Seattle: 50-83
Indians: 65-67
GAMES
Game 1: Felix Hernandez vs Jeremy Sowers*
Game 2: Jarrod Washburn* vs Anthony Reyes
Game 3: Carlos Silva vs Zach Jackson*
Jeremy Sowers is bad. Almost Miguel Batista bad. His control and missed bats rates are mediocre but not as horrible as his batted ball profile wherein he gives up line drives like a guy who gives up a lot of line drives resulting in numerous homeruns which, hey, aren't good. Meanwhile, the Indians don't have many left-handed bats so if Felix at all decides to grace us with a good day then he should be able to roll over.
Anthony Reyes has decided to so far pitch radically differently in the American League moving toward more groundballs and fewer missed bats. Of course, it's four starts. Hey, everyone, Jarrod Washburn is still here! He's still here! Yippee!!!!
Behold Zach Jackson, a project of the CC Sabathia trade and a small sample size wonder so far in his Cleveland career. He gets to face off against, oh god, Carlos Silva is back already? Screw that, I'm going to go witness physics graduate Jeff Francis take on some white guy in a Padres uniform.
Likely Starters:
C Kelly Shoppach
1 Ryan Garko
2 Asdrubal Cabrera^
3 Andy Marte
S Jhonny Peralta
L Ben Francisco
C Grady Sizemore*
R Shin-Soo Choo*/Franklin Gutierrez
D David Dellucci*
Shin-Soo Choo has become good again though almost strictly in a platoon role and overall, Cleveland's lineup isn't nearly as bad as one might suppose with the non-contributions of Travis Hafner and Victor Martinez. Kelly Shoppach has stepped in well for the Indians and Grady Sizemore continues his greatness.
CONTEXT
And so this series will draw August to a close and bring us to the final month of the season. A month with expanded rosters and hopefully some intriguing lineups and pitching match ups. Also, the Seahawks begin playing for real and the other football is into full swing as well. I'll be cheering like hell for the Red Sox and Mets to miss the playoffs.
THIS SERIES BROUGHT TO YOU BY:
Bodacious Black & Tan
Hoppin Frog. Akron, OH
A combination of Hoppin Frog's IPA and oatmeal imperial stout packaged in one. Black and tans are usually a bland mix, but paired with an IPA, there's an actual flavor to this mixture.