CLEVELAND -- Landed here this morning, knowing I've got some big shoes to fill, covering the final two legs of this road trip. La Velle turned his trip to Tampa into a minor-league bonanza, spending Monday morning in Fort Myers watching the GCL Twins, and then hustling from The Trop to Clearwater last night, so he could watch the Fort Myers Miracle.
I'll focus on the Twins, as they look to build on their four-game split with the Rays. The Indians have changed dramatically since taking two of three from the Twins after the All-Star break. Besides trading away Jake Westbrook, Jhonny Peralta, Austin Kearns and Kerry Wood, they've lost Travis Hafner (shoulder) and Carlos Santana (knee) to the DL.
Still, they are 12-9 in the second half, playing as a team with nothing to lose. They just split four games in Boston, and as Paul Hoynes writes in today's Plain Dealer, "The Indians made [the Red Sox] sweat from the first at-bat to the last out of the series."
La Velle's series preview is here. Rained hard here this morning, but it's supposed to be a nice weekend. Will check in this afternoon from The Jake with an update on Orlando Hudson and tonight's starting lineups.
