Speaker 1: Welcome to Guardians Weekly on the Cleveland Guardians Radio network.
Speaker 1: Guardians Weekly is brought to you by Progressive helping Guardians
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Speaker 2: Hi everyone, him rosen House along with you from Progressive
Speaker 2: Field in downtown Cleveland. It is Guardians Weekly. Great to
Speaker 2: have you along for baseball talk on the radio for
Speaker 2: the next hour or so, as the Guardians are in
Speaker 2: the midst of their final series of the regular season,
Speaker 2: a home series here in downtown Cleveland against the Houston Astros,
Speaker 2: all in preparation for the postseason to come, which for
Speaker 2: Cleveland will begin next Saturday with Game one of the
Speaker 2: American League Division Series. Good show lined up for you today.
Speaker 2: We will visit with Emmanuel Classe, who said a new
Speaker 2: Cleveland franchise record for saves in a single season earlier
Speaker 2: this week. We'll talk to him about that and what
Speaker 2: has been just a tremendous season, one of the best
Speaker 2: all time for a Major League closer. We'll also hear
Speaker 2: from starting pitcher Tanner Bibbey, who's had a wonderful season,
Speaker 2: hitting coach Chris palaca Man. We'll have another edition of
Speaker 2: at the Ballpark with Guardians Senior Vice president Bob d Biascio,
Speaker 2: but first look back at the week that was, and
Speaker 2: after an off day on Monday, the Guardians opened a
Speaker 2: brief two game series with the Reds on Tuesday night,
Speaker 2: and Cleveland got on the board two batters in. Kyle
Speaker 2: Manzardo got into one.
Speaker 1: The two ozd pitch swung on, socked high in the
Speaker 1: air to deep break Frayley's going back on the track.
Speaker 3: At the wall.
Speaker 1: It's gone Kyle vnsardom with a towering home run down
Speaker 1: the right field line and Cleveland's gotta one nothing lead
Speaker 1: and Manzardo's incredible surge since the recall continues.
Speaker 2: Later on in the first inning, Josh Naylor singled, then
Speaker 2: Lane Thomas's big September continued.
Speaker 3: The pitch swung on, drilled.
Speaker 1: Deep, wift down the line, gone to the home run
Speaker 1: ports Lane Thomas continues his sizzling September. Seven homers, nineteen
Speaker 1: RBIs this month by Lane Thomas, and it's three nothing
Speaker 1: Cleveland as they have ripped a pair of home runs
Speaker 1: off Carson Spires here and ending number one and Laine
Speaker 1: Thomas now on the year fifteen homers, sixty two rbies.
Speaker 2: Now the long ball is back and so is Cleveland's offense. Meanwhile,
Speaker 2: on the mound for the Guardians, tanner Byby was sharp
Speaker 2: early and what would turn out to be his final
Speaker 2: regular season outing tanner Baby on the year eleven and
Speaker 2: eight e ra a three point fifty six thirty first start,
Speaker 2: six innings to start, ten strikeouts, two walks per nine.
Speaker 2: He delivers, and it's swung.
Speaker 1: On, bang the third, ramires to second one he mentus
Speaker 1: turns the inning ending double play. That's a seven pitch
Speaker 1: inning for tanner Baby. Three nothing Cleveland, middle of ending
Speaker 1: number two. Now the set, now the one two pitch
Speaker 1: swinging in a mess chase the high heat. Hey, tanner
Speaker 1: Baby set them up, put back to back change ups
Speaker 1: and blew them away.
Speaker 2: Three nothing Cleveland. We're in the middle of ending number three.
Speaker 2: Cincinnati got on the board in the fourth to make
Speaker 2: it a three to one ball game, but the Guardians
Speaker 2: got that run right back in the fifth after a
Speaker 2: single from Jose Ramirez and then Josh Naylor delivered. Here's
Speaker 2: the pitch, swung on, ripped down the right field line,
Speaker 2: fair ball into the corner. It goes Ramirez flying toward third.
Speaker 2: They're gonna wave him. Here he comes down the line.
Speaker 1: The relay throw is not in time safe at home plate.
Speaker 1: It's an RBI double for Josh Naylor and the Guardians
Speaker 1: now lead it four to one. That was a close
Speaker 1: play at home plate because the relay man was the
Speaker 1: shortstop Dela Cruz, who has a cannon, and he made
Speaker 1: it close at home plate, but Ramirez got in there
Speaker 1: just ahead of the tag and the Guardians have a
Speaker 1: fourth run on the board.
Speaker 2: It was back to Biby putting up Zeros the pitch
Speaker 2: swinging a miss, struck him out with the slider. So
Speaker 2: Tanner baby in great shape here. Six superb innings, six dragouts,
Speaker 2: four to one, Cleveland, middle of the sixth. In the
Speaker 2: bottom of the seventh, Cole Manzardo let off the inning
Speaker 2: with a walk and then Jose Ramirez stepped in the pinch, swung.
Speaker 1: In ripped a deep bright field. This ball is off
Speaker 1: the base of the wall. Hosey's on his way to second.
Speaker 1: Manzardo steps at third, Guardians at second and third with
Speaker 1: nobody out. Ramirez with his thirty seventh double, he could
Speaker 1: still become a forty forty forty man, forty homers, forty doubles,
Speaker 1: forty steals.
Speaker 2: Following Ramirez, it was Josh Naylor driving in his second
Speaker 2: run on the night. Now the O two swung in
Speaker 2: and ripped to center field. Freedom makes the ketch above
Speaker 2: the head tagging our runners, scoring Manzardo Ramirez to third,
Speaker 2: five to one Cleveland on a rocket to center, give
Speaker 2: Naylor a sack, fly two Arby Eyes tonight, one to
Speaker 2: oh seven on the year, five to one Cleveland, and
Speaker 2: then Lane Thomas added one more in the seventh. Now
Speaker 2: the cent now the O two pitch swung on ground ball.
Speaker 1: Back up the middle, diving stop Dela Cruz gets up
Speaker 1: throws out Thomas, but Ramirez scores. Oh what a great
Speaker 1: play by Dela Cruz, playing in the shortstop dove towards
Speaker 1: second to smother the Thomas grounder.
Speaker 3: His only play was at first.
Speaker 1: So Thomas gets the run in and Cleveland's got a
Speaker 1: six to one lead. Lane Thomas three Arby eyes tonight.
Speaker 1: That gives him twenty Arby Eyes this month. In the eighth,
Speaker 1: it was Thomas again getting it done on the defensive side.
Speaker 1: The pitch swung out a fly ball weekly hit to right,
Speaker 1: charging sliding grab by Thomas. The right fielder got a
Speaker 1: great jump made a sliding catch, charging in in shallow
Speaker 1: right bottom of the eighth, coming up with Cleveland in
Speaker 1: control six to.
Speaker 2: One and with the game in hand to Monuel classe
Speaker 2: A just needed to get some work in and he
Speaker 2: was out there in the ninth to finish things up.
Speaker 2: Now the set now the two pitch to Friedel swings
Speaker 2: and sends one in the air, shallow left out Ramirez
Speaker 2: in Martine's buggae Martinez with a catch and shallow left
Speaker 2: and folks.
Speaker 1: The playoffs will begin in Cleveland. The Division Series Games
Speaker 1: one and two will be in Cleveland Saturday, October fifth
Speaker 1: and Monday, October seventh. The Guardians have wrapped up a
Speaker 1: first round by beating the Red Legs six to one, so.
Speaker 2: A nice win to start the series, and that also
Speaker 2: clinched the Ohio Cup for the Guardian says, even if
Speaker 2: they had lost on Wednesday night, they still would retain
Speaker 2: the Cup for a tenth consecutive season, but they wanted
Speaker 2: to win it out right, and when they did on Wednesday.
Speaker 2: With a buy now secured in the first round of
Speaker 2: the playoffs, Stephen Voting his staff could begin setting up
Speaker 2: the pitching rotation for the American League Division Series, and
Speaker 2: they decided to push a couple of the regular starters
Speaker 2: back and go with a bullpen day on Wednesday, and
Speaker 2: starting the game it was Andrew Walters. The two to
Speaker 2: one swung on popped him up, playable first baseman Josh
Speaker 2: Naylor well retired, Tyler Stevenson, Andrew Walters, Glafe still hels
Speaker 2: it going, Still Helson giving up a hit in his
Speaker 2: major league career half inning in the books, we have
Speaker 2: no score from downtown Cleveland. In the bottom of the first,
Speaker 2: Stephen Kwan made his return from a stint on the
Speaker 2: injured list with back issues. Well, the back was just
Speaker 2: fine as he got it going in the first inning.
Speaker 2: Now the wind up, now the you'll one pitch and.
Speaker 1: It swung out and ripped deep Brightfield gone.
Speaker 3: How about that?
Speaker 1: Return Steven Kwan off the injured list with a bullet
Speaker 1: to right and it's won nothing, Cleveland. Now you don't
Speaker 1: think they missed that guy at the top of the order.
Speaker 1: Stephen Kwan is a difference maker. His fourteenth home run
Speaker 1: and forty four RBIs it's his third home run this
Speaker 1: year to lead off a ball game.
Speaker 2: Back on the mound in the second inning, Andrew Walters
Speaker 2: retired the first two reds before turning it over to
Speaker 2: Eric Sabrowski, who finished up the second and was back
Speaker 2: out there in the third.
Speaker 3: One nothing Cleveland.
Speaker 2: Third inning, the pitch swing and a miss got it
Speaker 2: twenty four miles an hour on the heater one of
Speaker 2: John buy Sabrowski's striking out the side. In the fourth,
Speaker 2: Kate Smith got the call that counts now one and
Speaker 2: two on Stevenson. He steps out, wants to slow Smith down.
Speaker 2: Smith with a great tempo, and why not, He's trying
Speaker 2: to set the side out in order in a hurry.
Speaker 2: The one two called strike three on the outside corner
Speaker 2: at the knees. Stevenson caught looking side retired in order.
Speaker 2: With a pair of strikeouts. We head to the bottom
Speaker 2: of the fourth, one nothing Cleveland on top of the
Speaker 2: reds and in the bottom of the fourth, Jose Ramirez
Speaker 2: led off with a triple and Josh Naylor continued to
Speaker 2: pile up the RBIs. Here's the pitch to Naylor.
Speaker 4: He swings and rips it through the left side face
Speaker 4: it bat'll score Ramirez. Naylor drives in a second run
Speaker 4: for the Guardians, who now lead it to nothing. Harby
Speaker 4: I one eight for Josh Naylor and with that drawn
Speaker 4: in it field, he just smacked it through the hole
Speaker 4: on that left side, right in the left field for
Speaker 4: the RBI single. Eli Morgan was next out of the
Speaker 4: bullpen and he cruised through the fifth inning and was
Speaker 4: back out there for a second inning of work. In
Speaker 4: the sixth.
Speaker 1: The pitch strike three called floated to change up over
Speaker 1: six perfect innnings by this Cleveland bullpen. And that is
Speaker 1: seven strikeouts by the Cleveland bullpen. Could this be an
Speaker 1: historical night at the corner of Carnagian Ontario do nothing?
Speaker 3: Cleveland middle of the.
Speaker 2: Sixth onto the seventh, Tim Herron was trying to keep
Speaker 2: the perfect game going, but Cincinnati's TJ. Friedel wasn't having
Speaker 2: it well.
Speaker 1: Pressure on Tim herrona perfect game for Cleveland. Seventh inning,
Speaker 1: Tom of the order, TJ. Friedel bunts right of the
Speaker 1: mount Heron ban He picks and throws to first base.
Speaker 1: Hit and you can hear the fans booing a perfect game.
Speaker 1: And TJ. Friedel with a bunch single to the right
Speaker 1: of the mound, between the mound and the foul line
Speaker 1: at first. Well, You'll have various opinions on whether This
Speaker 1: is proper baseball etiquette. But if you're TJ. Friedel in
Speaker 1: the Reds, you're like, we're down to nothing. We bring
Speaker 1: the tying run to the plate. That's one way to
Speaker 1: look at it.
Speaker 2: In the eighth, the red score two to break up
Speaker 2: the shutout bit and tie the game. But it wouldn't
Speaker 2: stay tied long as in the bottom of the eighth inning,
Speaker 2: Stephen Kuan and Kyle Manzaro each singled and that brought
Speaker 2: Jose Ramirez to the plate.
Speaker 3: Two out, two one two two game.
Speaker 1: We're in the eighth now, the one zero pitch to Jose,
Speaker 1: swing on.
Speaker 3: Pit high, pit deep to ride.
Speaker 5: Howay back into the second tick.
Speaker 3: Whose runers?
Speaker 1: Well? They two out, three run home run and the
Speaker 1: Guardians have a five.
Speaker 3: To two late he is thirty eighth homer.
Speaker 1: He now has one hundred and fifteen rby eyes, Oh
Speaker 1: my goodness, four hundred and seventeen feet for Hosey.
Speaker 3: He's still got a shot at forty forty.
Speaker 2: I want a home run for Hosey in what has
Speaker 2: been a special season. And then on to the ninth
Speaker 2: there was a Manuel class A looking for a record
Speaker 2: breaking save. He was tied with Jose Mesa at forty
Speaker 2: six for the franchise record for a single season. This
Speaker 2: one wouldn't be easy. The Reds loaded the bases with
Speaker 2: nobody out against the game's best closer.
Speaker 1: Now the pitch swung on, trilled on the ground on
Speaker 1: one hop to third, Ramires to second, Bolgie and Jose
Speaker 1: Mesa has been eclipsed in the record books. Emanuel classe
Speaker 1: A stands alone as the greatest single season closer in
Speaker 1: Cleveland baseball history. He gets number forty seven tonight, Jose
Speaker 1: Ramirez with a three run bomb in the eighth and
Speaker 1: Cleveland keeps alive it's hopes for the number one seed
Speaker 1: in the American League, beating the Cincinnati Reds five to two,
Speaker 1: So a series sweep of the Reds, then an off
Speaker 1: day on Thursday, and the opener of the series against
Speaker 1: the Astros on Friday night went Houston's way by a
Speaker 1: final score of five to two. Stay with us when
Speaker 1: we come back. We'll hear from the Guardians all everything closer,
Speaker 1: em Manuel classe That comes your way next on the
Speaker 1: Cleveland Clinic.
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Speaker 3: Him.
Speaker 2: Rosanow's back with you from downtown Cleveland and Progressive Field.
Speaker 2: It's Guardians Weekly and it's great.
Speaker 3: To have you along. This week.
Speaker 2: We had a chance to visit with the Manual Classe
Speaker 2: on Friday, as always with translation help from Aggie Rivero.
Speaker 2: Classe with just an incredible season going and on Wednesday
Speaker 2: he passed Jose Mesa for the franchise single season saves
Speaker 2: record number forty seven in the books for class and
Speaker 2: when we caught up with them on Friday, he talked
Speaker 2: about what that record means to him.
Speaker 6: But I'm using.
Speaker 1: A lot.
Speaker 7: It means a lot is a bigger chip in my career.
Speaker 7: And and obviously it's like good tell him that everything's
Speaker 7: going well and everything is kind of like going the
Speaker 7: way that we want. So I'm really thankful for that.
Speaker 2: And when you look at it, it's it's kind of
Speaker 2: a team record because they have to get you in
Speaker 2: situations where you can save games. And does he look
Speaker 2: at it that way? And and if so, how impressed
Speaker 2: have you been with the pitchers and players who've gotten
Speaker 2: you in that position on almost a nightly.
Speaker 7: Basis, you know, and we'll bank Moseielle will and as
Speaker 7: a as a group, they've done a tremendous job to
Speaker 7: get us where we are. You know, there's there's a
Speaker 7: really focus, they're really really positive and able to do
Speaker 7: the best they can. So I'm really excited for the
Speaker 7: job they've been able to doe. But he's also an
Speaker 7: outstanding job being able to to compete the way they have.
Speaker 2: And you pass Jose Masai. Obviously you're you're too young
Speaker 2: to have seen him pitch, but how aware are you
Speaker 2: of his career in some of accomplishments.
Speaker 7: I hear is that he was a first pitcher, He
Speaker 7: wasn't afraid of anybody, he was always ready to go
Speaker 7: and always ready to take the ball. So those are
Speaker 7: things are really good to hear and very excited I
Speaker 7: was able to compete and break the record with somebody
Speaker 7: like him.
Speaker 2: You had a small taste of postseason in twenty twenty two. Uh,
Speaker 2: when you look at this team and your season the
Speaker 2: way it's going, what tells you that this could be
Speaker 2: a longer stay in the postseason for this team and
Speaker 2: maybe get all the late at the end.
Speaker 7: The sale, the salesa whole, and the things comes down
Speaker 7: to preparations. I know they have the preparation they prepare
Speaker 7: themselves to be the best version and the mentality they
Speaker 7: are ready to compete and ready to do the best.
Speaker 7: And I think when you combine those two things, those
Speaker 7: are the things that are going to enable us to
Speaker 7: be able to compete.
Speaker 3: Should be fun.
Speaker 2: It's coming soon.
Speaker 3: Congratulations on a great season. Thanks Anya, Thank you.
Speaker 2: It's a good stuff there from Manuel Classe who is
Speaker 2: having a season to remember, one of the best all
Speaker 2: time for any closer in the game. Stay with us
Speaker 2: when we come back. We'll talk starting pitching with Tanner
Speaker 2: Biby and also hitting with Chris Baleka. The Guardians hitting coach.
Speaker 2: That's next as we continue with Guardians Weekly after this
Speaker 2: short run. Welcome back to Guardians Weekly, Jim Rosenhouse along
Speaker 2: with you from Progressive Field in downtown Cleveland. Guardians taking
Speaker 2: on the Astros on Saturday night a six to ten
Speaker 2: first pitch, then the regular season finale on Sunday afternoon.
Speaker 2: Note the start time a three to ten start on
Speaker 2: Sunday to close out the regular season. Then the Guardians
Speaker 2: are off until Game one of the American League Division
Speaker 2: Series that will be next Saturday against an opponent yet
Speaker 2: to be determined and at a time get to be
Speaker 2: determined as well. But we do know the game is
Speaker 2: going to be on Saturday, so there's that now, perhaps
Speaker 2: Tanner Bibby gets that start. It's down to Bibby or
Speaker 2: Matthew Boyd. We'll see which direction the Guardians go in.
Speaker 2: But Bibby finished up a strong second season in the
Speaker 2: big leagues with a win on Tuesday night against the Reds.
Speaker 2: We caught up with him the following day and he said,
Speaker 2: when he looks back on the season as a whole,
Speaker 2: finding consistency is the biggest key for him over the
Speaker 2: course of a long campaign.
Speaker 8: I think so I think I'm just kind of weathering
Speaker 8: the ups and downs.
Speaker 9: I mean, we're playing the game really from February to.
Speaker 8: October November.
Speaker 9: If you really think about X We're in brought the
Speaker 9: complex in February, so I mean, I think with that
Speaker 9: long of a season, I mean, you're just trying to
Speaker 9: keep it as stable as possible.
Speaker 2: How different a picture are you right now than maybe
Speaker 2: you were on your first start back in open super.
Speaker 8: Different because the end of the ear is bad. I
Speaker 8: think it's a lot different.
Speaker 9: I mean there's been a lot of tweaks here and there,
Speaker 9: whether it's Arsenal added a couple of pitches, but overall,
Speaker 9: I mean I feel like I'm better at the end
Speaker 9: than I was in the beginning.
Speaker 8: That's usually the goal.
Speaker 2: And when you mentioned Arsenal, are you using things a
Speaker 2: little bit differently or or maybe a certain pitch developed
Speaker 2: better than than maybe you expected.
Speaker 9: Yeah, I mean I think this is the I think
Speaker 9: the first year, probably since my junior year of college,
Speaker 9: or I've either changed up a grip or added a
Speaker 9: new pitch. I mean, I think the sweeper thing that
Speaker 9: I've been throwing, trying to figure out a thing with
Speaker 9: depth with the past the past two starts, I feel
Speaker 9: like we really accomplished pretty well and start throwing a
Speaker 9: little too steam and it's been feeling good.
Speaker 2: Responsibility. Shane Bieber goes down after two starts, and I
Speaker 2: think a lot of people looked at you and said, hey,
Speaker 2: he's our new ace of this staff. And I don't
Speaker 2: know if you felt that way at all. But was
Speaker 2: there more responsibility after the jury to Beeber and where
Speaker 2: you stood in the rotation?
Speaker 8: I mean, I don't really think so.
Speaker 9: I think regardless whether Shane was here or not, I mean,
Speaker 9: not going to replace some but my job stayed the same.
Speaker 9: I mean, getting the ball every five days, five six days,
Speaker 9: whatever it is. So I don't really think my job
Speaker 9: changed a lot. I think it just, uh, it was
Speaker 9: more of the outside source, which you con just have
Speaker 9: to ignore probably ninety nine percent of the time.
Speaker 8: So I would say I would say it stayed the same.
Speaker 2: Team wise, they're right where they'd like to be with
Speaker 2: the clinching a division title and a bye right into
Speaker 2: the division series. When you looked at how this team developed,
Speaker 2: what are you most proud of it? As you look
Speaker 2: at your teammates over the course of the season, I.
Speaker 9: Mean I feel like there's a lot of things that
Speaker 9: these guys did well. I mean Lively coming in doing
Speaker 9: what he's done. I mean, Goddess Caid and Tim coming
Speaker 9: in in their first full year in the big league
Speaker 9: and doing what they've done. I mean Rokio in his
Speaker 9: first full year being one of the best defensive trot
Speaker 9: stops in the league. And I mean, obviously you got
Speaker 9: Nail as Josey Kahn him me. I mean there's literally
Speaker 9: everyone Will Lane coming in doing what he's done. I mean, boyd,
Speaker 9: I mean, I could literally go on forever, but I
Speaker 9: really think it's just been unbelievable from everyone. And I
Speaker 9: think it's a big step up from from what happened
Speaker 9: last year. I feel like last year is a little
Speaker 9: bit of a fluky year. A lot of bad stuff happened,
Speaker 9: and I think we came out of it a little better.
Speaker 2: From that mental standpoint. Did it make you stronger what
Speaker 2: happened last year, especially towards the tail end, I think so.
Speaker 9: I mean, I feel like last year, I feel like
Speaker 9: I didn't really know what to expect. Obviously, it is
Speaker 9: my first year, so I'm just trying to do what
Speaker 9: I can do for the team. I think last year
Speaker 9: and just trying to go out there, like I said,
Speaker 9: every five days. But I feel like being exposed to
Speaker 9: it the year like last year and a year like
Speaker 9: this year. I mean, I feel like the big question
Speaker 9: coming of this year was we're the guys in this
Speaker 9: team were the twenty twenty two version of the twenty
Speaker 9: twenty three And I feel like we've we've proven that
Speaker 9: we're the twenty twenty two version.
Speaker 2: And not having been here in twenty two and experienced postseason.
Speaker 2: What are you most looking forward to about postseason?
Speaker 8: There's a lot.
Speaker 9: I mean, I feel like the crowds are gonna be awesome.
Speaker 9: I feel like there's gonna be so much energy, alot
Speaker 9: on the line. I mean, I think I think there's
Speaker 9: a long list of stuff that I'm really excited for.
Speaker 9: I'm excited to be the playoffs. I mean, I feel
Speaker 9: like not many people get to do this very often.
Speaker 9: I mean, I feel like I was talking to Cob
Speaker 9: the other day and he was I think the last
Speaker 9: time I pitched in the playoffs was against Cleveland here.
Speaker 8: So that's kind of a crazy thing. It's twenty twenty
Speaker 8: four and I was twenty thirteen. I think twenty thirteen. Yeah, so, yeah,
Speaker 8: it's crazy to get to do this in my second year.
Speaker 8: Hopefully can do this every year.
Speaker 2: And probably one of the biggest cliches is this is
Speaker 2: why you play the game to play and pitching games
Speaker 2: like that, And are you starting to understand what that means?
Speaker 3: Yeah, I think so.
Speaker 8: I mean, it's a it's an absolute privilege.
Speaker 9: I mean, I feel like, along with being a good
Speaker 9: baseball team, doing stuff right, doing a lot of little
Speaker 9: things correctly, I feel like there's also an aspect of
Speaker 9: luck to it. I mean, I feel like once the
Speaker 9: pitcher releases the ball and you have no more control,
Speaker 9: once the hitter hits the ball, there's no more control.
Speaker 9: I mean, there's a lot of stuff that's not under
Speaker 9: your control in this game. And I feel like I
Speaker 9: feel like with us being a good baseball team, it's
Speaker 9: also gone our way a lot. But I think that's
Speaker 9: just because we play the game right and we do
Speaker 9: things the right way.
Speaker 2: It has been a fun season, great season for you, certainly,
Speaker 2: and I know a lot more to come. Thanks a
Speaker 2: lot for coming back.
Speaker 8: Yea.
Speaker 2: Absolutely always good stuff from Tanner Biby and look for
Speaker 2: him to be a big key for the Guardians in
Speaker 2: the postseason. Another key for Cleveland can they score enough
Speaker 2: runs to make a deep postseason run. Chris Falaka is
Speaker 2: the hitting coach and Steven Voden his coaching staff continue
Speaker 2: preparations for the playoffs, which begin next Saturday time. Now
Speaker 2: for a rundown on some of the key hitters and
Speaker 2: the Guardians lineup from game to game, including Lane Thomas,
Speaker 2: who was off to a slow start when he was
Speaker 2: first acquired via trade from Washington, but Chris says that
Speaker 2: things have turned around dramatically for Thomas due to a
Speaker 2: lot of hard work.
Speaker 6: I think, you know, anybody that gets traded or you know,
Speaker 6: comes up to the big leagues, you know, it's it's
Speaker 6: tough for them to you know, they want to perform
Speaker 6: from day one, and you know, Lane having some track
Speaker 6: record and being in the big leagues for a while
Speaker 6: like he had, you know, I think it's difficult coming
Speaker 6: to in your organization, especially somebody that traded for you
Speaker 6: that you want to show why they traded for you. So,
Speaker 6: you know, more of it was just you know, keeping
Speaker 6: him positive. There was some stuff we were working through mechanically,
Speaker 6: just keeping him more aggressive and looking to impact the ball,
Speaker 6: you know, not trying to be too fine. And you know,
Speaker 6: not just him, but other guys fall into that spiral
Speaker 6: when they're trying to be too perfect. It's hard to
Speaker 6: get your a swing off that. You know, he just
Speaker 6: had to get over that hurdle and it took a
Speaker 6: little bit, a little bit of time, but you know,
Speaker 6: seeing his at bats of late, you know, I think
Speaker 6: he's turned that corner.
Speaker 2: You have two youngsters up from Triple A Columbus who
Speaker 2: are here in the season and on Hell Martinez and
Speaker 2: Kyle Mansarto, and both looked really sharp here in the
Speaker 2: month of September. What have you seen in terms of
Speaker 2: improvements from them?
Speaker 6: I think with Kyle, you know, him learning the cadence
Speaker 6: of how to DH and not playing you know, the
Speaker 6: field or not playing you know, every day like he
Speaker 6: might have been in Columbus. So I think he's done
Speaker 6: a great job learning from the experience when he when
Speaker 6: he was up here to start and really owning that
Speaker 6: that that routine that he has during the game. And
Speaker 6: then Angel, Angel has done a great job, you know,
Speaker 6: controlling the strike zone, especially hitting at the top of
Speaker 6: the lineup, not trying to put too much pressure on
Speaker 6: himself and do more than he needs to do. And
Speaker 6: you know, the swing decisions or some of the chase
Speaker 6: has been something in the past with him, but you know,
Speaker 6: since his time in the big leagues, we haven't really
Speaker 6: seen that. And I think, you know, he continues to
Speaker 6: grow as a as a person and a baseball player.
Speaker 2: And your mainstays, Jose Ramirez, Josh Naylor, what are you
Speaker 2: seeing from them as they get a little bit closer
Speaker 2: to the end here.
Speaker 6: I mean, hose Hosey is the probably the benchmark of consistency.
Speaker 6: So seeing what he does on a daily basis is
Speaker 6: just incredible to you know, thirty five home runs, thirty
Speaker 6: you know, one hundred plus RBIs I think what thirty
Speaker 6: five doubles now, So just seeing his consistency, you know,
Speaker 6: and Josh, you know, just be being that presence and
Speaker 6: that threat in the lineup.
Speaker 2: And you have some young guys who have gone through
Speaker 2: their ups and downs, and let's start behind the plate,
Speaker 2: Bod Naylor. Has she shown enough improvement where you feel
Speaker 2: confident heading into the postseason that he can do some
Speaker 2: damage or is he still working on some things?
Speaker 6: I mean, we're always going to be working on things
Speaker 6: with guys, But I think both showing a lot of
Speaker 6: growth through this year. You know, these are the most
Speaker 6: games he's played in his professional career, so seeing him
Speaker 6: navigate that has been won. But just the professionalism he
Speaker 6: comes with every day, you know, not just offensively, but
Speaker 6: how he's running a pitching staff, how well he's done
Speaker 6: defensively behind the plate. That we're always going to keep working,
Speaker 6: you know, I think that the work is never done
Speaker 6: with him. I think there's still more to be to
Speaker 6: be seen than we've seen thus far. But you know,
Speaker 6: right now, I can't be more pleased with what he's done.
Speaker 2: And John Kenzie know, well, he'll have his ups and downs,
Speaker 2: I'm sure, but as he gets deeper into this thing,
Speaker 2: what have you seen, it's encouraging.
Speaker 6: You know, I've he keeps growing and maturing. And even
Speaker 6: days he's not playing, how prepared he is on the bench,
Speaker 6: his routine during during the game, you know, he's thinking
Speaker 6: along along with the game, He's watching the iPads, he's
Speaker 6: watching the game. He's very prepared and waiting for his opportunity.
Speaker 6: And I think we've seen that on days he does
Speaker 6: get to play, you know, you might see some some
Speaker 6: big chase at times, but he's a presence, he's a
Speaker 6: threat in the box and that if you know, if
Speaker 6: there's a mistake to be had, he's going to hit
Speaker 6: it into the bleachers.
Speaker 2: And in general fun stuff to be sure, this time
Speaker 2: of year where you know there's going to be more
Speaker 2: baseball at some point.
Speaker 6: Yeah, I mean it's super exciting. You know. I think
Speaker 6: we just you know, want to get through the finish
Speaker 6: line here and you know, obviously get an opportunity at
Speaker 6: the playoffs. But you know, we've come this far, We've
Speaker 6: been you know, in front of the division all year
Speaker 6: that you know, I think it's special for these guys
Speaker 6: to finish the job that they came out and set
Speaker 6: out to do in spring training and that that's when
Speaker 6: the Division and ultimately the World Series.
Speaker 2: Chris, always great to have you on. Thank you got it,
Speaker 2: And it's Guardian City coach Spaleka with the rundown on
Speaker 2: several of the team's hitters as they head into postseason
Speaker 2: play next week.
Speaker 3: Stay with us.
Speaker 2: We'll be back to the final segment of Guardians Weekly
Speaker 2: after this timeout on the Cleveland Clinic Guardians Radio Network.
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Speaker 2: Jimmerros Announced back with you from Progressive Field in downtown Cleveland.
Speaker 2: It's Guardian's weekly in time for our final segment. Every
Speaker 2: once in a while, we check in with Guardian Senior
Speaker 2: Vice President Bob D Biassio for another edition of At
Speaker 2: the Ballpark with Bobby D. Coming your way right now.
Speaker 1: The perfectly manicured field, the unmistakable aroma of a ballpark
Speaker 1: hot dog, and the electricity celebrating another victory.
Speaker 3: This is at the Ballpark with Bobby D. Thank you, Hammy.
Speaker 10: Welcome to at the Ballpark, where we hope you enjoy
Speaker 10: our conversations with those involved in the wonderful game of baseball.
Speaker 10: Those who may be behind the scenes were the colorful
Speaker 10: personalities who have provided so many exciting moments and memories.
Speaker 10: We're joined by outfielder Ellis Sparks. Appreciate you taking.
Speaker 3: The time to connect Dallas.
Speaker 11: Thanks for having me, Bobby. I enjoyed every time I
Speaker 11: come to the ballpark and get to see guys like you.
Speaker 10: That's very kind. You enjoyed a long major league career,
Speaker 10: eighteen seasons with five different ball clubs. Your big league
Speaker 10: career started at age of twenty two and you ended
Speaker 10: at the age of thirty nine, including three seasons in
Speaker 10: the Cleveland uniform. It all began when you were the
Speaker 10: Boston Red Sox number one draft pick, the twentieth pick
Speaker 10: overall in nineteen eighty three. Oddly, it was the January Draft.
Speaker 10: Not many people remember there was a January draft and
Speaker 10: a June Draft. How did all that come about?
Speaker 11: Well, you know, I had went to Ranger Junior College
Speaker 11: out of high school and ended up playing there my
Speaker 11: freshman year. I had no idea about a January draft,
Speaker 11: and all of a sudden, the scouts were coming to
Speaker 11: the game and they said, you have an opportunity to
Speaker 11: get drafted, and I was like, oh, great, you know,
Speaker 11: and they drafted me in the first round, the Red
Speaker 11: Sox did and that was the last year of the
Speaker 11: January Draft, nineteen eighty three. Quite a moment for me
Speaker 11: and my family to get an opportunity to play pro ball,
Speaker 11: you know, not knowing that I was making to the
Speaker 11: big leagues eventually, but just to have that opportunity was amazing.
Speaker 10: You were born in Mississippi and then but grew up
Speaker 10: in Texas Fort Worth area. What age did you move
Speaker 10: into Texas and begin to play where you were an
Speaker 10: all three sport guy for sport guy, I'm sure.
Speaker 3: Well.
Speaker 11: I left Mississippi when I was ten years old and
Speaker 11: my parents moved to Texas, and of course middle school,
Speaker 11: high school, college in Texas, and all of a sudden,
Speaker 11: you know, in high school, I did play basketball, I
Speaker 11: played baseball, I ran track, did not play football, which
Speaker 11: is everyone asked me, why didn't you play football? Well,
Speaker 11: my dad told me, he says, hey, if you're going
Speaker 11: to concentrate on track in baseball, football will get you hurt.
Speaker 11: And the first time I went out to try out,
Speaker 11: I got hurt. Yeah, so I eliminated that from my scheduling.
Speaker 10: When you began your big league career Alice with the
Speaker 10: Red Sox in nineteen eighty seven, I mean you jumped
Speaker 10: right in. You did not ease into the big leagues.
Speaker 10: You played one hundred and thirty three games, had six
Speaker 10: hundred and six played appearances. No easing into it for you.
Speaker 10: Twenty homers, twenty seven steals, twenty twenty club right out
Speaker 10: on the box.
Speaker 11: Yeah, I mean, you know, it was one of those
Speaker 11: things where I knew how to play the game. You know,
Speaker 11: I was in the minor leagues for the Red Sox
Speaker 11: for three seasons. You know, learned a lot. They groomed
Speaker 11: me well. So when I got that opportunity to make
Speaker 11: it to the major league level, I just jumped.
Speaker 5: In right away.
Speaker 11: And I had some guys like Jim Rice, Dwight Evans
Speaker 11: that really helped me out in the outfield, and you know,
Speaker 11: I was just a part of a great team. You know,
Speaker 11: it was just one of those things I fit in
Speaker 11: quite well. So it was a lot of fun.
Speaker 10: Well twenty two playing center field and Fenway Park again
Speaker 10: with guys like Evans and Jim Rice, that had to
Speaker 10: be so incredibly special.
Speaker 11: That was so special. I mean I got an opportunity
Speaker 11: to meet those guys the spring training prior to me
Speaker 11: making it to the big leagues, and you know, they
Speaker 11: knew that I was one of these up and coming
Speaker 11: young kids. And it wasn't any animosity because the guys
Speaker 11: like Dave Henderson, he knew I was there to take
Speaker 11: his position. But no, he helped me more than anything.
Speaker 11: He showed me how to play certain players and position wise.
Speaker 11: He told me what these pitchers were gonna throw me,
Speaker 11: and he was so accurate. And you know, Dave Henderson
Speaker 11: was one hell of a guy and I truly miss him.
Speaker 10: Nineteen ninety six was probably your best season in the
Speaker 10: big leagues with Colorado. You had forty homers, one hundred
Speaker 10: and twenty eight ribbies, You had three forty four that year.
Speaker 10: Almost won the batting title, but some guy by the
Speaker 10: name of Tony Gwynn ends up hitting three point fifty
Speaker 10: three to beat you out that season. When you think
Speaker 10: about it, you scored one hundred and forty two runs
Speaker 10: to lead the league. You led the league and a
Speaker 10: bunch of other categories slugging percentage, extra base hits. When
Speaker 10: a season happens like that, does it go by too quickly?
Speaker 11: Well, Bobby, let me just say this. You just had
Speaker 11: to bring up that point about the batting title, Well.
Speaker 10: Tony Gwinn when you're in the same Sutton town.
Speaker 11: Yeah, you're absolutely right. And you know, that was just
Speaker 11: an amazing season for me, you know, offensively, defensively. It
Speaker 11: was just one of those seasons you dream about. You
Speaker 11: know it's in you, but it finally came out. That
Speaker 11: was just everything went right. It was from day one,
Speaker 11: you know, all the way through the end of the season.
Speaker 11: I saw the pitches out of the pitcher's hand. I mean,
Speaker 11: when you can do that, you know you're gonna have
Speaker 11: a successful year, and I did. I wish I could
Speaker 11: bottle that up and use it every year, but obviously
Speaker 11: it was just once in a lifetime type of thing.
Speaker 10: You sign as a free agent with Cleveland in two
Speaker 10: thousand and one, mostly as a DH and have two
Speaker 10: great offensive seasons. You play for Charlie Manuel. The two
Speaker 10: thousand and one team wins ninety one games. Your teammates
Speaker 10: with Jimmy Tomy and Robbie Alamar Kenny lofton Omark talk
Speaker 10: about that club.
Speaker 11: That was a great team. I was so happy to
Speaker 11: have an opportunity to come to Cleveland and play in
Speaker 11: an organization like this and play on a team with
Speaker 11: stars like that. You know, I left, of course Colorado
Speaker 11: and San Francisco and they have the great hitters as well,
Speaker 11: and I wanted to be in another organization like that.
Speaker 11: So it was an easy sign for me to come
Speaker 11: here to Cleveland. And I mean welcome me in with
Speaker 11: open arms, and that's exactly what me and my family wanted.
Speaker 10: You watched CC Sabbathi at twenty years old, what did
Speaker 10: you see in him as a young lefty?
Speaker 11: I saw a young phenom. I mean, this kid had
Speaker 11: it all. Fastball mid nineties to upper nineties, unbelievable breaking
Speaker 11: ball and a changeup. And the thing about CC, he
Speaker 11: had the poise. You know, it was like he's been
Speaker 11: here before, that kind of stuff, and you know, he
Speaker 11: was one of these kids. He he absorbed all of
Speaker 11: the knowledge that he got at the minor league level
Speaker 11: and applied it that rookie year to win seventeen games
Speaker 11: his rookie year. That was pretty amazing.
Speaker 10: Since joining the Indians back in one you and your
Speaker 10: family made your home here in Cleveland and being inducted
Speaker 10: into the Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame in twenty eighteen,
Speaker 10: a remarkable career. Can't thank you enough for joining us
Speaker 10: and reliving some stories. We'll have to do it again.
Speaker 11: I appreciate it bybe thanks for having me.
Speaker 10: I hope you enjoyed our conversation with Alice Burks and
Speaker 10: we look forward to our next at the Ballpark on
Speaker 10: the Cleveland Guardians Radio Network.
Speaker 2: That's at the Ballpark with Bobby d And that's going
Speaker 2: to do it for this week's edition of Guardians Weekly.
Speaker 2: Thanks so much to Brian Motsey has always for putting
Speaker 2: together our show each week until next week when we'll
Speaker 2: be right back here as the Guardians will be getting
Speaker 2: the postseason underway with Game one of the con League
Speaker 2: Division Series. This is Jim Rosenhause reminding you that you've
Speaker 2: been listening to Guardians Weekly on the Cleveland Clinic Guardians
Speaker 2: Radio Network.
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