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8/28/2007 11:32:00 AM

AL Central: Just The Links

by Joe Lemire

  • The banner headline at Let's Go Tribe says it all about the Indians: "Worst. First-Place Team. Ever."

  • The following shouldn't be surprising for two teams known for 80-plus year streaks, the Red Sox became the first team in 85 years to score at least 10 runs in all four games of a series when they lambasted the White Sox but over the weekend.

  • The Twins keep gaining ground in the AL Central, complete with an unprecedented four-game sweep in Baltimore. Don't look now, says Star-Tribune columnist Patrick Reusse, but Minnesota remains in contention in the most unlikely of ways.

  • It isn't easy being Gil Meche. He's now winless in his last seven starts, even though he's given up just two earned runs in five of them.

  • On the plus side for the Royals, Joey Gathright is turning into a very good leadoff hitter. My favorite note at the end of Sam Mellinger's notebook story is this one: "The Royals' winning percentage is now .442. The last time it was higher than the Chiefs' was 2001. If the Royals' percentage stays the same the rest of the season, the Chiefs would need to go at least 8-8 to keep the streak alive."

  • Talk about grade inflation: White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf said he'd give manager Ozzie Guillen an 'A' for the job he's done this year but only an 'A-' for the work he did when Chicago won the World Series in 2005. Where was Jerry when I was in college?

  • More bad news for the reeling Tigers: Gary Sheffield heads to the disabled list. Worse yet: He didn't rule out being done for the season.

  • Meanwhile, the Indians have made a key late-season acquisition by calling up switch-hitting second baseman Asdrubal Cabrera, who's been a spark where Josh Barfield has mostly been a disappointment.

  • Once again, we're reminded that the Royals Review's list of 100 greatest Royalsis a little too long, when Jeremy Affeldt makes the list at No. 92. His career numbers in Kansas City? A 17-22 record and 5.05 ERA in 497 innings.

  • Twins reliever Pat Neshek once again provides an insightful view of life in the majors, discussing everything from what a thrill it is to see a Hall of Famer like Cal Ripken to the absurdity of many media stories to a shout-out to Minnesota blogger Aaron Gleeman.

  • Speaking of Aaron Gleeman, check out his detailed comparison of second baseman Alexi Casilla and Luis Castillo. I'm glad I'm not the only one who confuses them.

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    • Comments:

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    Posted: August 28, 2007 2:40 PM   by Anonymous
    The letsgotribe.com people are morons. Look at Terry Pluto's article in today's Akron Beacon-Journal for more examples defeatist attitudes among the fans. I'm not comfortable with some elements of the team either, but at least I'm not whining about it.
    Posted: August 28, 2007 11:18 PM   by Jay
    This is Jay from LetsGoTribe.com, and I wrote the headline in question. Although the team has often frustrated with a sub-arctic offense in the past several weeks, the slogan was meant as more of a comment on the team's fickle fans -- us -- than on the team itself.

    It's a reference to the recurring Simpsons character "Comic Book Guy," who often would dismissively say things like, "worst. episode. ever." Regular readers of our site would get the sarcasm.
    Posted: August 29, 2007 12:45 PM   by Anonymous
    The LetsGoTribe folks are some of the more intelligent baseball fans around. They back up points with stats, stay positive when the ship struggles to stay afloat, and provide insightful information about players not found anywhere outside of Terry Pluto.

    Be careful as you slang words.
    Posted: August 29, 2007 1:16 PM   by Anonymous
    Okay, Jay, I apologize for that. I just got done hearing a bunch of depressed Cleveland fans & jumped to conclusions. I get more irritated with some the fans than with the team.

    3-1/2 game lead! Let's keep it going, guys!
    Posted: August 30, 2007 4:21 PM   by Anonymous
    The Mets blew their 10-9 lead in the bottom of the 9th with "invincible closer" billy wagner. Since this has been happening for the last 2 weeks, The Mets cannot handle having this happen for the restr of the season. On Sunday their lead was 7 games over their competition and now 5 days later, it is 2. The Mets should slip into 2nd place in the NL East after the upcoming series vs. the Brave, who they have struggled against this year
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