Until Alex Rodriguez hits hits 600 home runs, we'll be baseballreference.com-ing his batter vs. pitcher history against his opposition for the night. Tonight? Josh Tomlin and the Cleveland Indians.
Career vs. the Indians: 29 home runs Career at Progressive Field/Jacobs Field: 10 Vs. Josh Tomlin, tonight's starter: Tonight is Tomlin's major league debut. (Minor league stats this year: 2.68 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 11 HR's in 107.1 IP) Indians Bullpen:
Vs. Rafael Perez: 0-3, 2 K's. (In postseason play: 1-1, 1 HR, 1 RBI) Vs. Chris Perez: 1-3, 1 HR, 4 RBI Vs. Jensen Lewis: 0-2, 2 K's Vs. Joe Smith: 0-2, 1 K Vs. Hector Ambriz: 1-1, 1 RBI Vs. Tony Sipp: 0-1 Has not faced Jeanmar Gomez, Jess Todd, Kerry Wood, or Frank Herrmann
Analysis: You never know what to expect out of a guy making his Major League debut, although you kind of hope his career doesn't start off by giving up a milestone homer to a future Hall-of-Famer. Actually, on second thought, that doesn't sound that bad. Memorable, at least. Tomlin has pretty great minor league stats, and has given up less than a homer per nine innings in his career thus far, so that bodes well for the 26-year old. And the Indians' bullpen still has just as staunch a record against Rodriguez as they did yesterday, so there's no help there.