Cleveland on the cusp: One victory from Serious
By Punch N. Judy
The ball was devoid of movement, flat if you will, when Casey Blake - the man whose 18 homeruns have seemed like 80 – dropped the bat head squarely on it. The red stitched sphere in question found a home on the landing, just beyond the left field fence in front of a swarm of Tribe fans delirious with joy.
It was a familiar scene for those in Red Sox Nation. As good as Tim Wakefield was on this night through four innings, the worm can turn that quick when your only weapon is a knuckle ball that flutters and dances to its own beat. It was this way back in 2003 when Wakefield, after hurling a scoreless 10th at Yankee Stadium in game seven of the ALCS, surrendered Aaron Boone’s walkoff clincher in the 11th. And like many on both these nights, you can count me among the loyalists who cast little blame on the 41-year old survivor who has filled every role on the staff since his debut in 1995.
Once again it was the Red Sox lack of execution at the plate that did them in last night in dropping game four of the ALCS 7-3 in Cleveland. That and a couple more double plays, running their total in that department to eight for the series. When facing a team whose staff quivers each time your turn at bat comes, approaches like that of the Sox and Yankees seem to be beyond reproach. But wait a minute, what happens if you just pound the strike zone, get ahead and make these teams hit your pitch? You force the issue is what you do, and by doing that you put the onus on each individual hitter, taking away the lineup’s ability to act in unison. This in turn keeps the bases clear, which of course diminishes the damage a David Ortiz or Manny Ramirez can inflict.
If your an Indian starter whose M.O is simply to last five plus then hand it over to a killer bullpen, the whole patience at the plate thing is actually overrated. This Indian staff simply could care less about the nouveau obsession by most managers with the pitch count.
In the case of Ortiz, last night was the first time I really got a glimpse of the pain rumored to be affecting the left knee of the Red Sox slugger since early August. While he still scorched the ball three times, his stance was virtually upright by the end of the game as opposed to his customary coiled crouch. No matter, it’s the rest of the lineup that Terry Francona needs to worry about as the Indians appear poised to reach their first World Series since 1997.