OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post - Yet Another OOTP6 Dynasty, Year 2: One Flew Over the Pale Hose

cknox0723 · 07-07-2005, 10:34 PM

game xvi - cle (6-10) @ chw (5-10)

last year: shingo is japanese for goat

this year: c.c. sabathia (1-1, 2.38) vs. j. garland (0-2, 9.00)

Two years in a row, a moribund Pale Hose month has been broken up just slightly by a not-so-moribund series against a Cleveland team. The Tribe are a club that didn't get off to a very quick start last year -- like the 2003 Marlins, they caught fire in the second half. Again they have stumbled out of the gate this year.

But look at the pitchers they've thrown at us. A Cy Young winner in Beckett, a 20-game winner in Bartosh, and now C.C. Sabathia, who is not a whole heck of a lot worse than our ace, Mark Buehrle, a fine pitcher in his own right. And who do we have? Jon F. Moo, a man missing the letter 'h' in his first name and nicknamed for the all-too-often rank smell of his pitching. We can't keep up with the Cleveland ballclub in the long run.

But in mid-April, apparently we can. Garland comes out throwing hard and throwing strikes in this one. Leadoff man Corey Patterson strikes out on a nasty 1-2 curveball. Victor Martinez connects with the third pitch he sees and bounces it over to third. Shea Hillenbrand converts the out without a problem. Jody Gerut bloops a two-out hit just over the infield, but Ben Broussard grounds out to second and the first frame's over.

Aneudi Cuevas leads off the bottom of the inning by letting C.C. Sabathia's first three pitches pass, two of which are best served cold. The fourth pitch from the Cleveland southpaw is a fastball, right down the middle. Cuevas takes a hack and bat and ball are struck by lightning as they connect. The ball soars high and far and away over the left field fence. From A-ball to a new organization to his first major league home run, all in the span of a few months. It's a grand existence we live.

It's a grand existence we live, too. For a few games, this otherwise ordinary club has caught fire. The first inning is just a microcosm of this game and this recent streak of winning. I keep expecting Jon F. Moo to start walking people, or maybe just to walk off the mound, but instead he just keeps getting outs, in the oddest of ways. At one blink of the eye, he's unable to retire the pitcher Sabathia, who singles in the third and then the fifth. Yet Garland's making Corey Patterson and Ben Broussard look more like...Joe Borchard and Frank Thomas.

With two out in the bottom of the third, Miguel Olivo cracks a shot that rolls around in the left field corner, allowing him to end up on second base. Magglio Ordonez follows in kind, except that he gets thrown out at second by Shannon Stewart, of all the rag-armed dolls on the planet, but Olivo's run still counts.

It's an insurance run that we sorely need as Garland finally cracks in the sixth, allowing two-out hits to "Raggedy Shannon" Stewart and then Ray Durham...but Angel Berroa grounds a ball to third baseman Hillenbrand, who chucks it to second to complete an inning-ending force out. Maybe we don't need that run.

Victor Martinez hits a fly ball out in the territory of Raul Gonzalez to end the seventh inning, instead of smacking a hit to bring home Joe Crede and allow the frame to continue. I let Garland hit for himself with two outs in the bottom of the seventh and the bags lonely, but after he grounds out and then walks Jody Gerut to start the eighth, I bring on southpaw Mike Gallo.

Apparently it was against his will, because Gallo walks Ben Broussard on four pitches. Then, improbably, he can't find the plate against Shannon Stewart, causing me to wonder whether I actually warmed him up, or whether there's some new intentional walk signal that I don't know about or something. Ball five, ball six, ball seven, ball eight. It's like a horrible, horrible Jim Bouton novel about the mating habits of the beaver.

Twelve eighth-inning pitches, zero strikes. No one out. Here comes yet another blown save, right?

Pfft. I leave Gallo in because I once had a teacher by that name that was real nice to me, and also because if he came back to the dugout now, I'd probably do a cup check. With a freaking claw hammer. But Ray Durham takes one ball, then another, then a third. No joke. Fifteen straight pitches out of the zone since this inning started, twelve of them thrown by the man on the mound. That's sad enough that I'm not even going to be able to laugh when we lose this game.

07-07-2005, 10:34 PM	#508
cknox0723 All Star Starter Join Date: May 2003 Location: NJ Posts: 1,957	trouble, trouble, trouble game xvi - cle (6-10) @ chw (5-10) last year: shingo is japanese for goat this year: c.c. sabathia (1-1, 2.38) vs. j. garland (0-2, 9.00) Two years in a row, a moribund Pale Hose month has been broken up just slightly by a not-so-moribund series against a Cleveland team. The Tribe are a club that didn't get off to a very quick start last year -- like the 2003 Marlins, they caught fire in the second half. Again they have stumbled out of the gate this year. But look at the pitchers they've thrown at us. A Cy Young winner in Beckett, a 20-game winner in Bartosh, and now C.C. Sabathia, who is not a whole heck of a lot worse than our ace, Mark Buehrle, a fine pitcher in his own right. And who do we have? Jon F. Moo, a man missing the letter 'h' in his first name and nicknamed for the all-too-often rank smell of his pitching. We can't keep up with the Cleveland ballclub in the long run. But in mid-April, apparently we can. Garland comes out throwing hard and throwing strikes in this one. Leadoff man Corey Patterson strikes out on a nasty 1-2 curveball. Victor Martinez connects with the third pitch he sees and bounces it over to third. Shea Hillenbrand converts the out without a problem. Jody Gerut bloops a two-out hit just over the infield, but Ben Broussard grounds out to second and the first frame's over. Aneudi Cuevas leads off the bottom of the inning by letting C.C. Sabathia's first three pitches pass, two of which are best served cold. The fourth pitch from the Cleveland southpaw is a fastball, right down the middle. Cuevas takes a hack and bat and ball are struck by lightning as they connect. The ball soars high and far and away over the left field fence. From A-ball to a new organization to his first major league home run, all in the span of a few months. It's a grand existence we live. It's a grand existence we live, too. For a few games, this otherwise ordinary club has caught fire. The first inning is just a microcosm of this game and this recent streak of winning. I keep expecting Jon F. Moo to start walking people, or maybe just to walk off the mound, but instead he just keeps getting outs, in the oddest of ways. At one blink of the eye, he's unable to retire the pitcher Sabathia, who singles in the third and then the fifth. Yet Garland's making Corey Patterson and Ben Broussard look more like...Joe Borchard and Frank Thomas. With two out in the bottom of the third, Miguel Olivo cracks a shot that rolls around in the left field corner, allowing him to end up on second base. Magglio Ordonez follows in kind, except that he gets thrown out at second by Shannon Stewart, of all the rag-armed dolls on the planet, but Olivo's run still counts. It's an insurance run that we sorely need as Garland finally cracks in the sixth, allowing two-out hits to "Raggedy Shannon" Stewart and then Ray Durham...but Angel Berroa grounds a ball to third baseman Hillenbrand, who chucks it to second to complete an inning-ending force out. Maybe we don't need that run. Victor Martinez hits a fly ball out in the territory of Raul Gonzalez to end the seventh inning, instead of smacking a hit to bring home Joe Crede and allow the frame to continue. I let Garland hit for himself with two outs in the bottom of the seventh and the bags lonely, but after he grounds out and then walks Jody Gerut to start the eighth, I bring on southpaw Mike Gallo. Apparently it was against his will, because Gallo walks Ben Broussard on four pitches. Then, improbably, he can't find the plate against Shannon Stewart, causing me to wonder whether I actually warmed him up, or whether there's some new intentional walk signal that I don't know about or something. Ball five, ball six, ball seven, ball eight. It's like a horrible, horrible Jim Bouton novel about the mating habits of the beaver. Twelve eighth-inning pitches, zero strikes. No one out. Here comes yet another blown save, right? Pfft. I leave Gallo in because I once had a teacher by that name that was real nice to me, and also because if he came back to the dugout now, I'd probably do a cup check. With a freaking claw hammer. But Ray Durham takes one ball, then another, then a third. No joke. Fifteen straight pitches out of the zone since this inning started, twelve of them thrown by the man on the mound. That's sad enough that I'm not even going to be able to laugh when we lose this game.