Last night, STO kept giving the score of the game between the Rays and Tigers, who are currently tied for first place with the Indians in the AL Central.

Granted, it was a light night in the American League with only three games in total, and one of those was a west coast game. 

So, in reality, it was the only other game going on at the same time as the Tribe-Yankees game.

It is way too early to start scoreboard watching because most teams have 100 games remaining on the schedule.  It’s almost like most Indian fans feel once the team relinquish its hold on first place, they will never be able to grab it again.

Of course, that’s what happens when a baseball team has lost 14 of its last 19 contests.  Everything appears to be doom and gloom.  Things will never get better, right?

Heck, the Indians could take two of three this week against Detroit and have a game going into interleague play.

While on the subject of games against the National League, strange things can happen there as well. 

Last season, the White Sox climbed back into the division race by clubbing NL squads.  In 2005, the Indians played very well during this part of the schedule and continued their hot streak until the last week of the season.

Remember the old expression, baseball is a marathon, not a sprint.  And right now, the season is nowhere near the halfway point. 

There could be two more hot streaks and two more losing streaks by each team in the division.  So, you have to look at things with the big picture in mind.

However, the Indians cannot hope to keep winning games by shutting out their opponents 1-0, which is how their last two victories came about.  They have to be able to score runs.

There is no question that manager Manny Acta is trying.  Last night, he juggled the lineup once again in an effort to get the attack in gear. 

He put Carlos Santana in the #2 hole and Asdrubal Cabrera in the clean up spot, two moves advocated in this blog a week ago.  When a team isn’t hitting, you have to try to put as many of the guys who are getting on base together in the order.

It makes total sense to put a guy with a high on-base percentage like Santana in front of two players swinging the bat well in Michael Brantley and A. Cabrera.

That’s a good move by the skipper.  On the flip side, putting Orlando Cabrera in as a defensive replacement?  Ya gotta wonder about that one.

Fans don’t have the patience that front office people do.  Sometimes, that’s a good thing like last season with reliever Rafael Perez. 

Perez was getting hit hard at this time in 2010, and when he wasn’t giving up hits, he was walking batters.  But Acta and then GM Mark Shapiro stuck with the southpaw and he turned his season around.

He’s a valuable piece of the Tribe bullpen this year as well.

On the other hand, Austen Kearns really hasn’t been productive since April of last season, yet the Indians seem reticent to cut him loose. 

The management can’t get carried away after one or two bad weeks and make changes. 

Now five or six bad weeks?  Perhaps that’s testing the limits of giving a player the benefit of the doubt.

MW

It wasn’t that long ago that the Cleveland Indians sat on top of the baseball world with a 30-15 record. 

It was May 23rd following a 3-2 win over the Red Sox on Asdrubal Cabrera’s go ahead two run double in the eighth inning.  It was the Tribe’s fourth straight win.

Since then, it has been straight down like an elevator that has had its cable’s cut.  The Tribe is 4-14 since that victory and now shares the AL Central lead with the Tigers, who they had a seven game lead on at that time.

Now that’s a sharp change in direction.

Manny Acta has tried several different things in lineup changes, moving Carlos Santana and Shin-Soo Choo down in the order and then back up.  He’s hit Grady Sizemore fifth or sixth in the batting order, and now has him hitting third.  Acta has promised that more changes are coming.

The front office even called up Cord Phelps, who has started his big league career off by going 1 for 11 in his first three games.

Nothing has been able to shake the Indians out of this funk.

Yet, they are still tied for first in the division, so GM Chris Antonetti owes it to his players to keep trying to improve the roster because they still have a chance to make a run at the post-season.

The average American League player right now has an OPS of 718.  The current Tribe roster has four players who have number 100 points less than that figure:  Orlando Cabrera (575), Lou Marson (564), Austin Kearns (561), and Adam Everett (549). 

What this means for Acta is that we really doesn’t have any options to sit guys who are slumping, like Choo and Santana.  Both of those guys have OPS over 100 points higher than the players who would replace them, namely Kearns and Marson.

Honestly, Marson isn’t known for his bat and is an excellent defensive catcher, so his lack of production can be dismissed. 

One of the problems with the offense has gone under the radar is the way the number of walks the team has drawn has diminished as of late.  The Indians were once in the middle of the pack in drawing bases on balls, but entered today’s game against the Yankees 11th in the AL.

That’s third from the bottom everybody, ahead of only Tampa Bay, Baltimore, and Minnesota.  All three of those teams rank below the league average in runs scored.

Cabrera is the worst offender drawing just six walks in 222 plate appearances on the year, but other Indians aren’t contributing to the cause either. 

Grady Sizemore has just nine free passes in 143 PA’s, although he drew two today.  In fact, he’s walked four times in the Yankee series, which means he had just five walks on the season. 

Choo’s walked just 12 times since May 1st.  He had 83 free rides last season in total. 

If you are not hitting, you have to contribute something offensively, which you can do by working the pitchers and walking.  Jack Hannahan is not on this list because he’s worked 23 BB’s, ranking 3rd on the team behind Santana and Michael Brantley. 

Another problem is the approach of the left-handed hitters of trying to pull everything.  That usually results in groundout to second or first.  How many of those have we seen lately?

Outside of Hannahan’s double on Saturday, it is tough to recall a hit to LF by a left-handed hitter. 

A change in both of these areas would help the offense generate more runs. 

No team can expect its pitchers to throw a shutout every night.  In the last ten games for the Cleveland Indians, that’s the only way they picked up a victory.

MW

The Cleveland Indians are obviously going through a tough time right now.

They have lost 11 of their last 15 games, and the offense has been dormant.  No one is hitting consistently except for Michael Brantley and Asdrubal Cabrera.

Every once in a while, Baseball Prospectus takes a look at the season in reverse, and how it would change the perception of that team even though the record winds up the same.

With that in mind, if the Indians had started the season losing 11 of 15, and then got hot and were sitting at 34-26 through 60 games, and had a game and a half lead over Detroit, everyone would be ecstatic.

The point is the Tribe is eight games over .500, which no one expected at the beginning of the year, and despite this cold spell, they still do lead the division.

When a team isn’t scoring runs, it’s frustrating to watch because it makes the ballclub look listless.  And starting out the season with 30 wins in their first 45 games just makes you want to bang your head into the wall even more.

Once again, they still lead the division!

The losing streak is emphasized even more because the Tigers have gotten hot, winning nine of their last eleven games.  Can Detroit keep up that pace? 

Maybe, but if they had won just seven of their last eleven, the Indians would have a 3 game lead, and the worry around Cleveland would be lessened.

The point is, the Indians aren’t as bad as they are playing right now, and they aren’t as good as they were the first 45 games of the season. 

Detroit probably isn’t as good as they are playing now either.

We will still stay with our original projection that 88 victories will be good enough the win the AL Central.  If that’s a good number, then the Tribe needs to go 54-48 the rest of the season to reach that record.

That’s not an outrageous pace.

The promising thing for the Indians is that the starting pitching continues to do well, for the most part. 

Against the powerful Rangers’ lineup, the starters entered the seventh inning in the last games having allowed just two runs, and the Twins offense mustered only nine runs in the three game series which just concluded.

If that continues, the Indians will be alright.  Good starting pitching keeps you in every game, it gives you a chance to win even if your offense struggles.

On most nights, the Tribe has a chance to win.  In fact, the offensive struggles are more frustrating because one big hit could have changed many of the 11 losses which have occurred in the last 15 games.

What is not understandable is the offensive approach during the slump.  When you are struggling to score runs, sometimes playing for one run is the best move. 

When the Tribe does get a leadoff man on, maybe they should try bunting him over and playing a little National League ball.

Of course, that would also entail moving Asdrubal Cabrera out of the #2 spot because you don’t want him giving himself up. 

Based on his production this year, the Indians’ SS should be hitting third or fourth to drive in runs. 

How’s this batting order:  Brantley LF, Santana C (high OBP), Sizemore CF, A. Cabrera SS, Choo RF, LaPorta 1B, Buck DH, Phelps 2B, Hannahan 3B.

Despite the past couple of weeks, the Cleveland Indians still have a lot going for them.  It’s a little easier to produce runs than it is to prevent them.

If there pitching was horrible, you don’t have a chance to compete most nights.

KM

What happened at Ohio State is sad because the actions of a few people, including the head coach, have effected the rest of the team, its fans, and the reputation of the school’s athletic program.

We can get into the hypocrisy of the NCAA rules and regulations, and whether or not players should be paid, but the fact remains that Jim Tressel hid the truth on his players selling their memorabilia, and the “Tattoo 5” sold several items they were not allowed to sell until they left school.

Those are the reasons the NCAA will come down hard on the Buckeye football program, and also the reason Tressel is no longer the coach at Ohio State.

In defense of the program, the violations were not the most serious by most people’s opinion.  There was no recruiting advantages gained, nor were there any academic issues, such as grade changing. 

Instead, it was players selling their own stuff.  Unfortunately, that merchandise was given to them as a result of their athletic exploits, and they are not allowed to trade or sell them until they are no longer at the school.

Tressel knew the players were involved and did not report the problems to the school administration or the NCAA. 

He did that knowing they likely would have been suspended by the powers that be for breaking the rules. 

Therefore, he played ineligible players.

The odd thing here is that even though the NCAA knew this occurred, they allowed the players to play in the Sugar Bowl, which is a BCS game. 

So, they were wrong to break the rules, but we can’t allow something like that to effect one of the featured bowl games of the post season. 

That would be wrong.  This is where the NCAA shows its slimy side. 

The merchandise sales conducted by the players involved is either a generational thing, or it shows how disconnected these athletes are to the university they represent.

Imagine being a kid growing up in Ohio, dreaming of playing one day for the Buckeyes, and getting a pair of gold pants for beating the school up north.  You would treasure them forever.

Not these guys.  It became a way to get free tattoos, just like a Big Ten championship ring or bowl game merchandise.

When you live with lice, you get lousy. 

This is what the coach got when he went after the elite athletes who are not from Ohio.  Some have a questionable character, some have a different agenda.  Some of them don’t have the pride in being a Buckeye that players in the past have had.

Still, Tressel can justify in his mind that he was protecting his players, but as soon as he heard his players were selling memorabilia, he should have told his athletic director and the compliance people at OSU.

Had that been done, the players would have been suspended, possibly for less than the five games they eventually received, and Tressel would still be the head coach at Ohio State.

The former coach comes off as a guy who is like some politicians, which is ironic, because some nicknamed him “The Senator”.  He thought he was big enough to sweep the info under the rug.

Many supporters say Tressel is a good man, and there isn’t a doubt of that, but he violated the trust of the university and ultimately, the NCAA. 

He lost his job because of it.

MW

The panic is starting.  The Cleveland Indians have lost four in a row at home, and nine of twelve overall.

Still, they lead the AL Central at 2-1/2 games over Detroit, and also are tied with the Yankees for the best record in the league. 

Everyone would have signed up for that when the season began in April. 

With a three game series against the Twins coming up, followed by big series on the road versus New York and Detroit, it is definitely time to turn it around.

Do well in this stretch of games, and many critics will forget all about this weekend.

Remember, in 1996 the Tribe was a dominant team at home and the Yankees came in and swept a four game series at Jacobs Field (June 21-23).  Stuff like that happens in the baseball season.

The starting pitching wasn’t the problem either for the most part.  Outside of Carlos Carrasco’s outing in the series opener, the Indians’ starter held the Texas’ bats in check.  

In fact, the last three games of the series, Texas entered the seventh inning with just two runs in each game. 

Unfortunately, the bats weren’t working at all, scoring just two runs in the last three games, and none in the last two contests.

Right now, the Tribe has too many holes in their batting order, particularly with Shin-Soo Choo not hitting. 

Orlando Cabrera’s problems have been well documented here.  Manny Acta is also getting no offense from third base, no matter who is playing there, either Jack Hannahan or Adam Everett.

Everett, by the way, is having a Mark Grudzielanek (2010 version) type of season, with no extra base hits on the season.

When Austin Kearns is in the lineup as well, and add Choo’s struggles to the mix, that is four holes in the batting order. 

The only way you can win with this lineup is if the other five guys are red-hot, and they aren’t.

The Indians have to do something to help their hitting as soon as they can.  And forget about the ridiculous talk about getting guys like Michael Young or David Wright.  The reason those guys are on the market is their contracts are incredibly bloated.

So, the Tribe has to go to the farm system for help.  The question is can guys like Cord Phelps provide help to the offense.

When making that decision, people should go to the “can he do any worse” question.

That is to say, would Phelps do any worse offensively than O. Cabrera or Hannahan have done since the first of May?

Based on his minor league track record, the answer would appear to be no.  And not to be mean, but at this point, anyone who would not be an automatic out would be an upgrade.

That’s where the Indians will have to get improvement, from the farm system.  They are not going to give up their prime prospects for a rental player, nor should they.

And no other team is going to give you a good player for a marginal prospect until near the trading deadline.  The players who will be available will likely be guys who will be free agents at the end of the season.

Look at the standings.  There are not a lot of team out of the race for a playoff spot right now, so it’s very difficult to make moves right now.

That shouldn’t stop GM Chris Antonetti from trying to improve his roster immediately.  He can’t make a major upgrade, but there are players at Columbus who can help the Indians right now.

With a big trip on the horizon, there may not be a better time to get some help.

KM

The Cleveland Indians have lost nine of their last sixteen games and panic is spreading throughout northern Ohio.

However, the team finished the first third of the season at 33-21, which means they are on pace to win 99 games this season, which is about 25 more than most people thought they would end the year with.

Still, the last 16 contests have shown some weaknesses which need to be addressed if the team is to continue their winning ways.

First off, the defense is starting to become an issue once again.  Orlando Cabrera has been inconsistent defensively and Matt LaPorta has made a few mental mistakes at first base.

And in the outfield Shin-Soo Choo has displayed a rocket for a throwing arm, but has misjudged several balls in right field. 

Also, the offense has been too hit or miss lately.  More consistency is definitely needed. 

The hitting has developed into an attack in which the Indians either score seven or eight runs on a given night, or they are completely shut down by the opposing pitcher.  They have been unable to manufacture runs when these nights occur. 

Many people will point to the Tribe missing Grady Sizemore and Travis Hafner as the chief reasons for this off and on attack, but it’s now time to put the spotlight on Choo, who was considered the be the team’s best player coming into the season.

The Cleveland rightfielder is hitting just .246 on the season with 5 HR and 22 RBI and an OPS of under 700.  His last home run came the night Hafner hit the walk-off bomb against Seattle, and that would be May 13th.  He’s had just four multi-hit games since the beginning of May, and all of those have been just two hit nights.

He’s also had just two games of more than one RBI in the same time span.  That’s not good enough production from a guy hitting in what normally is the spot for the team’s best hitter. 

Acta needs to slide him lower in the lineup due to his production.

Who should bat third in his place?  How about the team’s best hitter this season, SS Asdrubal Cabrera, who is among the American League leaders in home runs (11) and RBI’s (40). 

In fact, perhaps a flip-flop of Cabrera and Choo might be in order since the latter is second on the Indians in walks, and he and Michael Brantley would give Acta plenty of speed at the top of the order. 

Moving Choo out of the three hole might also allow him to relax and also to cut down on his swing.  After cutting his strikeout substantially in 2010 (from 151 in ’09 to 118), the left-handed hitter is striking out more frequently this year.  It appears he feels he is the Tribe’s biggest power threat, and is trying to pull everything.

That’s not the approach that has made him a lifetime .292 hitter. 

This is not to bury Choo, as the Indians need him to be productive if they are going to continue their run this season.  However, it is clear that right now he doesn’t have the same impact on the batting order he did last season. 

Getting back to basics may be just what he needs, and the Cleveland Indians need the Shin-Soo Choo of the last two seasons to start showing up night after night.

MW

Since the Cleveland Indians have lost five of their last six games, there is a lot of nervousness around the club’s fan base. 

It’s understandable because the message they are getting from the Tribe’s front office is that changes aren’t forthcoming. 

While the plan coming into the season was to continue the development of young players with an eye on 2012, the Indians’ fast start altered that blueprint.

That’s why when Carlos Carrasco went down with a sore elbow in late April, Cleveland dipped into the farm system for former 1st round draft choice Alex White, perhaps a half a year sooner than they wanted to.

Now, there seems to be some hesitancy in making further changes to the 25 man roster, mainly because of the feelings of some veterans who have helped the team build a five game lead within the AL Central and the best record in the American League.

There is no secret the offense took a slight dip in run production when injuries knocked Grady Sizemore and Travis Hafner out of the lineup. 

However, the fall off in production from players who have been in the everyday lineup from day one is more to blame than the players filling in for Sizemore and Hafner.

In fact, Travis Buck and Shelley Duncan have done a decent job in filling in for Hafner.  Buck has an 891 OPS over the last two weeks, and Duncan is 6 for 22 with a homer in the same time span.

Hafner’s ability to take walks has been missed, though.

The fear going into the season was the lack of offense the Indians would get out of two infield spots:  2B and 3B.  The past two weeks, that fear has turned into reality.

Orlando Cabrera is just 5 for 35 over the past two weeks with one extra base hit and two walks in that time span.  That’s a 382 OPS over that period, which is horrible to say the least.

Manager Manny Acta doesn’t want to sit the veteran down, but he doesn’t have to bat him sixth either.

Hannahan is hitting just .167 (6 for 36) over the last 14 days, with two doubles, an RBI, and an OPS of 453.  In the entire month, he’s hitting just .178 with no home runs and two runs batted in and an OPS of just 465.

These aren’t slumps, they are trends, and you can’t generate very many runs with two guys in your batting order hitting like that. 

Acta will talk about the defense both players provide, and certainly Hannahan is a vast improvement over the guys who played the hot corner in 2010, but if you can’t hit in the major leagues, it doesn’t matter how good your glove is.

And Cabrera’s defense hasn’t been all that great either.  He’s been adequate, but he’s made some errors on key double play grounders over the past couple of weeks. 

That puts even more of a spotlight on his lack of hitting.

The point is this.  Now is not the time for the organization to get conservative.  If young players like Cord Phelps (yes, we know we are harping, but look at his numbers) and Lonnie Chisenhall can improve the 2011 Cleveland Indians, then they need to be in the big leagues.

This isn’t based on the one week of bad baseball the Tribe has played, it’s based on a month of poor hitting.

This first place team can’t afford to wait much longer.

KM

The baseball schedule watchers make me laugh.  They analyze the upcoming schedule and determine in advance whether or not a team can successfully navigate their way through the upcoming games or not.

When a team defeats an inferior team, the wins are discounted like it would be better if the squad would lose to these opponents so as not to get an advantage on the other teams in competition with them.

Right now, the schedule watchers are predicting doom and gloom for the Cleveland Indians because of the upcoming slate which includes games with Toronto, Texas, Minnesota, New York, Detroit, and then 15 games of play against the National League.

Among those games is a three game set in San Francisco against the world champion Giants.

However, a check of the American League standings shows there aren’t really any bad teams in the league, save for the Minnesota Twins, the only ballclub in the AL with a winning percentage under .400.

Only two other teams are under .450, Kansas City (23-29) and Chicago (24-31), and the Royals would be virtually  a .500 team if it weren’t for a 2-7 record against…the Indians. 

The point is that parity has come to the AL this season and there are no soft touches on the schedule right now. 

Critics will point out that the Tribe has played an easy slate so far, but they are 4-2 against Eastern Division leading Boston.  Against three other teams right around the .500 mark, Cleveland is 4-0 against the surprising Mariners, 3-0 against Detroit, and 3-0 against the Orioles. 

The schedule was supposed to toughen up starting with last weekend’s series against Cincinnati, but the Indians are 5-4 in the first nine games of this stretch, sweeping the Reds, while losing 2 0f 3 to both the Red Sox and Rays.

This week, Cleveland has a three game set in Toronto against the Blue Jays (27-26) before coming home for a four game series versus the AL defending champion Rangers (28-25), so it doesn’t get any easier. 

Outside of Mitch Talbot’s disastrous outing against Boston last Wednesday, the starting pitching for the Indians continues to keep them in most games.  Even Josh Tomlin’s hiccup on Friday was a case of one bad inning, as Tomlin still gave manager Manny Acta six solid frames. 

As long as the starters hold up, why can’t Cleveland survive and even win more than their share of these games.

Talbot is a concern, as two of his three starts have been problems, although both were against Boston.  He is a guy to observe because outside of April and September, he didn’t pitch well last season.  And for a hurler who throws in the low 90 MPH range, he doesn’t pitch ahead in the count often enough.

That said, he did throw eight innings of shutout ball in his one start against somebody besides the Red Sox, that against Los Angeles.

He should watch Tomlin, who doesn’t throw hard either, but is usually ahead of the hitters, making them hit his pitch.

Carlos Carrasco has pitched well since his return to the rotation, and Jeanmar Gomez has thrown very well in Columbus after going back there earlier this month.  Gomez is now 4-1 with a 2.82 ERA and 32 strikeouts against 13 walks in 38-1/3 frames in AAA. 

He could be back soon if Talbot does struggle more. 

Also, don’t count out right hander Zach McAllister, picked up from the Yankees in the Austin Kearns deal last season.  McAllister is 7-0 with a 2.29 ERA and 47 whiffs vs. 10 walks in 59-1/3 innings this season.

Remember this, for all the hand wringing about who the Indians are about to play, they have a six game lead on Memorial Day.  Compare that to the AL East where all five teams are within five games of each other, and the AL West, where the four teams are separated by just a game and a half.

Who’s spot would you rather be in?

MW

It was very surprising news from the NBA this week.  The hiring of former Cavaliers’ coach Mike Brown by the Los Angeles Lakers shocked almost everyone.

Many had Brown penciled in at Golden State, but instead he gets one of the plum coaching job in basketball.  The position has been held by Phil Jackson and Pat Riley, both icons of the bench.  It’s been offered to Mike Krzyzewski in the all too recent past, and Coach K is perhaps the most well known coach in the sport, guiding both an elite program at Duke and also the US National Team.

It tells you how respected Brown in the basketball community that he got the gig.  Perhaps the only job on par with being the Lakers’ head man is being one of the heirs to Red Auerbach’s chair in Boston. 

Congratulations to Brown, who certainly was a class act in Cleveland.

We were very critical of Brown’s offensive philosophy while with the Cavaliers, as it appeared he didn’t have much of an idea of how to run a motion type attack.  We also didn’t understand the idea of surrounding LeBron James with a bunch of one-dimensional players on offense, but notably a bunch of three-point shooters.

Mo Williams and Anthony Parker both had the ability to take the ball to the basket before they came to Cleveland, but the offense never took advantage of that ability.

It appears now that the problem with the offense was James, who needed and demanded to have the ball in his hands all the time.  Mostly because he thought so little of his teammates, which is why he frequently tells everyone he didn’t have any help in Cleveland, despite winning 127 regular season games in his last two seasons in wine and gold.

James apparently only respects the players he believes are close to him in ability instead of raising the talents of his teammates.

The Lakers’ hiring of Brown means they do not hold the coach responsible for the lack of ball movement which occurred at times during his tenure, instead they blame James.  They believe that the two-time MVP must have broke off plays, or simply flat refused to run the sets the coach called.

If that’s not the case, why would you hire the man to coach Kobe Bryant, who is a guy who wants to win above anything else, although sometimes he may go about it the wrong way. 

If Los Angeles owner Jerry Buss and GM Mitch Kupchak thought that Brown was a guy who allowed James to do whatever he wanted, do you really think they would hire him to guide Bryant to another title?  No, unless they believe Bryant can play and coach, and want Brown to serve as a figurehead during him tenure.

It tells you that at least from the LA point of view, Brown tried to coach LeBron James, and the player thought he knew more than the coach, or was above being tutored by him.  To James credit, he did learn how to play on the defensive end of the floor from Brown, who is excellent on that end of the floor.

An organization that has one as much as the Lakers is probably too smart to give the keys of one of the NBA’s elite franchises to a man who will be overrun by his players. 

Good luck, coach.  The Lakers gave you the best endorsement you could ever get.

JK

With the Cleveland Indians rolling along at 30-17 this season, it is hard to find negative things to talk about with the ballclub.

However, with Grady Sizemore and Travis Hafner out of the lineup right now, the depth, or lack of it,  in regard to the everyday players is starting to show.

It seems crazy to say this based on the fact that the Tribe is second in the American League in runs scored.

Right now, Manny Acta is forced to put these names in the batting order on a daily basis:  Orlando Cabrera, Jack Hannahan, and Austin Kearns. 

None of these guys have done much with the stick recently, and it is hurting the offense.  And all of the players involved have recent track records which show the recent trend isn’t likely to change.

Cabrera is hitting .235 in May with a 558 OPS, which is terrible to say the least.  You could write this off as a slump, except that his OPS last season with Cincinnati was 631.

There is no question that Cabrera has meant a lot to this team in terms of leadership, but it is tough to keep him in the lineup on an everyday basis if he hits like he has this month.

Hannahan is batting just .190 in May with an OPS of 495.  Remember that the left-handed hitter entered 2011 with a lifetime average of just .224. 

He has been a tremendous upgrade with the glove, especially when you compare his defense there to what the Indians has last season, but it’s difficult to have that type of hitter at what is primarily an offensive position.

Kearns has actually picked it up lately, hitting .308 in May in 26 at bats, but is hitting just .210 on the season, and has yet to hit a home run.

With the pitching staffs Cleveland has faced lately, it is tough enough to score runs with a lineup of good hitters, let alone one that has so many holes in it.

To be fair, when Sizemore and Hafner are healthy, you can probably accept sub par offense in a couple of spots where you are getting good defense. 

However, it makes it pretty easy for opposing hurlers when there really is no threat once you get past the sixth or seventh spot in the batting order.  With two good hitters out of there, that’s how the Tribe lineup looks right now.

It also doesn’t help that clean up hitter Carlos Santana is in a funk and his batting average has dropped to .203.  The switch hitting catcher does walk a lot so at least he’s not making a lot of outs.

Fortunately for Manny Acta and Chris Antonetti, the two areas of concern have solid alternatives at Columbus, as the organization’s best prospects, 2B Jason Kipnis (.292, 5 HR, 29 RBI, 865 OPS) and 3B Lonnie Chisenhall (.283, 4 HR, 25 RBI, 808 OPS) play the two positions in question.

Add to those names, Cord Phelps (.310, 7 HR, 29 RBI, 937 OPS) who can play both spots and has more AAA experience than the other two players.

Yes, the Indians are 2nd in the AL in runs scored, but it is no secret that over the last couple of weeks, the Tribe has struggled to score runs.

What the management has to analyze is whether or not it’s a slump or a trend.  Based on the past track records of the players who are struggling, you have to wonder if a change is coming soon.

MW