Many people, including us, feel the Cleveland Indians will be a contender for a playoff spot this season, and to us, it wouldn’t have mattered if the season were 162 games or just 60.
However, much of those good vibes are based on some players with very little major league experience coming through in 2020.
For us, until a player establishes a track record, they have to be viewed with a jaundiced eye. And no doubt, the Tribe has their fair share of these players.
First is centerfielder Oscar Mercado. Remember, the Cardinals gave up on the former second round pick in 2013, trading him to the Indians for a couple of lower tiered prospects in 2018.
Mercado had a solid rookie season, hitting .269 with 15 HR and a 761 OPS, but walked just 28 times vs. 84 strikeouts. However, he thrived at Progressive Field, hitting .289 with 11 dingers (844 OPS) vs. .250 (679 OPS) on the road.
He struggled mightily in August, before having a good September.
If he regresses, Terry Francona does have some alternatives. Delino DeShields can fill the bill defensively for sure, but he’s never really hit well in the big leagues, and if Bradley Zimmer continues on the torrid pace he has set since summer camp started, he could wind up there.
It is worth keeping an eye on though.
The other area where much is counted on from young players is in the starting rotation, where Cleveland needs Aaron Civale and Zach Plesac to be solid starters right away.
The recently turned 25-years-old Civale pitches like a veteran, but has only thrown 58 innings at the big league level, and have less than 400 innings in the minor leagues.
He’s made 10 starts with the Indians, and in only two of them did he see the 7th inning.
His numbers last year were excellent, 44 hits allowed, striking out 46 while walking just 16, and he reminded many people of Corey Kluber in his manner and the way he attacked hitters, but he’s slated as the fourth starter, and the front office is counting on him to be the guy he was a year ago.
Plesac, who is also 25, is barely more experienced at the major league level than Civale, making 21 starts, firing 115 innings.
He actually threw less in the minors though, pitching just 259 innings because he had Tommy John surgery in college and the Tribe brought him back slowly.
After six starts at Akron, compiling an 0.96 ERA, he was on the fast track to Cleveland, and injuries had him with the big club for his debut in Fenway Park on May 28th.
The short season actually helps both Civale and Plesac because they won’t have deal with an innings increase threshold this season.
As for alternatives? Adam Plutko would be the first option should either falter, and the organization has Logan Allen, Scott Moss, and if he is healthy, Jefry Rodriguez as options. However, the latter group doesn’t have a real track record of success in the bigs either.
And then there is James Karinchak, counted on to be a set up man for Brad Hand.
We all know about Karinchak’s gaudy strikeout feats, his high octane fastball, and his knee buckling curve.
However, he has walked a lot of people in his minor league career, which only spans three seasons and a little over 100 innings (82 games). His walk ratio per nine innings is 5.5, and that’s probably why Francona hasn’t fallen in love with the soon to be 24-year-old.
Relievers who don’t throw strikes aren’t any manager’s friend, and Tito is no different.
The biggest problem is Francona doesn’t have a lot of alternatives if Karinchak isn’t effective. He would have to turn to prospects Kyle Nelson or Cam Hill or maybe veterans Phil Maton or Hunter Wood, but none have the filthy stuff Karinchak has.
It’s a bit of a high wire act for the organization, but the safety net is how these players performed last season. But, no doubt the Tribe needs progress from this quartet of young players.
Cleveland Sports Perspective 