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It's odd to feel somewhat let down by your team despite having just swept a weekend series and landing one of the best relief pitchers in all of baseballl. Coming into yesterday, Tribe fans everywhere were ecstatic about the, at the time, addition of Jonathan Lucroy to an already stellar team. That excitement lasted all of about 12 hours before the news broke that Lucroy wouldn't be coming to Cleveland. You can love him, hate him, be indifferent about him, doesn't really matter. Unless we have a full, clear picture of what was said and what was offered, we'll never really know how much of the blame is on Lucroy, the Milwaukee FO, the Cleveland FO, or any other involved party. But, regardless, the trade deadline is mere hours away, and if a trade hasn't happened by the time this article posts, I would still say there's a very good chance that Cleveland adds another piece prior to the 4 PM deadline. So keep refreshing Twitter as much as you can, it's sure to be a busy day. And now, onto the news!
Indians 8, Athletics 0
LGT Recap | Cleveland.com Recap | Box Score
If you got swept up in the trade deadline shenanigans of yesterday and forgot that there was actual baseball being played, I sincerely apologize because you missed an incredible game. Corey Kluber was absolutely devastating for seven shutout innings, Mike Napoli hit his 24th home run, and the Cleveland Indians used a 5-run third inning to effectively end the game early as they went on to sweep the Oakland Athletics by a score of 8-0. The bats must've been angered at the audacity of Jonathan Lucroy and decided to prove that the offense is just fine without him.
Indians news
A big concern from some fans in the acquisition of Andrew Miller was that his talents would be wasted if he was forced into a "traditional role" in the bullpen. Thankfully, it seems as if Tito is looking at his new lockdown reliever and seeing someone who will be pitching, alongside Cody Allen, in many different scenarios that aren't limited to just the ninth inning. This is the best strategy going forward, and it's nice to see that Tito seems to be embracing it as well.
Chris Gimenez made a lot of new fans yesterday with his comments in regards to Lucroy refusing to come to Cleveland. Namely, he said that he hopes to win the World Series and be able to look back and laugh at Lucroy for not being a part of it. So do we, Chris. So do we.
Understandably so, there was a lot of vitriol coming from Cleveland fans yesterday when they heard that they were not going to get to watch All-Star catcher Jonathan Lucroy play for the Cleveland Indians. Amid all the chaos, Dave Cameron penned probably the most level-headed, rational analysis of the situation and came to the conclusion that there's really no one to blame in this situation. If you haven't already, I highly recommend giving it a read.
Around the League
- Last night, the Chicago Cubs won in the bottom of the 12th inning in the most NL way possible; a squeeze bunt by pinch hitter Jon Lester.
- When Andrew Cashner was traded from the San Diego Padres to the Miami Marlins, it was a sad day for beards across the globe.
- The Orioles added a lefty of their own when they agreed to a deal with the Seattle Mariners to acquire Wade Miley.
- There are a number of teams, including the Indians, who are currently in the market for one Carlos Beltran.
- And finally, it looks like Andrew Miller is going to fit in just fine in Cleveland:
I guess I'm in the right place. Is there a #PartyAtNapolis? pic.twitter.com/EVCdSTEx4S
— Andrew Miller (@a_miller48) August 1, 2016