Game 152: Indians 4, White Sox 3

This game reminded me of the good times. OK start, with the bullpen slamming the door in the later innings.

Fausto got through six innings and gave up 3 runs, which is a major improvement over some of his recent starts, but this Quality Start didn't make me feel any better about him. A couple times (especially the second inning) he seemed very close to imploding, and got bailed out because the Alejandro de Aza was running when Brent Morel hit a liner right at the right fielder to start a double play.

It was nice to see a Travis Hafner home run, his first in over a month. Once upon a time, the Indians didn't feel comfortable giving Jim Thome an extra year because of injury concerns, only to be burned after giving his replacement that big deal. And of course, now Thome and Hafner are sharing at-bats in September, with the 40-year-old appearing in more games than the 34-year-old.

Asdrubal Cabrera, who seems to be coming out of his late-season slump, added a solo homer in the fourth, and Kosuke Fukudome added a homer of his own in the fifth. Those three home runs accounted for all four runs, and the standard trio of Joe Smith, Vinnie Pestano, and Chris Perez made it stand up.

via www.fangraphs.com