Hello Tribe fans everywhere!

With a little more than five weeks left in the season, the Indians seem to have settled on the trio of Rafael Perez, Rafael Betancourt and Joe Borowski as their three go-to relievers. Let's just hope they can hold out for the rest of the regular season and into October.

Tribe general manager Mark Shapiro has been trying to acquire bullpen help since last November, yet the Indians braintrust turned thumbs down when presented with the opportunity to sign all-time club saves leader Bob Wickman, recently cut by the Braves. At first, Cleveland sportswriters thought the Indians would sign Wickman, but Shapiro and Indians manager Eric Wedge met and promptly nixed any thoughts of a deal.

Wickman does has a way of wearing out his welcome. The Braves sent him packing even though he wasn't pitching badly, and they are desperate for help in their bullpen. But, at age 39, Wickman can be a cantakerous sort. The Indians saw that last season when the club played so poorly in the first half that Wickman had few opportunities to save games.

He squawked so much in the clubhouse that he eventually tangled with Paul Byrd, as solid a player as you'll ever find. But frustrations ran high in Cleveland in 2006, and Wickman pitched superbly once he was traded to Atlanta. He apparently told Shapiro that he would retire at the end of the '06 season, but later changed his mind and re-signed with Atlanta. Anyway, Shapiro has clearly soured on Wickman.

It's not as if he creates serious trouble in a clubhouse, but he's a cranky old vet who rarely keeps his opinions to himself. If I owned the Indians, would I sign Wickman for the stretch drive? I'd call him and see if he'd be satisfied with setup work, and if he said yes, I'd sign him in a heartbeat. I wouldn't mess with Joe Borowski at this point, because he's posted 37 saves. Also, saving games is all he can do. If the game is tied, bringing Borowski in is tantamount to running up the white flag.

Wickman looks as if he can still pitch, though, and, if he was willing, he'd be great in the role that Roberto Hernandez occupied earlier this year. My fear is that the Perez-Betancourt-Borowski triumverate might run out of gas all at once. It's why I'd get Cliff Lee and Jeremy Sowers back up to the big leagues and working out of the pen -- right now!

The refusal to consider Wickman is troubling to me. Wedge, especially, rarely takes a chance on a player who might shake things up a bit. Think Brandon Phillips. Indians fans don't necessarily want a team of choirboys. Half the guys on those powerhouse Tribe clubs of the 1990's were jerks, but they could sure play baseball.

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The answer to the last quickie quiz is: Scouts said the same things about Ryan Garko in 2006 that they're saying about Andy Marte this year. That is, Marte is tired of playing in the minors. He needs to get to the big leagues to prove once and for that he can play there. Unfortunately, he probably won't get that opportunity with Cleveland. I'm not sure if I'd sit Casey Blake down at this stage to give Marte a chance.

Today's quiz: When Brandon Phillips was traded by Montreal to Cleveland along with Grady Sizemore and Cliff Lee for Bartolo Colon in 2002, who was the fourth player who came to the Tribe?

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-- Kevin Cuneo