Blake has more security with Indians

Casey Blake feels more confident as the Tribe's third baseman this season.
WINTER HAVEN, Fla. (AP) -- Casey Blake doesn't have to worry about someone tapping him on the shoulder this spring and handing him a ticket back to the minor leagues.
Blake's job security has never been better. He is the Indians' starting third baseman.
It's an unfamiliar spot for a career minor leaguer who spent his first full year in the majors last season after getting only brief tastes of the big leagues for four years.
"It sure is nice to come into the locker room and feel at home," Blake said. "This is the first time I've come into camp with a job. This is the first time I'm not worrying every day about what everyone is thinking and that everyone is watching or how I'm doing."
Last season
Blake batted .257 with 17 homers and 67 RBIs in 152 games last season. He made 19 errors at third. The numbers weren't spectacular, but he was one of the steadiest players for manager Eric Wedge.
Blake signed with Cleveland as a minor league free agent following the 2002 season. He played in Minnesota's organization from 2000-2002, but Corey Koskie, one of the AL's top third basemen, blocked his path to the majors.
Blake had to win the job last year in spring training and was told about a week before the season started that he would be the opening day third baseman.
"It was fairly close," he said. "There were a couple of weeks I was in limbo. I was having the best spring of the guys I was competing against."
Unprepared
The news was a relief, but there was still the matter of a 162-game regular season, for which Blake admits he wasn't ready.
"It was like, holy cow, all my focus went to winning the job, and now we were starting the season," he said. "I was under a bigger microscope."
As he struggled, Blake began to wonder if he belonged. So did a lot of other people when he was batting .209 on May 6.
"I didn't know if I could handle it," he said. "I was struggling. I was uneasy and unsure of myself."
Wedge, though, never lost confidence in Blake.
"He had some initial anxiety in spring training and the beginning of the season," Wedge said. "Everybody jumped off [the bandwagon], but he gave us reason to stay with him."
Numbers improved
Once Blake settled in, his numbers steadily got better.
He had a 12-game hitting streak from June 17 to July 1, in which he batted .385 with four homers and 12 RBIs. Blake had five hits and seven RBIs, both career highs, against Minnesota on July 5. He also had seven RBIs in a doubleheader against Kansas City on June 30.
"It seemed like it was halfway through the season before I could take a deep breath," he said. "Once I started having some success, I relaxed a little. Once I relaxed, I started to play better."