CLEVELAND — Aaron Laffey enters his start against the Blue Jays tonight hoping that the third time will be a charm. The left-hander has been impressive in his first two outings since being promoted from Triple-A Buffalo, but has an 0-2 record.
“One of those things we talk about all the time is, ‘Give your team a chance to win,’” said Indians manager Eric Wedge. “He’s given us a chance to win with both starts, so there’s no reason for him to be frustrated. Beyond that, that’s all you can do. He needs to just feel real good about his two starts.”
Laffey has allowed just four earned runs on seven hits, while striking out six over 122/3 innings. He no-hit the Yankees through the first five innings of his season debut April 28, before doing the same to the Royals over 42/3 innings Sunday.
It is the second impressive big league spell for Laffey, who finished 2007 in the fifth spot in Cleveland’s rotation, going 4-2 with a 4.56 ERA in nine starts. It was his major league debut after spending the first four-plus years of his pro career in the minors.
“It’s the same game,” said Laffey, the Indians’ minor league pitcher of the year last season after winning 13 games and posting a 2.88 ERA at Buffalo and Double-A Akron. “You just got to go out there and pitch. My biggest thing is control, so as long as I have my control, I feel like there’s no reason I can’t have an effective outing.”
Though he will most likely be optioned back to Buffalo when Jake Westbrook is ready to leave the disabled list, Laffey has shown that he can provide valuable depth if called on again.
“I’m more comfortable and more confident, knowing I have the ability to pitch up here, and I’m getting the chance to prove it,” Laffey said.

Home again

Victor Martinez was back behind the plate after a sore neck prevented him from catching in the three-game Yankees series from Tuesday through Thursday. He missed the series opener and ender against the Yankees and was relegated to designated hitter duties for the middle game in New York.

End of the lineup

With his offense struggling, Wedge has repeatedly juggled the batting order through the first 34 games — a trend he hopes does not continue.
“By no means do I expect to manipulate the lineup the entire season,” he said. “If that happens, it wouldn’t be good.”
The Indians season-long batting woes have lingered, with the team entering Friday batting .183 (35-for-191) in six May games.
Travis Hafner has not emerged from a slump that began last year, hitting .209 with three homers and 17 RBIs in 31 games through Thursday.
“He’s doing all the work. He’s doing everything he should be doing,” Wedge said. “He’s going to get to a point when he figures it out and starts to roll with it.”

Historic home

Wedge admitted to feeling a little sentimental during the Indians’ final trip to Yankee Stadium, which will close at the end of the season to make way for the new Yankee Stadium in 2009.
“It was hard not to,” Wedge said. “Traditionally, it’s so much about baseball, so much about America, when you think about all the people that have been there and all the events that have taken place there.”
Yankee Stadium, which opened in 1923, has played host to more Hall of Fame players and World Series champions than any other park in baseball history.

Roundin’ third

Cliff Lee hasn’t issued a walk over his last 28 innings, covering a major league-high 101 consecutive batters.
• Radio coverage for the series finale Monday will be moved from WTAM 1100-AM to WMMS 100.7-FM to accommodate the Cavaliers.

Contact Chris Assenheimer at 329-7136 or cassenheimer@chroniclet.com. 

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