Before the 2000 season began, the only thing Cal Eldred and Pedro Martinez seemed to have in common was they were both right-handed pitchers earning a living in the major leagues.
Anyone who would have dared to compare the two in any other way probably would have been fitted with a straitjacket and placed in a padded room.
But summer officially has arrived and, believe it or not, Eldred now has as many victories as Martinez.
The veteran right-hander won his seventh straight decision Thursday, improving to 9-2 by shutting out Cleveland 6-0 before 23,374 at Comiskey Park.
Eldred’s fourth career shutout was his first since May 30, 1997, when he threw one against the Sox for Milwaukee. No one has mentioned Eldred’s name as an All-Star selection, but he’s tied for third in American League victories with Martinez and Oakland’s Gil Heredia, trailing only David Wells (12 victories) and the Sox’s James Baldwin (10).
Now it’s up to American League All-Star manager Joe Torre to consider whether Eldred is deserving of an All-Star berth in his ninth year in the majors.
“I know what my wife and three kids would say,” Eldred said. “The wives are the ones with the tough jobs. We get to play with men that act like kids. It’d be nice [to be selected], but [Baldwin] deserves it, and some other guys–Keith Foulke. I’m going to have to take backstage [to them]. If it happens, I’m not going to stay at home.”
Cleveland starter Chuck Finley (5-5) was signed as a free agent to get the Indians past the Yankees in the American League. But Eldred may be the one to get the Sox past Cleveland instead. He scattered seven hits while going 3-0 against the Indians this year.
“To get an effort like that, a complete-game shutout, it was huge,” Sox manager Jerry Manuel said. “At this point it takes a little time off the schedule. It shortens the season and stops the momentum from going in the other direction.”
The Sox regained a 7 1/2-game lead on Cleveland in the Central Division, splitting the four-game series to finish 5-2 against them in the last week’s home-and-home series and 7-3 on the year. The rivals play only three more games over the final 14 weeks of the season, a three-game series Sept. 8-10 at Jacobs Field.
“That was very important for us,” Frank Thomas said. “We can’t let those guys catch up and take any ground. Those guys aren’t going anywhere.”
After Ray Durham staked Eldred to a 1-0 lead with a homer leading off the first, Eldred gave up a leadoff triple to Travis Fryman in the second. But he induced Richie Sexson to ground out to third, struck out Russ Branyan and watched third baseman Herbert Perry make a leaping catch of Alex Ramirez’s liner to get out of the inning unscathed.
The Sox scored two more in the second and one in the third to take a 4-0 lead. Eldred gave up no more than one baserunner per inning until the ninth.
Eldred has not been so dominant since his rookie year in 1992. He went 10-0 to start the ’92 season with Milwaukee, but never has experienced another season where he finished better than .500. At 32, in his first year outside Milwaukee, the oldest player on the roster has taken a big gulp from the fountain of youth.
Thursday was just another day at the office.
“I was no more pumped up before the game,” he said. “The guys were playing their same loud music. And I was trying to ignore it.”
