Ed Mujica had logged 10 consecutive scoreless appearances. Certainly, he could be trusted with a four-run, eighth-inning lead against the Tigers, right?

If you answered in the affirmative, you obviously haven't been paying attention to the 2008 Indians.

Mujica gave up four runs -- all with two outs -- as the Tigers tied the game.

And for Wedge, it was once again back to the drawing board in a season in which nothing seems to go right in the relief department.

Try to figure out a big league bullpen, as Wedge and the rest of the Indians' decision-makers have this season, and you'll end up with a headache.

"It's quite the enigma," Wedge said.

The Indians head into the month of August and a nine-game road trip that begins Friday night in Minnesota hoping to solve at least some of that enigma. Plenty of time for evaluating their 2009 options remains, and they need to know which of the arms currently residing in their bullpen can help them next season.

Left-hander Rafael Perez (1-2, 3.20 ERA) and right-hander Masa Kobayashi (4-4, 3.62) are the only definites. Mujica (0-1, 5.40), his Wednesday troubles aside, appears to be an intriguing option. The Indians are encouraged by the improvement Jensen Lewis (0-3, 4.61) has shown in the velocity department, though he's still a major question mark.

Plenty of questions also revolve around former setup man Rafael Betancourt (2-4, 5.79), who has been nothing if not inconsistent this year, newly added right-hander Juan Rincon (2-3, 6.38), who is trying to find the form that once made him a dominant late-inning arm for the Twins, and right-hander Tom Mastny (1-2, 11.68), who is rarely used and rarely predictable.

This is a far cry from the bullpen of 2007, which was among the game's best.

How does such a fall from grace happen so quickly?

"I don't think there's an explanation for it," Wedge said. "If there were, nobody would be able to keep it under their hat. This game's fragile, and bullpens are even more fragile."

While their contention hopes were long ago dashed, the Indians hope to use these final two months to begin the process of making their fragile bullpen whole again.

Pitching matchup
CLE: LHP Jeremy Sowers (1-5, 5.86 ERA)
Sowers had his best start in nearly two years Sunday, and it looks like the left-hander may have found a groove. In his longest outing since July 28, 2006, Sowers flirted with perfection, retiring the first 15 Twins in order before bowing out after eight innings of work. The only damage he allowed were two runs on a couple soft hits, but they were more than enough to force him to settle for a no-decision. Sowers has not faced the Twins this year, but in 2006 he picked up one of his two career complete-game shutouts against Minnesota.

MIN: RHP Nick Blackburn (7-6, 3.69 ERA)
Blackburn takes the mound against the Indians five days after facing the Tribe in Cleveland. The right-hander ended up with a no-decision, but pitched well, allowing one run and four hits in seven innings. He left with a 2-1 lead, but the Indians tied the game in the eighth. Blackburn is 2-0 in three starts against Cleveland this season. He has allowed three earned runs in 20 1/3 innings.

Tidbits
Grady Sizemore has an 11-game hitting streak, during which he's batted .340 with four homers and nine RBIs. He hit eight homers in the month of July, which was tied for the second-most in the American League. ... The Indians have homered in 23 of their last 26 games. ... Fausto Carmona's win on Thursday was his first since May 12. ... Catcher Sal Fasano has driven in a run in each of the last three games in which he's appeared.

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Up next
• Saturday: Indians (Paul Byrd, 5-10, 4.93) at Twins (Kevin Slowey, 7-7, 4.00), 7:10 p.m. ET
• Sunday: Indians (Matt Ginter, 1-2, 4.20) at Twins (Glen Perkins, 8-3, 4.20), 2:10 p.m. ET
• Monday: Indians (Cliff Lee, 14-2, 2.58) at Rays (Matt Garza, 9-6, 3.56), 7:10 p.m. ET