Morning Rundown: Lowe Scuffles and a Sizemore Setback

Let's just cut to the chase. There was no timetable said, but there was most definitely a timetable established by the Indians. Whether they let Sizemore on as to what that timetable was or they kept it in their collective heads is beyond me, but don't believe Acta when he says that there was never one.

Why? Because he just said the 'process' was slowed down. In other words, there was a setback. It's just clever Shapiroese to make us think everything is fine and dandy. While I love Acta, I love Shapiro, I love Antonetti, this is the type of talk that you need to come to expect from the regime. And you just have to, in kindly put words, break up the BS when needed.

In his less-experienced verse of Shapiroese, trainer Lonnie Soloff pretty much got caught.

Here's the thing. If there wasn't some sort of issue in his recovery, this wouldn't be a discussion. Why was it brought up? Maybe the media sees the 60 day window coming up and that he's eligible to return so they ask. Or maybe there was a status update.

Sizemore's rehab has been slowed, that much we know and that is enough to garner the idea that there was a setback. It doesn't sound major, but you just need to qualify it for what it is. A setback. The use of Shapiroese simply makes this a bigger deal than it is to me because if you were to just tell me it was as setback and how much it set him back, I'd have everything I needed to know.

Instead, most of us just have to sit here and decode the language. How fun.

[RANDOM RUNDOWN]

Mentioned the effectiveness of Vincent K. Pestano and Chris 'Pure Rage' Perez against the Tigers yesterday. However it's just par for the course. They've just done a lot of their damage against Detroit.

"It's very comforting to me when we have a lead in the eighth," Acta said. "I mean, I tip my hat to the other club if they beat us, but I'd put those guys against anybody right now. More times than not, they have come out on top."

The combo has become a regular automatic game shortening factor. They would say Mariano Rivera shortened the game by an inning and now with the Indians having these two on the roll they are on, the game is being shortened by two. You get six innings of quality work from your starter and there isn't much need for anything else.

If you had the Indians leading the league in stolen bases, especially after the first week of the season was finished, you are a regular visionary, congratulations. I would have never pegged the Indians of all teams to be the speed demons they are, swiping the most bags in the American League thus far. But by golly, they are right up there.

While Jason Kipnis is the leader in the clubhouse, it is Michael Brantley that is a big reason for the lead. We all knew this was his game but what we didn't know was how much it wouldn't be apart of his game early on. While I personally am expecting more out of him, just the fact that he's been out there doing it more often than in years past is a good sign. Add in a returning to form Choo and surprise swiper Kipnis, and this team has more than a few options to gain an extra bag.

Manny Acta credited first base coach Tom Widenbauer with the success, saying that the Indians have not had a coach on staff primarily dedicated to the art of base running until Widenbauer came on this season.

I watched Aeros starter Steven Wright take a no-hitter into the seventh inning last night. The Aeros won 2-1 and are now 36-20 on the season and in first place by 5.5 games. Wright improved to 5-2 on the year with a 1.67 ERA. I think it's time he get back to Columbus. What better story in the Indians minor league system is better than Wrights?

"It was almost like a gift from God, because at end of the 2011 season, I strained a ligament in my finger," Wright said. "It hurt for a while to throw a knuckleball. ... I got back to where I used to be, throwing fastballs, sinkers, cutters, curveballs and using the knuckleball as an out pitch. When I started doing that, I started seeing not only that my knuckeball was better in terms of movement, but I was able to throw in the strike zone more consistently."

Wright will be 28-years-old towards the end of the season, but his chances of making a run at a big league roster spot have never looked better. You can't really deny what he is doing because the numbers he is putting up now as a knuckleballer are eye-popping. Last year it was okay, but he was still learning to throw it. Now it's almost as if he's a professional.

And finally a big storyline this weekend will be Chris Perez's return to St. Louis. He's not making that big of a deal about it though.

"I was only there for 1 1/2 years," said Perez. "It's not like I was there for 10 years. I didn't help them win anything. I was a middle reliever, I don't think they really cared [that they traded me]."

Perez said it will be nice to go back because of all the friends he has on the team, having gone up through their minor league systems with a lot of their current roster. But he is over whatever went down in St. Louis and happy they traded him to Cleveland. I think we are too.