Jason Giambi Brings Back The Magic

The Indians were left for dead on Tuesday night. They had won four straight games but closer Chris Perez had just given up two solo homers in the top of the ninth to turn a one-run lead into a one-run deficit. Through the boobirds voicing their frustration as Perez was pulled, you could hear the air being deflated out of the corner of Carnegie and Ontario.

The Indians were dead in the water. When you watch enough baseball games, you can feel when a team will make a rally in the ninth. They might not come through but you at least can tell when they will put a little game pressure on the closer. Last night felt like 1-2-3.

And this loss felt like more than that. The Rangers aren't losing to the Astros and a deflating loss in the last week of the season, hello Grady Sizemore, can send you into a quick tailspin that has you making tee times on Monday.

Maybe it was the two pitching changes that Terry Francona made in the inning that allowed his team to rally itself. Maybe it was the hug Jason Giambi made Perez give him as he came into the dugout. Or maybe it was just a little of that old Jacobs Field magic.

It didn't look good as the Indians were down to their last out in the bottom of the ninth. Giambi then came through with the biggest hit of any Cleveland Indians' player this season, crushing the 1-1 curveball deep into the right-field seats.

Play-by-play announcer Tom Hamilton lost his mind. I had goosebumps for like two minutes. Chaos ensued on the diamond and all of a sudden the Indians went from staring at a tie with the Rangers for the last playoff spot into holding serve and staying one back of Tampa Bay and one ahead of Texas.

Pennant races are awesome. They are even more awesome when your teams win games. This season has been one heck of a ride for Tribe fans. The team has been counted out a number of times but they are about as hot as a team can be in the month of September. Teams that get hits like Giambi's late in the season don't see their season end in Game 162.

Francona said it best when he had a man-crush on Giambi. I think there are a lot of male Cleveland Indians fans who would admit to the same thing this morning.