Now He May Have Stomach for Fenway

It would be natural for Indian pitcher Dave Burba’s stomach to churn a bit when he takes the mound against the Red Sox today in Fenway Park.

With Cleveland ahead, 2-0, in the division series, Burba has a chance to complete a sweep of Boston that would give the Indians their fourth American League championship series berth in the last five years.

But if Burba’s tummy is doing back flips with a twist, as it did the day he made his major league debut in Fenway for the Seattle Mariners in 1990, Cleveland could be in trouble.

“The only thing I remember about that day was my legs shaking so much I didn’t think I was going to be able to throw a baseball,” Burba, now 34, said. “I didn’t pitch very well that day, but it was my first appearance and I was very nervous.”

Burba now is a seasoned playoff veteran, having made seven postseason relief appearances for the Reds and Indians. Still, today’s game will be the right-hander’s first playoff start.

He spent the first two games of the series studying Indian ace Bartolo Colon, who struck out 11 in a 3-2 Game 1 victory, and right-hander Charles Nagy, who gave up one run on five hits in seven innings of an 11-1 Game 2 victory.

“I learned one thing--I don’t have a 100-mph fastball,” Burba said, marveling at Colon’s heater. “And I don’t have a good curveball like Chuck does. I do pitch sort of like Chuck--I try to move the ball around a lot and change speeds--and I think I learned a lot from watching how he approached the [Red Sox] hitters.”

*

Red Sox ace Pedro Martinez, sidelined because of a strained muscle in his back, will play catch today, and if all goes well, he thinks there’s at least a chance he could pitch in Game 4 Sunday if Boston extends the series with a victory today.

But the Red Sox, who have been extremely conservative in the handling of their $75-million “asset,” as Martinez has been called, are leaning heavily toward shelving the right-hander.

Martinez, according to team physician Arthur Pappas, was able to move his shoulder and arm through the full range of pitching motion with minimum discomfort Friday. The muscle sensitivity in Martinez’s back, Pappas said, was much improved.

“I feel better, so I’m going to test it [today],” said Martinez, who underwent ultrasound and massage treatments and did some light weightlifting Friday. “If I can play catch, I’ll do my normal routine of long toss. If I’m fine, I’ll try to go. . . . So far there are good signs.”

*

Boston shortstop Nomar Garciaparra’s bruised right wrist, suffered when he was hit by a pitch on Sept. 25, hurt so much Friday that he didn’t work out. But Garciaparra, who homered and doubled in Game 1, expects to start today. . . . In an effort to end his 0-for-7 slump in the division series--or maybe he just wants to have more fun--Indian cleanup batter Manny Ramirez bleached his hair blond. The slugger did the same thing on a trip to Boston early in the 1998 season and blasted a prodigious home run over the screen above Fenway’s Green Monster in his first game afterward.

Today

INDIANS’ DAVE BURBA

(15-9, 4.25 ERA)

vs.

RED SOX’S RAMON MARTINEZ

(2-1, 3.05 ERA)

Fenway Park, Boston, 1 p.m. PDT

TV--Channel 11

* Update--Burba was the Indians’ best pitcher down the stretch, going 7-3 with a 3.09 ERA after Aug. 1. Martinez threw six scoreless innings in his last start, giving up six hits in an 8-0 win over Baltimore on Oct. 2. Indian second baseman Roberto Alomar has a .455 average--10 for 22--against Martinez. The Seattle Mariners are the only team to have erased a 2-0 deficit since division series play began in 1995. They won three in a row over the New York Yankees in the first round that year.