#162---CHA @ CLE, 7/15/2002

With this sheet, we have now reached a full season’s worth of games (excluding a handful of “special” editions, and offset by the embarrassing Home Run Derby "scoresheets"). Given the name of this blog, this should have taken a little over three calendar years but in fact took about 12.5. That’s ok; no one’s reading except my ego.

Confession: I do not remember Jason Phillips at all, which is a shame because this must have been the best game that he ever pitched, given that he only had 18 career starts (32 relief outings) with a ERA of 6.20. He shut out the White Sox through seven, scattering four hits and two walks (albeit with just two Ks) before Kenny Lofton hit a leadoff homer in the eighth (I like that; my heart sinks at seeing Kenny Lofton in the lineup of the White Sox of all teams). He was relieve with runners at first and second and two outs by Paul Shuey, who yielded an infield hit to Frank Thomas was batting sixth, behind Jose Valentin (read that carefully; this was the sad phase of the Big Hurt’s career). Shuey would fan future Indian Jeff Liefer to get out of the jam, then have a 1-2-3 ninth in which he retired two more future Indians (Tony Graffanino and Lofton).

The Indians led 4-0 through sixth, but really took control with a two-out, three-run blast by Ricky Gutierrez, one of his four on the season.

#161---HOU @ CLE, 3/24/2001

Protip: If you want to score a spring training game in person live, go to a game later in the spring when the substitutions have been reduced from a torrent to a babbling brook. This was a live from Winter Haven scoresheet. I don’t remember much of the game (it was spring training after all); I think Russell Branyan’s homer was titanic, although that could be false memory of his raw power filling in the details. My brother snagged a batting practice homer hit by an Astro – maybe off the bat of Daryle Ward?

#160---OAK @ CLE, 8/23/2000

No Thome triple here, just a second inning homer to get Cleveland on the board after Bartolo Colon yielded three runs in the top of the first. The Indians tied it and then took the lead on back-to-back two run hits in the fifth, something you don’t see that often; the first three batters of the innings had reached to load the bases, then Einar Diaz hit a comebacker that led to a fielder’s choice at the plate. Lofton’s double plated two and left runners at second and third. Omar Vizquel jumped on the first pitch he saw from Tim Hudson for a single into right to bring them home.

Oakland would tie it in the next frame with a two-run double from Miguel Tejada, but the Indians ended the scoring with two more in the bottom of that sixth inning. In all, 8 of the 12 runs scored in this game in those three half-innings. This was a big game for August; coming in, the Indians led the A’s and Red Sox by 1/2 game in the wildcard race. Oakland would go on to win the West, running down Seattle, and the latter would edge the Indians out by a game for the wildcard.

#159---CLE @ TEX, 5/1/1999

I’m inadvertently making Thome triples a theme of this blog, as this game also features one of Thome’s 26 career three-baggers, coming on what I assume was a liner pulled down the right field line to put the Indians up 2-0 in the fourth. There was a 32 minute rain delay after the first pitch ball thrown by Aaron Sele to Manny Ramirez in the second (see the circled R and notation “AA” for “after pitch A” on the right side of the scorebox). Manny hit the first pitch of the resumption to left for a longball to make it 1-0 Cleveland. Rafael Palmeiro and Todd Zeile would homer late, but it wouldn’t be enough as the Indians prevailed 5-3.

A couple fun things from this game: Ivan Rodriguez stole a base in the fourth, one of a career-high 25 this season (his second-best was ten, three times); Robbie Alomar drove in brother Sandy with a two-out single in the fifth.

#158---NYA @ CLE, 7/13/1998

Jaret Wright pitched an excellent game against the great 1998 Yankees, striking out four and walking two while allowing one run (a Darryl Strawberry longball) over seven frames. Paul Assenmacher and Mike Jackson each pitched perfect innings in relief to nail down the 4-1 win. Kenny Lofton homered but Jim Thome was the offensive star for the Tribe, hitting one of his 612 career home runs but also one of his 26 career triples.

Sometime in the late 90s/early 00s, area McDonald’s had a special menu item, the Thome Triple. If memory serves, it was three burger patties with two kinds of cheese on an elongated bun (kind of like a Romanburger for you Clevelanders). I always thought it was a terrible name, but he was one of the stars and the alliteration was hard for marketing people to pass up. In the sixth inning on this day, facing El Duque, I guess it was appropriate.