It was only one game, but last night’s 5-3 win over the White Sox has Cleveland fans thinking that this year’s team might be different. Lets Go Tribe notes that the Indians avoided a bullpen meltdown, avoided starting another crushing road losing streak, and avoided a letdown game from fallen prospect Andy Marte. Most importantly, however, the game also lacked a Fausto Carmona meltdown:
Are The Indians Exorcising The Demons Of Their Bad 2009?
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↵The game started as many 2009 Fausto Carmona games did, with Fausto walking two White Sox hitters in the first inning, and giving up a run without allowing a hit. In the third, he walked Carlos Quentin and then gave up a two-run homer to Paul Konerko. That's where the resemblance ended. Carmona worked his way through three scoreless innings, and despite having to deal with a bad strike zone, settled down. He ended the night having given up six walks, but only one hit (the Konerko home run). By that time the Indians had gotten to Jake Peavy (who, unlike Carmona, started out well, but fell apart in the middle innings), and Fausto was in line to get credit for a well-deserved win.
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↵When the Indians won the division in 2007, Fausto Carmona looked like one of the best young pitchers in the game. Since then, he’s struggled with injuries and poor performance, posting a 5.89 ERA in 46 starts in 2008-9. The standards of excellence in the AL Central aren’t especially high, and if Carmona returns to anything like his 2007 form, the Indians might be a surprise in 2010.
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