Lost in the euphoria over the return of Jim Thome to the Indians was the news that the team put OF Michael Brantley on the disabled list with his problem wrist. 

Brantley had been in and out of the lineup because of the injury in recent weeks, and today was ruled out for the season and put on the 60 day disabled list.  OF Jerad Head was called up from Columbus to take his place on the roster.

Also, Shin-Soo Choo followed up hitting home runs in both games in Tuesday’s doubleheader by having to be scratched from the following day’s game with tightness in his lower back.  Choo came in for defense on Friday, and had two at bats last night before leaving once again.

And starter Josh Tomlin also had to go on the DL with an elbow problem, and now, the starting rotation, which was thought to be deep with three options at AAA, is down to one.  Jeanmar Gomez will likely make the start on Tuesday night in place of Tomlin.

Although we’ve been a little critical at times regarding Manny Acta’s in-game strategies, he has done a masterful job keeping this team together and in contention despite all of the missed time by key players. 

Besides the players already mentioned, everyone knows about the problems Grady Sizemore and Travis Hafner have had, and also hot hitting rookie Jason Kipnis in already out with an oblique/hamstring problem.

Sizemore and Hafner have missed most of the last three seasons, so their problems cannot be a huge shock.  And those problems have to be brought to mind in the off-season when the front office determines should either or both be included on the 2012 roster, or at the very least, how much they can be counted on.

One question for the Tribe front office is are they too patient with the guys who are playing hurt?  Yes, as an organization, you want your players to be gamers.  You don’t want them sitting out with bumps and bruises. 

However, Hafner was in a second half slump before being put on the disabled list, and basically being replaced by Thome.  Was his foot problem a cause of the funk?  If so, having a DH hitting .220 with no power for a month isn’t helping the team. 

The same with Brantley.  While it’s admirable that he wanted to go out and play while hurt, he was hitting .211 with a .237 on base percentage in August while struggling with the wrist.  And it should be noted once again that the Tribe’s hitting has suffered greatly this year when Brantley, Hafner, and Asdrubal Cabrera aren’t going well.

Perhaps a move with the outfielder should have been made sooner, because it was obvious to all who watched him that he hasn’t been the same player who was hitting close to .270 before the all-star game.

So now Head finally gets his opportunity.  No question, a late bloomer, Head is having his best minor league season at age 28, hitting .284 with 24 HR and 70 RBI’s (864 OPS) at Columbus.  He’s also a right-handed hitter, something the Indians badly need. 

Head was also the MVP of the International League playoffs last season in leading the Clippers to the championship.

Lifetime he has an 814 OPS in the minor leagues, but he is prone to strikeouts, so he will fit right in with the Tribe, who lead the American League in that category.

The Indians organization prided itself on their depth prior to this season, but they probably didn’t want to have to use it this much, particularly in a year they are surprisingly in contention. 

However, they’ve had to, and for the most part, their manager and mixed and matched and held a patchwork team together.

MW

A few days ago, no one would have attached any significance to August 25th.  Sure, the Browns were playing a pre-season game against the Eagles, but it turned out to be much bigger than that.

It’s because Jim Thome, a future Hall of Famer, is coming back to the Indians, the team he spent much of his career with.

The Tribe acquired the veteran slugger for a player to be named later, and he’ll be in the lineup right away to take Travis Hafner’s spot at designated hitter. 

For those thinking this is more of a sentimental move, keep in mind these numbers since the all-star break:

Hafner:  .220 batting average, 3 HR, 14 RBI, 642 OPS                              

Thome:  .267 batting average, 6 HR, 21 RBI, 876 OPS

This is not to denigrate Hafner, but there is no doubt he has been in a slump as of late.  Thome has been more productive, and although he probably won’t be in the lineup everyday, he will provide some thump in the middle of the Indians batting order.

With the Tribe being 6-1/2 games behind Detroit, it probably will not be enough to get the Indians in the playoffs, but it gives them a better chance of doing it than they had without Thome.

As for the Browns, they took a step backwards last night, although they did play one of the better teams in the NFL in the Philadelphia Eagles.

Colt McCoy didn’t play his best game, hitting on just 9 of 18 passes for 89 yards, and he threw his first interception of the exhibition season. 

However, the most disturbing part of the evening was that the quarterback took several hits once again, a week after he was hit hard a lot against the Lions.

Eagle defenders sacked Browns’ QBs five times in total, and they were hit more times than that. 

Granted, guard Eric Steinbach was out of the lineup being replaced by rookie Jason Pinkston, but the offensive line as a group has to do a better job of protecting the passer.

It would be a refreshing change to see the Browns not have to use three starting signal callers in a season because of injury issues.

On the plus side, it was good to see Peyton Hillis get some work and have Montario Hardesty play and be healthy at the end of the game. 

Pat Shurmur still hasn’t shown a lot of the running attack in the exhibition contests, and success in that area will take some pressure off the passing attack.

Defensively, the Browns front seven showed some promise.  First round pick Phil Taylor looked impressive, getting a sack of the elusive Michael Vick, and Joe Haden rebounded from a tough game against the Lions. 

Haden showed once again that he is a solid tackler in the secondary, and rookie Buster Skrine looked good too.

Remember, Dick Jauron’s unit was missing starting LB Chris Gocong and perhaps both starting safeties in T. J. Ward and Usama Young.

It would not be a surprise if the Browns get to see a different side of their head coach during the upcoming week of practice.  Shurmur didn’t look happy with the performance of his team last night, and he now has his first teaching opportunity after the poor performance.

Next Thursday’s last exhibition will be dedicated to finding out who will get cut when the roster goes from 80 to 53 for the regular season.  So, it’s likely we won’t see much of the starters.

Still, the game didn’t count, just like the win over Green Bay and the loss to Detroit.  So, the things that went wrong can be corrected before the opener against Cincinnati on September 11th.

MW

 

The Cleveland Indians needed to come home after being swept by the Detroit Tigers, and win a whole lot during an eleven game homestand. 

It doesn’t look like that’s going to happen. 

The Indians lost the first game to a Seattle team that had nothing to play for when their offense took another siesta, and their closer melted down coming into a 2-2 game in the ninth.  He hit the first two batters, and made an error on a sacrifice attempt to load the bases with no one out. 

In today’s day/night doubleheader, manager Manny Acta decided to let starter Justin Masterson stay in the game with a 4-3 lead going into the ninth. despite having thrown over 100 pitches.  Granted, he might not have wanted to use Chris Perez after he threw almost 40 pitches the night before, but he could have used Vinnie Pestano or Tony Sipp.

Masterson gave up two hits, and then Perez came on and gave up a two run double to give Seattle the lead. 

Luckily for the skipper, the Mariners’ closer, Brandon League, gave up a leadoff double to Ezequiel Carrera, and ultimately a game winning home run to Shin-Soo Choo.

In the second game, Acta watched his rookie starter give up ten runs, eight of them earned, before relieving him in the 4th.  The score at that point was 8-2. 

Zack McAllister gave up five runs in the previous inning, but the manager didn’t take him out until he gave up three more?  He should have been yanked after the first sign of trouble.  This wasn’t some game in the middle of June, so the rookie had to soak up some innings to save the bullpen. 

The Tribe needed a win, especially since Felix Hernandez is throwing for Seattle tomorrow afternoon.

A win by the Tigers would put the Indians six games back, and they are just a half game ahead of the White Sox.

Barring a horrific slump by Detroit or a prolonged hot streak by the Indians,  a season which held so much promise in May, will likely be all over.

Yes, the injuries are a factor.  Losing Grady Sizemore, Travis Hafner, and Choo for long periods of time was tough.  However, the first two have been battling injuries for several years, so it would have been a stretch to predict injury free seasons for either. 

The health problems even extended to rookie Jason Kipnis, who had to be shut down for a couple of weeks right after he had started to give the offense a spark. 

As it was, the hitting attack was far too dependent on Asdrubal Cabrera, who is showing the fatigue of a guy who has carried his team most of the year.  When the all-star shortstop wasn’t hitting, the Indians had trouble scoring runs. 

Choo was just starting to hit a groove after a terrible start when he went on the DL after a Jonathan Sanchez pitch crushed his left thumb.  He’s starting to look like the Choo of 2009-10 now, but it looks like it’s too late.

GM Chris Antonetti tried to help the surprising contenders, dealing for Ubaldo Jimenez and Kosuke Fukudome to help out, but other holes sprung up, like closer Chris Perez’ struggles over the last month.

The Indians gave it a good run, and may have done it a year earlier than expected.  Hopefully, everyone, including the manager, has learned from this experience of playing meaningful games in August, and carry it into next year.

However, no one should rest on laurels.  This team has played 15 games below .500 for a good chunk of the season.  That shouldn’t be forgotten.

KM

The woe is us people were out in full force after the Cleveland Indians were swept by the Detroit Tigers over the weekend, giving the Tigers a 4-1/2 game lead in the AL Central.  However, don’t give up the ship just yet.

This may be a cock-eyed optimist talking, but remember, the Indians are just three games out in the loss column, meaning the Tribe has played three fewer games that Detroit, and if they would win them all, this 4-1/2 game bulge would be just 3 games.

With the Tigers taking on Tampa Bay this week (although Justin Verlander will pitch one of those games), and the Indians making up a rainout against Seattle this week, it’s possible by the time next Sunday hits, Cleveland could be just two or three out. 

The first place team isn’t exactly the 1927 Yankees.  In fact, the Tigers are below .500 when Verlander doesn’t take the mound.

Unless you are 5 or more back on Labor Day, it says here that you still have a chance.

This much is clear.  The Indians MUST play well on this homestand, consisting of 11 games against the Mariners, Royals, and A’s.  That is followed by three more in Kansas City.  Three teams playing out the string.

Cleveland has to win all three series to make sure the last six meetings with the Tigers, and the eight games against the White Sox have some meaning.

The Indians need to start hitting again if this is going to happen, because they scored just one run in each game in Detroit.  When Michael Brantley, Asdrubal Cabrera, and Travis Hafner aren’t producing, this team can’t score.  That’s why the impact of Jason Kipnis was felt so much.  He gave Manny Acta another solid bat.

Now, for Ubaldo Jimenez.  We were against the trade because it was felt the Indians gave up too much for a pitcher who was struggling in 2011.  It was stated here before the deal that you couldn’t give up the organizations top two pitching prospects.

How’s that looking right now?

Jimenez has been bad in three of his first four starts.  Meanwhile, Alex White, who the Tribe front office said would not be ready to start for the rest of the season, will make his first start for Colorado Tuesday night.

And people wonder why no one has confidence in the front office?

Supposedly, the reason the Indians got Jimenez was for games like Sunday afternoon in the Motor City, and the big right-hander failed the test, giving up eight runs in less than four innings.  The Tribe needed something better, and they didn’t get it.

There is no question a roster move will be made on Tuesday before the day-night doubleheader against Seattle, in order to bring up a starter, probably Zack McAllister for one of the games.  It wouldn’t be surprising to see Luis Valbuena sent out, with Cord Phelps replacing him after the twinbill.

However, they may have to make another move with Hafner coming up lame yesterday. although the DH did say his foot did feel better after the game.

And with Lonnie Chisenhall not really providing an impact bat, does it seem right to have him on the big league roster?  It seems like Manny Acta seems more comfortable with Jack Hannahan playing the hot corner, and the latter does have a more patient approach at the plate.

So, perhaps Ezequiel Carrera stays when Shelley Duncan needs to be reactivated, with the rookie being sent down.

In the meantime, keep the faith.  It would have been nice to take one game in Detroit and come home just 2-1/2 out, but they still have a decent chance to win the division.  These next 11 games at Progressive Field will tell fans if they should prepare for meaningful September baseball.

MW

 

The Cleveland Browns lost their first exhibition game of the year last night, and the reaction here is the same as their win last week against Green Bay.  Ho-hum.

The Browns took on the Lions with conservatively eight starters out of the lineup, including Peyton Hillis, Ben Watson, Eric Steinbach, T.J. Ward, and Scott Fujita and still they outplayed Detroit in the first half, leading 21-13 at the intermission.

To be fair, Detroit was missing WR Calvin Johnson and OT Jeff Backus.

Without a real running game, as both Hillis and Montario Hardesty did not play, Colt McCoy didn’t look as impressive as he did in the lidlifter vs. the Packers.  However, he still wound up throwing three TD passes, two to TE Evan Moore, in hitting 10 of 18 throws for 96 yards in the win.

And when the orange and brown got in the red zone, they scored touchdowns, another by-product of the west coast offense. 

It is refreshing to watch a legitimate professional offensive scheme after looking at two years of ultra-conservative stone age football.  Remember last year’s loss to Jacksonville when the Jags turned it over six times, and the Browns ran the ball after each one?  That won’t happen with Pat Shurmur handling the attack.

Besides the TD catches by Moore, another player under utilized last season, rookie WR Greg Little scored on a 13 yard pass from McCoy, and made another nice catch along the sideline.

Unfortunately, after the scoring reception, Little punted the ball in the seats, which drew a rebuke from the head coach, telling the rookie not to do that again.

McCoy was under a lot of pressure from the Lions’ front seven, but stood in and moved the football.  He never seemed to force the ball, and set up the second TD drive with a long pass to Josh Cribbs that was an obvious pass interference call.  Without the penalty, it would have been a 30-yard TD throw.

The defense played better as well.  Rookie DT Phil Taylor and Ahtyba Rubin clogged up the middle, giving the Lions no running room there.  Another rookie Jabaal Sheard forced a fumble, and then recovered it, setting up the first Cleveland score.

And MLB D’Qwell Jackson looked good as well, making a couple of stops in the backfield, which as analyst Bernie Kosar pointed out, is a criticism of the veteran, that he makes a lot of tackles, but they are all four or five yards past the line of scrimmage.

Dick Jauron’s unit also put some pressure on Matthew Stafford, forcing him out of the pocket three straight plays on one drive, making him throw the ball out-of-bounds. 

CB Joe Haden struggled a little bit, allowing two long passes, but after his very good rookie year in 2010, he deserves the benefit of the doubt.

Remember, the defense was missing three starters too, including two linebackers in Fujita and Chris Gocong.  And they still did a good job.

You have to be a little impressed that there is progress with this football team.  It appears three rookies will start this season, just like a year ago, as Taylor, Sheard, and FB Owen Marecic will be in there on the first snaps of the regular season.

That’s after three rookies (Haden, Ward, and McCoy) started last year.  And don’t forget G Shaun Lauvao, who will start in his second year.

That’s seven starters from GM Tom Heckert’s first two drafts.  That’s exciting after years of young players coming in and not being able to contribute.

The next step for the front office will be to build depth.  That’s why the current front office makes it a point to accumulate draft picks. 

Detroit writers commented after the game that the Cleveland Browns are building. 

Maybe that’s the best thing to be taken away from last night’s game.

JD

There are 44 games remaining in the regular season for the Cleveland Indians, and they are still just 3 games out of first place, and just one game out in the loss column.

There are several reasons they are in this position, most notably an MVP type season from Asdrubal Cabrera, who is hitting .289 with 20 HR and 72 RBI’s and is playing a gold glove shortstop. 

Justin Masterson and Josh Tomlin are other huge reasons for the Tribe’s success as they keep the team in a position to win virtually every time they take the mound as a starter. 

Don’t forget the bullpen.  Guys like Vinnie Pestano, Rafael Perez, and Joe Smith have been outstanding most of the season, teaming with Chris Perez and Tony Sipp to insure a victory most nights that the Indians go into the 7th inning with a lead.

And you can’t ignore the division the Indians are in as well.  Toronto is two games over .500, the same as Cleveland, and they are buried in the AL East. 

However, if the Tribe is to stay in the race and perhaps overtake Detroit and hold off Chicago in the AL Central, they will need contributions from some other players on the club.

First, Manny Acta needs his DH, Travis Hafner to pick it up at the plate.  No one can expect Pronk to hit .340 for the season, as he was when he hit his game-winning grand slam against Toronto on July 7th. 

However, Hafner is hitting just .240 with 3 homers and a 695 OPS since the all-star break.  If the Tribe is going to start scoring runs, particular against teams like Oakland and Chicago that have good pitching, they need a productive Pronk.

Shin-Soo Choo is just coming off a broken thumb, but it would be nice if he started hitting like the guy who hit .300 with 20 HR in both 2009 and 2010.  Right now, the left-handed hitter is batting .240 with 5 dingers.

Also, both of the players picked up in deadline trades need to perform better than they have to this point.

Kosuke Fukudome came to the Indians with an ability to get on base (.374 with the Cubs this year), but so far it hasn’t translated to the American League. 

In 16 games with the Tribe, he has a .268 on base percentage and an OPS of 581.  Granted, it’s a small sample, but the Cleveland attack needs the former Cub to start producing offensively.

Ubaldo Jimenez provided an outstanding start in his debut at Progressive Field, throwing eight strong innings against the Tigers after a 14 inning game the night before had extended the bullpen.

In his other two outings against Texas and Chicago, he has struggled with his command, and pitched just 5 and 4-2/3 innings respectively.

The Indians need him to team with Masterson to provide a 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation going forward.  He’s kept the team in the game in both of those outings, but more is expected from a hurler who finished third in the NL Cy Young Award voting last year, winning 19 games.

Not to mention costing Cleveland their top two pitching prospects.

It’s ridiculous to hope that a youngster like Jason Kipnis or Lonnie Chisenhall can step up and be a big factor in winning a division title. 

The guys mentioned here are proven big leaguers, and currently aren’t producing like they have in the past. 

If they can get it going, it may just be enough to put the Cleveland Indians back in the post-season for the first time since 2007.

MW

When the Indians activated David Huff to start in Sunday’s rained out game against Minnesota, they sent Shelley Duncan back to Columbus.

This move raised some eyebrows because at this point in the season, Duncan and Matt LaPorta are the only right-handed hitters with any pop on the 25 man roster.

With a series in Chicago coming up, it’s a little odd to remove a hitter who bats from the right side with Mark Buehrle starting one of the games, and two hard throwing lefties in the bullpen in Matt Thornton and Chris Sale.

There is no question Manny Acta will face a situation in at least one of those games in the Windy City where he needs a right-handed pinch hitter.  Does he go to Lou Marson?

The Indians said they are going to make a decision on whether or not to put Michael Brantley and his sore wrist on the disabled list prior to the series against the White Sox.  If they do, they can bring Duncan back up right away due to the injury.

Normally, a player has to spend ten days in the minors after being optioned out. 

Maybe that’s the game plan all along. 

However, if Brantley is ready to play against Chicago, the bench will consist of Marson, Jack Hannahan, Ezequiel Carrera, and Jason Donald.  Marson and Donald hit right-handed, but neither is the type of player you want to have up there with the game on the line.

So, you have to think that some kind of roster move is coming.

Keep in mind, designating Austin Kearns for assignment also leaves an opening on the 40 man roster, possibly for Jerad Head, currently at Columbus, or perhaps for a waiver wire trade to pick up a right-handed bat.

If a move isn’t coming, or Duncan isn’t brought back up because of Brantley’s injury, the Indians are leaving themselves very vulnerable to southpaws in a critical point of the season.

Now, some of the Indians left-handed hitters wouldn’t be pinch hit for no matter who is on the mound.  We’re talking about guys like Travis Hafner, Shin-Soo Choo, Kosuke Fukudome, or Brantley. 

However, what happens when Lonnie Chisenhall comes up in a tight spot against Thornton?  You have to give Acta an option in that situation.

So don’t be surprised if there are a couple of roster moves made prior to the six game trip to Chicago and Detroit.

Also, with Sunday’s rainout, Tuesday’s game will start a stretch of 45 games in 44 days for the Indians, taking them through the end of the season.

It means pitching depth will be needed, and thankfully, Cleveland has some.

The Tribe will have to start guys like Huff, Carlos Carrasco (when healthy), and perhaps even Jeanmar Gomez or Zack McAllister in key games going down the stretch. 

Thankfully, all of those guys have shown the ability to at least keep their team in a game this season. 

The Indians also have some bullpen depth for all of those September games too, as they will probably add Josh Judy, Nick Hagadone, and maybe even Zach Putnam or C.C. Lee to the roster after the September 1st date when rosters can expand.

That’s why organizations stress getting arms.  You never know when you will need them in key spots.

MW

Every year, people who are not Cleveland Brown zealots have to go through the same thing during the NFL’s exhibition games (sorry, Roger Goodell, we’re not calling them pre-season games).  The games do not mean anything, so it’s crazy to get excited by a victory, and equally silly to get depressed by a loss.

One reason for this is you never know how the opposition is going to treat the games.  For example, last night, Green Bay defensive coordinator Dom Capers didn’t show any blitzes or exotic looks.  He played it vanilla, and the Browns’ first team offense looked good against the Pack.

Still, there were some good signs for Pat Shurmur’s crew.

First, they won the games, which is always better than losing.  Second, they weren’t dominated by the Packers as they were two years ago in exhibition play.  You don’t want to watch your team getting out played from a physical standpoint in the first practice game.  That’s disheartening.

Many so-called experts have spent the summer criticizing QB Colt McCoy, but the one things you can say about him is he is extremely accurate, and last night was no exception. 

McCoy hit on 9 of 10 passes in the first quarter (yes, he also played the first two minutes of the 2nd quarter) for 135 yards and a touchdown throw of 27 yards to Joshua Cribbs.  No, McCoy doesn’t have a big arm.  But, it says here that accuracy, toughness, and ability to read defenses are more important attributes for a pro quarterback than a big arm.

We can all name guys who could throw the ball 60 yards in the air, and didn’t become great QB’s.  In fact, one of them was a starter here just four years ago in Derek Anderson.  Once teams took away the deep ball, he ceased being an effective NFL player.

Another good early sign is that maybe, just maybe Shurmur’s version of the west coast offense knows what to do with Josh Cribbs playing wide receiver.  Other regimes have struggled to use Cribbs as a receiver, but last night, McCoy hit the elite return man on a crossing route (yes, this might be a part of the offense!) for a first down. 

Getting Cribbs the ball in space always seemed like a good idea, but other offensive schemes just lined him up in the wildcat formation and ran sweeps.  It will be interesting to see if Shurmur uses him in sort of  a Wes Welker type of role, getting him the ball in space on third down situations.

That might be the former Kent State star’s only impact with the ball this year, because the NFL’s new kickoff rule had every ball kicked seven to ten yards deep in the end zone.  Please rule makers, change that one back please.

It was difficult to see any impact from first round pick Phil Taylor because Green Bay didn’t really run the ball in the first quarter.  And although it was against the second teamers, LB Marcus Benard continued to show he can put pressure on the passer with a sack of Packers’ QB Matt Flynn.

Friday night is the next dress rehearsal for the Browns, with the starters probably staying on the field for the entire first half.  Then, you can look at the halftime score and get a sort of realistic measurement of the team.  However, watch the games more on individual assessments than the score.  That will tell you who is progressing, and who will be looking for employment come early September.

JD

The Cleveland Indians came into a three game series against the division leading Detroit Tigers playing better, but still on a bit of a down note because of what could have been.

The seven game trip to Boston and Texas resulted in a 3-4 record, which isn’t bad, but it was a tad disappointing because you could make a good case that the Tribe could have won all seven games.  They were tied or lead going into the ninth inning of every game except one, and they actually won that game on Saturday against the Rangers.

However, despite the close losses, the Indians looks like they may have found their mojo on the road. 

They took two out of three against the Tigers, cutting the division lead to just three games.  Remember, the two teams do battle nine more times this season, but only three of those games are in the friendly confines of Progressive Field. 

They won the series and looked crisp doing it.  Yes, they made some errors (Carlos Santana’s difficulty catching throw at first is a little troubling), but they put together some good at bats and played some solid defense.  And the bullpen rebounded from a tough trip to throw 12 scoreless innings in the rain-soaked first game of the series, which was key.

When the Indians were playing well early in the season, they were successful quite often in winning the first game of a lot of three game sets.  That puts the opposition in the position of winning both of the remaining games to win the series.  Getting game one takes a lot of pressure off of the ballclub.

The bullpen was the main factor in doing that Tuesday night with the much maligned (at least here) Chad Durbin throwing three scoreless innings when play resumed.

Cleveland also got their first look at Ubaldo Jimenez, who needed to go deep into the game to save the relief corps in the middle game of the series, and did just that, allowing no earned runs (due to a scoring change) in eight solid innings. 

And when the Indians increased their 4-3 lead in the bottom of the fourth, Jimenez did what an ace should do, he completely shut the door on the Tigers.

Even in the loss to the AL’s best pitcher tonight in Justin Verlander, the Tribe went down 4-0, but fought back and got back into the game and made Verlander earn his 17th win.  Any thoughts of a possible no hitter went out the window when Carlos Santana deposited a Verlander heater into the right centerfield seats.

Now, the Indians must have that same intensity against a Minnesota team that is all but out of the race this weekend.  They have the guy who’s been their best pitcher all season long tomorrow night in Justin Masterson, so hopefully they can get the series off to a good start. 

They also may have some good news when they go back on the road as Shin-Soo Choo may be able to rejoin the team.  If he can come even close to being the player who wore #17 in 2008-10, the lineup will get a much-needed boost.

He also lends some experience to the team.  Remember, Manny Acta is playing three rookies (Jason Kipnis, Lonnie Chisenhall, and Ezequiel Carrera) on an everyday basis, and Carlos Santana is in his first full year in the big leagues as well. 

The guess here is that when Choo is back, Acta will play Michael Brantley in CF, with Kosuke Fukudome moving to LF. 

It was a good beginning, but there can be no let ups now.  With 47 games left in the season, the Cleveland Indians are still very much in the race.

KM

It begins tonight!

The Detroit Tigers, leaders of the AL Central Division, are in Cleveland to open a three game series.  This is the first of twelve games between the two teams from now until the end of the campaign, which totals 50 games.

In fact, 39 of those games will be played against teams from the division, so the Indians’ fate is definitely in their hands.

And as we have written before, it will be interesting to see Manny Acta at the helm of a team in contention for the first time.

The Tribe made some roster moves going into last weekend, when Jack Hannahan went on paternity leave for the weekend, and Shelly Duncan was brought back to play in the three game set against Texas. 

Duncan immediately contributed, hitting a home run Friday, and knocking in the team’s first run in Saturday’s game.  He will stay for the Tiger series, as Cleveland put RHP Carlos Carrasco on the disabled list with a sore elbow.

However, another move will need to be made on Saturday before the game against Minnesota, when the Indians need a fifth starter.  More than likely, David Huff will be called up to make that start, so someone else will have to go.

By that time, OF Shin-Soo Choo may also be ready to be activated as well.

The point here is that right now, with the season on the line, Acta needs a 25 man roster that he has confidence in.  And that means every player.

For instance, in the bullpen, it is clear that the skipper has no desire to see Chad Durbin and Frank Herrmann pitching with a lead.  Durbin actually got in Friday’s game after Ubaldo Jimenez left, but that was because the relief corps was worn out in Boston and he had no choice. 

In fact, Jimenez probably should have been lifted after five innings, but Acta tried to squeeze an extra frame out of him because he didn’t want to have to use Durbin.

Herrmann got the win on Saturday, but only because he entered with the Indians losing, and they rallied in the ninth.

So, perhaps it is time to bring back RH Josh Judy and maybe even southpaw Nick Hagadone to replace them.  Yes, both pitchers have little big league experience, but it’s not as though the team is using the guys they would replace.  Besides, an extra lefty out of the ‘pen would allow Acta more matchup opportunities.

As for the position players, Hannahan might be the guy to go when Huff is brought up this weekend.  The choice would be between Duncan, Austin Kearns, and the veteran infielder.  With Jason Donald having the utility role and being a right-handed bat, it’s hard to see where Hannahan can get at bats. 

It would seem that Duncan’s power and his ability to be a good pinch-hitter would be useful coming down the stretch, particularly with the predominantly left-handed hitting lineup Cleveland regularly starts. 

Kearns would provide a good defensive option in the outfield, unless the Tribe decides to bring up OF Jerad Head, who is hitting .290 with 21 HR and 63 RBI (882 OPS).  Head is not considered a prospect, but he has been red-hot at Columbus, and the Indians may be looking to catch lightning in a bottle.

With 50 games remaining, if the Tribe is to catch and pass Detroit, and stay ahead of the White Sox (just a game behind Cleveland), they need the strongest roster possible.  It’s no time to be sentimental.

MW