News
Brantley, Huff lead Tribe to win
Outfielder scores twice; starter yields one run on two hits
By Anthony Castrovince / MLB.com
09/06/09 4:57 PM ET
CLEVELAND -- Mickey Brantley's going to have a hard time critiquing this one. After each of Michael Brantley's games, his father, a former Mariners outfielder and Blue Jays hitting coach, dissects his performance, applauding the good and constructively criticizing the bad. "I love it," the younger Brantley said of the advice. "I'm thankful for it." But Brantley's first week in the big leagues concluded with a performance Sunday that was beyond reproach, as he and fellow rookie David Huff were instrumental in the Indians' 3-1 win over the Twins. Brantley scored the Tribe's first run, knocked in the go-ahead run and escaped the clutches of a rundown to remain on base and score an insurance run as the Indians took the three-game weekend set at Progressive Field. "He impacted the game today," manager Eric Wedge said. "No doubt about it." Huff also made an impact with one of his strongest starts of the season. Showing no hint of corrosion after a 10-day layoff, he went seven innings in which he allowed just a run on two hits with four walks and two strikeouts to post his team-high ninth win. Rust? What rust? "Fresh is more like it," Huff said. "I was more worried I was going to have too much movement on my pitches." This game moved quickly because offense was at a premium, and that's what made Brantley's 2-for-4 showing stand out all the more. The game's first hit didn't come until Asdrubal Cabrera led off the bottom of the fourth with a single off Minnesota starter Nick Blackburn, and the Twins' first hit didn't come until there were two outs into the fifth. But the Twins turned their first hit into the game's first run. Nick Punto doubled and scored on Denard Span's line-drive single up the middle to make it 1-0. The Indians evened it up in the sixth. Brantley, who has a hit in each of his first six big league games, singled to open the inning and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Cabrera. One out later, Jhonny Peralta's RBI single scored Brantley to tie it at 1. In the seventh, Luis Valbuena led off with a single and moved to second on Andy Marte's sac bunt. Brantley gave the Tribe the go-ahead run by ripping an RBI single to right, but he got caught in a rundown between first and second and appeared to be meat. Getting caught off first was somewhat by design, in that Brantley had hoped the throw in from right would be cut off so that he could get in a rundown long enough for Valbuena to score. It was the kind of heads-up play one wouldn't expect from a guy playing just his sixth game at this level. But Brantley said he was just doing what he was taught in baserunning drills in the Minors. "That's what you teach," he said, "and when the time comes, you've got to apply it." While Brantley's job was done when Valbuena scored, he didn't stop there. With a sprint toward second and a headfirst slide into the bag, he tried to elude first baseman Michael Cuddyer, who was holding the ball. Cuddyer tried to lay a tag on Brantley's leg, but he dropped the ball. Brantley was safe at second, and he went on to score on Cabrera's RBI double. "He showed unbelievable athleticism staying in that rundown like he did," Wedge said of Brantley. Brantley credits all the time he spent around big league clubhouses growing up with the mental maturity he's showed thus far in his Major League career. And in going 9-for-23 with two RBIs and four runs scored thus far, he's showing he's worthy of the leadoff spot he inherited from a hobbled Grady Sizemore. "It's a great feeling," Brantley said. "It's everything I dreamed of. I want to stay confident, stay focused and learn from my teammates. That's the biggest thing." This season has been a learning process for Huff, and he has looked polished in his last two starts. The break between them was a product of the Indians placing a cap on his innings pitched for this season. Because he got skipped and the Indians are now working with a six-man rotation, it appears he'll be able to remain in the rotation through the end of the season, and his 170-inning cap won't force him to be shut down prematurely. "This is uncharted territory for me," Huff said. "Last year [in Triple-A], I finished the season around Sept. 1. This is new for me, and I enjoy it." The Twins didn't enjoy facing Huff at this best. "When he missed, it was off the plate," Cuddyer said. "He never really missed over the plate." And after Brantley's heroics put Huff in line for the win, Tony Sipp preserved the lead in the eighth, and Kerry Wood came through with his 19th save in the ninth. All in all, it was an afternoon that no doubt made a proud pop out of Mickey Brantley, who was in attendance. What if he doesn't have any of that constructive criticism to offer up? "If he doesn't," Michael said with a smile, "it means I've done a great job."Anthony Castrovince is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
