Swish Helps Fans Get Their Wish: Sox - Indians Game 1

Gavin Floyd comes in this game with an 8-4 record and the honor of being of one of my top 3 favorite Sox pitchers. The Indians are dead last in their division, but they have Sizemore and we have Hall catching (Yes, I still think he jinxes the team!), so the odds seem pretty good for the Indians. It was a great night for baseball. Clear skies, fireworks, and a big lead all the way into the 9th. The Sox pull it together and beat the Indians 9-7, Minnesota lost to Detroit, and now the White Sox have extended their division lead to 2.5 games.

And now, I give you the scorers of the game! Thome gets a triple homer (number 523 lifetime!) and a great double, Swisher gets a Grand Slam (his second in four days!), a solo home run, and Dye gets Cabrera home on a single. 9 points in this game, all drawing screams from the fans. Cabrera had a few nice hits in the game and Anderson finally got a hit in the 7th. He’s stopped chasing bad pitches and drew what seemed like his first career walk. (I’m sure it wasn’t, don’t get me wrong, he just chases pitches and missed the ball quite a lot.) I’m really glad they put him in the game two days in a row instead of that little Wise-Anderson-Wise game they’ve been playing with the poor kid.

Gavin Floyd’s pitching today was great overall, but he threw a LOT of balls (and his balls are never "close;" he's either in the box or out in space). Gavin recorded a career-high ten strikeouts today! He’s been doing a great job throwing slower pitches to get lots of swing-misses. He also got in the game and ran to first to assist Swish for a great out!

And now, a paragraph dedicated to Joe Crede. On the field, he stands up straight and makes great picks. But does anyone else feel something’s wrong? I’m not talking about the fact that he made his 16th error of the year today (I KNOW!), or the fact that all he came up with today was a couple of walks. He just seems to have a different attitude. He’s blowing less bubbles, he’s getting less hits, and he hasn’t had a home run in a couple of weeks. The guy didn’t strain his back last week, he sprained his positive attitude. It’s okay, Joe, as long as you’re okay!

I've seen the Indians enough this year to start remembering the players as more than just quick outs. Reading over my notes from the game, I’ve been cracking myself up commenting on the players. About them, I wrote: “I'm sorry, is Sowers 12? 'Cause he sure looks it… But, the little boy can pitch. Note to self: Do not get distracted by Mike Delucci's hotness! Can we get him next year? And Casey Blake, I wanna hate him 'cause he's on the Indians, but he's definitely their Joe Crede.” Cleveland has been doing poorly compared to the other teams in their division, but they sure have a good team. That Peralta guy went 5-5! Hopefully, a loss today gets the Indians' morale down and they put up less of a fight tomorrow when we meet them again.

Oh, yes! The quote of the day! Hawk & DJ were talking about the guys taking a beating, being bruised and scratched from dives and wild pitches, and this gem comes out: "If only we could see a snapshot of their bruised and battered bodies." Yes, if only we could...

And a question for all my readers: Do you think Swish’s hitting has improved because he’s playing a field position where he feels more comfortable and confident or is he just hitting a hot streak?