Indians, Nationals in it to win it

Tribe tries again

There’s quite a pennant race shaping up in the American League Central, with the Cleveland Indians again dreaming of their first championship in more than half a century.

The Detroit Tigers have taken a half-game lead over the Chicago White Sox, with the third-place Indians three games back.

Cleveland last appeared in the World Series in 1997, when the Indians lost in seven games to the Florida Marlins.

But the Indians haven’t won the title since player-manager Lou Boudreau led them past the old Boston Braves in 1948.

Cleveland’s current lineup includes shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera, who was selected for this year’s All-Star game and is batting .280 with 12 home runs, along with second baseman Jason Kipnis, who has 11 homers and 53 runs batted in.

The Indians’ starting pitchers include Ubaldo Jimenez (8-9), who came over last year from the Colorado Rockies, and Derek Lowe (8-8), who arrived this season from the Atlanta Braves.

Over in the National League East, meanwhile, another title-starved club — the Washington Nationals — continues to lead the division over the Braves.

The Nationals, started in 2005, formerly were the Montreal Expos, who never won a World Series since they were created in 1969.

‘Front Row Amy’

The struggling Milwaukee Brewers no doubt have given their fans cause for looking the other way this year, perhaps toward . . . Amy Williams.

A married mother of three, Williams has become a cult figure in Milwaukee and beyond because she sits in the same seat behind home plate at most home games at Miller Park, right in view of the television cameras.

She’s known, even on Google, as “Front Row Amy.”

As the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel noted last week, Williams draws attention with her striking figure and revealing outfits. She’s also a devoted fan who never leaves early, keeps score, and yells encouragement to the Brewers.

Williams, 43, always comes alone from her home in Oshkosh, Wis., and seldom interacts with those sitting around her during a game, although she’s willing to pose for pictures with her growing number of fans — she’s on Twitter and Facebook — before the game starts.

“Men are men. They are attracted to the looks thing,” she told the Journal Sentinel. “But a lot of people are fans of me because they can see how much I love baseball.”

No masking it

After sinking to last place in the NL West, the Colorado Rockies’ play prompted some fans at Coors Field to take up the tradition of placing a paper bag over their heads to express their frustration.

But now the Rockies’ boosters will have to find a different way to vent.

“As a security measure, post-9/11, any clothing that conceals a guest’s face is prohibited” at Coors Field, Rockies spokesman Jay Alves told the Denver Post. “That would include bags over a guest’s head.”

— Jim Peltz