Our First Tribe Hero: Sudden Sam McDowell.

With Major League Baseball in limbo with the coronavirus, we decided to take a look into the past of the Cleveland Indians, looking at the players who got us started in loving the game of baseball.

As a left-handed kid growing up in the 1960’s, our first Tribe hero was the hard, throwing southpaw “Sudden” Sam McDowell.

McDowell made his Major League debut as an 18-year-old (he would be 19 in a few days) in 1962, throwing 6-1/3 scoreless innings against the Minnesota Twins, whose lineup included future Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew (0 for 2, 3 walks) and future manager Billy Martin.

He didn’t come up to stay though until 1964, when he made 24 starts for the Indians, going 11-6 with a 2.77 ERA. He struck out 177 hitters in 173 innings, but also walked 100 at age 21.

His first big season, (and the first year we can recall) came the following season, in 1965. The lefty went 17-11 and led the AL in ERA at 2.18, and also led the league in strikeouts with 325 and in walks with 132.

For today’s stat conscious people, Sudden Sam also led the Junior Circuit in ERA+, FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching), hits per 9 innings, and home runs per 9 innings.

He made his first All Star team, the first of six he would make with the Indians.

You have to remember, at this point, the Indians were just six years from their last year of contention (1959) and 11 seasons from their last World Series appearance (1954) and 17 years from their last World Series title in 1948.

McDowell was the first star of what was supposed to be the next wave of great pitching put together by the Cleveland front office. Baseball folks have said the 1964 Portland Beavers’ pitching staff, the Tribe’s then AAA affiliate, might have been the greatest minor league staff of all time.

It featured McDowell (early in the season), Luis Tiant (229 MLB wins), Tommy John (288), Sonny Siebert (140), and another hard thrower in Steve Hargan, who stayed in the bigs until 1977.

1966 started the same for the big lefty, throwing back-to-back one hitters on April 25th (Kansas City A’s) and May 1st (White Sox), fanning 18 and walking 11 in the two wins. He was 4-0 with a 1.55 ERA after the second of the gems.

He developed some arm problems that plagued him through ’66 and ’67, but still led the league in strikeouts and made the All Star team in ’66. But his ERA rose to 3.85 in ’67.

He rebounded in 1968, the “Year of the Pitcher” when he combined with Tiant to lead the Indians to a 3rd place finish, the highest the franchise would have until 1994, when they moved into Jacobs Field.

Sudden Sam led the AL in strikeouts each season from ’68-’70, the latter year compiling his only 20 win season (20-12, 2.92 ERA). He also led the league in FIP in the latter two seasons, as well as in innings pitched in 1970, with 305.

At 27 years old, that was his last dominant year. After throwing 269, 285, and then 305 frames in a three year span, his numbers started to decline, except for walks.

He was dealt to San Francisco for Gaylord Perry after ’71, but never won more than 10 games or pitch more than 164 innings for the Giants. He wound up pitching for the Yankees and Pirates before hanging them up in ’75 at age 32.

Our first baseball hero was no longer an Indian. Our first education that players don’t stay forever.

Shoulder and back issues plagued him the rest of his career.

McDowell had problems with alcoholism throughout his career as well. He finally sought help in 1980 and became a counselor helping others with the disease.

Sudden Sam ranks 14th on the Indians all time list in WAR, ranking between Larry Doby and Early Wynn, and is 5th among pitchers behind Bob Feller, Stan Coveleski, Mel Harder, and Addie Joss. He was named to the team’s Hall of Fame in 2006.

All those pitchers on the ’64 Portland team? Siebert was moved early in ’69 in the Ken Harrelson deal, Tiant after the ’69 season, John, of course in ’65 for Rocky Colavito, and Hargan in ’72 after a series of arm troubles.

Even then, the Tribe couldn’t keep good players around for a long time.

Living Without Sports Isn’t Easy

There is no question the world is in a crisis mode right now as the number of people being tested positive for the Coronavirus rises every day.

What makes it more difficult is dealing with this situation without sports.

There is no question most of us use sports as a distraction, a way to escape from the problems of everyday life. And we could use something to take our minds off the real world problems now more than ever.

We understand the reason that professional and college sports has shutdown. Everything needs to be done and should be done to slow and stop the spread of this virus.

There is no question sports is a big part of many of our lives, both men and women. And what’s weird is even though our team aggravate us to no end (most of the time), it’s relaxing.

But that doesn’t mean it isn’t tough missing it.

At first, we thought the NFL was using their usual “money before everything else” mentality in going on with their legal tampering and free agent period this week, but it certainly served as a distraction from dealing with a rapidly spreading illness.

With the other professional sports, we are reduced to viewing old games on their networks. That’ll be cool for awhile. We were watching the famous “Pine Tar Game” on MLB Network yesterday. It brought back memories, seeing former Indian Bud Black on the mound for Kansas City, and Hall of Famers George Brett, Dave Winfield, and Rich Gossage playing.

NBA TV is doing the same thing, there aren’t too many Cavaliers highlights from their 50 year history, but we figure eventually they will have their Cavs’ Day, where they will show some big victories, including Game 7 of the 1975-76 Eastern Conference semi-finals vs. Washington and culminate in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals, when the wine and gold won their only title.

When baseball and basketball have had work stoppages over the past 40 some years, there were other forms of the sports. For the former, minor leaguers received more focus, and fans of the Indians could keep an eye on prospects to get their fix.

As for roundball, there was always the college game, and at this time of year, the NCAA Tournament. That’s not the case right now.

There are only so many movies, shows on Netflix, and crossword puzzles a person can do to fill the free time of our lives.

Let’s hope when things are back to normal that we appreciate our sports teams more, especially the Indians and Cavaliers, who get ignored in favor of the Browns by many of the media outlets in town.

The Tribe will likely be the first team to get back in action, and we would bet whenever Opening Day occurs, it will now be sold out, because we will get to see sports again.

We know not everyone is a sports fan, but if you are, it’s going to be a rough few weeks. Let’s hope that’s all it is.

Browns Dispel Myth They Aren’t Interested In Winning Now.

The Cleveland Browns’ front office erased any doubts that winning would not be a priority in 2020 with a trio of free agent signings on the first day.

With Paul DePodesta and Andrew Berry running things, there were people who felt they would be involved in accumulating assets for a run in 2021, rather than getting to the playoffs next season.

But signing a two starters in TE Austin Hooper and RT Jack Conklin, along with an experienced backup QB who can play if there is an injury in Case Keenum, signals a “go for it” mentality.

The first thought for many is tight end is not the primary need for the Browns, but a right tackle certainly is, and at some point they needed a quarterback.

Hooper and Conklin do continue this front office’s history of signing players coming off their first contracts. Hooper won’t turn 26 years old until November, and has increased his number of receptions, yardage, and touchdowns in every season (4 total years) of his career.

He made the Pro Bowl in each of the last two years.

When Baker Mayfield was at Oklahoma, one of his favorite targets in the red zone, was TE Mark Andrews, now with Baltimore. Andrews caught 22 touchdown throws in Mayfield’s three years with the Sooners.

So, a reliable tight end is important to this quarterback.

We also do not think this means David Njoku’s days are numbered in Cleveland. Remember, Kevin Stefanski used a lot of two tight end sets as offensive coordinator in Minnesota.

Conklin figures to start at right tackle and he will be 26 by the time the regular season starts. He has to be an upgrade over Chris Hubbard, who figures to be released soon.

And his contract is front loaded, meaning he will make less with the team has to reach new deals with both former overall first round picks in Myles Garrett and Baker Mayfield.

Both players are “plug and play” guys, and both are young enough to fit in with the young core of talent the Browns have put together the past five years.

Keenum just turned 32 years old, but is the insurance policy/mentor for Mayfield. He has started 62 games in the NFL, going 27-35 in those starts, and has opened the season as the starter his past three seasons in the NFL.

This approach differs from the past couple of off-seasons where John Dorsey signed players close to 30 on shorter deals. They didn’t go for the big ticket items.

Prior to Dorsey’s arrival, the Browns went for J.C. Tretter and Kevin Zeitler. You’d have to say that was a more successful approach.

The Browns still have holes at left tackle and on the defensive side of the football, most notably at linebacker and safety as well as depth on the line.

We may still see some lesser free agents to address the depth, and of course, there still is a little thing called the NFL Draft to fill some more of the holes.

Right now, we would guess Berry and his crew would look for the left tackle in the first round of the draft, with the rest of the selection process being devoted to the defensive side of the football.

It doesn’t matter if you win the off-season. But signing solid young players who should be able to start right away? Have to say it is difficult to complain about that.

What Lindor Could Be If Tribe Kept Him

While much has been written about Francisco Lindor and the willingness or feasibility of the Cleveland Indians signing him to a long term contract, we would like to look at the historical aspect of the Tribe’s shortstop in terms of statistics.

Our thought is if Lindor would play in Cleveland for 10 years, he would be considered the greatest position player in franchise history.

Let’s examine in terms of the numbers, saying the Indians and Lindor can come to an agreement to keep him here for five more years, although that seems to be a long shot.

Lindor has played with the Indians for five seasons already, although his first season consisted of only 99 games.

If he played an average of 150 games over the next five seasons, that would put him at 1467 games, just short of 10th place all time (Omar Vizquel played in 1478).

Doubling his current hit total of 835 (giving him 1670), would rank him 7th of the Tribe’s all-time list just behind Lou Boudreau’s 1706.

If we do the same thing with his other numbers, which probably isn’t fair to Lindor considering he is just 26 and entering the prime of his career, here is where he falls on Cleveland’s all time record list.

He would have 356 doubles, which would rank 6th in club history, again behind Boudreau’s 367. He would have 2866 total bases, 3rd all time behind Earl Averill and Tris Speaker.

His 260 home runs would rank #2 in team history, just behind Jim Thome’s 337, and his 768 RBI would put him 9th all time between Larry Doby and Albert Belle.

We probably aren’t being fair with the RBI stat because Lindor has spent much of the last two seasons hitting leadoff, and he may wind up hitting lower in the order, perhaps as early as this season.

He would have 956 runs scored, putting him 4th, in between Kenny Lofton and Charlie Jamieson, behind only Lofton, probably the greatest leadoff hitter in Indians’ history, and Hall of Famers Averill and Speaker.

Lindor’s stolen base total would be 7th, although if he hits lower in the order, our guess is he would be running less often.

From the advanced metrics standpoint, Lindor has accumulated a 28.6 WAR in his first five seasons, so doubling that would be 57.2, ranking him 4th behind a trio of Hall of Fame players in Nap Lajoie, Speaker, and Boudreau.

That total includes last year’s 4.7 WAR, the lowest since his rookie season. In 2018, the shortstop put up a 7.9 WAR. So, although he probably can’t catch Lajoie and Speaker, passing Boudreau is doable.

Again, we are probably figuring on the low side for Lindor based on the reduced games played in his rookie year, and that he still hasn’t reached his prime years.

However, at even this pace, we are talking about a Hall of Fame talent, provided he stays healthy, and if not the best Cleveland player ever, he’s in the top five.

So, when people say the management can’t or shouldn’t sign the shortstop long term, you are going to miss years of one of the greatest players ever to wear a uniform here.

Wouldn’t it have been nice to watch Kenny Lofton or Jim Thome here for his whole career. To us, it’s galling we have to share Thome’s legacy with Philadelphia or Chicago.

The Cleveland front office should take that sort of thing into consideration, and so should the fan base.

Browns Changing Their Defensive Personnel. And Why Not?

The Cleveland Browns have made several moves so far this off-season, most of them involving players on the defensive side of the football.

When you look at it, it seems to make sense. Cleveland ranked 21st in the NFL in defense a year ago, and against the run, it was even worse. The Browns were 30th (third worst) in the league in allowing rushing yards.

Why wouldn’t the new front office, led by GM Andrew Berry, want to fix the worst part of the team?

Now, you can argue about how they’ve gone about it, such as letting Joe Schobert, who made two Pro Bowls, walk away in free agency, but our view is let’s wait and see the approach of the personnel department in trying to fix the defense.

Yes, we understand the defense looked much worse last season after Myles Garrett’s suspension, but one player, even a great one like Garrett, shouldn’t impact that side of the football so much.

They need to get better without Garrett so he can get rest during games without the threat of the opposition going 80 yards in four plays with him on the sidelines.

Schobert was a solid linebacker against the pass, but he didn’t make a huge impact in the running game, really no one did. My guess is the front office didn’t want to pay a Lexus price for a Ford player. We will find out if they are right.

It could also be as simple as Schobert not fitting the mold of a middle linebacker that new defensive coordinator Joe Woods wants.

As for Christian Kirksey, his problem was availability is an ability too, and out of 32 games the past two seasons, Kirksey played in nine.

According to reports, the Browns tried to reach an agreement with Kirksey, but he wanted more money than Cleveland thought a man who played in less than 30% of the games over the last two years was worth.

The next order of business for the front office is the fate of Olivier Vernon, who came over in the Odell Beckham Jr. trade with the Giants, and is making big money while missing more games in the last three seasons.

Vernon missed four games in 2018, five games in 2019, and six contests with the Browns in 2019. If he isn’t willing to take a reduction in salary, he likely will end up on the unemployment line.

In addition to linebacker and depth on the defensive line, the Browns also need help at safety.

When Sashi Brown was GM and Berry was part of the front office, the organization looked for young players coming off their rookie contracts in free agency. You would have to assume that will be the philosophy again.

Three of the top NFL free agents (according to The Sporting News) fit that criteria: Kansas City DT Chris Jones (25 years old), pass rusher Jadeveon Clowney (26), and Denver safety Justin Simmons (26). We would all be happy if the Browns signed two of these three players.

The best inside linebacker is the Rams’ Cory Littleton (26). He would seem to be another target for the Browns.

We view the Cleveland Browns as a playoff contender in 2020 and they have plenty of room under the salary cap. It’s time to use it to upgrade the team where it needs help.

The new regime has some work to do starting March 18th.

No One Seizing Tribe’s OF Openings

The Cleveland Indians started spring training with nine outfielders vying to make the Opening Day roster.

The front office seemed to think bringing in numbers would be the thing to do, and out of all these candidates, someone will step up and show themselves worthy of making the major league roster.

Halfway through spring training, it feels like it is more like attrition than players actually going out and winning a job.

We know spring training number are what they are, but if you are trying to win a big league job, shouldn’t you be putting up at least respectable numbers?

Check out these stats–

Greg Allen–2 for 21 with two walks. OPS: .317

Bradley Zimmer–5 for 25 with 10 strikeouts. He does have three doubles and a HR. He’s drawn one walk.

Jake Bauers–4 for 28 with 11 strikeouts and no walks. He has fanned in each of his last seven at bats.

Coming into camp, we figured Oscar Mercado would be in centerfield and Franmil Reyes and Domingo Santana would alternate between DH and one of the corner outfield spots.

Santana isn’t having a great spring either at 5 for 25 with 10 strikeouts, but he has more of a track record in the bigs. And Delino DeShields (5 for 22, 536 OPS) also has the ballclub made, even though he continues to prove to us that he can’t hit.

Jordan Luplow also will come north, mostly due to obliteration of left-handed pitching in 2019, but he’s just 4 for 18 on the spring, although he’s started to get it going in recent days, including a home run off a right-handed pitcher on Friday.

It has been pointed out by several pundits that maybe only five outfielders will come north, with the extra spot being used by keeping both Christian Arroyo (7 for 19) and Mike Freeman.

That would mean Allen, Bauers, and Zimmer will all open the season in AAA.

It also means Luplow would seem to get the bulk of the playing time in one corner spot, with DeShields playing occasionally somewhere. And we know Freeman can be pressed into duty in left field, if need be.

Luplow has shown he could hit righties in the minor leagues, so we have no problem getting a full shot to play everyday, and Terry Francona can always use Freeman in LF against a real tough right-hander.

What is tough to accept is the seeming lack of progress from those who should need to have a good spring to make the squad.

Bauers was given a pep talk about preparedness by the coaching staff before the end of last season, but it hasn’t translated. Zimmer continues to have contact issues, which is mind-boggling with the speed he has.

To our eye, Allen should be better than he has shown. He’s shown flashes at the big league level, but can’t sustain it.

And with Daniel Johnson and Ka’ai Tom needing to establish themselves at the AAA level, you have to wonder what the future holds for that trio.

Bauers can play first base, but Allen and Zimmer are strictly outfielders. Does the organization move one of them when spring training ends?

There’s still time, but it is running out quickly. Can any of this trio put something together to impress Francona and his staff?

Was Drafting Garland Unfair To Sexton?

Last June, the Cleveland Cavaliers made Darius Garland the fifth overall pick in the NBA draft despite drafting a smaller guard the year before in Collin Sexton.

We’ve heard a few people compare the situation to 1987 when the Cavs traded for Mark Price after he was drafted by Dallas in the second round, and then GM Wayne Embry picked Kevin Johnson, another lead guard in the first round the following draft.

The difference is Price didn’t play a lot as a rookie, averaging just 18 minutes a night, and scored just 6.9 points and three assists, and shot just 41% from the floor behind John Bagley.

The next season, Price averaged 16 points, 6 assists, and shot 50% from the floor, and by mid-season, Johnson was traded to Phoenix in a package that netted the Cavs Larry Nance Sr. and Mike Sanders.

Nance was the missing piece Cleveland needed and they won 57 games the following year, being eliminated in the playoffs by “The Shot”.

With Garland and Sexton both drafted very high, the front office and coaching staff felt they needed to play the two guards together, even though they sacrificed size, with two under 6’2″ players in the backcourt.

John Beilein thought the pair could play together and perhaps they could have in college, but in the pro, it’s tough to play defense with a lack of height, even at guard.

Perhaps the better idea would have been to start Sexton, who improved as his rookie season progressed and pair him with a bigger #2 guard, and bring Garland off the bench, much like Johnson over 30 years ago.

Sexton, who has been widely criticized all season long (including here), seemed unsure of what he was supposed to do, being moved off the ball.

Since the end of January, the second year man from Alabama has averaged 24.2 points and 4.2 assists per game. Keep in mind, a year ago, Sexton averaged three dimes per contest.

Perhaps it was too much to expect two rookie guards to play effectively at the NBA level this early. It seems playing with veterans helps Sexton, and maybe not having to guard bigger off-guards all night helps his offense too.

This is not to denigrate Garland, but he’s 19-years-old and only played four games in college a year ago.

When you play with guys who have been around, and know how to move the basketball, like Kevin Love, Larry Nance, and Matthew Dellavedova, it becomes contagious, and you become a better passer too.

Sexton admitted when Beilein stepped down and J.B. Bickerstaff took over, that he looked inward and wondered if he needed to play better and play differently. He certainly has done just that.

If Sexton continues to play like he has in the last month, GM Koby Altman has a huge decision to make. Does he turn the keys to the offense over to Sexton and make a move with Garland?

The rookie is averaging 12.3 points and 3.9 assists per game, and he looks like he can play in the NBA. But Kevin Porter Jr. has scored 10 points and dished out 2.2 assists in seven less minutes per night, and he looks like a keeper too.

Resolving the backcourt may be the single most important decision the Cavs have to make this off-season. However, they may not get the value they want because of how they handled the 2019-20 season.

Can Someone Step Up In Tribe Bullpen?

Coming into spring training everyone was excited to see the new power arms in the Cleveland Indians’ bullpen.

James Karinchak struck out everyone in the minor leagues, and then came up in September to whiff eight hitters in 5-2/3 big league innings. Then, they added Emmanuel Clase from Texas in the Corey Kluber deal, and he comes to Cleveland with a 100 MPH cutter.

Certainly, they would combine with Brad Hand to give the Tribe a formidable back end of the bullpen, allowing Terry Francona to shorten games.

Things always look good on paper, though.

Now, Clase is out for 8-12 weeks with an upper back muscle pull, so there is an opening on the roster to come north with the team on March 26th.

Right now, these pitchers would seem to have a roster spot locked up: Hand, Karinchak, Nick Wittgren, and Oliver Perez.

We would include Adam Cimber, but he’s on the shelf right now too.

With Francona usually wanting eight relievers, that would leave four spots open in the bullpen.

The concern right now is the performance of some of what folks considered the leading candidates to fill those spots.

Hunter Wood has spent parts of the last three years in the big leagues, and has been a decent performer out of the ‘pen. He’s allowed six earned runs in an inning and a third in two appearances with two walks.

Dominic Leone is a reliever brought in over the winter with major league experience and he has pitched three times in Arizona, and been knocked around each time.

James Hoyt received some high leverage appearances in September last season, so you would think he’s got an inside track to open the season in Cleveland, but he needs to start getting people out. He’s allowed seven hits and four runs in 3-1/3 frames.

The most effective of the veterans is a guy we mentioned in a piece a week ago. Phil Maton has allowed just one run in five outings.

Does this open up the competition? Yesterday, Jefry Rodriguez, thought to be a starter, was used in relief vs. the Angels. He pitched a solid first inning, but got cuffed around in his second inning of work. He hasn’t been particularly effective either, allowing eight runs in 4-1/3 innings.

Although it is early, we are sure that Francona, Carl Willis, and new bullpen coach Brian Sweeney wouldn’t mind seeing people getting hitters out.

Does this open the door for some non-roster invitees to claim a spot? We understand it’s not the usual way the Indians do business, but on the other hand, they really can’t afford a bad start to the 2020 season.

For example, Kyle Nelson could provide a third lefty out of the bullpen. The 23-year-old southpaw struck out 69 hitters in 47-1/3 innings in the minors a year ago, including 16 in 12 AAA frames. He’s made just one appearance in a major league game this spring though.

We have seen more of 25-year-old Cam Hill though. Hill had a 4.74 ERA at Columbus last season, fanning 36 hitters in 24 innings. He’s made three appearances this spring, allowing just one run.

This is a season to check out exhibition box scores, to see what relievers are pitching early in games, when the regulars are still playing, and if any new names are appearing. If you see that, it could mean the staff is searching for some answers, should the veterans continue to struggle.

What Fans Really Want From Owners.

What is the role a professional sports team owner? It seems in Cleveland we talk about the ownership of the Indians, Browns, and Cavaliers a lot, and our thought is what do fans want from the owners?

We believe most fans want the owners to stay out of the day to day operations of the team. Hire a good front office staff and get the heck out of the way.

That’s the strength of the Indians. The Dolan family have had two men in charge since they purchased the team–Mark Shapiro and Chris Antonetti.

Really, since Richard Jacobs bought the team in 1986, there has been stability at the top, starting with Hank Peters, on to John Hart, to Shapiro and Antonetti. That’s 34 years where the head of baseball operations has come from within.

Now, some will debate whether or not that is a good thing or not, but there seems to be a continuous plan on the corner of Carnegie and Ontario.

However, there is the matter of payroll for the players, the folks fans pay to see on a regular basis.

Really, this doesn’t come into focus unless the team is in contention mode.

No one really complains that the Browns have had plenty of salary cap space over the past ten years because they’ve been quite frankly, terrible.

We heard a local radio personality complain the Haslams are reluctant to spend money, pointing out the significant dollars under the cap, but we feel most people think it would be worse if they were up against the threshold and they continually finished 5-11 or 6-10.

The Cavaliers are trying to get out of the luxury tax in the NBA and no one is raising a stink about this. Why? The Cavs are rebuilding. It’s a non-issue.

Look at the situation the Pittsburgh Pirates are currently in. Their payroll will be around $50 million this season, but there is no uproar because the team is firmly in rebuilding mode. If this was the situation the Indians were in, the same would be true in northeast Ohio.

Fans want teams to spend when the time is right. Dan Gilbert and the Cavaliers went above and beyond when LeBron James was here in terms on exceeding the salary cap in an effort to win a title. That’s why the ticket buying public support him.

And we have no doubt Jimmy and Dee Haslam will spend if and when the Browns are a playoff team to try and get the team to its first Super Bowl. Unfortunately, it’s been 30 years since the Cleveland football team has been in that situation.

That’s the frustration fans have with the Indians. They are most definitely in contention, making three post-season appearances in the last four seasons. Yet, for whatever reason, they are reducing the amount of money to be spent on players.

And we do understand the lack of a salary cap in baseball, which you wouldn’t think plays into the Indians’ situation, but it does because big market teams can conceivably spend hugely.

Fans want owners to want to win, particularly in a market where there has been one professional sports title in the last 56 years.

All of the other things are nice, but championships are what really matters to the fans. It would be nice if all of the owners of professional sports teams understood this.

Early Good, Bad, And Ugly For Tribe.

We realize that it is very early in the exhibition game schedule, they’ve been playing games for a week now, but it is never too early to examine some of the results to this point.

For proven veterans, spring training statistics shouldn’t really be examined. For example, if Francisco Lindor was hitting .182 in the middle of March, no one should be alarmed. He’s a known commodity, but for young players and guys who fighting for the last two or three spots on the 26 man roster, it’s worth taking a look at.

Remember that a good three hit day, or a hot week can change everything, and so can an 0 for 15 stretch with 10 strikeouts.

That said, here are the good, the bad, and the ugly after a week of games in the desert.

The Good. Any concerns about Franmil Reyes’ loss of weight should be going away. The big man has started 6 for 13, with two homers and just one strikeout. Lindor and Jose Ramirez are a combined 11 for 23 with four doubles and a home run.

Bobby Bradley, a longshot to make it, has done what he needs to do. The left-handed slugger is 5 for 11 and has struck out just once.

Oscar Mercado is 3 for 10 and has two walks, an area where he needs to improve if he wants to hit at the top of the order, and another longshot, Ka’ai Tom is 5 for 12, but has struck out three times.

James Karinchak has been filthy so far, fanning four in his first two innings, although he struggled with his control a bit yesterday.

The Bad. When you are battling for the 25th or 26th spot on the roster, you can’t afford to have a bad start, so Greg Allen starting off 1 for 10 isn’t helping his cause. As they say, you only have one chance to make a first impression.

Yu Chang is 5 for 15, but contact issues have been a problem, striking out six times already.

Dominic Leone, who has some big league experience with Seattle, Arizona, and St. Louis, has a chance to come north particularly after the injury to Emmanuel Clase. Unfortunately, he’s given up 11 hits, including a home run in three innings, struggling in all of his outings.

It may be tough to overcome that.

The Ugly. Losing Clase for perhaps 8-12 weeks with an upper back strain has been the toughest news from camp. He was the biggest acquisition in the Corey Kluber deal, and people will excited to see he and Karinchak in the bullpen. Now, it could be May or June before he is back.

And opens up another bullpen spot.

Losing Mike Clevinger doesn’t help either. Clevinger was in the mix as the Opening Day starter, but will probably miss the first three or four weeks of the season with a torn meniscus.

With this injury and minor setbacks for Carlos Carrasco and Aaron Civale, who knows who will start the first five games of the season for the Indians.

Again, it’s very early. But the injuries are a concern, and the players off to bad starts need to start turning it around if they want to be in uniform against the Tigers on March 26th.