The mound conference

So what exactly did manager Dave Trembley say to Jeremy Guthrie after walking to the mound in the eighth inning with two outs, a runner on first base and Grady Sizemore at the plate? "I said, 'You've earned the opportunity to be out here and finish this thing off. I trust you'll give it to me straight. If you're out of gas, tell me. If you want it, go ahead.' And he said, 'I'll get him out,' and I turned around and walked away," Trembley said after tonight's 8-1 victory. "I think you have to have confidence in your people and you've got to trust your people, and if there's anybody I know on this club, I know Guthrie. I've known him from a long time ago and I know him now." He must have known that Sizemore would ground out to first baseman Rhyne Hughes. Guthrie probably won't admit it, but tonight's start must have held special significance because he was facing his former team. "When we were in Minnesota and the weather was iffy, he told both Kranny and I, 'Hey, if you need me to come back on three days' rest to face Cleveland, I'll do that.' So that kind of tipped me off that he was going to be ready to pitch today," Trembley said. "I was there with Guthrie in the minor leagues when he was pitching for the Indians on the other side and I'm sure this is a big game for him. He may not say it, but I'm sure this was a big game for him."