--LHP Cliff Lee is the second consecutive Indians pitcher to win the AL Cy Young award. Last year's winner, LHP CC Sabathia, was traded to Milwaukee in the middle of the Indians' disappointing 2008 season.
Lee, who was 22-3 with a 2.54 ERA, led the American League in wins and ERA. His .880 winning percentage was the third highest for a 20-game winner since 1901, exceeded only by Ron Guidry, who was 25-3 (.893) in 1978, and Lefty Grove, who was 31-4 (.886) in 1931. In addition to Lee and Sabathia, the only other Indians pitcher to win a Cy Young Award was Gaylord Perry in 1972.
"This is the pinnacle of pitching," Lee said. "It's something I'll be proud of the rest of my life."
--Longtime Indians broadcaster Herb Score was remembered for his longtime association with the club following his death Nov. 11 at age 75. As a player, Score exploded on the major league scene as the American League's Rookie of the Year in 1955, when he was 16-10 with 245 strikeouts, the latter a major league record for a rookie that stood for 30 years until it was broken by Dwight Gooden.
Score was 20-game winner in 1956, but his career was derailed in May 1957 when he was hit in the right eye by a line drive off the bat of the Yankees' Gil McDougald. Score was never the same pitcher following the injury, retiring following the 1962 season.
In 1964, he began his broadcasting career, and he was a fixture in the Indians' booth, either radio or TV, until he retired after the 1997 season.
In 1998, Score was seriously injured in an automobile accident, suffering numerous broken bones and internal injuries. He struggled with his health thereafter, and he died following a lengthy illness.
"Today is a sad day for the Cleveland Indians family and for Cleveland Indians fans everywhere," Indians president Paul Dolan said. "We have lost one of the greatest men in the history of our franchise. Generations of Indians fans owe their love of the Tribe to Herb Score, who was a powerful pitcher and legendary broadcaster."
--OF Grady Sizemore's Gold Glove award was his second in as many years. "It's a great feeling. Being recognized by your peers is the ultimate compliment," Sizemore said.
The 26-year-old outfielder is the first Indians player to win a Gold Glove in consecutive seasons since Omar Vizquel in 2000-01. Sizemore is the first Indians outfielder to win consecutive Gold Gloves since Kenny Lofton won four in a row starting in 1993.
Sizemore said he was surprised to win a Gold Glove last year and is equally surprised to win this year.
"Who grows up thinking they can win two Gold Gloves their first few years in pro ball? This is a great honor," he said.
Sizemore started 151 games in center field and made two errors in 386 total chances for a .995 fielding percentage, second best among AL center fielders. He finished the season on a streak of 36 consecutive errorless games.
--RHP Trevor Hoffman's estrangement from the San Diego Padres could open the door for him to sign with the Indians as a free agent. The Indians heavily pursued Hoffman the last time he was a free agent, but he chose to re-sign with San Diego. One of the Indians' offseason priorities is to acquire a closer or other late-inning reliever.
--At the time the Indians traded 3B Casey Blake to the Dodgers this summer, GM Mark Shapiro said the team very definitely would be interested in pursuing Blake when he became a free agent after the season.
With Blake now a free agent, and the Indians in the market for a third baseman, the fit remains a natural one, and it wouldn't be a surprise to see Blake back in Cleveland in 2009.
BY THE NUMBERS: .163 -- Opponents' on-base percentage vs. LHP Cliff Lee in his first five starts of what became a Cy Young Award-winning season. That was the lowest opponents' on-base percentage against a major league pitcher in his first five starts in 99 years.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "He's arguably as popular as anyone ever associated with the Cleveland Indians." -- Indians radio broadcaster Tom Hamilton, longtime partner of Herb Score, on the death of Score at age 75.
