 1951 -- may have been aided by a telescope and buzzer system the Giants had installed at the Polo Grounds to steal the catcher's signs, alert the dugout and tip off the batter.
By comparison, lip reading is low-tech and relatively recent.

Indians reliever Vinnie Pestano said he has covered his mouth during mound conferences since high school. He doesn't remember why he started, but it's become a force of habit.
"I don't know where it originated," he said. "It had to come from somewhere."

Loose slips sink victories?

It did, although much of baseball's romance is the thin line between folklore and truth.
As the story goes, in 1989 San Francisco slugger Will Clark stepped up with the bases loaded against the Chicago Cubs in the National League Championship Series. When Cubs manager Don Zimmer came out to talk to pitcher Greg Maddux, Clark, while adjusting his batting glove, claims he saw Maddux mouth the words, "fastball in."

Sure enough, Clark stroked an inside fastball for a grand slam.

Peter Morris, author of "A Game of Inches: The Story Behind the Innovations That Shaped Baseball," said that Maddux and Clark's former teammate, Bob Brenly, refuted the claim, but pitchers and catchers began meeting under cover anyway.

"The point is," Morris said, "[Clark] said it, and there became this paranoia."

Paranoia or perception? It's baseball, after all, where deception is admired -- the hidden-ball trick, phantom tags, decoying runners, groundskeeping the field to your team's advantage -- and espionage within the rules isn't just admired, but rewarded.

Joe Nossek, former major-league player and coach, fashioned a career out of stealing signs. Mainly a platoon player, he spent his time on the bench watching the interplay between the manager, third-base coach and batter to crack their codes for bunts, squeeze plays, steals and the hit-and-run. He even kept a notebook.

When a player was acquired in a trade, Nossek would immediately pull the man aside and drill him for his former team's signs.

But in 15 years as a third-base coach and spy extraordinaire with the Indians and four other teams, Nossek, who lives in Amherst, never tried tapping into mound conversations.
"I guess they've been hiring lip-readers or something," he joked. "With all the technology and the cameras all over the place. ... I've seen it in football, too; coaches covering their mouths with [play sheets]. That's one talent I don't have."

A case of baseball blarney?

Indians starter Josh Tomlin said he's done the glove-over-mouth routine since Little League, although he's not aware of a hitter ever drilling a ball after reading a pitcher's lips.
"But," he said, "I don't want to be the first one to find out."

Former big-league ace Jim Kaat, now an MLB Network broadcaster, said he remembers former Minnesota teammate Jim Perry covering his mouth with his glove way back in the '60s. But catcher Earl Battey would complain he couldn't understand Perry's muffled directions anyway.

Which raises a question: When a Japanese pitcher meets on the mound with his Dominican catcher and American pitching coach, what could their lips possibly be tipping off?

"The hand over the mouth -- that drives me nuts," said Tim Belcher, former Indians pitching coach and major-league pitcher. "I never understood why we started doing that. Most time, when you're out there, it's pretty basic stuff anyway: 'Hey, relax, I'm just giving you a break.'"

Still, you wouldn't want your opponent picking up any covert information, like options for a wedding present in the classic meeting on the mound in the 1988 movie "Bull Durham."

"OK, well, uh. ... candlesticks always make a nice gift," the Bulls' pitching coach suggests to the boys gathered around him. "And uh, maybe you could find out where she's registered and maybe a place-setting or maybe a silverware pattern.

"OK, let's get two! Go get 'em."

View full sizeChuck Crow, The Plain DealerVinnie Pestano (left) and Carlos Santana assume the position -- gloves covering mouths -- during this recent mound conversation at Progressive Field. "You don't want anyone reading your lips," says reliever Tony Sipp.

Lip Service

What are they talking about behind those gloves anyway? Usually how to pitch to a hitter or which set of catcher’s signals to use with a runner on second. But sometimes the conversation has nothing to do with baseball

Hall of Fame manager Tommy Lasorda: “It depends on the game. It depends on the situation. I’ve been out there to rip a guy, I’ve been out there to pat a guy on the back. It’s a situation conversation, I would call it.”

Like the situation he once had with struggling pitcher Jerry Reuss.
“I went out to take him out and he said, ‘Are you trying to take me out?’ and I said, 'You got it.’ And then he says, ‘Well, I think I should stay.’ He said, ‘I think we should do this in a democratic fashion.’ He said, ‘You want me out, I want to stay. Let’s call [catcher Steve] Yeager out here to break the tie.’ So Yeager comes to the mound and I ask him whether I should take Reuss out, and he says, ‘You should have taken him out last inning.’”

Former pitcher Jim Kaat: “When [manager] Billy Martin used to send [pitching coach] Art Fowler out to the mound, Artie would get out there and he’d say, ‘You know, I don’t know what I’m going to say here, but Billy sent me out here.’ So we’d just kill a little time and kind of grin at each other and kick the dirt and he’d go back to the dugout.”

Former Indians pitcher Scott Bailes: When Bailes played for Milwaukee, Jack Aker, the pitching coach called “Chief,” had a reputation for being a mean cuss. Bailes gets the first batter out, then goes 2-0 on Gustavo Polidor, who wound up batting .207 in seven major-league seasons.

“Chief calls time out and comes out and goes, ‘What are you doing?’ I said, ‘Trying to get Polidor out.’ He said, ‘This is Gustavo [blanking] Polidor!’
“For the next couple of years, [catcher] Andy Allanson would come out and say, ‘This is [blanking] so and so!’ and we’d always get a good laugh out of it.
”
Former Indians flame-thrower Sam McDowell: He considered the practice of covering the mouth to conceal strategy “a little hilarious. Even my own catcher didn’t know what I was throwing sometimes.”

Indians coach and former catcher Sandy Alomar Jr.: “If you have a guy who’s struggling, you kind of bring something out that has nothing to do with the game. I did that a few times, talk about movies or whatever, that had nothing to do with baseball.”

Indians reliever Vinnie Pestano: Most trips to the mound, he said, are to calm a pitcher down, slow a rally or give the bullpen more time to warm up. “But usually it’s the same message: Pull your head out and start throwing strikes.”

Indians reliever Tony Sipp: “Sometimes it’s a funny joke. Sometimes that’s exactly what you need.”
Such as?
“None that’s appropriate.”
-- Bill