Tribe aims to establish winning identity in second half Revamped roster has Indians within striking distance of first place at All-Star break By Jordan Bastian / MLB.com | 7/17/2013 12:39 P.M. ET http://ppt.cc/ekE8 CLEVELAND -- Every team strives to find its identity. With a revamped roster and new manager, the Indians knew it might take time for them to find theirs this season. As this campaign rolls into the second half, the Tribe believes it has determined its brand of baseball. 每支队伍都在寻求自己的风格特色。也许笑脸人还需要些时间来从大改的名单和新的总仔 中建立起自己的特色。但随着下半季到来，印地安人已经打出了具笑脸人风格的棒球。 "I think this team is really starting to settle in," Indians veteran Jason Giambi said. "We've found that identity of who we are. We're going to come back. We're going to play hard. We're going to do the little things." That is who the Indians want to be down the stretch. 「我认为这只队伍真的开始准备好了」，老大哥 Giambi说：「我们探索自我；我们努力 打球；我们从小处着手；我们要回来了！」 这也是笑脸人一直都希望做到的事情。 Cleveland heads into the season's final 10 weeks situated within striking distance of the American League Central-leading Tigers. Detroit has a Cy Young Award winner, a reigning Triple Crown champion and two straight division titles. The Indians believe they just might have the moxie to pose a realistic challenge down the stretch. 克里夫兰在球季的最後十个星期前仍和分区冠军底特律老虎保持狙击距离。 虽然底特律有着赛扬奖投手、打击三冠王，和连两年分区冠军， 但印地安人相信他们到最後都还能和老虎队叫板。 That confidence might stem from a recent wake-up call. The Tigers roared into Cleveland on July 5 for a four-game series and completely and utterly overpowered the Indians over the first two games. Following the second straight drubbing, Indians players called a closed-door meeting. The message was simple: The Indians had strayed from their identity and were putting the pressure on themselves. 这些自信可能是由於最近一次的奋起令来的： 7月5号老虎来势汹汹的作客克里夫兰四连战，前两战也的确碾爆了笑脸人。 在第二天的挫败後，笑脸人球员集体开了个秘密会议，因为球队正在偏离他们自己的 方向，而且他们也给自己太多压力了。 It was time to put the pressure back on the opposition. "There's a way to compete," Indians manager Terry Francona said, "and a way to fight back." 是时候让压力落在对方身上了。 「总是有方法去竞争，」总教练Francona说：「也总是有方法反击。」 The Indians responded with a crisp victory over the Tigers in the third game of the series and kept things interesting until the final out in the fourth game, which the Tribe lost in extra innings. That turnaround helped the confidence within Cleveland's clubhouse, where the players are beginning to believe that a rough stretch is simply that and nothing more. 第三战印地安人乾净俐落的解决了老虎队，并让第四战一直到最後一个出局数前 比赛都还有悬念（尽管印地安人在延长赛输球） 那场翻身的胜利使得自信心回到了球队：一个系列赛就只是个系列赛，没什麽大不了。 Giambi spoke in the players-only meeting, but quipped that he forgot what he said or why he felt the need to talk to his teammates. The 42-year-old veteran did say he has seen the team grow over the past few months. Giambi在那次球员会议中发表了些谈话，不过他推托说他忘了说过什麽，或者是为什麽 他觉得有需要和他的队友们说些什麽。 不过42岁的老大哥说他这几个月真的看到了球队的成长。 "You don't want to fall into what young teams can very much fall into," Giambi said. "That's the dwelling, like, 'Oh, God, we lost.' We could've very easily done that when we played Detroit. We could've very easily gone, 'Oh, it's over.' "Everybody has a vision of how you want to play and, unfortunately, they took it to us those first two games. But we didn't quit. We didn't panic. We answered back." 「你不会想和那些年轻人一样陷入很深的负面情绪，」Giambi说：「像是『天啊， 我们输了！』我们其实可以相当容易的走出来，『喔，结束了。』」 「每个人对於你会表现怎麽样都有自己的预期，不过不幸的是，他们前两战痛宰我们。 但是我们没有退缩，我们没有恐慌，我们回答：我们会再回来。」 That was a theme for the Tribe in the first half. 而这就是笑脸人上半季球队的主题。 Consider the 20-game stretch that began on May 21 following an 18-4 run to the top of the AL Central standings. The subsequent 4-16 stumble knocked the Indians out of first place, included an eight-game losing streak and had the team's fan base -- more than familiar with in-season collapses -- thinking back to last season. 从开季的18胜4败的美中龙头，3/21号後的20战4胜16败（包括八连败）使笑脸让出美中 第一，也使得球迷想起了去年及以往的季中崩盘。 A year ago, the Indians rolled into the All-Star break just three games out of first. The Tribe went on to suffer through an abysmal August and finished in fourth place with 94 defeats. This is not that team. 一年前，印地安人在明星赛前距离美中第一只有三场胜差，但在一个糟糕透顶的八月後 ，笑脸人以94败坐收分区第四名。 但现在已经不是以前那队了。 "More than half of the team is new," said Nick Swisher, who was signed a four-year, $56 million contract over the offseason. "In that sense, you can't bank on what happened in the past. We weren't even here for that. We were doing our own thing back then." This team answered the early June swoon with 15 wins in the next 20 games. 「超过一半的球员都是新来的，」Swisher说，他是季末以4年56M签下的：「在这样的 情况下，你不能停顿在以前发生过什麽。我们还没走到那个地步呢！」 这只队伍以稍早的六月狂胜（20战赢了15场）回应了大家。 "It felt like 2012 there for that May stretch," Indians second baseman Jason Kipnis said. "But I don't think last year's team would've been able to turn it around the way we have this year. I don't think last year's team would've been able to show as much potential and consistency. That's been the big thing about this year." 「五月的那些连败感觉很像12年时，」二垒手Kipnis说：「但我不觉得去年的队伍有办法 像我们今年一样起死回生。我不觉得去年可以展现如此的浅力和协调。这些都是我们今年 才做得到的。」 The Indians have reached at least 50 wins before the All-Star break for the first time since 2007, when the team came within one win of reaching the World Series. It has not always been pretty, but this Cleveland club -- Team Streak, if you will -- has shown its ability in prolonged stretches. The rotation has improved, the lineup has been fast and potent and the team has had a knack for two-out rallies and late comebacks. 印地安人今年是从07年来首度在明星赛前拿下50胜，当时球队只剩一场胜利就可以前进 世界大赛。虽然不总是令人满意，但印地安人球团在长远中展现了他们的能力： 先发轮值被补强；打线变得强悍而有速度；球队攻击力在两出局後以及比赛後半部反攻 也都增强了许多。 Through the ups and downs, which have been drastic in both directions, the Indians have battled through their share of adversity. Key cogs such as Michael Bourn, Asdrubal Cabrera, Chris Perez, Vinnie Pestano, Zach McAllister and Swisher have missed time with injury. Then again, players such as Corey Kluber, Yan Gomes, Cody Allen, Mike Aviles and Ryan Raburn have helped shore up the overall depth and production. 尽管起起伏伏，不管是在好坏都相当极端，笑脸人仍在劣势努力的奋斗。 主力如Bourn、Cabrera、Perez、Pestano、McAllister和Swisher都因伤缺席过一阵子， 但Kluber、Gomes、Allen、Aviles和Raburn都适时的填补了球队的漏洞和产出。 Justin Masterson rebounded from a rough 2012, returned to being one of the league's premiere ground-ball specialists and workhorses and earned a spot on the All-Star team. Kipnis also made the All-Star team by emerging as Cleveland's best overall offensive weapon. Lefty Scott Kazmir -- out of the Majors a year ago -- could be a Comeback Player of the Year candidate at season's end. Masterson从跌跌撞撞的2012年走出，再次回到了那个联盟独特的滚地球大师和顶尖工作马 ，同时他也入选了明星赛。Kipnis同样也克里夫兰全方面打者身份进入了明星赛。 而左投Kazmir，尽管一年多没在MLB出赛过，今年季末有可能是东山再起奖的热门人选 之一。 The contributions from the entire roster, and from some unexpected callups from the Minor Leagues, have pleased Francona. "Through it all, we've been a team, which I'm very proud of that," Francona said. "I like the idea that we play however many innings we're supposed to, whether it's nine, 10, 11 or whatever. They always play. They seem to care about each other. 整个轮值名单的贡献，以及一些小联盟上来的惊奇都一再地让Francona乐不可支。 「说到底，我们是一只队伍，这是我一直狠骄傲的一点，」Francona说：「我喜欢 我们尽力去打能打的每一局，不管是9局、10局、11局，或更多。大家总是全力以赴， 他们看起来都很关心彼此。」 "Again, what we've done in the first half makes the second half potentially really exciting." In the months ahead, the Indians plan on building on the identity they have started to establish. "We don't want to be known for being hot for a little bit and that was it," Bourn said. "That's not what we're going for. We want to be a team that's known for being a good team." 「再说一次，我们在上半季所做的让下半季的可能越来越刺激了。」 数月之前，这只队伍还在讨论应该要建立怎样的球队风格。 「我们不想要变得更有名一点点，因为那就那样而已。」Bourn说： 「这不是我们想要做的。我们希望让大家都知道我们是只很好的队伍。」 First-half awards ─上半季功臣 MVP: Jason Kipnis The first-time All-Star emerged as the Tribe's best all-around offensive weapon. 这个第一次的全明星目前看来是笑脸最全方面的攻击主力。 Cy Young: Justin Masterson The All-Star has rebounded and turned into one of the league's top workhorses 这位全明星也重新振作，并变回联盟最顶尖的工作马之一。 Rookie: Cody Allen The right-hander has developed into a reliable option in a variety of innings and situations. 这个右投手已经在大量的局数和状况中，成长成一位可以信赖的後援。 Top reliever: Cody Allen The back end of the bullpen has had its issues, but Allen has helped shore thing up. 牛棚後段虽然一直都有点问题，不过Allen还算是支撑起来了。 Players to watch in second half ─下半季就拜托了！ Nick Swisher Swisher missed time due to injury in the first half and will aim to pick things up offensively. Swisher上半季因伤错过了不少比赛，期许他接下来在攻击面更有建树。 Michael Bourn The leadoff man will look to pile up his usual numbers after missing time with a hand injury. 我们的开路先锋Bourn从手伤复出後，将会寻求追回他以往的成绩。 Vinnie Pestano The setup man will be looking to rebound after experiencing some first-half struggles. 布局投手Pestano可望也可以从上半季的一些困顿中触底反弹。 --

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