In of the most bizarre games of the season, the Indians beat the Athletics thanks to two Ben Broussard homers in consecutive innings. Of course, describing the game just doesn't do justice to a game where the lights went out, Eric Wedge was ejected for arguing balls and strikes, the Indians made three errors in the first four innings, and Bob Wickman turned a collision with Dan Johnson into a double play.
And I can't leave out the game Ronnie Belliard had in the field. He's been outstanding the whole season, but he's turned it up a notch recently. I especially liked the double play in which he deked the runner into running right into his tag. Again, me describing the play doesn't really do it justice; go watch the highlights and you'll see what I mean.
Although this wasn't a must-win for the Indians, it was a huge win nonetheless; it pushed the lead over the A's back to 2.5 games, and kept the team in sole possession of first place in the Wild Card race.
Before the game, the Indians lost another bullpen arm; Arthur Rhodes has left the team to attend to an illness in the family. While you hate to lose an important piece of your bullpen, family is more important than baseball. Best wishes to the Rhodes family.
Yesterday the Indians recalled two pitchers from Buffalo after their season ended. Jason Davis and Fausto Carmona probably won't see too much action, although Davis might be used if the Indians need an innings-eater in a blowout. The two pitchers are probably going to compete for a rotation spot next spring, depending on what happens with Millwood and Elarton.
Next up: Barry Zito, Tribe nemesis. It doesn't get any easier, but that's to be expected in September.