Lee, Tribe keep rolling

Hall of Fame sportswriter Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News described Cincinnati's effort against the Rockies Sunday as "the Reds falling out of an ugly tree and hitting every branch on the way to the ground."

Kind of sounds like the Bisons' 9-1 loss to Scranton, but let's stay positive tonight and look at the Indians. Cy Young favorite Cliff Lee cruised to his 19th win, Cleveland won its ninth straight -- a 10-4 dusting of Detroit -- and the Indians seem primed to overtake Detroit in the AL Central.

For Indians fans, how sweet would all that have sounded before the year? As it is, still good signs all-around. Grady Sizemore, Ben Francisco and Jhonny Peralta have revived the Tribe's bats, Jensen Lewis is looking like a possible late-inning option next season, Anthony Reyes seems like a lock to open next season in the rotation, Zack Jackson has quietly impressed and, of course, there's Lee. Throwing 7 2/3 innings of one-run ball Tuesday, Lee (19-2) became one of only eight pitchers since 1920 to win 19 of their first 21 decisions. According to STATS Inc., the only other pitchers to do so were Lefty Grove (1931), Whitey Ford (1961), Gaylord Perry (1966), Ron Guidry (1978), Greg Maddux (1995) and Roger Clemens (2001).

The one downside to Lee's brilliance and the Tribe's late resurgence is how it might affect the mindset of GM Mark Shapiro. Following last season's run to the ALCS, Shapiro felt comfortable going forward with the same roster. Might he be more inclined now to look past the team's patent flaws (closer, anyone?), given the Tribe's recent success without Victor Martinez and Travis Hafner? Guess we'll see.

--- David Briggs