For five innings, it seemed like last night had been a turning point in the Indians' season; Jeremy Sowers, newly minted in the rotation, was pitching very well, leading 2-1 coming into the fifth and making the Sowers-Laffey-Chulk Affair (think XYZ Affair) look like a boon, not a boondoggle. Then, Sowers turned back into Sowers, putting six straight men on base (there was an intentional walk in there but are we really giving bonus points for that?). He was followed by Masa, who acted like Masa, and then finally Matt Herges, who's behavior I don't have a read on but seemed to stay true to his personality. 15 batters later, it was 13-3 and 2009 had turned back into 2009.
The night ended at 13-3, with the Red Sox pounding out 13 hits for Feng Shui symmetry. There's not a lot else to say; the pitching was horrible, the offense not much better. It looked like games we've been watching all year. The only notable point here is that Sowers continues to look like some kind of movie subplot where an awkward kid is forced to play baseball by bullies and ends up pulling at his uniform all the time. I'm not sure how that movie ends but it probably involves an animal saving Sowers. No animals appeared tonight and Sowers most assuredly does not have good baseball face.
At this point, the Indians player and management have to be searching for answers, however, it's unclear that there are any more to be had. The Indians have spent most of their bullets-LaPorta is here, Laffey is in the bullpen (?!?) and the only piece of legitimate pitching depth left unused in AAA is David Huff. That is, unless you're interested in 40-manning guys like Greg Aquino, Randy Newsom, or Frank Hermann.
The only radical pitching moves left are Rondon, Huff or an option outside the organization. The Indians have trading chips-there's a lot of position player depth and, bizarrely, Andy Marte could conceivably become an integral figure in an Indians' move. It will almost certainly be a long night for Shapiro, Antonetti, and Wedge; we shall see what the future holds.
Next Up: Verlander vs. Lee, back at the P[redacted]. Tomorrow at 7:05 ET.