Another Cleveland Indian left the reservation yesterday with the announcement that Cody Allen is signing with the Los Angeles Angels as a free agent.
So, add him to the list of Michael Brantley, Andrew Miller, Edwin Encarnacion, Lonnie Chisenhall, Yan Gomes, Yandy Diaz, and we guess you can even include Josh Donaldson, as Tribe players who have departed since the end of the 2018 season.
Who has replaced them? Jordan Luplow, Jake Bauers, Kevin Plawecki, Max Moroff, Chih-Weh Hu, Jefry Rodriguez, and A.J. Cole.
One group isn’t a lot like the others is it?
Perhaps the front office has a big move up its sleeve, and perhaps it will be coming soon, but right now, you would have to be the biggest optimist in the world to think the Cleveland Indians are better today than they were when the season ended.
We understand why most of the players who are no longer here were let go. The Indians were getting old, and the front office needed to get younger players with upside.
It might work out that way in the end, but right now, the Indians might win the AL Central Division for the fourth consecutive year only because the rest of the division is in various states of rebuilding.
We agree with those who say a baseball team simply needs to get to the playoffs to have a chance, but with the current roster (and we know this won’t be the roster heading into the season, let alone the post-season), but clearly the Indians are behind their fellow playoff brethren, the Red Sox, Yankees, Astros, and probably the Rays and A’s too.
The outfield and bullpen are still a mess.
We have talked about the everyday lineup quite a bit, but the relief corps hasn’t improved since the end of last year, and it wasn’t a strength in 2018.
The best news is if those who say a bullpen is built from the closer back are correct, then Cleveland has a good foundation as they know their closer is Brad Hand.
The southpaw had 32 saves in ’18 and fanned 106 hitters in 72 innings.
Beyond that? Herein lies the problem.
Right now, who would be the set up men for Terry Francona?
Do any of these names inspire confidence? Adam Cimber, Neil Ramirez, Tyler Olson, Dan Otero? We didn’t think so.
Cimber was very good in San Diego and was thought to be an underrated piece coming over in the trade that brought Hand here, but he struggled with Cleveland, allowing 33 baserunners in 20 innings.
Besides, he’s a situational right-hander, and struggles against left-handed hitters.
Ramirez allowed nine home runs in 41 innings. That’s a lot. Otero allowed 12 gopher balls in 58 frames. So is that.
Olson is another lefty, the same as Hand. Francona likes Jon Edwards, who was a September call up, and had some moments after arriving, but he’s pitched eight innings in the bigs since 2015.
Maybe Ben Taylor or Rodriguez, who throws hard, or Cole can become reliable arms in relief, but that’s an awful large gamble for a team who is supposed to make a deep post-season run.
Stranger things can happen. But it’s a huge gamble for a team that should have World Series aspirations. If whoever breaks camp with the Indians doesn’t succeed right away, the front office will be shuffling the bullpen all year.
And perhaps they will be forced into a move made out of desperation.
MW
Cleveland Sports Perspective 