Cleveland Indians designated hitter Harold Baines drives a
pitch from Boston red Sox pitcher Bret Saberhagen for a
three-run home run in the third inning of Game 2 of the
American League Division Series. (AP Photo)
Cleveland Indians slugger Jim Thome celebrates his grand
slam in the fourth inning as the Boston Red Sox bench
watches. Cleveland scored six runs in the third and five in
the fourth to win 11-1 and take a 2-0 lead in the AL
Division Series. (AP Photo)
CLEVELAND 11, BOSTON 1 - 10/7/99
CLEVELAND (Ticker) -- Pedro Martinez could not carry the
Boston Red Sox on his back in Game One. The rest of the staff didn't
even come close in Game Two.
The Cleveland Indians tied an American League Division Series
record for runs in a game, scoring six in the third inning and five
more in the fourth en route to a 11-1 rout of the Red Sox and a 2-0
lead in their best-of-five set.
The 1995 Seattle Mariners are the only team to win a Division Series
after dropping the first two games.
Boston, which squandered a two-run lead in Wednesday's 3-2 loss, has
lost 18 of its last 19 playoff games and has not won a World Series
since 1918.
"We're not done yet," said Red Sox manager Jimy Williams, whose
team is 16-7 the last two regular seasons against Cleveland and 1-5 in
the playoffs. "The last two years, they beat us and it's hard to
explain."
Game Three is Saturday in Boston.
The Indians have not claimed a title since 1948, but they are one win
away from advancing to the AL Championship Series for the third
straight season. Last year, they lost to the World Series champion
New York Yankees in six games.
"Going into Boston, the big key for us is not to get too relaxed,"
Indians slugger Jim Thome said. "Obviously, the momentum is going
our way, but there's no way they will lie down and die."
Bret Saberhagen (0-1) and John Wasdin combined to allow 11 runs as
Boston failed to draw even after Martinez strained a back muscle on
Wednesday.
The best pitcher in baseball this season, Martinez said he will be able
to pitch a decisive fifth game, if necessary.
Saberhagen uncharacteristically walked three during the six-run third
as the Indians set a Division Series record for runs in an inning.
Wasdin surrendered five runs while recording only four outs. Thome
capped the fourth with a grand slam, his 14th career postseason
homer and second in as many games. He is the only player in major
league history with two postseason grand slams.
Charles Nagy (1-0) cruised with the cushion, giving up just one run
and five hits over seven innings. He struck out four without a walk.
"Eleven runs are great and they help let you go out and settle down,"
he said. "I just wanted to throw strikes and get our guys back in the
dugout."
Boston's demise began with a leadoff walk to Travis Fryman in the
third. With one out, Kenny Lofton walked before Vizquel's line drive
just eluded right fielder Trot Nixon's glove, giving Cleveland a 2-1
lead.
Between walks to Fryman and Lofton, second baseman Jose
Offerman pulled first baseman Mike Stanley off the bag on a
potential double-play ball.
"It turned out to be pretty big," Indians manager Mike Hargrove said.
"Antyime you give a team more than three outs, you're skating on
thin ice."
Alomar followed with his second double of the game, making it 3-1,
and Manny Ramirez flied out before Saberhagen walked Thome.
Baines capped the inning with a three-run homer to right-center
field.
"I think our hitting today was kind of contagious," Thome said. "I
thought Saberhagen threw very well and to knock him out was huge."
It was the fifth career postseason homer and second in Division
Series play for the 40-year-old Baines, who was acquired at the trade
deadline from the Baltimore Orioles. He was hitting .173 (9-for-52)
with 14 strikeouts lifetime against Saberhagen.
"His bat does a lot more talking than he does," Thome said. "His
approach is great and he never shows much emotion. After his home
run, I saw a smile, and that's awesome."
Saberhagen, who yielded six runs and five hits over 2 2/3 innings, had
walked only two lefthanders in 209 at-bats before Lofton and Thome
reached in the third. In 119 innings this season, he issued only 11
free passes.
"Actually, I felt very good today," he said. "My velocity was there. I
just didn't make pitches when I had to. If you look at me, I had 11
walks all year and today I had three. That's not me and that's what
hurts. Maybe I didn't mix my pitches. I threw a lot of fastballs
because I thought I had good velocity."
Wasdin followed Saberhagen's formula in the fourth, walking Fryman
and Lofton. After Vizquel's one-out single loaded the bases, Alomar
lifted a sacrifice fly to left, Ramirez walked and Thome lined a 2-1
pitch over the right-field wall for an 11-1 bulge.
Thome, who has grand slams in consecutive postseasons, passed
Ramirez for fourth all-time with his 14th career home run in the
playoffs. His two-run shot in the sixth inning of Game One lifted the
Indians into a 2-2 tie.
"When it's mentioned, you don't think about it," said Thome, who is
one homer behind Babe Ruth and three in back of Reggie Jackson and
Mickey Mantle. "But its's nice to be mentioned with that group.
We've been in the postseason a lot and we have a lot of great
hitters."
Boston's staff had a major league-low 469 walks during the season,
but pitched carefully to baseball's best offense, issuing six walks in the
third and fourth innings. Five Red Sox totaled an AL Division
Series-record nine walks today.
The World Series MVP with Kansas City in 1985, Saberhagen fell to
2-3 in the postseason with his second defeat in as many Division
Series starts against the Indians. His only wins came in the 1985
World Series.
Nagy improved to 8-1 lifetime against the Sox, including a 3-0
postseason mark. He shut down the Red Sox last year in the Division
Series.
"I have no idea why and I'm not even going to try and figure it out,"
said Nagy, who is 3-4 lifetime in the postseason. "You just count
your blessings, basically."
The Indians did not issue a walk until the eighth, when Steve Karsay
walked Nixon with one out.
The Red Sox have managed only 11 hits through the first two games.
"Unless I get a hold off George Herman (Babe Ruth), we'll go with
the same group that got us here," Williams said.
BOSTON (1) AT CLEVELAND (11) PLAYOFFS - FINAL
BOSTON ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
Offerman 2b 4 0 2 1 0 0 2 .333
John Valentin 3b 4 0 0 0 0 2 0 .000
Varitek c 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
N Garciaparra ss 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 .333
L Merloni ss 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
Oleary lf 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 .143
Stanley 1b 3 0 2 0 0 0 1 .714
B Huskey dh 3 0 0 0 0 1 2 .000
T Nixon rf 2 1 1 0 1 0 1 .200
Buford cf 3 0 0 0 0 1 3 .000
Totals 30 1 6 1 1 5 9
BATTING: 2B - T Nixon (1, Nagy); Stanley (1, Nagy). RBI - Offerman (1).
2-out RBI - Offerman. Runners left in scoring position,
2 out - T Nixon 1, Offerman 1. GIDP - Stanley. Team LOB - 3.
BASERUNNING: CS - Offerman (1, 2nd base by Nagy/S Alomar).
FIELDING: PB - Varitek. DP: 1 (Offerman-N Garciaparra-Stanley).
CLEVELAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
Lofton cf 3 2 0 0 2 3 2 .000
Vizquel ss 4 2 2 2 1 1 2 .250
R Alomar 2b 4 1 3 2 0 0 4 .625
E Wilson 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
M Ramirez rf 4 1 0 0 1 3 2 .000
Thome 1b 3 2 1 4 1 0 1 .286
Sexson 1b 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
Baines dh 4 1 2 3 1 0 0 .429
Justice lf 4 0 0 0 0 1 3 .000
Fryman 3b 0 1 0 0 3 0 0 .250
S Alomar c 4 1 0 0 0 2 4 .000
E Diaz c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
Totals 31 11 8 11 9 10 18
BATTING: 2B - R Alomar 2 (2, Saberhagen 2). 3B - Vizquel (1,
Saberhagen). HR - Baines (1, 3rd inning off Saberhagen 2 on, 2 out);
Thome (2, 4th inning off J Wasdin 3 on, 2 out). SF - R Alomar.
RBI - Vizquel 2 (2), R Alomar 2 (2), Baines 3 (3), Thome 4 (6).
2-out RBI - Baines 3, Thome 4. Runners left in scoring position,
2 out - M Ramirez 1, Vizquel 1, Justice 1, R Alomar 1. GIDP - Justice.
Team LOB - 7.
BASERUNNING: SB - Fryman (1, 2nd base off J Wasdin/Varitek).
FIELDING: Outfield assists - M Ramirez (Offerman at 2nd base).
DP: 1 (Fryman-R Alomar-Thome).
--------------------------------------------------
Boston - 001 000 000 -- 1
Cleveland - 006 500 00X -- 11
--------------------------------------------------
BOSTON ip h r er bb so hr era
Saberhagen (L, 0-1) 2 2/3 5 6 6 3 2 1 20.25
J Wasdin 1 1/3 2 5 5 3 1 1 33.75
Wakefield 2 1 0 0 2 4 0 0.00
Gordon 1 0 0 0 1 2 0 0.00
Beck 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.00
CLEVELAND ip h r er bb so hr era
Nagy (W, 1-0) 7 5 1 1 0 4 0 1.29
Karsay 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0.00
M Jackson 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00
HBP - Fryman (by Gordon). Pitches-strikes: Nagy 90-53; Karsay 17-10;
M Jackson 8-7; Saberhagen 65-40; J Wasdin 39-18; Wakefield 47-29;
Gordon 23-13; Beck 17-11. Ground balls-fly balls: Nagy 8-7; Karsay 0-2;
M Jackson 0-3; Saberhagen 4-2; J Wasdin 0-3; Wakefield 0-3; Gordon 0-1;
Beck 1-1. Batters faced: Nagy 23; Karsay 5; M Jackson 3; Saberhagen 15;
J Wasdin 9; Wakefield 10; Gordon 5; Beck 3.
UMPIRES: HP--Larry Young. 1B--John Hirschbeck. 2B--Joe Brinkman.
3B--Mike Reilly. LF--Derryl Cousins. RF--Rocky Roe.
T--2:47. Att--45,184. Weather: 58 degrees, sunny. Wind: 3 mph,
right to left.