Team adrianna
Jason Kipnis and the rest of the Indians take a team photo for leukemia awareness in honor of Mike Aviles' 4-year-old daughter Adrianna on June 18, 2015 at Progressive Field.
(Chuck Crow, The Plain Dealer)
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Indians opened the second half of the season in a manner representative of how they played for much of the first stanza.
The Indians amassed a 38-43 record in the season's first half, prior to Monday's 9-4 loss to Houston. Here is a review of the good, the bad, the ugly and the obscene from the first 81 games of the 2015 campaign.
THE BEST
Carrasco's near no-no
All Carlos Carrasco could do was laugh. On July 1, he fell one strike short of the franchise's first no-hitter in 34 years. Tampa Bay's Joey Butler slapped a single over the head of second baseman Jason Kipnis on an 0-2 count with two outs in the ninth. Carrasco applauded Kipnis' effort and flashed a smile.
KKKKKluber
On May 13, Corey Kluber racked up 18 strikeouts over eight scoreless innings. He limited the Cardinals, the owners of baseball's best record, to one hit and he did not issue a walk.
Team Adriana
Indians owner Paul Dolan shaved his head in support of Mike Aviles.
Mike Aviles' 4-year-old daughter, Adriana, was diagnosed with leukemia in early May. Members of the roster, the coaching staff and the front office buzzed or shaved their heads in support. Aviles himself buzzed owner Paul Dolan's head in the Indians' dugout.
Walking off
The Indians notched their first walk-off win of the season on June 21, the afternoon Cody Anderson made his big league debut. Anderson tossed 7 2/3 scoreless innings and David Murphy's sacrifice fly in the ninth provided the Tribe with a 1-0 triumph. Roberto Perez scored the winning run when the ball squirted away from Rays catcher Curt Casali.
THE WORST
Offensive offense
Where do we begin? With Carlos Santana's .206/.345/.359 slash line? With Nick Swisher's minimal return on a pricy investment? With Michael Bourn's removal from the leadoff spot and reduction in playing time? The Indians averaged 3.0 runs per game in June. In 76 plate appearances with the bases loaded in the first half, the Indians posted a .372 OPS.
Calamity at Camden Yards
On June 28, the Indians were blanked in both tilts of a double header in Baltimore for the first time in 40 years. In the first game of the twin bill, former Tribe hurler Ubaldo Jimenez bested Trevor Bauer. In the nightcap, Toru Murata, making his major league debut, suffered the loss in a spot start.
April showers
The Indians limped out of the gates to a 7-14 record in April. They were swept by the Tigers in their home-opening series. After taking the final two contests in their season-opening set in Houston, the club didn't win consecutive games again until May 15-16.
No taming of the Tigers
Detroit has claimed nine of the clubs' 12 meetings this season. In 52 plate appearances against the Tribe this season, Miguel Cabrera owns a .619/.673/1.024 slash line, with five home runs and 16 RBIs.
THE WEIRD
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery
During an at-bat in Pittsburgh on July 3, Bauer mimicked the batting stances of teammates Mike Aviles, Jason Kipnis and Ryan Raburn. Bauer ended up drawing a nine-pitch walk.
Joint effort
Bauer, Kyle Crockett and Scott Atchison combined for eight hitless -- not spotless; the three totaled seven walks -- innings on April 9 at Minute Maid Park. Nick Hagadone struck out Chris Carter to start the ninth, but Jed Lowrie spoiled the bid at a combined no-hitter with a solo home run to left. It marked the Astros' only hit of the game.
Men of the mound
A 10-0 deficit swelled into a 17-0 hole against the Cubs on June 17. Terry Francona turned to outfielder Ryan Raburn to pitch the ninth to spare his taxed bullpen. Raburn's arm, however, got cranky after he tossed 25 pitches, so another outfielder, Murphy, relieved him. Murphy surrendered a grand slam to Cubs rookie Kris Bryant. He also threw a knuckleball.
Watch your step
Francisco Lindor socked a pitch to right field for his first career hit. It could have been a double if he didn't trip and fall while rounding first base.
First-half MVP: Jason Kipnis
He was selected to the All-Star Game on Monday. He'll be the team's lone representative. He compiled a .341/.419/.506 slash line in the first half and his .429 average and 51 hits in May earned him the distinction of Player of the Month for the American League.
First-half head-scratcher: Carlos Santana
At this point, the contracts for Swisher and Bourn are sunk costs and the hope for worthwhile production from the two appears to be a lost cause. Santana struggled at the start of the 2014 season. His struggles reached new depths in the first half of 2015. He batted .189 with a .294 on-base percentage in June.
They played their best...
...in a 13-1 win at Comerica Park in Detroit on April 24, as Brandon Moss homered twice and tallied seven RBIs, and in a four-game sweep at Tampa Bay last week, when Tribe starting pitchers carried a perfect game into the sixth inning in three straight games.
They played their worst...
...during the double header of misery at the end of June in Baltimore, and, a week earlier, in a 17-0 drubbing at the hands of the Cubs.