On LeBron’s Legacy And What Is The NBA Doing?

The NBA Finals will end either tonight with the LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers winning their first title since 2010, or it will end Wednesday night with the first game seven matchup since the Cavaliers beat Golden State in 2016.

Television ratings are down for the NBA and many have speculated as to why, but it could be just as simple as it is not basketball season. Sports fans have trained themselves throughout the years to watch certain sports at certain times, and sports junkies are watching baseball playoffs and the NFL in October, getting ready for the start of basketball, not viewing the championship series.

If the Lakers win, it will be LeBron James’ fourth title, putting two behind the aura of Michael Jordan. James is also making his 10th appearance in The Finals, and the only two players with more were part of the Celtics’ dynasty of the late 1950’s and 60’s: Bill Russell and Sam Jones, who both appeared in 11.

Would this title erase the “greatest of all time” question for James over Jordan? We wouldn’t be willing to do that personally, although we don’t dismiss the argument as some do. However, an 11th Finals appearance and a fifth championship for James might tilt the discussion for us.

Add in that LeBron very well could wind up his career as the all time leading scorer in professional basketball history, and end up in the top five all time in assists (he is about 1000 shy of Steve Nash for that spot right now), and only someone who thinks the game was better when they were younger could still hold on to the Jordan argument.

Although being 6-0 in The Finals is pretty impressive.

On the other hand, a player who is regarding as someone who thinks pass first becoming the NBA’s all time leading scorer is just as impressive.

Whether you are a “Jordan guy” or a “LeBron guy”, either way, being regarded as the second best player of all time in any sport isn’t an insult. There are only a handful of players who have that status in any sport, and make no doubt, LeBron James is in the conversation.

Now the league in which he plays has an interesting decision to make.

We’ve just said he believe at least part of the issue with the ratings and the overall interest in the sport could be based on the traditional viewing habits of fans, and the date when the league will start the 2020-21 season (or perhaps just the 2021 season) could be important for the future of the league.

It has been rumored the next season may not start until as late as March, four and a half months after the post-season ends, which is close to the normal time period between the end of the playoffs and the start of the next season.

However, the start of that season would be right in the middle of the NCAA conference tournaments and the championship brackets, and the beginning of baseball.

And assuming they would play a standard 82 game schedule, the conference finals and The Finals would wind up competing with the NFL (a behemoth no one wants to compete with), college football, and the World Series.

What would we recommend? The same thing several people have thought. Start around Christmas (when most fans start watching the NBA) and play a shortened 60 game schedule where the playoffs end around the end of June or beginning of July, and then get back on the normal league calendar.

Otherwise, the league may risk a popularity problem. We understand the league may have passed baseball as the #2 viewed sport right now, but thinking it is more popular than it is can be a problem.

An indoor sport competing against outdoor activities? Let’s just say, that could be a problem.

An All Too Familiar Refrain From Indians

Even when you know bad news is coming, it still can make you sad when you hear it.

That’s how we felt when Cleveland Indians’ president Chris Antonetti spoke on Tuesday and talked about the “daunting” financial reality of the team.

He also spoke about the “reality” of the financial loss the Indians suffered during the shortened 60 game schedule, losing money from ticket revenue, concessions, and parking about other things.

So many things go through our heads on this.

First, we understand this was a difficult season for every major league baseball team. We are sure they didn’t make as much money as they usually make.

On the other hand, they didn’t have to pay any player his full salary either and the costs of travel were also greatly reduced because there were fewer trips as well as shorter ones.

The Cleveland Indians are definitely not the only team who can make these claims.

Secondly, since the off-season just started and the team has just introduced some new season ticket options, this seems like an odd way to solicit potential ticket buyers.

Your team president pretty much told everyone the payroll will be trimmed again, and one of the team’s best players will likely be traded. We are sure this news isn’t making anyone reach for their checkbooks.

We understand that the ownership is being honest, in fact, brutally so, and are trying to be transparent about the financial state of the franchise. However, there is a difference between being truthful and beating someone over the head with the truth.

It’s likely the supporters of the team know what the owners want to spend on players with the trades over the past few years of Corey Kluber, Trevor Bauer, and Mike Clevinger, as well as the loss of Michael Brantley to free agency.

In theory, many people thought those moves were made to free up money to spend on either younger impact players. That didn’t turn out to be the case.

We know and understand the Cleveland Indians cannot spend on players the same amount of money that the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, and Los Angeles Dodgers spend. But why can’t they spend what the Cincinnati Reds, Minnesota Twins, and Milwaukee Brewers can?

And although we don’t live in those cities, so we don’t know the message the ownership provides to the fans, we would doubt it isn’t the constant “woe is us” message Indians’ fans receive from the ownership here.

We would agree with declining the club option for Carlos Santana and although we would pick up Brad Hand’s option with the hope of trading him, he wouldn’t be terribly angry if they simply let the southpaw go when the World Series ends.

Unfortunately, it seems like the same modus operandi will be in place. The Indians will trim these salaries and not spend them on players to help the remaining players.

Remember, this isn’t a rebuilding situation for the Tribe. They made the playoffs from 2016-18, missed in 2019 even though they won 93 games, and made the post-season this season.

They have a cadre of young, controlled starting pitchers, led by 25-year-old Shane Bieber, the likely AL Cy Young Award winner. Their best two position players are 27 and 26, and both would rank in the top 25 players in the sport.

Why wouldn’t you want to make a push and try to bolster the roster around these players? Maybe the Indians will be better in 2021, but it puts a lot of pressure on everyone, including apparently many young, inexperienced players to perform at a very high level.

This is probably just the first in what should be many such talks from the Indians’ organization telling their customers not to get high expectations.

It’s a dreadful situation if you are a fan of the Tribe.

Having Running Back Depth Is Huge For Browns

Many times, the thing that separates the good teams from the great ones in the NFL is depth. While bad teams have some good players, if those players go down, there isn’t anyone close to replace them, and the team can’t overcome the loss, and start losing.

We saw that to a degree last season with the Browns, when Myles Garrett was suspended, and the Cleveland defense couldn’t put any pressure on opposing passers. That was a major factor in a 2-4 record in those games, and the opponents scoring 30 points in half of those contests.

In Sunday’s 49-38 win over Dallas, the Browns lost perhaps their best player, running back Nick Chubb, to a knee injury, and it was announced yesterday, he would be put on injured reserve, with reports being he will be out about six weeks.

While it is a blow having Chubb on the sidelines, it is one area where Cleveland has some depth because of the presence of Kareem Hunt, who led the NFL in rushing in his rookie season (2017).

Hunt now figures to get the bulk of the carries, although after the Dallas game, they aren’t too far apart in attempts, as Chubb has carried the rock 57 times, Hunt has 50 carries.

While both Chubb and Hunt are elite backs, Sunday’s tremendous total of 307 rushing yards shows they are just a part of the machine that Kevin Stefanski, offensive line coach Bill Callahan, and running backs coach Stump Mitchell have put together.

We say machine because when Chubb left the game in Dallas, D’Ernest Johnson, who had 26 in five NFL carries prior, came in and ran for 95 yards in 13 carries, and Dontrell Hilliard, who was on the practice squad the previous week, picked up 19 more on five attempts.

The Browns lead the NFL with a whopping 5.9 yards per carry, and are averaging over 200 yards per game on the ground. The Baltimore Ravens did this a year ago, but no other team has done it for a full year in a 16 game season.

You have to go back to the 1970’s to find teams that averaged 200 yards per game on the ground outside of the Ravens. It was done six times in that decade before the league went to 16 games in 1978.

This shows the zone blocking scheme, popularized by the Shanahan family (Mike and Kyle), installed by Stefanski and Callahan is more than doing its job. It also shows the improvements made by the front office in the off-season, drafting Jedrick Wills, and signing Jack Conklin as a free agent has paid tremendous dividends.

However, it helps that with Chubb not being able to see the field for awhile, that Cleveland has a back the caliber of Hunt to pick up the slack. And you might see more end around runs for Odell Beckham Jr., who had 73 yards rushing on Sunday.

The offense will get a big test coming up this weekend when the Indianapolis Colts come to town. The Colts lead the NFL in total defense, and are allowing just 76 rushing yards per game, and since an opening week loss to Jacksonville, haven’t allowed more than 11 points in the last three weeks.

Here is the problem for other teams, though. If they crowd the line of scrimmage to stop the run, Baker Mayfield and his cadre of receivers, led by Beckham and Jarvis Landry can stretch the field and spread out the defense.

Through four weeks, there is a lot to feel good about in regards to the Cleveland Browns being able to put points on the scoreboard.

A Monumental Off-Season For The Tribe

To say this off-season is monumental for the Cleveland Indians is truly an understatement. Yes, the Indians made the playoffs in the shortened regular season, and only five key players on the roster are over 30 years old, but it feels like a shift in the franchise is at hand.

Will Terry Francona still be the manager or will his health issues cause him to take another role within the organization.

Roster wise, you can feel confident that only three regulars will be in their same positions when the Tribe reconvenes in Goodyear next February: 3B Jose Ramirez, DH Franmil Reyes, and C Roberto Perez.

The biggest elephant in the room is the status of SS Francisco Lindor, who can be a free agent after the 2021 season. The most likely scenario is president Chris Antonetti and GM Mike Chernoff will see what they can get for their star player and trade him.

To us, that could signal in a rebuilding phase, albeit maybe a short one.

The Indians struggled to score runs all season long, so on the surface, it would seem like dealing one of your few dependable hitters (yes, we know Lindor didn’t have a great season, but he was one of four players with an OPS+ over 100) would not be a way to help the offense.

Carlos Santana will turn 35 around Opening Day 2021 and is coming off the worst year of his career, and has a $17.5 million club option, that the Indians will surely not pick up. Will they be willing to bring him back on restructured deal? If they do, they need a back up plan. Could that be Josh Naylor or perhaps Jake Bauer?

Cesar Hernandez was a great pick up from the Phillies, but he will be 31 in ’21 and had one of his best years, so we would imagine he is looking for more than the $6.25 million he earned this past season. If that’s true, does that put him out of the Indians’ range?

And Brad Hand will also turn 31, and seems to have lost some velocity off his fastball. He has a $10 million club option for 2021, but with Emmanuel Clase coming back, we would predict the only reason the organization picks it up is to trade the closer and get something back.

It’s pretty clear to everyone the outfield needs to be overhauled. Cleveland’s OF ranked lowest in the AL in WAR this season, and two of the starters, Delino DeShields Jr. and Tyler Naquin could wind up being non-tendered. We find it improbable that next year’s OF will be comprised of three unproven youngsters.

That leaves the Lindor situation, and we can all get ready for a winter filled with speculation on where the shortstop will spend next season. We feel a deal involving Lindor would likely signal the closing of the contention window.

We know the organization has tremendous pitching, but can they survive a 162 schedule struggling to score runs.

However, the safe bet is Lindor will be dealt in the off-season, but we say why not play it out, especially since the Collective Bargaining Agreement end after the 2021 season.

It is unlikely the Indians will get a fair return for their star shortstop. Keep him, try to win and make the post-season next season, and see what the new rules for baseball will be following the season.

For all we know, there could be a “franchise player” clause. Or revenue sharing might be more prominent, or what about a salary cap with a corresponding salary floor.

All might be more advantageous to keep Francisco Lindor, and the added benefit is another chance to make the playoffs.

Without a doubt, this is a very important fall and winter for the Cleveland Indians’ organization. What this team will look like in February is anyone’s guess.

Running The Ball Well Is A Tradition For The Browns

There is a theory that everything comes back into style eventually, and the Cleveland Browns are putting that axiom to the test.

Throughout the late 1950’s through the early 1970’s, the Browns featured a crushing running game. Starting in 1957, when Jim Brown was drafted in the first round, the brown and orange finally shifted from a passing team with Otto Graham at the helm, to a team that dominated on the ground.

They finished second in the NFL in rushing that year (the Rams led the league) and went to the NFL Championship Game, losing to Detroit.

The following season, Cleveland drafted Bobby Mitchell in the 7th round, and the combination of Brown and Mitchell, both Hall of Famers, vaulted Paul Brown’s team to the top of the heap running the football.

Mitchell was traded to Washington prior to the 1962 season, for Heisman Trophy Ernie Davis, who never played for the Browns due to leukemia, and Cleveland dropped in the running game. But outside of the ’62 season, Cleveland was in the top three in running the ball every year Brown was on the roster, until he was forced into retirement (by Art Modell) after the ’65 season.

Their record in that span was never worse than the 7-6-1 mark in ’62. They were always above the .500 mark, and won nine or more games (in a 14 game slate) five times.

When Brown retired, Leroy Kelly picked up the slack, and Cleveland led the NFL in running the football in 1966 and 1967, and finished third in the league in ’68. They won nine, nine, and ten games in those seasons.

That’s a 12 year period where the Cleveland Browns had a devastating ground attack. And they were winners.

Now, let’s flash ahead to 2020. The Browns are currently third in the league again in running the football, behind just the Patriots (2-1) and Green Bay (3-0). Note the Packers are running the ball even though they have perhaps the game’s best passer, Aaron Rodgers behind center.

Cleveland features Nick Chubb, who finished second in the NFL in rushing yards a year ago, and Kareem Hunt, who led the league in the same category with Kansas City in 2017.

Chubb trails the current leader, Tennessee’s Derrick Henry by 27 yards this season, despite the latter having 31 more carries in the first three games of this season.

Hunt is 13th in the NFL and none of the players he trails have less carries than he does, as Hunt only averages 13 carries per contest.

So, Cleveland has two of the top 13 runners in terms of yardage after three games. The only other team with two players in the top 20 is the Arizona Cardinals, who have Kenyan Drake (9th) and their quarterback, Kyler Murray (18th).

We know that new coach Kevin Stefanski has always been a proponent of running the football during his time as an offensive assistant in Minnesota, but the franchise is also reaching into its past as to what was successful when the Browns were an NFL power. And this may come as a shock to those under 30 years old, but they really were on of the best teams in the NFL from 1950-1972.

And let’s not forget where the Browns play. When it gets cold and the weather is less than ideal in November and December, this offense should still be effective, and it also takes pressure off the defense, because they should be able to control the clock.

People say you should learn from history. Finally, someone in the Cleveland organization looked at the proud tradition of running the ball in northeast Ohio and has decided it’s a good idea.

It may lead to winning football again, and that would be a welcome sight.

Biggest Factor For Tribe? Games Aren’t In The Bronx

Tomorrow night, the Indians start the new “Wild Card” round of the American League playoffs, necessitated this year (we hope only this year) by the shortened regular season.

Because of the regional schedule for the year, Tribe fans haven’t seen the Yankees this season, and vice versa. This we do know, New York had a 33-27 record this season, going 22-9 at Yankee Stadium and 11-18 on the road.

By the way, all three games of the series will be played in Cleveland at Progressive Field.

Because the Yankees get on national television more than most teams, certainly more than the Indians, baseball fans know the names: Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Judge, Gleyber Torres, D.J. LeMahieu, and Gary Sanchez.

And they signed Garrit Cole, who won 20 games with the Astros last season, helping to pitch them to the AL pennant.

Their closer is Aroldis Chapman, who Tribe fans remember very well from the 2016 World Series.

However, in looking at the statistics for the Yankees this season, it has a Jekyll and Hyde feel to them.

You see, in the Bronx, the pinstripers have a team batting average of .273 with 67 home runs as a team, and a 907 OPS.

As a comparison, the Indians team statistics for the entire season has them with a .228 batting average, 59 home runs, and an OPS of 689. That’s for both home and road games.

LeMahieu, the AL batting champion, batted .448 at Yankee Stadium with eight home runs. Luke Voit, who led the Junior Circuit in long balls, swatted 16 at home. Four other Yanks hit six dingers in the Bronx, meanwhile the Tribe had four players who hit more that a half dozen for the entire season.

However, away from the famous short porch in right field, New York has at least according to the numbers been a far different team.

On the road, the Bronx Bombers have a .220 batting average with only 27 home runs, and a 668 OPS. They hit like Cleveland did all season long away from the House That Derek Jeter Built.

LeMahieu, who is a great hitter (we wanted the Indians to sign him when he was a free agent), batted .283 on the road, but had just two dingers. Voit, who had 22 homers for the season, hit just six away from the Bronx.

Stanton (14 for 49, 3 HR) and old friend Gio Urshela (21 for 65, 12 RBI) were the most productive New York bats away from home this season.

What is odd is the Yankee pitching splits at home and on the road. NY pitchers had a 3.87 ERA in the Big Apple, with Cole having a 2.09 mark, winning four games. Masahiro Tanaka, the game two starter won three at home, but with a 4.40 ERA.

The weird stat is they had a 4.88 ERA on the road. We understand their road games were at hitter friendly parks like Fenway Park, Oriole Park at Camden Yards, and Sahlens Field in Buffalo, where the Blue Jays played their home games, and it was very much a pitcher’s nightmare.

Tanaka pitched well on the road (2.33 ERA) which isn’t good news for Wednesday night’s contest.

As for the Tribe, they hit .233 at home (compared to .222 on the road), but hit 34 of their 59 home runs on the road.

Jose Ramirez (who else?) was the best hitter at Progressive Field, hitting .317 with 19 extra base hits. Cesar Hernandez hit .313 at his new home park, and Carlos Santana belted five of his eight homers in Cleveland.

The Indians’ pitchers had a 3.67 ERA at home vs. 2.90 away from Progressive Field. It didn’t matter for game one starter Shane Bieber, the likely AL Cy Young Award winner, who had 1.23 ERA and struck out 44 hitters in 22 innings at home.

Game 2 starter Carlos Carrasco had a 3.03 ERA, and Game 3 hurler Zach Plesac is at 2.08 along the shores of Lake Erie.

What does all of this mean? Not much, because it’s baseball, and a three game series doesn’t really determine a lot. However, ignore the names wearing the New York uniforms. They are television personalities because the networks want the Yankees.

The numbers show the Indians can compete and win the series if (and that’s a huge if) their beleaguered offense can cobble up some runs. That’s the biggest question of the week for the Tribe.

Altman Says Cavs May Take A Guard. We Say No Way.

It is anybody’s guess as to when we will see our professional basketball team again, as it has been reported that the NBA season may not start until after the calendar turns to 2021.

The Cavaliers are currently getting some work in at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse, as part of the program for teams that were not invited to the “bubble” in Orlando.

So, coach J.B. Bickerstaff gets his first look at his team in six months, although Andre Drummond and free agent to be Tristan Thompson are not taking part in the workouts.

Bickerstaff does get his first look, on the court at least, of rookie first round pick Dylan Windler, who missed the entire 2019-20 season with a stress fracture in the leg, and subsequent surgery to repair it.

The next big order of business for the franchise is the draft, which will be held on November 18th, with the free agency period apparently to follow, although that is not confirmed.

The Cavaliers have the fifth overall pick, and GM Koby Altman has said the wine and gold will take the best player available at that spot, even if it is a guard.

Don’t believe that for a second. It is pure rhetoric unless the roster is overhauled before the draft occurs.

The Cavaliers have drafted guards in the top ten of the draft the last two years, and both are primarily point guards. With only five players on the floor at one time, you cannot have this kind of duplicity on the roster.

In addition to Collin Sexton (2018 first rounder) and Darius Garland (’19), Altman also used the last pick of the first round, which he traded for, to take yet another guard, and Kevin Porter Jr. showed signs he can be a starter in the Association long term.

So, while saying you are going to take the best player available, which is typical GM-speak going into a draft, you don’t want your organizational leader saying “we really don’t need this position, so we are going to reach to take a lesser player”, if the Cavaliers take another guard at five, it would be a colossal error.

It has been reported that Altman doesn’t want to move either Sexton, who looked much better after Bickerstaff took over as head coach, or Porter, who averaged 12 points per game after December 1st, and is the bigger guard the team needs.

That would leave the organization open to moving Garland, although they would be selling low on the second year guard, but could package him and the fifth pick this year to get a young, veteran, and yes, taller player.

Remember, the Cavs were the smallest team in the NBA a year ago, and even though they made the deal for Drummond, they lost another tall player in Ante Zizic, and Thompson could be gone by the time training camp opens.

The Cavs already have a logjam in the backcourt with Sexton and Porter the likely starters, with Garland needing minutes to develop, and don’t forget Dante Exum, a bigger guard who was the fifth overall pick in 2014, and will be only 25 years old when the next season opens, provided it opens before next June.

Don’t panic about Altman’s comments, because they are purely rhetoric, draft speak. It would be a shock if he took another guard in this draft. More likely, they will take a big man or a taller wing player.

That makes the most sense.

Jose, Jose, Jose, Jose…One Of The Game’s Best (Even If He Is Unknown Nationally)

New Indians’ pitcher Cal Quantrill said it after Jose Ramirez’ game winning three run homer to put the Tribe back in the post-season. He said if there is such a thing as an underrated top five player in the game, Ramirez is one.

It is difficult to believe Ramirez is still underrated, perhaps it is the slump he suffered through at the beginning of the 2019 season, but we feel some fans, even those who follow the Indians, don’t remember that the switch-hitter has two top three American League MVP finishes (2017 and 2018).

Perhaps it is the presence of Francisco Lindor, who has become the face of the franchise, but even nationally, you don’t hear enough about Ramirez being one of the best players in the sport.

There is no doubt that he is though. Still, since he became a regular midway through the 2016 season, only Mike Trout, recognized by everyone as the best player in the sport, has more top three finishes in the most valuable player voting than the Tribe third baseman.

The other players who have two such placements are household names nationally: Jose Altuve, Mookie Betts, and Christian Yelich.

Perhaps part of it was he was never regarded as a great prospect. Heck, he didn’t even appear on the Tribe’s Top 10 Prospect list until 2014, after he made his big league debut.

Cleveland got their first glimpse of Ramirez in the drive for a wild card spot in 2013, when the organization promoted him, primarily as a pinch runner after he hit .272 (674 OPS) with 38 stolen bases at Akron, playing mostly second base.

His keystone combination partner in ’12 at Lake County was Lindor, and they made for quite a duo up the middle.

Ramirez started the following season in AAA, hitting .302 (801 OPS) in 60 games at Columbus before being called up to play shortstop during the second half of the 2014 season with the big club, batting .262 with 2 HR, 17 RBI and 14 extra base hits in 266 plate appearances.

He started the ’15 season at shortstop (keeping the spot warm for top prospect Lindor), but was hitting just .180 (487 OPS) before being demoted to AAA. Lindor came up a few days later.

Upon getting recalled, he batted .259 with a 775 OPS, mixing in 16 extra base hits in 182 times at the dish. He played all over the diamond when he came back, playing some third base and leftfield. At that point, Jason Kipnis was fully ensconced at second base for the Tribe.

The switch-hitter started the following season in the same role, but with Juan Uribe not hitting at the hot corner, Ramirez started getting regular playing time there and started to hit with even more power, batting .312, with 11 homers, 76 ribbies, 46 doubles, and an 825 OPS.

He probably would have won the MVP in 2017 if not for a terrible September (.174 average, 637 OPS) that some attributed to being home run happy. He entered the month with 38 dingers.

Even with the increase in power, Ramirez was still an excellent base runner, stealing 17, 34, and 24 bases in the last three full baseball seasons, and he is an great defensive third baseman too.

There has been speculation he will eventually move back to second base to make room for prospect Nolan Jones, but we believe he’s not moving, his body type now makes him more suited for the corner spot.

He has a engaging personality too. Fox Sports’ Andre Knott calls him the heartbeat of the team, and his comments about “home run pitches” have caught on throughout the fanbase, and so, of course, are the “Jose, Jose, Jose, Jose” chants that resonate at Progressive Field when he comes up with a big hit.

People around the game know how good Ramirez is. He’s one of the 10-15 best players in the game, a great combination of power and speed, and a very good batting eye. He really doesn’t have a weakness.

As for the lack of national recognition? Who cares! Fans in northeast Ohio know how good Jose Ramirez is. And he could be the AL MVP in 2020.

This Week Is About Tribe Getting Ready For Next Week

Within the next couple of days, maybe even today, the Cleveland Indians will clinch a spot in the expanded eight team American League playoff field.

So, Terry Francona, Sandy Alomar Jr., and Carl Willis are tasked with getting the Tribe ready for the wild card series, which begin either Monday, October 5th or Tuesday, October 6th.

The team changed its starters for the series against the White Sox, with Shane Bieber being moved back to Wednesday’s game so he will be ready to go in game one of the first series. Cal Quantrill will get the start in what is essentially a bullpen game.

Apparently, the brass already made the change with the batting order, and hoping the new configuration, with Francisco Lindor leading off, and Jose Ramirez moving to the #3 slot, will provide more runs.

It’s not the style of the Indians’ leadership to make another change at this late date unless there is an injury.

Who would start game two? If the Tribe is involved in a series that starts Monday, it would be difficult to see anyone but Zach Plesac getting the nod. If Cleveland starts on Tuesday, Carlos Carrasco could make his next start on Friday night, and still take the hill in the second game of the first round series.

These last seven games will also be a trial for the bullpen, as Willis and his crew try to firm up the pecking order. We know Brad Hand is the closer, and James Karinchak will be the guy the Tribe uses in the 8th or in the “Andrew Miller” role, the highest leverage situations.

But who would pitch the 7th inning if a reliever is needed in a close contest? We would bet the staff will take a long look at newcomer Quantrill, particularly because he could go more than one inning if needed. He and Nick Wittgren would seem to be the arms that take care of the 6th and 7th innings.

Where does that leave veteran Oliver Perez? He would come on for a tough lefty bat, or maybe for a full inning if two left-handed hitters are scheduled. We believe the coaching staff has high confidence in the southpaw.

And Phil Maton could be used in a similar role vs. right-handed bats.

With the Wild Card Series being a best of three series, it means there is seemingly no role for Aaron Civale and/or Tristan McKenzie. We don’t know how Civale’s stuff plays out of the bullpen, unless it is in a long relief role, but we could see a rested McKenzie coming in for an inning or two if the starter can’t get through five innings.

That would seem to mean Cam Hill and Plutko would be used in mop up roles.

We also believe Delino DeShields will be the primary centerfielder in the playoffs. We wish Oscar Mercado would have received the bulk of the playing time after he was recalled, but he hasn’t, and he hasn’t exactly torn the cover off the ball when he has played (5 for 31).

Will Mercado platoon with Josh Naylor in LF or Tyler Naquin in RF though? We know Jordan Luplow will be in the lineup when a lefty opposes the Tribe, but does the skipper, whether it be Francona or Alomar, platoon in both corner outfield spots.

Another question is will the Indians carry 13 pitchers for the post-season? With no off days, it may be necessary, but if they decide to go with 12, who among the extra players at Lake County gets the call?

The Tribe hasn’t made a lot of moves during the shortened season, but would bringing up a left-handed bat off the bench make sense, particularly if whoever would get the call hasn’t faced big league pitching in awhile.

We understand a spot hasn’t been clinched as of yet, but the Mariners aren’t playing well, so it may be over as early as tonight.

But the Indians still have plenty to play for, including passing Minnesota to hop into the 4th or 5th seeding spot. We are anxious to see how the team approaches these last seven games.

Tribe Couldn’t Afford A Poor Season From Santana.

When you are second to last in a league in runs scored, there is clearly no one person to blame. It’s clearly a team effort.

We have pointed out in previous pieces that the Cleveland Indians have four positions (catcher and all three outfield spots) that rank in the bottom three in the American League in WAR. The front office took a “wishin’ and hopin'” approach to the outfield during the off-season, and has paid the price for it.

Because of that, there is an enormous amount of pressure on the top five hitters in the batting order to produce. Francisco Lindor, who has an OPS of 786, which is third on the team (behind Jose Ramirez and Franmil Reyes) has certainly heard his share of criticism because of his batting average with runners in scoring position. He is 9 for 51 with 13 RBI’s this year.

However, among those players being heavily counted upon by the Tribe this season, perhaps the most disappointing is 1B Carlos Santana.

The switch-hitter was coming off a career season, so maybe we shouldn’t be surprised by a drop off. And we don’t want to say Santana has no offensive value, because he leads the league in walks and still has a .355 on base percentage.

But his slugging percentage, a career high .515 in ’19 has dropped more than 200 points to .296 in this COVID shortened 2020 season.

We didn’t feel there would be a huge regression for Santana because he clearly changed his approach at the plate last season, going from a full out pull hitter to a player who used the middle of the field more and had more success.

And for all of Santana’s struggles, what does it say about the Indians’ management that they continue to hit him in the cleanup spot in the batting order, a position where power is most definitely needed.

This isn’t to denigrate Santana, who has been a very good player for the Cleveland franchise for ten years. He is starting to appear on the club’s all time top ten in several categories, including 8th in home runs (213, one behind Andre Thornton), 2nd in walks behind Jim Thome, and 10th in times getting on base.

However, it does point out two things.

First, the extreme amount of pressure the organization put on the top five in the batting order to produce. The Indians couldn’t afford any of them to have off years, and Santana has had one.

Second, the lack of depth on the roster, which doesn’t allow them to give the veteran switch-hitter to have a day off to refocus. Let’s say, the manager decides to play Josh Naylor at first base, who takes Naylor’s spot in the outfield? Or can you imagine the outrage on social media if they decided to play Mike Freeman at first?

Santana’s lack of production power wise does make it curious as to when the Indians decided to shuffle the lineup a bit, they left him in the #4 hole. Why not move him up in the order? After all, he does get on base, even this season. As we said, he leads the league in walks.

We would have put him, not Francisco Lindor, in the leadoff spot, and shuffled from there. That would put an emphasis on what the hitter is doing well this season.

It also calls into question what the organization will do with the option on the first baseman’s contract for 2021 at $17.5 million. We always figured the front office would try to restructure it, since Santana likes it in Cleveland, but now, even that should be up in the air.

We know Santana is a team player, and his struggles bother him to be sure. But quite frankly the Indians weren’t set up for an important player to have an off year.

And that’s troublesome in itself.