Mrs. Happy’s Tribe 2 Astros 1 13 innings
WP: Crockett (4-0)
LP: Deduno (2-6)
contributed by Mr. Happy
Folks, I apologize profusely for not delivering a series preview (my responsibility) for the recently concluded four game set with the Tribe, which is Mrs. Happy’s team since early childhood growing up in the inner city of Cleveland. I have work-related excuses, none of which justify this glaring offense, and you’re probably like me in thinking that everyone has excuses, but they’re all like assholes and stink. Therefore, I’m not going to plead anything but nolo contendere to the charge. Like the song that the Ice Man, Jerry Butler, wrote and the late great Isaac Hayes made famous: I Stand Accused, I do. However, since I recap Thursday games, I offer this piece, which recaps both the game and sort of the series, as a lame peace offering.
This one was a pitching duel. The game pitted the crafty ace of the Astros staff against a young cheese bringer. I’ve seen a lot of Danny Salazar this season, both when he was getting lit up like a Christmas tree early in the season, to his solid work since being put back into the starting rotation about two months ago. When he’s on, he’s very good, and, in my opinion, will get much better, which could take him into the scary good range. He flashes three plus pitches and pitches to both sides of the plate. I tried mightily to submarine Salazar last night by starting him on my fantasy team. That was to no avail, as Salazar was very good, pitching into the eighth frame, allowing one run and striking out eight.
However, Scott Feldman was a little bit better last night, taking a whitewashing into the ninth inning, departing after the first hitter reached base. Unfortunately, Qualls was off last night and allowed that baserunner to reach the pay station, which knotted the game at one and sent it into free baseball. That was Qualls’ sixth blown save. Next season, I want a fireballer in that role. Qualls is a seventh or eighth inning pitcher. I’m not so sure that the closer next season shouldn’t be either FIELDS!!! or Jose Veras.
The Good Guys scored their lone run in the fourth inning, when Jake Marisnick drove a single under the outstretched arm of Indians shortstop Jose Ramirez, plating Dexter Fowler, who finally got off of the schneid for the series and got two hits in this losing effort. The Astros bats were inconsistent again tonight. Robby Grossman (three hits), Dexter Fowler (two hits) and Jake Marisnick (two hits) garnered seven of the Astros’ eight base knocks, the resurgent Chris Carter accounting for the last hit. Everyone else, including the Piranha, was o-fer. Jon Singleton earned another Golden Sombrero and was pinch hit for to prevent a Platinum Sombrero.
Once again, the Good Guys were in double digits in strikeouts with 14. Since I watched the Tribe broadcast of the game, I learned that the previous two games, which featured lights out perfs. out of Kory Kluber (14 Ks in seven frames) and Carlos Carrasco (12 Ks in a two hit, 98 pitch – 74 were strikes – shutout), tied a Tribe record that was set back in the late 1960’s by El Tiante and Sudden Sam McDowell for consecutive games of 12 strikeouts or more by a Tribe pitcher. Therefore, when you connect the dots and tally up the strikeouts during the last three games, the Good Guys struck out 43 times in those three games. No matter who the skipper is next year, I personally want a conscious effort to significantly reduce that number.
This whole week has sucked in my household. For starters, my beloved New Orleans Saints were in Cleveland to face the heretofore pitiful Browns, which is Mrs. Happy’s team. Frankly, the Browns are a hot mess under this nitwit owner. They made a great head coaching hire in Rod Chudzinski, but they fired him after only one season. This year, Mike Pettine, another surprisingly strong hire, is the head coach and sacrificial lamb this year.
I was licking my chops for this game too and must confess to some cocky trash talk before this game. I was very confident that my Saints, just off a last second field goal 37-34 loss to the hated Atlanta Falcons in the ATL the previous week, were going to take it out on the hapless Brownies. What I didn’t properly factor into the matrix was how appallingly shitty the Saints D is under that numbskull Rob Ryan. I love Sean Payton. He brought a Super Bowl trophy home to the Crescent City just five years ago. However, the Saints defenses have never been world beaters since he’s been in New Orleans. I thought that his bringing in Rob Ryan as defensive coordinator was an atrocious hire.
Rob Ryan, Rex Ryan’s bro and Buddy Ryan’s offspring, which should scare you, was fresh off being canned by Jerry World, whose defense resembled Swiss cheese under his tenure. I couldn’t imagine what, if anything, he would be other than a long-haired, animated distraction because of the addiction that Ryans all have for press coverage. The television cameras just seem to accommodate and find the Ryan family members on the sidelines during games much more than most coaches.
The Browns, who figured out how to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory after coming all the way back from a 24 point deficit the previous week against division foe Pittsburgh, were without their best player, herb loving Josh Gordon. I just knew that the Saints offense was going to roll into Cleveland and spank the poor Browns.
Unfortunately for me, they had to actually play the game. The Saints offense was off and still scored 24 points. Unfortunately, at game’s end, the Brownies had 26, three of which were added during the last three seconds of the game by the right leg of former Saint Billy “I sucked in New Orleans” Cundiff. Talk about rubbing salt in my wounds? That was nothing to the sheer embarrassment that I suffered at this second consecutive last second defeat at the hands of the Brownies. Mrs. Happy was cooing about her win to my chagrin.
Rivalry week continued into the week given that the Tribe were guests in H town for a four game series against the Astros. Cleveland has been playing good baseball lately and has an outside chance at the Wild Card, although I think that their efforts are too much too little too late this season. Thus, I wasn’t that confident in the Astros, although I had been heartened by the way the team looked on the recently concluded left coast swing. Sure enough, the Astros played well in all four games, all of which were low scoring affairs, but dropped three of four, thereby igniting bragging rights once again in Mrs. Happy, who doesn’t need any additional ammunition against me.
This saws me out of the series previews for this season. I enjoyed doing them, and I look forward to doing them again next season.