posted on Monday, March 31, 2008 11:24 PM by Jim

March 31: Indians 10, White Sox 8

In some ways, this game was straight out of last year.  Fortunately, the Sox provided enough reasons to think this year might follow a different script.

Evidently it isn't Opening Day against the Indians unless they score seven runs off a starter and knock him out in the second inning.  They did it to Jose Contreras last year, and they gave Mark Buehrle the same treatment.

After retiring the Indians in order in the first inning, Buehrle fell into his old habit of falling apart after an error -- although since the game was in Cleveland, it was ruled a hit.  After a leadoff single, Jhonny Peralta hit a liner that tangled up Orlando Cabrera.  He fell on his butt, and two batters later, when Buehrle got a double-play ball that was too slow for an actual double play, he became unglued.

Buehrle simply couldn't finish hitters.  He had Franklin Guiterrez down 0-2 before the Indians outfielder homered to give the Tribe a 4-2 lead.  Grady Sizemore followed up two batters later with a solo shot on an 0-2 pitch.  A walk and two singles later, Buehrle's day was done after only five outs.

Excellent bullpen work by Nick Masset (4 1/3 scoreless!) and Boone Logan (1-2-3) allowed the Sox to play catch-up, which we didn't see last year.  Thome hit a second two-run shot off Sabathia, and an A.J. Pierzynski shanked single ate up Casey Blake at third and cut the lead to two.

Paul Konerko tied it up the next inning with a double down the right field line.  Another thing we didn't see last year -- runners scoring from first.  Orlando Cabrera, the trailing runner on Konerko's double, evened the game at 7 by blowing through a late stop sign by Jeff Cox.

But then the 2007 Sox reared their ugly heads.  The umpires may have blown the game twice -- Ryan Garko's foot did look off the bag at the end of the sixth, and Kelly Shoppach definitely missed laying down the tag on Joe Crede in the seventh -- but the Sox can blame theirselves just as easily.

The seventh inning was straight out of last year's playbook.  Joe Crede led off with a double, and then these symptoms emerged:

1. Slow runners.  Crede only advanced one base on Juan Uribe's double to the wall, as he held up thinking Jason Michaels would catch it.

2. Blown opportunity with a runner on third.  Crede was safe at home, but Cabrera had two good fastballs to put in the air and missed them both.  He hit a chopper to short, and if Peralta made a routine throw, Crede would've been out easily.

3.  Another blown opportunity with a runner on third... Jim Thome followed with a broken-bat chopper to second.

4.  ...and dumb running to boot.  Cabrera was too aggressive going into second and was called for interference.  Hawk Harrelson, of course, was apoplectic, but Ed Farmer had it right after watching one replay.  Cabrera grabbed Peralta's knee, and you can't do anything resembling a tackle.

5.  A reliever letting the game get away.  When Octavio Dotel found the plate, it was low and over the center of it.  Game over.

Record: 0-1 | Box score | Play-by-play

Comments

# re: March 31: Indians 10, White Sox 8

Monday, March 31, 2008 11:50 PM by Joist
Jim,

Love your work, I'm new to your site but I plan on becoming a loyal reader.

I was apoplectic as well after the interference call, but in retrospect and after talking to my (Tribe fan) brothers, the ump probably got that one right. I should point out that my ire was mainly a consequence of the facts that a) the umps already blew a call that inning, and b) I had Hawk yelling in my ear that a baserunner can't be called for interference at second if he's hitting the base, which I initially believed. Of course I later discovered that this is, at best, one of baseball's "unwritten rules", similar to belt-high pitches being called balls.

It should also be pointed out that Peralta, who really tried to give the Sox some runs, had already decided to put the ball in his pocket, making Cabrera's slide (and strange hand attack) particularly stupid. The only defense I can muster for him is that interference does very rarely get called on double-play breakups, particularly if, as Hawk said, the runner manages to stay on the basepath.

# re: March 31: Indians 10, White Sox 8

Tuesday, April 01, 2008 12:14 AM by Jim Margalus
Thanks for checking in.

If he maybe threw out his arms as lifeless extensions of his torso, it wouldn't have been as noticeable. But he kinda clasped his hand around his knee, and if the rule isn't called to deter that kind of stuff, then the rule is pretty toothless.

# re: March 31: Indians 10, White Sox 8

Tuesday, April 01, 2008 11:38 AM by Orestes
Nice concise wrap....did you actually watch the game &/or listen to the radio ? I was stuck in a cube with stat tracker.

The little bit I did hear of Stone / Farmio on the radio sounded like a veteran tandem with no lack of great insight.....

# re: March 31: Indians 10, White Sox 8

Tuesday, April 01, 2008 3:59 PM by Jim Margalus
I recorded it on DVR, listened to the game on Gameday Audio at work, and then watched the entire game in an hour at night, fast-forwarding between pitches and commercials.

Stone and Farmer sounded great. Stone definitely isn't one for tangents, and he and Farmer were 100 percent baseball. Stone made a nice call on Konerko's game-tying double, saying Eric Wedge left Rafael Perez in one batter too long after he retired Thome.