What a Meche that was! Royals 9, Indians 0

Cleveland Indians vs. Kansas City Royals Preview/Recap

Progressive Field, Cleveland, Ohio

Carl Pavano vs. Gil Meche

My favorite Indian is on the hill tonight looking to help lead the Indians to three in a row and push the Royals a little further into last place. Tonight’s stats of the night going into the game: Pavano has struck out 56 hitters while walking only 15 in 72 innings pitched this season, and he has gone 6-1 with a 3.00 ERA since the end of April. To put that into perspective a bit, CC Sabathia has struck out 61 in 86 innings pitched while walking 27. Am I saying that Pavano > CC? No, not quite, but when looking at the stats, one thing is for sure, 1.5 million < 15.2 million. Ok, time for the game and any other random thoughts that might come along.

Here are some things* that caught my script “I”:

*These things can be anything I saw during the game, anything that was talked about during the game, or anything that came to mind today in the world of sports, the Indians, and everyday life. Again, here are those things:

-This fall from behind thing worked last night, so what the heck, why not try it tonight? The Royals strike first on a walk, single, and sacrifice, taking the lead 1-0 in the top of the 2nd.

-Shin-Soo Choo showed flashes of Roberto Clemente, nailing Tony Pena Jr. at home from right field with a laser of a throw that was an on the money, money ball.

-An idea for a new drinking game: guess the color of Jimmy Hanlin’s pants before Tee It Up Ohio and whatever you choose to drink at that point would be up to you. Maybe you could do a shot for each putt Mike Cairns misses too?

-Jose Guillen homers driving in Billy Butler to put the Royals up 3-0 in the top of the 4th. Well, we came back from four down last night, but let’s not get too cute with this falling behind thing.

-Miguel Olivo hit’s the second two run homer of the inning for the Royals, putting them ahead 5-0. Damn, all these nice things I had to say about Carl Pavano and this is how he repays me? (And yes, I’m not going to start this article over, I’ll deal with the consequences, this game’s not over yet).

-On a lighter note, last night I poked fun at a commercial I didn’t like. Tonight, I will point out a fun one that I do like. Like him or not, the All Bets Are Off commercial with Bruce Drennan going off on a caller who said the Dolan’s are cheap makes me laugh every time!

-Holy Callaspo, Alberto Callaspo clears the bases with a grand slam in the top of the 5th, wow I might really get some heat for the love I gave Carl Pavano earlier in this entry. Royals 9, Indians 0.

-In perfect unison with tonight, the Indians fail to cash in with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 5th. Wait a second, it’s only the bottom of the 5th?

-Someone remind me for my next entry not to compare any Indians player to any former Indian who makes 15x as much money.

-Hearing the phrase “crooked numbers” is like hearing nails on a chalkboard for me and Matt Underwood just said it. Thankfully him and Rick have used it a lot less this season as compared to years past.

-Jensen Lewis isn’t too bad a pitcher when there’s no pressure on him, oh and good to see Joe Smith back also. Smith worked a scoreless 9th, unfortunately these two performances were the highlights of the game for the Indians.

-The Indians struck out twelve times while collecting four hits, ouch!

Well all good things must come to an end, including the ever elusive two-game winning streak. If tonight taught Indians fans and those who write about them anything, it is not to be overly complimentary in a preview and not every game can be like the one on Memorial Day. Oh yeah, I forgot, it’s back down to the cellar for tonight, but much like Carl Pavano’s ERA tonight, the sun will rise tomorrow.

Brad VanFossan is a freelance sportswriter living between Cleveland and Pittsburgh who despises all things Steelers.

Please check out my blog and feel free to email me at bvee10@gmail.com