Bullpen Hiccups Causing Guardians Concern

With the All-Star break starting tomorrow, hopefully the bullpen of the Cleveland Guardians can get plenty of rest because they seem to be running on fumes as of late and that gives Steven Vogt less options he can depend on.

First, two of our rules for relievers are don’t walk people and don’t give up home runs. In other words, make hitters earn their way on base, and in addition, make them score runs by bunching hits together, particularly tough in today’s game.

Right now, Vogt has three relievers who challenge the first of those rules–

Shawn Armstrong: 28.2 IP, 16 BB
Erik Sabrowski: 27.1 IP, 20 BB
Tim Herrin: 32.1 IP, 19 BB

The lowest point of the relief corps’ season came Wednesday night in Minnesota, when Armstrong entered the game with a 5-3 lead and walked two batters. He was relieved by Sabrowski, who walked the three batters he faced before Hunter Gaddis rescued him.

Minnesota tied the game without swinging the bat. The quintet of free passes allowed them to tie the game.

Right now, Vogt probably trusts three pitches when the Guardians have the lead. Obviously, one is All-Star Cade Smith, who leads the AL is saves with 28 and has fanned 61 hitters in 43.1 innings. He’s also allowed just three long balls, two of them coming in one game.

Hunter Gaddis started the year on the injured list and then struggled a bit when he joined the team, but has been solid for the most part. Since May 1st, he has a 1.85 ERA with 21 Ks in 24.1 frames, allowing just one HR in that span.

The third pitcher is the surprise, Colin Holderman, signed as a free agent over the winter. We always like Holderman when he was in Pittsburgh, where he had two solid years in 2023 and 2024 and struck out over a hitter per inning.

But last season, he had a 7.01 ERA with the Pirates and his walk numbers went up and the strikeouts went down.

He started with year with the big-league club but was sent back to AAA after allowing two runs in his first two games. Since returning in late April, he’s posted a 1.43 ERA with 36 punchouts in 32.1 innings and hasn’t allowed a round tripper.

Herrin is currently on the IL after taking a line drive off the elbow and Sabrowski had elbow problems earlier and they are the only lefties at Vogt’s disposal. And both have a tendency to put people on base. The latter was very good early on, but since his elbow started giving him a problem, it’s been dicey bringing him into games.

Matt Festa has a rubber arm and Vogt likes him, but the problem is he doesn’t have dominant stuff, allowing six dingers in 38 innings. As noted, Armstrong has problems locating the strike zone.

Maybe the answer is Franco Aleman, a rookie, but the manager doesn’t trust him yet. He’s pitched in four games since his recall but hasn’t been put into any high leverage situations until yesterday when he pitched the 8th in a 4-1 Guardians’ win.

Vogt needs more options he can trust as the season goes on or he risks exhausting his three best options and perhaps watching them falter in late August and September. So, either a pitcher like Armstrong has to rediscover throwing strikes or the lefties start pitching better or the front office is going to have to find more options.

And if the Guardians get to the post-season, no doubt a good relief corps is a must.

Poor Hitting With Runners In Scoring Position? Most Likely Because Poor Hitters Coming Up

It is no secret the Cleveland Guardians are struggling in regard to hitting with runners in scoring position. Currently, Cleveland ranks third last in the majors, ahead of only Seattle and Cincinnati, with a .227 batting average.

They are 20th in the big leagues in opportunities, and rank 14th in terms of striking out in these situations.

People keep looking for reasons as to why this is happening, but really, it’s simple. The Guardians simply don’t have enough good hitters.

We understand this seems obvious, but applying logic, we will show you what the problem is. It’s not a matter of hitters not having the “clutch gene” or in a lot of cases putting too much pressure on themselves.

First, the Guardians have no one getting on base at a .350 or better clip. Their leaders are Austin Hedges at .348 (if you can believe that), Chase DeLauter (.346), and Brayan Rocchio at .343. Let’s say for the sake of argument, that all three of these players get on base to start an inning.

Who comes up next?

The argument for a good offense is getting players who get on base (high on base percentage) and then players who can drive them in (high slugging percentage). So who leads the Guardians in slugging right now?

Two of the top three for Cleveland are currently on the injured list, including the team leader, Angel Martinez at .442. He is followed by DeLauter at .428 and Jose Ramirez, also out of the lineup right now at .418. Keep in mind, most people feel a slugging average of .450 is very good, and the Guardians have no one in that category.

So, of the three guys who have shown they can drive the ball, the only one who is playing right now is DeLauter, who is also one of the three guys who can get on base. And here is the dilemma for Steven Vogt and the powers that be who make out the lineup each day.

Getting back to the scenario where DeLauter and Rocchio get on base, here are the likely hitters to follow: Kyle Manzardo, who hasn’t had a good year with a 682 OPS. Rhys Hoskins, hitting .181 on the season with a 692 OPS. The third base platoon of Daniel Schneemann (611 OPS) or Gabriel Arias (646 OPS but striking out in 41% of his plate appearances.

And FYI, the 646 OPS is nothing to write home about either.

Then you might have Patrick Bailey, hitting .209 with a 564 OPS and then Steven Kwan, suffering through a terrible season with a 607 OPS.

The other problem is the strikeouts. When you don’t get hits in scoring position, sometimes you can have a productive out, moving a runner, hitting a sacrifice fly. Cleveland has 21 sac flies, ranking 21st in the sport.

Right now, four Guardians hitters (Arias, Manzardo, Hoskins, and Kahlil Watson) strikeout in more than 30% of their at bats. In Tuesday’s game against the Twins, DeLauter has a leadoff double, and Manzardo did move him to third with a grounder to the right side. Fundamental baseball.

But Hoskins struck out, and when Rocchio grounded out, DeLauter was left standing on third.

It certainly is a challenge for Vogt to figure out how to scratch out runs with a lineup where there are only two or three decent hitters. The poor average with runners in scoring position to due a lot to having nothing but mediocre bats coming up when runners do happen to reach safely.

How Managing Has Changed And Steven Vogt

We recently read John Miller’s outstanding book The Last Manager, about Earl Weaver, the great manager of the Baltimore Orioles from 1968-82, during which the Orioles were the best organization in the sport, winning World Series once and two other American League pennants.

He had a .583 winning percentage as the skipper and was one of the first, if not the first, manager to use statistics, keeping track of how individual hitters did against different pitchers and making out his lineup accordingly, even though to others, the moves didn’t make sense.

The book is called the last manager because baseball is certainly different today. The front offices around the sport have more and more influence on how a roster is used, so although Cleveland fans wonder why Steven Vogt has a certain person in the lineup, keep in mind that it is more likely an organizational decision, not just Vogt’s.

Making decisions on a hunch is gone. And like many things about baseball and all of professional sports for that matter, change is not always for the good.

We say that because Vogt has come over more criticism this year it seems. First, any manager would be under more scrutiny when every game they play is decided by one or two runs, which is most Guardians’ games are decided by. So, pitching changes, who pinch hits, and when substitutions are made seem to be amplified when Cleveland loses 3-2.

These same decisions wouldn’t be a blip on the radar if the Guardians won 7-1. That’s just how it is.

What happens is managers today become robots. The game becomes sort of scripted, pre-planned if you will and only something weird causes the script to be altered. For example, we think the Guardians in their pregame meetings go over scenarios where they believe it will be advantageous for say Rhys Hoskins to bat for Kyle Manzardo.

It doesn’t matter if Manzardo has gone 3 for 3 in the game, with say a double and two home runs, if a certain pitcher comes in that Hoskins has had success, or should have success, he will likely pinch hit.

To most fans and reporters, that seems crazy, but that’s the way it is.

It’s also why a player goes 3 for 4 today but is out of the lineup tomorrow. Sometimes it’s a planned day off for the player, but we still think the player would (or may) go to the skipper and say he feels good and wants in. But it likely won’t happen.

When teams make a strange move on firing a manager, it’s more likely that decision is made because he is no longer aligned with the front office on who should play and who shouldn’t rather than he lost his connection with the players.

Also, the front office wants to justify why a play in on the roster, which is why Gabriel Arias keeps getting chance after chance after chance. Our guess is the powers that be look at Arias’ power and his arm and just can’t quit him. Even though he continues to have contact issues.

We aren’t a Vogt enthusiast, he’s fine but not a great manager (yes, we know two Manager of the Year Awards) but his best trait is he has all the players rowing in the same direction. He keeps that clubhouse together and he communicates well with his players. But know the role of the skipper has changed greatly in the last 25 years in baseball.

It’s very much an organizational game. Sadly, the manager doesn’t have the same juice.

What Is The Cavs’ Plan For ’26-’27?

While we all wait for where LeBron James will play next season, as of right now, the Cleveland Cavaliers have spent the first week of the NBA off-season watching other teams in the Eastern Conference get better.

Right now, you have to put the NBA Champion Knicks ahead of the wine and gold, and you can make a solid case that Philadelphia (with Jaylen Brown deal), Indiana (getting Tyrese Halliburton back and trading for Ivica Zubac), and Toronto (getting Kawhi Leonard) are all better than the Cavs.

As for Cleveland, thus far Koby Altman has let Keon Ellis leave as a free agent to Brooklyn, Dean Wade go to the 76ers in the same manner, and quickly (for some reason) resigned Thomas Bryant.

Ellis didn’t play much in the playoffs but would seem to be more of an all-around player than Sam Merrill, who is a favorite of the organization. Ellis shot 36% from three last year and in his career knocks them down at a 40% clip. Still, it’s not a huge loss, but we would rather the Cavs embrace players who do more than one thing.

Wade is the darling of many, but not here. He was the team’s best perimeter defender over 6’6″, but as we have noted many time, seemed to refuse to participate on the offensive end of the floor, meaning smart teams didn’t need to guard him. He shoots. 36.7% for his career from the three-point line, but is inconsistent with the shot.

Bryant didn’t contribute much during the playoffs although Kenny Atkinson needed another reliable big man, so we are mystified as to why Altman brought him back. We would have looked around to see what else was out there.

The question is what Altman’s plan for is 2026-27? Does he believe if James returns to the organization, that’s all that is needed to win a title? If so, we do not agree.

Having James back would be great. He’s still a productive player, averaging 20.9 points, dishing out 7.2 assists and getting 6.1 rebounds a night, but remember, he will be 42 years old in December. He would give the Cavs some size on the wing and can be a legitimate “4” as well, but we still believe this roster needs more size, particularly on the wing and more players who are not “one dimensional”.

We also believe that James would change the attitude of this roster, which has been criticized for a lack of toughness.

And what exactly is the plan if James signs elsewhere?

We believe that after acquiring James Harden, who will likely be back, Atkinson and the organization went away from Jaylon Tyson and Nae’Qwan Tomlin, instead of getting them ready for a playoff run. Tyson has the size and toughness, and Tomlin is another wing defender with size.

And both players should be very much in the plans for the upcoming season. But, if the Cavs want to win the East and return to the Finals, Altman have to upgrade this roster. First, Ellis and Wade need to be replaced, and he still needs to address the starters, which are a weird fit right now.

As of right now, all the Cavaliers are doing is watching other teams in the East pass them by.

Why Platoon When It Clearly Isn’t Working?

The Cleveland Guardians like platooning. They did it under Terry Francona and it has continued under Steven Vogt. Most years, the Guards lead all of baseball in having the platoon advantage (left-handed hitter vs. right-handed pitcher and vice versa) for hitters.

This year, they also seem to be emphasizing the reverse platoon, which is a left-handed hitter who has more success vs. left-handed pitching, but that’s a discussion for another day.

Our question here is despite using the platoon advantage as much as they do, Cleveland ranks near the bottom in runs scored over the past year and a half. So, why do they continue to do it.

In 2013, Francona used Ryan Raburn vs. lefties and he delivered, hitting .308 against southpaws with a 1020 OPS. More famously, for the 2016 American League champions, he used Lonnie Chisenhall and Brandon Guyer in rightfield.

Chisenhall batted .294 with a 784 OPS vs. righties, while Guyer blistered left-handers at a .336 clip, compiling a 1021 OPS. That’s an effective platoon. Both players have to be productive when they get opportunities.

As for this season, that’s simply not the case. Some of the numbers for the players Vogt is platooning are downright ugly. For example, the Guardians signed Rhys Hoskins in spring training to help against right-handers, as the roster is pretty left-handed hitting dominant.

The problem is Hoskins is 10 for 68 (.147) vs. LHP and has just three home runs. His OPS is 619 because he’s drawn 15 walks. Another right-handed bat counted on by the organization, David Fry, is hitting .171 (12 for 70) with two homers, although again, he’s taken 16 bases on balls.

Gabriel Arias, long thought of as a source of power from the right side is 3 for 20. Stuart Fairchild signed in the off-season because he hit lefties was 2 for 15 with eight strikeouts in his brief time in Cleveland.

Meanwhile, Kyle Manzardo, often benched with a southpaw is starting or pinch-hit for if a left enters a game is 12 for 45 with a homer and seven walks against them. However, he is hitting .222 with nine homers against right-handers.

We get the organization wants to play Travis Bazzana every day, but he is dreadful vs. southpaws, batting just .153 (11 for 72). We wouldn’t bench the former first overall pick against them because he needs exposure to them, but he probably shouldn’t be hitting leadoff against them.

And if you want to give Steven Kwan a break at times, it should be when a lefty starts because he’s just 13 for 83 against them (.157) with a terrible 469 OPS.

Another issue is no one is really doing well against right-handers, who throw the majority of pitches.

Bazzana has the highest OPS vs. RHP at 902, batting .295 and a .379 on base percentage. The next best is Fry, who doesn’t get many opportunities because he only seemingly plays vs. lefties. He’s 12 for 44 with two homers and eight walks, so we ask the same question we asked after Ramirez went down, why isn’t he in the mix at third base?

Kahlil Watson and Brayan Rocchio, who has been solid all year, are next.

The major point is the organization seems married to the platoon advantage. The problem is that it’s not working. We know the Guardians can be stubborn, but it might be time to rethink the strategy.

Looking At The Guardians, Halfway Through.

The Cleveland Guardians reached the halfway point of their season prior to the weekend series against Seattle with a record of 42-39, respectable considering only four teams in the American League are over the break-even mark.

They’ve done this despite a month-long hitting slump, as they have tread water during this period where they have not been able to score runs, going 10-13 in June to date. Steven Vogt’s crew will likely be without their best player, Jose Ramirez, for another month (hopefully less), so can they sustain their place in the standings without him?

After a decent start offensively to the season, the offense has returned to the bottom of the AL, and remember, for the most part, teams that score runs in the regular season make the post-season. They rank last in OPS, last in slugging, and 14th (second last) in on base percentage. And we’ve documented in past posts, that the “slump” started in the middle of May, not when Ramirez, Angel Martinez, and Chase DeLauter went down with injuries in the same game.

Once again, the outfield has been a problem. While first base is the lowest position ranking according to WAR in the AL, the next two spots belong to leftfield and centerfield. Part of this is the poor year Steven Kwan is having. The two-time all-star is arguably the worst hitter in the league this season, with an OPS under 600 (575), a batting average of .210 and a slugging average less than his on base percentage (.319 OBP and .256 slugging).

How have the Guardians remained above the .500 mark? As usual, the answer is pitching. Cleveland has still only used five starters this season, remarkable in today’s game. They rank 4th in the AL in ERA, and they have the league leader in saves in Cade Smith, who has 26.

Parker Messick has emerged as a potential all-star, with a 2.67 ERA and 101 strikeouts in 94.1 innings. One thing to watch with him is his innings. The most he’s thrown in any season is 133, so no doubt the front office will try to control that in the second half.

And while Gavin Williams hasn’t had a good June, he’s been picked up by Tanner Bibee, who has been outstanding in his four starts, putting up a 1.71 ERA.

The bullpen has to develop some depth though. Hunter Gaddis looks like he is back after a slow start with an IL stint to start the year. Colin Holderman has been a find, with a 1.55 ERA in 28 games, allowing just one homer and 13 hits in 29 frames.

Erik Sabrowski missed some time with elbow inflammation, and he’s been fine too with 42 Ks in 22.1 innings. But the rest of the ‘pen has had issues.

Matt Festa, everyone’s favorite, has allowed six long balls in 34 innings. Shawn Armstrong, the Guardians’ main free agent, has given up three dingers and walked 12 in 23.2 frames. And Tim Herrin, the other southpaw wias Sabrowski, has struggled to throw strikes, walking 19 in 28.2 innings.

Daniel Espino might be an option down the road, but right now he’s showing he’s not ready to pitch in the big leagues. Which leaves the question as to why Franco Aleman, with an 0.33 ERA at AAA isn’t with the big club.

However, to win a third straight Central Division title, and with the AL West struggled, a bye into the Division Series, the Guardians are going to need to put more runs on the board. They have had a bottom of the league offense now for a season and a half.

Getting DeLauter back help, but hopefully the front office can get a solid bat at the trade deadline. It would certainly save the fingernails of Guardians’ fans everywhere.

Like Thomas, But Once Again, Cavs Go Small

The Cleveland Cavaliers participated in this week’s NBA Draft, trading out of the first round, moving back five spots to select Arkansas guard Meleek Thomas. Thomas was projected by several draft gurus to be a first round pick, so Koby Altman got value it appears.

It is interesting that the Cavs list Thomas at 6’5″, but everyone else lists him at 6’3″ or 6’4″. We use NBADraft,net as our guide and they list him at 6’4″. We guess the Cavaliers are a little sensitive to drafting guards whenever they get a chance.

The scouting report on Thomas is good. His shooting is his highest grade, following by quickness, defense, athleticism, and ball handling. Sounds like a potential contributor in the league.

Following the draft, Altman said when they are picking in the 30’s, you really can’t draft for need, which is utter baloney. The next two players selected after Thomas were his Razorback teammate, Trevon Brazile, a 6’10” player with a 7’4″ wingspan (ode to Jay Bilas) who would have addressed the wine and gold’s glaring need for size.

After him was Baba Miller, a seven-footer out of Cincinnati, who also has extensive international experience.

Don’t forget Altman also traded down, and the player selected in their original spot was 6’8″ forward Alex Karaban from Connecticut, who would have provided the team with some “winning” attitude, seeing he played on two NCAA championship teams with the Huskies and reached the title game last season.

We think winning is learned, by the way.

It is certainly early in the off-season, so there is plenty of time for the Cavs to add the size they desperately need, but time and time again, when they have a chance to get bigger, Altman goes back to his comfort zone and adds another player in the 6’4″-6’6″ range.

In other words, Koby Altman has a type.

Look at the Cleveland roster, these players are all in that height range: Max Strus, Jaylon Tyson, Keon Ellis, Sam Merrill, Tyrese Proctor, and of course, James Harden. And we aren’t counting 6’2″ Donovan Mitchell, 6’1″ Dennis Schroder, and 6’1″ Craig Porter Jr.

That’s nine players shorter than 6’6″. In today’s NBA. People wonder why coach Kenny Atkinson likes to play four guards at the same time. Maybe, it’s because more than half of the players available to him are guards.

Free agency starts this week, so again, Cleveland has a lot of time before training camp to reshuffle its roster. Atkinson has already indicated the other of last year’s second rounders, 6’8″ Saliou Niang, will likely make the team next season.

And perhaps the Cavs will move two or three of the glut of small wings to get a bigger wing. One who will be able to combat the size other teams in the NBA already have.

Once Harden opts out of his player option and resigns at a lower number per year which would get Cleveland out of the second apron, Altman can start making moves. It will be interesting to see what direction the Cavs go in.

Despite getting to the conference finals, we don’t think this roster can win a title. What does Koby Altman think?

It’s Tough To Watch, But Numbers On Guardians’ Offense Are Uglier

On May 18th, the Cleveland Guardians defeated the Tigers 8-2 to raise their record to 27-22 and following the game their team OPS was 708.

After Tuesday night’s 2-1 loss to the White Sox, the Guards fourth defeat by that score in June alone, the team OPS sits at 681. Cleveland’s on base percentage has dropped 15 points in that time span and the slugging percentage has dipped 12 points.

The team batting average has dipped five points. They’ve scored more than four runs in a game just six times. It’s really amazing that Cleveland has gone 15-17 in that span.

Note the date though. The injuries to Jose Ramirez, Angel Martinez, and Chase DeLauter occurred on June 13th, the offense was struggling for three weeks before that trio went down.

What has happened? After the first two series of the season, when the Guardians fanned 10 or more times in four games, they did so just five times until a game two days later after the aforementioned victory over the Tigers.

Since that May 18th contest, a span of 32 games, Cleveland hitters struck out 10+ times in 15 games, including seven of the last nine. It’s difficult to get hits when you don’t put the ball in play.

In that win over Detroit, Guardians batters walked seven times, the 18th time in the first 49 games they drew five or more bases on balls in a game. In the last 31 games? That’s happened just five times, and in those games, the Guardians scored at least four runs in four of them.

Granted, Ramirez and DeLauter are two of the most patient hitters Cleveland has, ranking 1st and 4th in drawing free passes on the team, but Martinez rarely walks, so there’s that.

Look at some of the strikeout to walk ratios of some of the players who have been forced into service since June 13th when the injuries occurred–

Gabriel Arias 25 K/2 BB
Petey Halpin 15 K/1 BB
Kahlil Watson 9 K/1 BB

And we haven’t even mentioned the weird stat line of Stuart Fairchild, who has 27 plate appearances and has fanned in over half of them (14) but also has drawn seven walks. Add in three hits, and somehow, he has a .407 on base percentage and a 565 OPS.

That’s unique.

It’s not just the new guys who are struggling either. Daniel Schneemann is hitting .133 during this period with a woeful 408 OPS. David Fry, who we thought should be in the lineup more now with the injuries, is 5 for 33 (.167) with a 639 OPS, and is in the midst of a 1 for 23 skid.

Over the last 30 days, Guardians’ hitters rank 4th in all of baseball in striking out. The three teams with more are Cincinnati, the Angels, and the Orioles. Those teams have all hit at least 28 home runs as a team. The Guardians have 19, the lowest during that span in MLB.

Two AL Central teams, the Twins and Tigers have each more than doubled Cleveland’s homer total over the last month. That’s not good either.

Solutions? Get back to being more patient? Swap some players with Columbus? It does speak to developing hitters, something the organization has struggled with for a while now.

But they have to figure it out soon or they will be in a big hole when Ramirez does get back.

Guardians Simply Don’t Have Enough Good Hitters.

To say the Cleveland Guardians have a problem scoring runs these days is an understatement. As we all know, two of their best hitters, the great Jose Ramirez and rookie Chase DeLauter are currently on the injured list along with their leading home run hitter in Angel Martinez.

Along with that, you have Rhys Hoskins, who in June has gone 7 for 52 (.135 BA, 514 OPS), Daniel Schneemann at 7 for 47 (.149, 437 OPS), and David Fry, who we believe should get more of a shot with the injuries, but it is hard to justify because he’s gone 2 for 24 since May ended.

The replacements for the injured players have done nothing either. Gabriel Arias, the king of toolsy players which the organization can’t see their way to part from, is 4 for 22 since his return from the injured list, whiffing 13 times without drawing a walk (of course), including a platinum sombrero last night.

We posted on social media that we would love to ask someone in the front office what they see in Arias, who now has over 1000 plate appearances in the big leagues with an OPS very much below average at 630. He’s simply not a good hitter.

The other players Steven Vogt has used haven’t done anything either. The Guards have given 26 plate appearances to Stuart Fairchild, who has a career OPS of 690 and hasn’t had a decent season (710 OPS) since 2023 with Cincinnati. The results? He’s fanned 13 times, walked seven and mixed in just three hits.

Kahlil Watson, who was putting up good numbers at AAA, but has always had a questionable strikeout to walk ratio, got his first big league hit last night, but has fanned in eight of those times at the dish.

Petey Halpin, whose minor league career shows a 721 OPS, kind of underwhelming, but the front office was impressed, has started nine games, with six hits and a walk to show for his 38 plate appearances. That’s as a starter. Coming off the bench, he’s gone 1 for 9, so overall he’s 7 for 45 (.156) and a 434 OPS.

Other than Travis Bazzana (837 OPS) and Kyle Manzardo (978), and Brayabn Rocchio, who has been solid all year, but has slumped in the last couple of weeks, there aren’t a lot of players Vogt can write in the lineup that can be counted on to produce as of late.

But the front office seems to not want to try something else.

What we are saying is players like Arias, Fairchild, and Halpin should be expected to contribute much at the plate because their history shows they aren’t good hitters. It’s that simple.

Meanwhile, there is Cooper Ingle at Columbus with a 987 OPS, and a .422 on base average, and a strikeout to walk ratio that should indicate more success at the big-league level, 39 walks to 48 Ks. For example, Bazzana had a 25 K/21 BB ratio when he was called up.

Heck, George Valera, who was DFA’d to activate Arias, has a 26:20 ratio, and we understand no one claimed him, but he put up more quality at bats than either Watson or Halpin have so far.

We recognize Fairchild has a good ratio too, but he’s demonstrated during his time in the bigs that he’s not a good hitter. It means it doesn’t always translate, but being able to tell the difference between a ball and a strike helps hitters greatly.

By the way, we’d even like to see Juan Brito get a second shot. After all, he had only 56 plate appearances.

It’s hard to imagine this team getting to four or five runs consistently with four to six mediocre hitters in the lineup on any given day. The need to try something else.

And soon.

Time For A Big Swing For Altman

The NBA Draft is coming up this week and shortly after the free agency period starts, meaning this is the time to rebuild or retool your basketball team if you are an NBA executive. So, the question should be what is Cavaliers’ president of basketball operations Koby Altman going to do, if anything?

Most people don’t think Altman will do more than a tweak or two, which we feel would be a big problem. That’s because we think differently than him, or so it would seem.

Our guess is Altman thinks his squad is on the right path. They’ve advanced one round further than the past two seasons, and at least his coach thinks (and we’ll bet he was expressing the view of the front office) the wine and gold should have won the Eastern Conference Finals. At least that’s what the analytics showed.

For us, that’s a mistake. That’s believing what the numbers says instead of what your eyes are telling you. The reality is the Cavs had a chance to win the first game, and frankly if they had, it would have been a little different.

Kenny Atkinson’s crew blew a huge fourth quarter lead, and pretty much the series was decided then.

We believe Altman should do a deep dive on his roster and figure out who can play in the playoffs and who is a regular season performer, because in watching this team over these last four post-season runs, the games are vastly different.

Cleveland needs more size, and not just height, we are talking about bulk as well. That’s why we like Jaylon Tyson, who the coaching staff (or the front office) ran away from after trading for James Harden. Look at the Cavs’ big men, both Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen play with force. That doesn’t make them bad players,, they just don’t bring a lot of physicality to the game.

And again, we will bring up the wings Atkinson has at his disposal. They aren’t tall, they aren’t very quick, and offensively, they are streaky at best. And how many can create their own shot?

There is simply too much duplicate players on the roster, and that has to change. Another fear is Altman has grown too attached to the players he has brought in, a common mistake for a guy responsible for acquiring talent.

For example, the number crunchers love Dean Wade and are quick to provide all kinds of numbers to show how good of a player he is. We see a very good perimeter defender that pretty much refuses to participate on the offensive side of the floor, which is not what basketball is.

So, why not try to do better.

Probably the only way to do a reset on the roster is to move either Donovan Mitchell or Evan Mobley, and most likely the latter because of the contract situation. Does Altman have the stomach to do that? No doubt it’s a high-risk move.

Standing pat likely gets the Cavaliers back to the second round of the Eastern Conference, where they’ve been the last three seasons. But if you want to win the NBA title, you can’t be timid. And after four years where you have been blown out in the round the team is eliminated in, It’s no time for the status quo.

We will see in the next two weeks, where the organization’s mind set is.