MLB Cleveland

The 2008 season has been a great one for Cliff Lee, despite the fact that just about everything else has gone wrong when it comes to the Indians team he plays for. Lee has rebounded from a horrible 2007 campaign to go 11-2 with a 2.43 ERA this season, and was just named the AL starter in the All Star Game. So you would think that he'd probably be in a pretty good mood, but that doesn't seem to be the case.

Apparently the success and newfound fame has gone to Cliff's head, because he doesn't think he should have to move around or field the ball anymore. That can be the only reason why he got mad at the Twins' Carlos Gomez on Sunday after Gomez laid down a bunt in the first inning.

Gomez attempted to bunt on an 0-2 pitch in the first inning but pushed the ball too close to the mound. Lee fielded the ball, threw him out, then said something to Gomez after the play.

Lee and Gomez then jawed at each other after Gomez reached on an infield single in the third.

"I was just trying to do my job and he ... jumped on me,'' Gomez said after the Twins won 4-3. "He say, 'Stop bunting.' But not like that. With bad language.

So now that the Cleveland Indians have shipped C.C. Sabathia off to Milwaukee, we can officially say that the Indians are done trying to win in 2008. The focus has now been moved to preparing this team for the 2009 season and trying to figure out which pieces fit into that picture, and which ones don't.

While none of us can see the future, there is something about this Indians team that most of us have known for quite a while, and that is the fact that Grady Sizemore will not be a lead-off hitter his entire career. When Grady first came up with the Indians, everybody knew he was destined to be a middle of the order type guy, but with the Indians monster lineup the last few seasons, there was no need to do it.

Well, it's time now. Grady has grown up and he's ready to be the guy the Indians build their lineup around. Travis Hafner's power and ability to make contact with the ball have magically* disappeared and there's no guarantee they'll ever come back, so there is an opening.

Eric Wedge is currently batting Ben Francisco third, and Jhonny Peralta in the clean-up spot (where Jhonny's been raking). Meanwhile, Sizemore has an OPS of .914 and leads the American League with 22 home runs, yet he only has 50 RBI. How can that be? Well, since Grady hits lead-off, 16 of his 22 taters have come with nobody on base.

As anyone that closely followed the Erik Bedard saga last winter knows, it can be a long way from "We've agreed on a deal in principle" to players actually switching teams. Things aren't going to take that long with this Brewers/Indians trade, though, because the Brewers have announced a press conference for noon (11 AM Central) and if they don't announce a C.C. Sabathia trade, then .... actually, don't worry about it. They're announcing the trade.

The other key today is that the trade has expanded from "Matt LaPorta and someone" to "Matt LaPorta, Zach Jackson, Rob Bryson, and someone that may or may not be Taylor Green." Jackson's not much, but Bryson's an extremely young reliever with some good numbers in the low minors and Green's a good-hitting, young third base prospect.

If Green is the fourth piece of the puzzle for the Indians, they managed to pull about as good of a haul from the Brewers system that they could ask for without getting Alcides Escobar or Mat Gamel. The Brewers, meanwhile, managed to pick up the best available starting pitcher by only giving up one blue chip prospect. It's pretty rare that a trade like this ends up as a win for both teams, but at least it's got a chance to shake out well for both the Brewers and Indians.

This oughta make fans in Cleveland sleep better. They might be losing C.C. Sabathia eventually, but replacements are on the way. The Indians will make sure that the baseball season will go on better than ever. For when this Sabathia trade finally does happen, seamlessly stepping in will be: Jeff Weaver.

Yes, circumstances continue to enable Weaver to find work as the Indians have signed him to a minor league deal to provide a warm body take up innings for the Tribe, no matter what might happen. At least Weaver is long past the point of getting big dollars on the strength of his best season (which was 14-11 with the Dodgers in '05), or the strength of a very good postseason in '06 with the Cardinals (surprised that Dave Duncan could make Kyle Lohse a 10-2 pitcher ... how about what he did with Weaver in '06 after the Angels released him mid-season at 3-10?)

Ah, fun times in Cleveland.

Consider Joe Borowski, he of the higher ERA than save total for the season (7.56 to six), the first shoe. Borowski has been designated for assignment by the highly disappointing Cleveland Indians, who have gone from A.L. Central Champions to the team most likely to dump their ace.

Borowski always had a high ERA ... it was over five last season. But when you add in 45 saves for a winning team, a high ERA from your closer is a little easier to take. But on this Cleveland team, there's almost no reason to have a guy like Borowski, especially if they want to look at younger guys (like Jensen Lewis and Brian Slocum, who were called up from Buffalo). Now the question is this: Is C.C. Sabathia the other shoe? And if so, where is he going?

Milwaukee seems to be a good bet.

Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal is reporting that the Brewers are offering top prospect Matt LaPorta and shortstop Alcides Escobar for C.C. Sabathia.

Rosenthal has a lot of sources and quotes some of them anonymously as saying that LaPorta, a first-round draft pick last year now playing the outfield at Huntsville, and teammate Escobar are being offered for the big left-hander.

Considering how the Brewers blew a 5-0 lead against the Diamondbacks yesterday, the Brewers may want to look at Borowski too.

While the idea of the Cleveland Indians trading C.C. Sabathia before the trade deadline is far from a new one, it's probably a lot closer to becoming a reality today. The Indians were just swept by the White Sox, and have no fallen to last place in the AL Central, 12.5 games back at 37-48.

I think it's safe to say that the Indians are done in 2008. Maybe the doctor hasn't called the time of death yet, but he's at least in the waiting room letting the Tribe's family know that things aren't looking good. Which would mean that keeping Sabathia around in Cleveland for the rest of the season would be absolutely pointless.

He's not going to sign a long term deal with the Indians after the season, not because he doesn't enjoy playing there, but because somebody's going to drive up to his home with a trailer full of cash. So Indians general manager Mark Shapiro should probably be picking up the phone today to let other teams know that C.C. is officially available.

There have already been plenty of rumors and potential suitors like the Rays, Red Sox, Yankees, Phillies, and Cubs to name a few, but for the most part, everything we've heard has come from an outside source. If Shapiro has been actively shopping Sabathia on his own, he's done a very good job of keeping it quiet.

Now, I'm not saying that Shapiro should be calling every team that's interested in his lefthander and trying to make a deal, I'm just saying he should let it be known he's willing to listen. All he has to do is sit back and wait for the phone to start ringing, and it will. A lot.

Then leak some info as to what's being offered and then watch everybody try to top each other. It should be fun!

On Deck is FanHouse's look at the day's most intriguing matchups

Chicago Cubs (49-30) vs. Chicago White Sox (43-35) - 4:05 PM ET

The final weekend of interleague play for the season kicks off in the Bronx at 2 but the most meaningful game is in Chicago. The two Chicago clubs are in first, just as they were last week, but the White Sox can't afford another sweep at the hands of their crosstown rivals. The Twins are hard on their tail, a half-game back as play begins today, and there's that whole bragging rights thing to worry about too.

They'll need to do a better job against Ryan Dempster (9-2, 2.63) this time around. He held the Sox to one run in eight innings to win Sunday's finale at Wrigley Field. Dempster's won his last four decisions in what's turned out to be a very successful conversion from bullpen to rotation. They'll also need a better outing from their own starter. Jose Contreras (6-6, 3.96) got thrashed for 10 hits and nine runs in three and a third innings.

Things have finally bottomed out in Cleveland. Thanks to the Royals dominance over the National League these last few weeks (a record of 12-3) and the continued struggles of the Tribe, even against the NL where most AL teams have been thriving, the Indians now find themselves in last place.

With every day that passes, the hope that the Indians might turn things around and get back to the top of the division where they were expected to be dwindles a bit more. A trade of C.C. Sabathia before the deadline becomes more likely with each passing day as well, but now there's word out of New York that the Indians are trying to lock Sabathia up instead of trading him.

According to a major-league executive, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was discussing a player not on his team, the Cleveland Indians are making a last-ditch attempt to sign ace Sabathia to a contract extension before trading him.

Okay, so I have a few problems with this rumor. First of all, it's appearing in the New Jersey Star Ledger, and the Yankees are one of the teams interested in Sabathia. Second of all, the source is an executive from another team, and I'm not sure how that team would know the Indians were thinking about keeping Sabathia around all of a sudden.

Besides, the Indians and Sabathia couldn't come to terms on a new deal during spring training, and Sabathia has said he doesn't want to negotiate during the season. There's also the fact that the Indians aren't going to offer C.C. Johan Santana-type money, while somebody else probably will this off-season. Sabathia has no reason to stay in Cleveland at this point.

So I'm just not buying this, I think it's just some rival executive (let's say, Theo Epstein, just for kicks) trying to mess with the Yankees minds.

The Cleveland Indians are struggling, and things keep getting worse. Players are going down to injuries left and right, the White Sox are at the top of the division, and if they don't pay attention they could end up behind Detroit AND Kansas City. So what's the cause? Who is to blame?

Well, Yankees Chick blames Kyle Farnsworth. Matt Snyder (Dugout SN: AlongCameASnyder) has his own ideas. But once again it is The Dugout who cuts through the melodrama and bias of sports writing on the Internet to bring you the true story; a story of intrigue that could only have been birthed in the depths of the most deductive scientific minds.

Join us for part 1 of 10 Little Indians, after the jump.