Official Bob Wickman Baseball Club

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Lee honored to be AL starter

Left-hander's standout season rewarded with first All -Star trip

NEW YORK -- Four months ago, Cliff Lee was merely trying to secure the last spot in the Indians' rotation. Now he's starting for the American League against the National League in Tuesday night's 79th All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium.

"I'm just honored to be here, to be honest with you," said Lee, who will take the hill opposite Milwaukee's Ben Sheets in his first All-Star appearance, coming during the final season at the old Yankee Stadium. "To get the start is icing on the cake. I've never even been in an All-Star Game, let alone this one in the final year at this ballpark. It's something special.

"I hope it's as exciting as anticipated. I just have to go out there and do my job and if that happens, I'll be even happier."

For Lee, the left-hander's dominant first half has pushed him to the forefront of the AL pitching staff. AL manager Terry Francona of the Red Sox gave him the high honor as a reward for his incredible comeback on an Indians team that has struggled mightily in its attempt at repeating last year's AL Central-winning season. "He's been the best pitcher in the league from the start to this point," Francona said.

Lee went 12-2 with a 2.31 ERA in 18 first-half starts. He is tied for first in the AL in wins and he became just the fourth pitcher in Indians history to start a season 11-1 or better, but the first since Charles Nagy did it in 1996.

A year ago, less than one season removed from signing a long-term contract extension with the Indians, Lee was demoted to Triple-A Buffalo because of a July in which he had a dismal 0-4 record and 11.70 ERA.

For the 2007 season, Lee was 5-8 with a 6.29 ERA. He might not have lost confidence in himself, but he had clearly lost command of his fastball. And his pride took a hit when the Indians brought him back in September, placed him aside in the bullpen, and left him off their postseason roster.

Lee opened last season on the disabled list because of a strained right abdominal muscle.

"I got hurt during Spring Training last year and that had a lot to do with my rough season," Lee said. "Sometimes going through some failure makes you a better player in the long run, and I think that was the case with me. It gave me a little bit of motivation going into the offseason. It made me work a little harder and I did everything I could not to get injured again. "I just wanted to give myself a chance to compete and prove that I could pitch the way I did in the past. And fortunately it's worked out that way."

Lee is in his seventh season, all with the Indians. He's 66-38 with a 4.60 career ERA, posting a career-best 18-5 record in 2005, following that up with a 14-11 record in 2006.

Lee Delivers as All-Star Starter

 Two innings. One hit. Three strikeouts.

"I'll take it," Lee said. "Especially in an All-Star Game. The hitters they've got over there are some serious power threats. I'm pretty pleased to keep them from scoring."

Lee had plenty to be pleased about in his first All-Star experience. Upon his arrival with teammate Grady Sizemore to the Big Apple on Sunday night, he learned AL manager Terry Francona would be giving him the start in a game the AL ended up winning in 15 grueling innings.

The starting nod gave Lee the opportunity to be part of a special pregame ceremony in which 52 Hall of Famers stood on the field to greet the members of each starting lineup. Lee strutted out and shook hands with Dennis Eckersley, Bob Feller, Rollie Fingers, Steve Carlton, Bob Gibson, Ferguson Jenkins, Juan Marichal, Phil Niekro, Jim Palmer, Gaylord Perry, Goose Gossage, Sandy Koufax, Whitey Ford, Robin Roberts, Don Sutton and Bruce Sutter.

"It was surreal seeing that many Hall of Fame pitchers in front of my face and getting to shake their hands," Lee said. "I don't know if there will ever be an opportunity to see that many Hall of Famers right in front of me ever again. It's a moment I'll never forget."

Lee shuts out White Sox for 20^th win

CLEVELAND -- On Sept. 1, 2007, Cliff Lee was one of the players the Indians called up from Triple-A Buffalo when the team expanded its roster.

The left-hander had struggled for most of the season, spent the month of August in the Minors and finished with a 5-8 record and a 6.29 ERA.

Exactly one year to the date of his callup, Lee pitched himself into the Indians' record books. He went the distance Monday in a 5-0 win over Chicago, becoming the first Indians pitcher in 34 years to win 20 games in a season.

Gaylord Perry was the last Tribe pitcher to win 20 games when he went 21-13 in 1974.

"It has a nice ring to it," said Lee, the front-runner for the American League's Cy Young Award. "I like the sound of it."

Lee's only problems came in the first and ninth, when the first two White Sox hitters reached base in each frame. Lee worked out of trouble both times thanks to inning-ending double plays.

In between his problem innings, Lee retired 21 straight batters, starting when Jermaine Dye lined into a double play to end the first and ending when Paul Konerko singled with one out in the eighth.

Lee, who held the Sox to five hits and struck out four, was given standing ovations throughout the night. The first came when he walked to the bullpen to warm up about 25 minutes before game time. The ovations continued before and after every inning.

The noise reached a crescendo after Joe Crede and Orlando Cabrera started the ninth with singles. Lee retired A.J. Pierzynski on a fly ball to left and got Carlos Quentin, who leads the league in home runs, to bounce into a game-ending double play.

"I'm honored and privileged to get the opportunity to accomplish this," Lee said. "It's a magic number in this game."

Lee's 20-2 record gives him a .909 winning percentage, tops in the AL. His 20 wins represent 30 percent of the Indians' 66 wins for the season, the highest percentage of team wins for any Major League pitcher this season. His only losses have come to the Reds on May 18 and the Twins on July 6.

"I'm glad I got it out of the way on the first try," Lee said. "I'm glad I don't have to answer questions about it leading into my next start."

The bad news for Lee is he will now have to answer questions about potentially winning a Cy Young Award. He leads the AL in wins, winning percentage and ERA (2.32). He also has won nine straight decisions, which is tied for the longest streak in the league. Lee has allowed two or fewer earned runs in 21 of his 27 starts. He also has two complete games and four shutouts.

The game featured some interaction between Lee and Pierzynski, who exchanged words and stares beginning in the fourth inning and ending when the pitcher pointed to the White Sox dugout after the final out. "His second at-bat, he slammed his bat down and stared me down," Lee said. "I stared him down back. He was chirping at me from the dugout. Actually, I appreciate him doing that. It gave me a little extra energy."

Pierzynski, naturally, had a different version.                

09/30/2008 12:30 PM ET

Tribe's Lee earns AL Comeback honor

All-Star starter recognized for remarkable turnaround in 2008

To think that Lee's remaining Minor League option was even a topic of discussion is laughable now that he's a 22-game winner and bona fide Cy Young Award favorite.

But it also just goes to show how far the 30-year-old Lee has come this season.

After a demotion to Buffalo in '07 and an absence from the Tribe's postseason roster, Lee has made it back to being a consistent winner in the big leagues.

In doing so, the left-handed Lee won the first of several expected offseason accolades. Lee was named the American League's Comeback Player of the Year on Tuesday, following a landslide vote of MLB.com reporters. Lee received 24 of 30 first-place votes. Phillies closer Brad Lidge won the award in the NL.

Lee, who won 46 games from 2004-06, missed the first month of 2007 with an abdominal strain and went 5-8 with a 6.38 ERA in his first 16 starts. An 0-4 record and 11.70 ERA in July earned him that humbling trip back to Triple-A.

After his name became the subject of trade rumors that went nowhere throughout the winter, Lee reported to Spring Training looking to stay healthy and regain the confidence of the Indians' decision-makers. He did all that and more.

Lee wins 2008 AL Cy Young Award

After pacing league in wins and ERA, lefty earns well-deserved honor

By Anthony Castrovince / MLB.com

The constant quest for perfection drove Cliff Lee to great feats throughout 2008.

"Even if I had won every start, I don't know if I'd be satisfied," he said near the season's end. "There's always something you can do better. I don't know how to explain it other than that. It's just the way I am, I guess."

But even Lee has to be satisfied with what took place Thursday, when the Baseball Writers' Association of America named him the American League Cy Young Award winner.

The honor was well-deserved. Lee led the AL in wins with a 22-3 record and in ERA with a 2.54 mark, posted the third-highest winning percentage (.880) for a 20-game winner in baseball history and became the Tribe's first 20-game winner since Gaylord Perry in 1974. The voters took notice. Lee received 24 of 28 first-place votes and finished with 132 points in balloting. He beat out the Jays' Roy Halladay, who finished second with 74 votes.

Lee followed the trail of former teammate and fellow left-hander CC Sabathia, who, one year ago, became the Indians' first Cy Young winner since Perry in 1972. Lee, Sabathia and Perry are the only Tribe pitchers to win the prestigious award.

Indians Trade Cliff Lee to the Phillies

Another boatload of “can’t miss” prospects on the way

 It’s enough to make a die-hard Indian fans’ head explode.

For the second year in a row, the Tribe has traded their Cy Young award winner for a bunch of no-name prospects to replenish their farm system, which is woefully depleted of no-name prospects at the present time.

I would list the four guys we received for Lee (and Ben Francisco), but no one except their families have ever heard of them. I should mention that the key player in the deal, Jason Knapp, is currently on the disabled list. Lovely.

 One MLB source was quoted as saying, “this guy Knapp could be the key to the whole deal! He has a great pitcher’s body.” He declined to say why the body was on the DL.

The real winner in this was Lee himself. I never saw the no nonsense, all business lefty so happy in the six years he’s been here. What a relief it must be for him to be set free from this dreary incompetence and be thrust right into a playoff race. Don’t be surprised if Fransisco, who will now be under the direct tutelage of former hitting coach extraordinaire Charlie Manuel, starts mashing in that Philadelphia launching pad.

Just think of the sweet irony of a World Series match up of Cy Young winners Lee and Yankee Sabathia. That should provide enough Cleveland jokes to easily last through October.

There was, of course, the obligatory “economic hard times” excuse thrown out there by Mark Shapiro at the press conference. He sounded a lot like a member of Congress; blaming the economy while hip-deep in the process of destroying it.

Blaming the economy is insultingly lame to us fans. Everyone knows, including the Indians brass, that if the Indians were a serious contender that park would be packed. Just look across the street at the Cavaliers, whose ticket prices are 10 times what the Tribe’s are, and see what a crock that argument is. If the Dolans can’t afford to keep the talent that they develop than they should get out of the baseball business.

That leads to my next point: With talk of Victor Martinez being up next on the auction block, I’m beginning to sense something nefarious taking shape behind the scenes. What better way for the Dolans to make our team attractive to potential buyers than to dump payroll? They could cut their losses and the new owners would basically have a minor league team to build and mold into their own image.

So now that the Indians hierarchy has made Cleveland the laughing stock of the baseball world again, it’s safe to say I’ll be paying more attention to the Phillies than the “retooling” Tribe for the remainder of the season. Beginning on Friday (Lee’s first scheduled start for Philadelphia) I get to tune in to the Phillies MLB website, see Cliff’s Indian mug shot with a Phillies ballcap photoshopped onto his head and follow his in-game progress.

This whole sad scenario reminds me of the 2006 Wickman trade to Atlanta, in which Mark Shapiro said that it wasn’t about money, that it was all about the player they were getting. That player was A-ball catcher Max Ramirez, who was tossed away like a banana peel the following year. Last I heard he was floating around the Texas Rangers organization.

Detonation Complete:

Tribe jettisons their only All Star as an encore to the embarrassing 2009 debacle

The Tribe finished off their heartbreaking fire sale on Friday, just hours before the July 31st deadline, by trading fan favorite Victor Martinez to the Boston Red Sox for 3 more pitching prospects. Martinez, who said at the All Star Game in St. Louis that he loved the Indians and never wanted to wear another team's uniform, wore sunglasses as he sat by his locker and spoke to reporters so no one could see the tears.

His reaction was quite a contrast to Cliff Lee's, who couldn't wait to get out of town and join the Phillies. He responded like a man that was just set free from a dungeon in his first start for the Phils in Friday, taking a no hitter into the 6th inning against San Francisco. Lee ended up throwing a four-hitter, doubled and scored on Ben Francisco's sacrifice fly in his 5-1 victory over the Giants.

Between Cliff and Victor, we can see which one has the better attitude towards this current Indians organization. There's a great teaching moment here for Martinez: his tears should be that of joy. He just got a second chance to play in a World Series before his career ends. Being left off the post season roster in 2007 by Eric Wedge, Lee is getting his first shot at it. And he's not looking back.  J. Ladd 8/2/09

Ex-Cleveland Indian Cliff Lee talks about fantastic start with Philadelphia Phillies, reflects on trade

by Dennis Manoloff, Plain Dealer Reporter - Wednesday August 26, 2009, 10:06 PM

PITTSBURGH -- It is good to be Cliff Lee.

The reigning American League Cy Young Award winner is 5-0 with a 0.68 ERA in five starts with the Phillies since being acquired from the Indians on July 29. He has given up 24 hits in 40 innings, walked six and struck out 39.

Lee is continuing a groove that began in early July. In his final five starts with the Tribe, Lee allowed 10 runs in 38 innings. He has won eight consecutive decisions since July 16 to improve to 12-9.

Lee's 2.63 ERA in 27 starts overall is approaching that of 2008, when he was 22-3 with a 2.54 ERA in 31 starts and became the Indians' second straight Cy Young winner (CC Sabathia).

The left-hander allowed for a peek into his world before the Phillies played the Pirates in PNC Park on Wednesday night:

DW: So what's it like to be Cliff Lee these days?
CL: Just like every other day, preparing for my next outing.

DW: Have you needed to make any specific adjustments from American League to National?
CL: Not really. Other than having to hit, and pitching to the opposing pitcher, it's basically the same deal. You're facing major-league hitters. You've got to make pitches. You miss over the plate, you're going to get hurt.

DW: Last year, you rode your fastball to the Cy Young. This year, it's still the dominant pitch, but you appear to be mixing in more curves and changeups.
CL: I still feel like I'm commanding the fastball, but yeah, you've got to use all your pitches. It helps to be unpredictable.

DW: In your first two starts this season, you gave up 11 runs in 10 innings and lost twice. Most of the 25 starts since have been quality. Are you pitching as well as you did in 2008?
CL: Similar. Every year's different. I'm giving the team a chance to win. I'm getting deep into games, throwing strikes, not walking many guys. I keep it simple -- you know that. I just try to put up as many zeros as I can.

DW: Did any of the trades the Indians made as part of the summer sell-off surprise you?
CL: My getting traded surprised me.

DW: Seriously?
CL: Yeah. For sure. I really was expecting to stay. I figured that, I was pitching well and I potentially could have been back if they picked up the option. Victor (Martinez), the same thing. They had Grady (Sizemore). They had some pieces there that you could build around to make a pretty good team. They viewed it differently. I'm not a GM, I'm not a coach. I don't make any of those decisions. I play the game. I was an Indian until I was told I was a Phillie, and now I'm here and I've got to help this team win.

DW: After the trades, Indians President Paul Dolan said you were not going to re-sign with the Indians after 2010. Did Dolan present it accurately?
CL: They told my agent that when we got to spring training this year, we'll talk about an extension. We get there, the first half of spring goes by...nothing. We get down toward the end, they call me in the office and tell me, 'Never mind. We've changed our minds. 'At that point, I told them: 'For me, now's the time. After this year, I'm going to be one year from free agency, and you're going to have to pick up my option if I'm pitching well. Otherwise, I'm a free agent. It doesn't make sense to do it one year out when I just watched what CC did.'

DW: Sabathia, of course, was traded to Milwaukee in 2008 and signed with the Yankees over the winter.
CL: Free agency is where you want to get as a player. That's where you get strength and have control of a situation. Obviously, the closer you get to that, the less likely an extension would be. That's kind of what I told them.

DW: What was their reply?
CL: They said, 'We respect your stance on that, and if anything changes, let us know.' And they said, 'If the economy turns around, if things change, if we start winning, maybe we'll change our opinion, too.' I said, 'OK, fine.' That was kind of the end of it.

DW: Do you feel sad about the sell-off in Cleveland?
CL: Yeah. You get comfortable with a city, teammates, coaches, staff, guys in the training room. Those things make it tough to leave. They run a really good program. They basically helped mold my program and what I do. I was wondering how I was going to be able to translate all those things over here, but it's worked out pretty smoothly for the most part.

DW: Do you feel bad for the fans who see the core of their team traded, fans who wonder, 'Why can't Cliff Lee and Victor Martinez still be around in 2010, to try to make another run at it?'
CL: Uh, it would help if the fans showed up and came to the games. That's why the team didn't make money, because the fans weren't there, supporting the team. That's what happens when the fans don't support --

DW: But you guys weren't winning.
CL: Right. It goes hand-in-hand, though. It definitely goes hand-in-hand. Yeah, I feel sorry for them. I wish we were all still there, that we had won the World Series in '07, come back and won it again last year and were going to win it this year. That's not reality. That's not...It's a business. It's a total business.

DW: Many Tribe fans, and other observers, think you began to grind an ax on management when you were sent down to Class AAA Buffalo in 2007 -- two years removed from an 18-win season -- and that that was the beginning of the end. True?
CL: No. Not at all. I wasn't upset at anyone. They were in position to go to the postseason and potentially win a World Series and were arguably one game away from doing that. Their concern was not whether they're making me happy, it was trying to get to the postseason and winning a World Series, as it should be. I was not getting the results I expected out of myself. You can look at the stats. They were black and white. Obviously, I didn't want to go to Triple-A. But you have to make the best of the situation. I didn't want to be a major leaguer sent to Triple-A who's bitter and mad at the world. I've seen that before, and I didn't want to be that guy. I tried to do everything they asked me to do, and I expected to get back to pitching well, to get back to Cleveland and help the team get in position to win the World Series. It didn't work out that way.

DW: You pitched out of the bullpen four times in September and were not on any postseason roster. Still not bitter?
CL: No. In the long run, I think (what happened in 2007) motivated me to push that much harder in the offseason and prove everybody wrong. I wasn't mad at anybody or anything. I felt like they had kind of changed their views on me as a pitcher, and I wanted to prove that that wasn't right, that it wasn't the real me.

DW: So when you say they changed their view of you, and that you wanted to prove people wrong -- that's not indicative of grinding an ax?
CL: No. That was the Indians doing a business move. They were trying to win a World Series. That's what it's all about. They viewed me going to Triple-A and replacing me with someone else as making the team better. That's their prerogative.

DW: As objectively as you could view it, did you think the Cleveland team that broke camp this spring would contend?
CL: I thought our ballclub was a lot better than it turned out to be.

DW: What went wrong?
CL: We figured out how to lose every way possible, it seemed like. What made it the toughest is, it wasn't one thing. It wasn't something you could put your finger on and say, 'This is what you need to get better at.' It was one thing one day, something else the next. For whatever reason, we weren't playing complete baseball.

Indians fold after 3-1 lead – Sox vs. Rox in World Series

10-21-07: BOSTON -- A few eyes reddened. More than a few hugs were shared. 

Corrupting the quiet of the visitors' clubhouse was the distant roar of the Fenway Park crowd, as the American League championship trophy was hoisted by the home club. It could have been them.

The Indians swallowed that hard truth as best they could in the wake of their 11-2 loss to the Red Sox in Game 7 of the AL Championship Series on Sunday night. They wrestled with the knowledge that they had become just the sixth team in LCS history to see a 3-1 series lead go to waste. 

And then, just as they've done quite often in this season of unimaginable perseverance, they accentuated the positive -- even when it was at its most difficult to decipher. 

"There's no reason to hang our heads," said Jake Westbrook, whose six gutsy innings of work had made victory seem so tantalizingly obtainable earlier in the evening. "It's disappointing, yes, but you look back on it -- we came together as a team. I think we're going to look back at what a great year we had and what a great team we had. This is something we'll learn from." 

The lessons came hard and fast the last few days. One victory away from clinching the organization's first World Series berth in a decade, the Indians were blindsided, 30-5, over the last three games of this series. 

Tribe Bounces Yanks - Torre Next to go?

10-8-07: NEW YORK --

Behind a patient offensive attack, a bend-but-don't-break start from Paul Byrd and some resolute relief work on Monday night, the Tribe pulled off a captivating, 6-4 victory in Game 4 of the ALDS at Yankee Stadium.

Now, it's on to Boston, where the Indians will open the best-of-seven ALCS on Friday night at Fenway Park. It will be the Tribe's first ALCS appearance since 1998.

"This is what you dream of," center fielder Grady Sizemore said. "When we broke camp, this is where we wanted to be, and we believed we could do it."

Byrd had joked that he was playing the part of the "little gun" to the bigger guns provided by Sabathia and Fausto Carmona. Clearly, the little gun fired a big shot into the heart of the Yankees' hopes.

"One of my goals was to keep their fans out of the game," Byrd said. "I didn't want to start walking people and hearing the crowd go crazy with each ball."

The crowd was largely held quiet, particularly when the Indians provided added separation and support for Byrd in the fourth. After Mussina intentionally walked Hafner to load the bases, Martinez ripped a two-run single up the middle.

And so it was a 6-2 lead that was handed to the Tribe bullpen in the sixth. As was the case all series, the 'pen did not disappoint.

Hafner wins game 2 in the 11th

10-5-07: This was a night that echoed a year. The man known as Pronk had struggled all season to live up to his own enormous potential, and the frustration was mounting on the game's biggest stage. Then came a twist. 

With the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the 11th, Hafner drew a full count from reliever Luis Vizcaino and lined a single up the middle to score Kenny Lofton with the winning run. It gave the Tribe a thrilling 2-1 victory and a commanding 2-0 lead in an ALDS that will now shift from Jacobs Field to Yankee Stadium. 

"I came up in a great situation," Hafner said of his heroic at-bat. "Bases loaded, two outs. That's what you dream about as a kid." 

In the eighth, something happened that neither club could have expected. With the Indians down, 1-0, and up to bat in the bottom of the inning, a swarm of insects descended upon The Jake and severely bugged Yankees reliever Joba Chamberlain.

Perhaps this was the Indians' secret weapon. Whatever the case, it worked.

A distracted Chamberlain walked Sizemore, then threw a wild pitch that allowed Sizemore to move to second. Sizemore advanced to third on Asdrubal Cabrera's sacrifice bunt. And when Chamberlain threw another wild pitch, Sizemore sped home and just barely eluded the tag at the plate.Gnat's all there was to it. The game was tied.

Tribe Blasts Yanks in Jacobs Field Opener

10-4-07:CLEVELAND

Those were certainly attributes Sabathia would go on to display on the mound in Thursday night's convincing 12-3 victory over the Yankees in Game 1 of the ALDS at a raucous Jacobs Field, albeit with a twist.

In the waning hours before the first pitch of the Tribe's first postseason game in six years, relaxation was not necessarily Sabathia's strong suit.

"He was so excited," said left fielder Kenny Lofton, whose four RBIs were only a portion of the impressive offensive display the Indians would stage for their ace. "I'm like, 'C.C., we've got time. The game doesn't start until 6:30 p.m.' He was so fired up about getting out there to start the game."

With a soldout crowd of 44,608 fans on hand -- many of whom were donning shirts of red and waving flags of white -- the game started with a bang. And a controversial one, at that.

Yankees leadoff man Johnny Damon smacked Sabathia's 3-1 pitch down the right-field line and over the wall. Initially, umpires Jim Wolf and Laz Diaz, positioned on the line, were unsure of a ruling. They conferred with the rest of the six-man umpiring crew, and a dinger it was.

All the build-up and all the energy that palpitated the ballpark were in danger of being rendered moot. And all that discussion of Sabathia's growth and emergence as an ace was about to be put to the test.

Sabathia was erratic. His pitches were elevated, and his command was shaky. He walked Bobby Abreu and Alex Rodriguez with one out, and danger was on deck, in the form of Jorge Posada."I was fired up," Sabathia said. "I was trying not to throw hard, and I looked up there a couple times and saw I was throwing 97 [mph]. I was like, 'Calm down, and try to throw strikes.'

"He bent," Yankees manager Joe Torre said of Sabathia, "but he didn't break."

A Cold Reception

A familiar face pops up at the Jake

By Anthony Castrovince / MLB.com06/15/2007 6:43 PM ET

CLEVELAND -- Bob Wickman isn't one to arrive at the ballpark ahead of schedule, but Friday was a special day. With the Indians and Braves meeting up in Interleague Play this weekend, Wickman is making his return to Jacobs Field for the first time since the Indians traded him last July. The Tribe's all-time saves leader, therefore, had plenty of old acquaintances to see. 

"It's happened enough times, where I've gone back to teams I've gotten traded from, that you just go about your business," said Wickman, the Braves' closer. "[But], I decided to come early so I could talk to some people." 

The conversations Wickman had with members of the Indians organization on this day were mere pleasantries, catching up with old comrades. 

But last summer, a conversation Wickman had with general manager Mark Shapiro and manager Eric Wedge was a bit more businesslike. 

The Indians, out of the playoff picture, had a deal in place to trade Wickman, who, when healthy, had been their closer since 2000. Wickman had the power to veto the trade, though the lure to pitch for a contender was a powerful one. 

For the Indians, the pressing question was whether Wickman would be retiring at the end of the year. They would obviously be less inclined to deal him if Cleveland thought it had a chance at retaining him as its closer for '07. 

Wedge has spoken publicly about that conversation. During a Winter Caravan stop in Canton, Ohio, in January, he was matter-of-fact about its contents. 

"I don't think anybody thought Bob was going to play this year," Wedge said. "He looked us in the eye and told us that. I have a problem with people saying they'll do one thing and doing another. But that's his issue." 

On Friday, Wickman was reminded of those remarks and asked if the conversation was that direct. "I think that would be something for Eric and I to talk about," Wickman said. "I'm not going to talk to the media about it." 

The 38-year-old Wickman did say that at the time of the trade, in which the Indians acquired Class A catcher Max Ramirez and ridded themselves of what remained of the closer's $5 million contract, he had little reason to believe that he'd be pitching in '07. "A year ago at this time, my hip was a little sore and stuff like that," Wickman said. "I didn't really think my body would come around the way it did the second half of last season and this season, so far." 

Upper back tendinitis put Wickman on the 15-day disabled list earlier this year, but he rattled off nine straight scoreless outings after his May 15 return. That streak came to a close on Thursday night in Minnesota, where he blew a save for the first time in a month and a half. 

Wickman came into this series with 802 career appearances, tying him with Walter Johnson for 35th on the all-time list. He is 25th on the all-time saves list with 257, and he's hoping to keep going. "It would be cool to get to 300 saves," Wickman said. "If I'm put in a situation where I don't believe I could be put into the closer's role or can't compete in the closer's role, then I'll quit this year. But if I still feel I can compete in the closer's role and somebody's willing to give me a job for that, I'll definitely try again." But that's a conversation Wickman will have with his body later this year.

Bob had plenty of time to spare for the people that matter the most to him in Cleveland. I never saw so many Wickman's Warriors at the Jake before in the 6 years I've been doing the Club, and Bobby spent a little time with as many of us as he could. He must have shook hands with and hugged a thousand people this weekend, and every one of them let him know how much he is missed. J. Ladd 6/17/07

Great Save #259

Bobby Wick returns to the Jake

Wickster rebounds - Braves rally off of C.C. in the ninth for the win

CLEVELAND -- Coming off a demoralizing defeat and having just seen their most dominant reliever victimized by an eighth-inning homer, the Braves could have folded their tents. But as Braves manager Bobby Cox told his players at his regular pre-series meeting before Friday night's game at Jacobs Field, he never once got the sense that he was guiding a team that was willing to quit, despite all of the struggles that Atlanta has faced over the past month.

Less than 24 hours after watching Bob Wickman blow a two-run ninth-inning lead against the Twins, the Braves saw their closer return to his former park and finish off a potentially key 5-4 win over the Indians, who were foiled while giving C.C. Sabathia a chance to contribute a third straight nine-inning effort.

"Tonight, we made our comeback, and it was a great win against another great pitcher," said Cox, who saw his standout rookies, Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Yunel Escobar, key a two-run ninth-inning comeback with doubles off Sabathia.

While snapping a three-game losing streak and winning for just the fourth time in their past 13 games, the Braves saw Buddy Carlyle's strong six-inning effort nearly foiled when Casey Blake began the bottom of the eighth with a homer off the usually stingy Rafael Soriano, who had allowed just one earned run in his past 21 appearances.

Soriano's hiccup brought back memories of Thursday night, when Wickman saw a 2-0 lead quickly turn into a 3-2 loss. But Saltalamacchia wasn't about to let the hangover of that loss prevent him from brightening his rising star. The 22-year-old top catching prospect, who was making his second career start at first base, began the ninth with a double off the left-field wall.

"Honestly, when I saw C.C. come back out, I had a feeling we were going to win," Saltalamacchia said. "In that situation, me personally, I think you've got to put your closer in and let him do the job."

Entering the game, Sabathia hadn't allowed a run in his previous 18 innings. That scoreless streak was extended to 22 1/3 innings before Woodward snapped it with his fifth-inning RBI single. The Braves then began their game-tying two-run sixth with four straight singles against the big Indians starter, who was charged with five runs -- four earned -- and 12 hits in 8 1/3 innings.

"We've played great against two outstanding pitchers back-to-back," Cox said. "We had [Johan] Santana beat [Thursday] night and let it get away."

 Wickman, who was traded by the Indians to the Braves last July, shook off the effects of the bad luck he'd encountered in Minnesota on Thursday. With runners on first and second in the ninth, he ended things with a strikeout of Blake.

"It was fairly strange," said Blake, of facing his former teammate. I faced him in spring training and it was fun. This wasn't too much fun. "I should have known how he was going to pitch me. He won."

Wick’s A Winner!

Bob pitches back-to-back innings and picks up his first win in nearly 4 years

Bob met another challenge on his remarkable comeback from Tommy John surgery, and it resulted in first win since August 10, 2002.

The Warriors Club remembers that win well. It’s the “Bobzilla Sighting” piece that’s been archived on the Bobzilla page since that August day. Bob and I took the surgery picture spoofs that we used while he was rehabbing after that game, and we both wondered if he would ever pitch again after that win. It was his last appearance of the season, and Bobby had the surgery in December after waiting 4 months for the swelling in his elbow to subside.

Three and a half years later, Bobby worked 2 innings in Sunday’s 3-2 victory over Pittsburgh for the first time since July 7, 2001.

“We were going to try it a couple of other times earlier in the season,” said the Wickster. “With the off-day tomorrow, we decided to try it.”

With the score tied 2-2 in the ninth, Bobby put Jeremy Burnitz and Ryan Doumit on with no one out. Jose Hernandez laid down a bunt that Ben Broussard fielded and gunned down Burnitz at third. A 6-4-3 double play ended the threat.

Wick pitched an uneventful 10^th, and Grady Sizemore’s line drive over Burnitz’s head in the bottom of the inning scored Aaron Boone from third to give Bob the win.

At 37 and on top of his game, Bob Wickman continues to smash down all barriers in his way. 5-21-2006

Bobby Wick is Indians All-Time Saves Leader!

Maybe Bob should go 1-2-3 in the ninth for some real excitement. This putting guys on and then escaping by the skin of his teeth is getting boring.

Bob Wickman passed Doug Jones with 130 saves on May 7^th at Safeco Field by slamming the door on C.C. Sabathia’s 2-0 masterpiece against the Mariners.

After tying the record 0n April 28^th, our hero had to wait 10 days for his chance. The pattern this season so far: When the Tribe isn’t blowing out the opposition they’re on the receiving end of a spanking. Luckily, the Maestro has his veteran experiences to rely on to keep him sharp when that call does come.

After retiring cleanup hitter Ritchie Sexson on a routine grounder, the Master began conducting another of his patented tension-filled symphonies.

Carl Everett and Adrian Beltre both singled to put runners at first and second, bringing the winning run to the plate. Bob Wickman and catcher Kenji Johjima had never faced each other before, but Bobzilla always does his homework. Having studied him extensively, Bobby went right at him with 3 straight fastballs. Johjima sent the third one to shortstop Jhonny Peralta, who started a slick game-ending 6-4-3 double play.

“It was typical Wicky fashion,” said Sabathia. “I don’t even get nervous anymore. I knew he’d get that ground ball. I’m just glad I could be part of it.”

The Wickster is 6-for-6 in save situations this year and has converted 22 straight saves since last year. Bob, of course, was gracious and humble amid all the accolades.

“I remember my first game as a new closer,” said Wick. “Doug Jones came up to me and said, ‘If you ever need anyone to talk to, I’m here for you.’ I took the job from him and he had no hard feelings.”

Bobby is going to give the record-setting ball to Chris Kelley, a former Indians bat boy seriously injured in a car accident in 2004.

“When Chris wakes up, he’s going to see that ball.”

Wickman’s Army

There's a long tradition of fans painting letters on their chests in an effort to get on television. Usually, fans stick with short words or acronyms; network initials or player names, for example. Some local high school students had a different idea. 

Almost 50 seniors from St. Ignatius High School, a Jesuit academy in Cleveland, came to Saturday's game against the Angels and sat in left field with letters painted on their chests. The message? 

"Bob Wickman is the greatest baseball player ... ever."

"We were here one day, and we saw en entire empty row in the right-field bleachers," Zach Szep, the group's ringleader, said. "And we thought, wouldn't it be pretty awesome if a whole row in the bottom of that section spelled out a huge sentence? And we just thought about it. And after a while, we just came up with one about Bob Wickman. 

Why the Indians closer? 

"Because he's the greatest baseball player ever," Szep said. "He always makes the game interesting. "

QUESTION:  What portion of my contribution goes to Cleveland Indians' Charities?

ANSWER:  ALL $26 goes to Cleveland Indians' Charities.  Please feel free to declare your CIC check amount in its entirety as a non-taxable contribution on your IRS Form 1040.  The cost of club shirts, the expense of publishing and housing the club website, and other club expenses are borne by Bob Wickman, Joseph Ladd, and other Wickman's Warriors sponsors.
   
Joseph Ladd
President, WW

Wickman's Warriors is a total non-profit organization that is sustained solely through the generosity of its members for the support and enjoyment of its team--The Cleveland Indians. The website,  internet fees,  tee shirts,  graphics,  writing,  photography,  props,  postage, and time spent on organization as well as the Wickman's Warriors charitable fund are all donated by the club's friends and members.                                                                                              

WICKMAN'S WARRIORS
P.O. BOX 40224
BAY VILLAGE, OHIO 44140