Why Don’t Tribe Fans Show Up? Front Office Needs to Look in Mirror.

It is an annual rite every fall in Cleveland, especially if the Indians are in contention. Why doesn’t anyone go to Progressive Field?

Last night, they drew just under 10,000 fans for a game with post-season implications because the Tribe is still under five games behind for a wild card spot in the American League.

Certainly, there is interest in the Indians, their local television ratings ranking near the top in all of major league baseball. However, those ratings don’t translate to putting people in the seats.

We are sure that the front office has conducted polls and surveys to find out why fans do not turn out for games, and it appears they respond to some of the comments by making changes to the game day experience at the now 20-year-old ballpark.

However, they ignore the real reason for people staying home and that would be the lack of trust in the current ownership and front office.

Instead, they spend a lot of time trying to contradict the opinions of the masses, mostly by pointing out market limitations, etc., and they also have many media people backing them up in regard to the perception of the fans.

They need to realize that perception is reality and they need to do something to change the mindset of the playing public.

Fans do not believe there is any real commitment to winning with the Indians, and they can back that up by the total inactivity of GM Chris Antonetti both at the trading deadline this season, but also during the winter when the Tribe was coming off a 92 win season, and interest in baseball was up all around the town, because of the sizzling September that put the team in the playoffs.

Instead of striking while the iron was hot in terms of interest, the Tribe didn’t make any significant moves this winter (sorry, David Murphy) to show the fans they weren’t satisfied with being ousted in the single game wild card contest.

Then they followed that by trading away two veterans who were key parts going into the 2014 season at the trading deadline even though the Indians were very much in contention at the time.

If Antonetti did make a trade to bring in let’s say David Price at the deadline, would there have been instant sellouts at Progressive Field? Of course not, but there is no question there would have been a buzz around the city, and the talk shows would have been filled with Tribe talk.

Which brings us to another failure of the front office, and this is something we’ve addressed before. The Indians made a terrible short-sighted move in staying with WTAM as the team’s flagship station instead of moving to an all sports stations like WKNR or 92.3.

No doubt both stations would have more Indians’ based programming if a significant amount of their spring and summer programming was Tribe baseball. As it stands right now, the baseball team is an afterthought on both stations.

The continue to misjudge their market. What draws people to game in Cleveland, Ohio is winning and the hope of winning. All the other stuff is nice, but it doesn’t give fans a reason to go to the ballpark. If the Indians make the playoffs again this year, they will start to see fans returning to watch.

Even the Browns have suffered attendance loss because of their terrible record over the last several years.

Is there a solution? A good start would be lowering ticket prices and putting individual game tickets on sale around Thanksgiving Day so fans can buy them as Christmas presents for hard-core baseball fans.

But the Tribe needs to make a splash this winter and show fans they want to win.

Until that perception is changed, there is going to be a problem. The Indians are the third sports option right now in Cleveland now that LeBron James and Kevin Love are with the Cavaliers. That means it could be June before the Tribe has a stage all to itself.

They need to give fans a reason to show up at Progressive Field, but they need to stop ignoring the basic problem–that they aren’t interested in winning big.

Tribe’s Patience Reaches No Boundaries

We have decided that if we couldn’t perform well at our job, we would want Terry Francona and Chris Antonetti in our corner.

Their patience knows no bounds. If we performed well for a few months in our position, they would wait as long as possible before deciding we could no longer do the job any longer.

That can be the only explanation for the decisions made by this franchise over the last couple of weeks.

If you have experience, they are the employers for you.

Actually, it started just prior to the All-Star Game when Michael Bourn re-injured his hamstring and management opted to acquire journeyman OF Chris Dickerson from Pittsburgh rather than give an opportunity to Tyler Holt, who was hitting .311 at Columbus.

Dickerson is a career .259 hitter and batted .238 for the Orioles in 2013, and spent the entire ’14 season in AAA until the Indians traded for him in early July.

What we mean to say is, he’s nothing special.

Dickerson hit well upon his arrival and was partially responsible for a win over Detroit when he hit two home runs in one game off Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer.

However, other than those two dingers, he’s had four hits since the midsummer classic.

Another veteran who gets an enormous benefit of the doubt is Ryan Raburn who has also had just six hits since the All-Star Game was played in Minneapolis. As a point of reference, Tyler Holt, who was sent back to Columbus today to make room for Danny Salazar, had five hits…this week!

As a reward, he took the drive back to AAA.

As we have written previously, we understand the skipper writing Nick Swisher and Bourn’s name in the lineup everyday because they have track records of some success, and the franchise is paying each of them a king’s ransom. You almost have to play them. Almost.

But Dickerson isn’t making big money and although Raburn is signed through next season, his deal isn’t for big money. There is no compelling reason to keep him in the lineup, unless you believe he’s going catch fire the last six weeks of the campaign.

Perhaps Francona and Antonetti both believe that if we jump off the Terminal Tower, we will magically learn how to fly?

The same logic has gone into continually pitching right-hander Josh Tomlin, who has been hammered more often than not since the end of June when he pitched a one-hitter against Seattle.

Tomlin did pitch well against Arizona this week, but it was clear Francona didn’t have much confidence in him since he was pulled after 5-2/3 shutout innings and threw just 59 pitches.

To be fair, the patience did pay off with Carlos Carrasco, but he did a great job in the bullpen when moved there, and earned his spot back into the rotation. A word of caution, let’s not get carried away by two starts either.

So, when Carrasco was moved to the ‘pen, he was very effective. Tomlin hasn’t been getting people out for almost two months, yet he still has a spot on the roster, when the Tribe could move up Austin Adams, another hard-throwing reliever, who could help a tired relief corps.

The organization seems to fear giving chances to young players, even though in most cases, the new guys couldn’t possibly be worse than what the veterans are doing.

We believe players like Jesus Aguilar, Holt, Francisco Lindor and others would have more than six hits over the past month. But management simply won’t give them the chance.

We should all get the second, third, fourth, etc. chances non-producing Tribe players get. Unfortunately, that’s not how it works in the real world.

Disconnect Between Tribe and Fans Grows

The Cleveland Indians’ organization just doesn’t get it.

They don’t get the ever growing disconnect between the front office and the fan base.

Yes, the current team is flawed, they are a .500 team with over two-thirds of the schedule in the books. On the other hand, there are plenty of teams in the same boat, so as this is written they somehow are just four games out of a post-season berth.

They continue to operate under the premise that was stated by the current ownership many years ago, that is they will spend money when people start showing up to Progressive Field.

Compare that to the buzz surrounding the Cavaliers, who likely will put a title contender on display at Quicken Loans Arena, and the Browns, who drafted the most talked about rookie in the NFL last May.

They are shiny pieces, attractive to the eye. The Indians are like a gray sweater. They simply just don’t, or perhaps don’t know how to make a splash with the area’s baseball fans.

They made two good baseball decisions this week, trading two players who will be free agents this fall, and who weren’t producing as expected for the club either. They picked up two young players who may help the Tribe in the next couple of years instead of letting them leave for nothing.

Still, the fans expected them to take a shot at making the post-season for the second consecutive year, a feat not accomplished by the current ownership or management team.

Instead, they claimed they couldn’t or weren’t willing to get a deal done.

Team president Mark Shapiro, GM Chris Antonetti and the Dolan family are good people, well liked by the media in northeastern Ohio. Therefore, there wasn’t really much of an outrage when other teams around the Indians in the standings made move to improve their teams while the Tribe didn’t.

There seems to be an agreement between Shapiro and Antonetti and the ownership that the executives won’t bring up the lack of cash available and the Dolans won’t hold them accountable for the lack of success.

We even heard a member of the media floating the ridiculous contention by the organization that Tampa Bay wanted Danny Salazar, Carlos Santana, and Francisco Lindor for former Cy Young Award winner David Price.

Really? What did Tigers’ president Dave Dombrowski do, hypnotize Rays’ GM Andrew Friedman to convince to accept just Drew Smyly, Nick Franklin, and an 18-year-old prospect?

The fact of the matter is, there haven’t been enough results by this regime since the turn of the century. Just three playoff spots, the first done with holdovers from the division and pennant winners of the mid-90’s, and one of those a one game wild card game.

To be fair, the Indians would have made the playoffs as the wild card under the old rules.

You have to go for it when you have the chance. Now, we aren’t advocating dealing Lindor, who may just be the sport’s premier prospect, for a play who would spend a half season, or even a year and a half in a Cleveland uniform.

However, the Tribe does have middle infield prospects and power bullpen arms that could’ve been used to fill a weakness.

We have said it before, they didn’t need to get Price or Jon Lester, they just needed to get someone better than Justin Masterson, T.J. House, Josh Tomlin and Zack McAllister.

Instead they picked up another middle infielder, who likely will be moved elsewhere and has shown no strike zone judgment in the minor leagues, and yet another left-handed bat in an organization already top heavy from that side of the plate.

After making the post-season and winning 92 games a year ago, a way to bring fans back to the ballpark would have been to make the playoffs again. Show them that last year was no fluke.

It could happen, but it isn’t likely when you have two shaky starters, and that’s crossing your fingers on Salazar, who has been solid since returning to the majors.

It appears the only team Antonetti improved at the deadline was the Columbus Clippers. Somehow, the front office doesn’t understand the disappointment of its fan base.

Will Tribe Make a Move? History Says No.

The Cleveland Indians are heading into the All-Star break in the middle of an important homestand.

They took two of three from Kansas City and now are in the midst of a four game series with the Yankees and finish it off with a three game set with the White Sox.

The Tribe needs to get at least six wins while at Progressive Field.

With the Oakland A’s pulling off a huge trade on the fourth of July, and the Angels and Yankees making minor deals to help their ballclubs, so far the Indians haven’t done anything despite a roster that needs some help if they are going to stay in the post-season race.

The question is will they?

It would go against the pattern of this franchise since the Mark Shapiro regime took over in 2001.

In 2007, a year in which the Indians won the division, the only move made near the trading deadline was to re-acquire OF Kenny Lofton for a minor leaguer. While Lofton helped Cleveland down the stretch, it wasn’t a bold move.

Last season, GM Chris Antonetti dealt another low minor leaguer to St. Louis for left-handed reliever Mark Rzcepczynski, who certainly helped shore up the Tribe bullpen.

The one big move the front office made was in 2011, when Manny Acta’s crew got off to a quick start, Antonetti did make a bold move in dealing his past two first round picks, Drew Pomerantz and Alex White to Colorado for RHP Ubaldo Jimenez.

Jimenez was wildly inconsistent for much of his tenure here, although he was tremendous down the stretch last season as the Indians made the playoffs.

However, the scorecard on the big righty is 2-1/2 seasons in Cleveland, with a half-year of being a stud pitcher. That’s not enough of a return when you give up two first round draft picks, even if they don’t succeed for the organization they were traded to.

As a matter of comparison, the A’s traded two first round picks to obtain Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel, a deal that looks to be a better one than Cleveland made three years ago.

So, if you are hoping the Indians are going to make a big splash at the trade deadline, you are probably going to be disappointed.

If they wanted to make a megadeal, they would have to part with their top prospect, SS Francisco Lindor, and that’s not a move we’d be willing to make for a player who may only be with the Tribe for the next year and a half at best.

However, the Indians still have depth in their system in the middle infield and the bullpen, and have some well regarding pitching prospects in the lower minors.

If they don’t make a move, they are counting on a lot of luck to stay in the race. They will need Nick Swisher to emerge from his three-month slump and for Justin Masterson to suddenly put it all together.

Right now, those things don’t seem likely to happen.

Instead they go out and get a career back up in OF Chris Dickerson from Pittsburgh to help out while Michael Bourn is out. Nothing against Dickerson, but wouldn’t it be better to see what Tyler Holt can do? Holt has some upside, Dickerson has a proven record of mediocrity.

And why not give some of Bourn’s at bats to Ryan Raburn and/or Mike Aviles if you don’t want to give a rookie the bulk of the playing time?

If the Tribe doesn’t stay in contention, they have only themselves to blame because these weaknesses have been visible for at least a month, and the front office has done nothing to address them.

Doing that would be a bold step. The history of the front office is they are only bold sellers, not bold buyers.

Can Tribe Improve? That Depends on Front Office

The baseball season is half over, and the Cleveland Indians have shown pretty much nothing in the way of consistency.

If you divide the season into six equal pieces, the Tribe has improved as each slice of the pie unfolds. They were 11-16 after the first 27 games, went 13-14 in the next sixth of the 2014 season, and finished the first half with a record of 15-12 over the last 27 contests.

However, to this point in the season, it doesn’t feel like a playoff squad.

The Tribe sits 6-1/2 games behind Detroit in the AL Central Division standings, and is just 4-1/2 games out of the last wild card spot, currently held by Seattle.

So, with the trading deadline coming at the end of July, right now you have to consider the Indians buyers. You can’t give up on a season when you are within striking distance. Remember, Cleveland was five games out at the end of July a year ago, and still made the post-season.

Will the Indians’ front office make the necessary moves to reach the playoffs in back to back seasons for first time since 1998-99? That depends on whether or not the brass thinks changes are required to compete for a spot in the post-season.

We all realize GM Chris Antonetti and manager Terry Francona are very patient, and even the latter admitted earlier this year that sometimes that quality turns into stubbornness.

Will the belief that Francona has in his players preclude the GM from improving the current roster?

Yes, the Indians rank 5th in the American League in runs scored per game, but they have also scored three runs or less in almost half of their games (38 out of the 81 played).

That points to lack of consistency and means Antonetti should be looking for another reliable stick in the lineup. We all know about Nick Swisher’s horrible season to date, but Ryan Raburn has been equally disappointing with a .203 batting average, his second flirtation with the “Mendoza line” in three years.

The defense has been deplorable, leading the American League in errors with 70. Asdrubal Cabrera has been the chief culprit in that area, making most of his miscues on routine plays, including dropping three throws on possible double plays.

Swisher is here to stay because of his contract, but how long does management wait before making changes with Raburn and Cabrera? After reading in the newspaper this weekend that the team isn’t concerned with Cabrera’s glove, it doesn’t seem like any move will be coming any time soon.

On the pitching side, the only reliable starter has been stoic Corey Kluber. Trevor Bauer has kept the Tribe in the game in most of his starts, but has had issues holding leads when he gets one. Justin Masterson has been up and down more that a pogo stick, and the skipper can’t be sure what he’s going to get on a nightly basis when he takes the hill.

Josh Tomlin was not good in June until his one-hitter on Saturday night, and the last spot in the rotation has been less than stellar with rookie T.J. House and Zack McAllister not providing a lot of quality innings on a start by start basis.

The bullpen has been ridden hard with Cody Allen, Bryan Shaw, and Mark Rzepczynski all ranking in the top ten in the AL in appearances. The heavy workload is a result of Francona’s lack of trust in anyone else in the ‘pen. That may be changing with Carlos Carrasco’s good work since joining the relief corps.

The key will be when does the management feel enough is enough with the performance of certain players? And when they do, will it be too late to do anything about it?

The success of the 2014 season depends on the timing of making these changes. That doesn’t bode well based on past performance.

How Did We Do–Tribe Will Fall Just Short of Playoffs in ’14

This was orginally posted in April

For every baseball fan, today is a day filled with anticipation. Opening Day will be here tomorrow, and despite the weather from yesterday, baseball will be played at Progressive Field by the end of this week.

Can the Indians repeat their unexpected run to the playoffs (and yes, Kenny Lofton, they did make the playoffs) in 2014? That is the question on all Tribe fans minds this spring.

We believe the AL Central Division race will be highly contested this summer with the defending champion Tigers, Indians, and the Royals all in contention, and we also feel that less than 90 wins will take the title.

All three teams will win between 83-89 games, so Terry Francona’s squad will be in the mix all season long. And because the division will be so close, things like injuries and deadline trades will have a huge factor on how things will turn out.

That said, we believe the Tribe will finish second in the division once again, but this time will fall just short of a post-season spot.

Why? Because the front office just didn’t do enough to offset the losses from this winter, mainly the departure of two starting pitchers, Ubaldo Jimenez and Scott Kazmir.

We agreed with letting both pitchers depart because the contracts they signed were more than we would have paid either hurler based on their past performance, but we believed GM Chris Antonetti would have acquired at least one innings eater to replace the 340 innings that left via free agency.

As we wrote last week, if Danny Salazar and Corey Kluber reach the performance expected of them this season, the loss of two starting pitchers will become a moot point, but that’s a tough leap of faith considering they have combined for less than 300 innings in their career.

The Indians’ offense also sputtered at times last year even though Cleveland finished fourth in the AL in runs scored. Francona could have used another established bat in the lineup and instead Antonetti signed David Murphy, who has a good track record (.275 lifetime batting average, 778 OPS), but hit just .220 last season for the Rangers.

The Tribe needs comeback seasons from Nick Swisher, bothered by a shoulder problem in 2013, Michael Bourn, and Asdrubal Cabrera, who will be a free agent following the season, in order to have a more consistent attack.

They will also need continued improvement from two hitters entering their age 27 (entering prime) seasons in 2B Jason Kipnis and Michael Brantley. Everyone praised Brantley’s ’13 season, but actually his OPS and batting average were down from 2012 (728 OPS/.284 in ’13 compared to 750/.288 in ’12).

He has the talent to be a premier offensive player (.350 OBP, .450 slugging percentage) and needs to reach those levels in 2014.

Kipnis needs to be more consistent. He hit .301 (897 OPS) before the All-Star break, and just .261 (714 OPS) after the Midsummer Classic. As the #3 hitter in the lineup, he needs to stay away from weeks where he is producing like a bottom of the order hitter.

We also have doubts about the experiment of playing Carlos Santana will work out. Santana hit .268 with 20 HR last season, and you would think his production will increase without the burden of catching more than 100 games a season, but will the switch in positions affect him at the plate?

And, of course, will his defense be solid enough to play at the hot corner on a daily basis.

The division will be close and the Tribe will be playing meaningful games in September. However, there are enough questions to think they will fall just short.

However, if some of the scenarios outlined above reach reality, the Indians could win the division and make the playoffs in back-to-back years for the first time since the late 90’s.

Small Moves, Good Moves for Tribe

The baseball winter meetings came and went for the Cleveland Indians without any moves.

However, in the week after the get together, the Tribe started adding some pieces, mostly to upgrade the pitching staff, and in particular, the bullpen.

First, GM Chris Antonetti added reliever John Axford, presumably to be the leading candidate to be the closer.

The right-hander led the National League in saves in 2011 with 46 for the Brewers and had 35 more in ’12. That year, his home runs allowed started to rise and last year, his strikeouts dropped to just one per inning.

Keep in mind; he fanned 179 in 143 innings in ’11 and ’12 combined.

He pitched well for the Cardinals down the stretch and in the post-season after being traded to them last season.

We feel he is in the same position as Vinnie Pestano, a pitcher who has had a great deal of success for two or three years, and simply just had a bad season. It wouldn’t be a surprise if both hurlers didn’t bounce back in 2014.

He averaged 95 MPH on his fastball last year, so his troubles weren’t a result of losing his stuff.

A few days later, the Indians signed RHP Shaun Marcum to a minor league deal. Marcum has had success in the past in Toronto and Milwaukee but had some circulation troubles last year with the Mets. Those problems were taken care of with surgery, so he should be ready.

Marcum is typical of the low risk, high reward signings Antonetti specializes in. Certainly, the Tribe’s success in taking care of rehabbing pitchers probably draws pitchers who are coming off injuries.

If the right-hander is sound, he can be a middle of the rotation starter. He’s basically this year’s version of Scott Kazmir, and much like him, he’s not a guy Terry Francona can count on going into spring training, so the Indians still need rotation help.

Yesterday, Antonetti pulled off a deal, sending OF Drew Stubbs to Colorado for LHP Josh Outman, a LOOGY. Stubbs is a fourth outfielder type with good speed, a good glove, and a guy who strikes out a ton.

Outman will help in the bullpen, as he held left-handed hitters to a batting average under .200 for his career. He will take Rich Hill’s place in the ‘pen.

What the Stubbs deal really does is free up money. The outfielder would have received somewhere between $3-$4 million in arbitration had he went that route, so trading him frees up that money in the Cleveland budget.

(Of course, we’ll ask again…where did that national television contract cash go?)

That money should help in getting a legitimate starting pitcher to slot between Justin Masterson and Danny Salazar in the rotation. And if that’s the case, then the trade is really a no-brainer.

With the addition of David Murphy and the likelihood that he and Ryan Raburn will platoon in right field, Stubbs became superfluous.

And the Indians, in their mid-market situation, can’t afford to pay players who won’t get a lot of at bats, $3 million per year.

We still see a big acquisition this winter for the Tribe, probably a starter, and dealing Stubbs is a step in that direction. Picking up a guy who can be a useful relief pitcher is icing on the cake.

Remember that last year, fans scoffed at getting players like Kazmir, Jason Giambi, and Raburn. They worked out in these cases, but seriously, what’s the harm in taking a chance on guys like them.

Hopefully, one of the players who joined the organization this week can have the same effect on the 2014 Tribe.

Lack of Depth in System Hurts Tribe’s Ability to Deal

The recent drafting history of the Cleveland Indians hasn’t been good. Several people have written about the fact that since 2000, the only star player picked on the first round by the Tribe has been C.C. Sabathia.

A look at the current roster shows Jason Kipnis and Lonnie Chisenhall among the everyday players originally picked by the Tribe, and the only pitchers of note drafted or originally signed by Cleveland are Cody Allen and Danny Salazar.

That’s one reason the Indians find it difficult to make trades during the off-season.

The way to get established players is the ability to deal major league ready talent for them. And right now, the Indians have precious few of them.

Currently, the two prizes of the farm system are SS Francisco Lindor and OF Clint Frazier, coincidentally, the first round draft picks in 2011 and 2013 respectively.

They are both considered in the top 20 prospects in all of the minor leagues, and with the lack of quality in the system; there isn’t any way that GM Chris Antonetti can use either of them as trade chips.

The other factor working against the Tribe is that none of their top prospects, save for Trevor Bauer, have played a game at the AAA level.

That means any team dealing for a top prospect from the Indians would have to wait awhile before seeing the fruits of the trade.

That’s a tough sell for a team dealing a quality player.

Where the Indians do have some depth is in bullpen arms, which normally aren’t going to fetch a quality major league player. They also have some middle infield depth though, and other teams could be interested in that.

According to Baseball Prospectus, five of the Tribe’s top 10 prospects are middle infielders. Besides Lindor, Cleveland could afford to deal one of these players: #6 prospect 2B Jose Ramirez, #7 SS Ronny Rodriguez, #8 Dorssys Paulino (although he may be moved to the outfield because of defense), and #9 2B Joe Wendle.

This publication rates the Cleveland farm system as thin in top flight talent, but loves the two guys at the top of the organization’s system.

The only pitchers listed in the top ten are RHP Cody Anderson, who was at Akron in 2013, and RHP Dace Kime, who was just drafted last summer.

In order to get a high-caliber player, let’s say David Price, you have to be able to give up a big name prospect. Do the Indians have that player because they aren’t dealing Lindor and/or Frazier, nor should they?

It is doubtful that Tampa Bay would deal the former Cy Young Award winner for #3 prospect OF Tyler Naquin (’12 first round choice) and say Rodriguez, who could be dealt because he is blocked by Lindor.

That’s why it is a huge priority for the organization to stock the farm system, and with two first round picks this June, assuming Ubaldo Jimenez signs elsewhere, there is a solid opportunity to do just that.

This isn’t to say it is impossible for Antonetti to pull off major trade, but it does make it more difficult.

Part of having a good farm system is not only being able to add young talent to the big league roster, but it also enables a team to make trades.

When the younger talent in the Cleveland organization gets closer to the majors, they will be in a better position.

Don’t Panic About Tribe’s Inactivity Thus Far

This week the hot stove season in baseball went crazy early. Heck, the winter meetings, usually the hub of off-season activity doesn’t start until tomorrow.

Tuesday saw a large number of trades, mostly involving the Oakland A’s, and the high-profile signing of OF Jacoby Ellsbury by the Yankees.

Yesterday, Robinson Cano inked a ten-year pact with the Mariners, and the Yankees feeling a need to keep paying players ridiculous amounts of cash, signed OF Carlos Beltran.

Of course, Indians’ fans are filled with angst because so far, GM Chris Antonetti has really only made one move, getting free agent OF David Murphy from Texas to platoon in the outfield.

In that time, Cleveland has lost two starting pitchers in Ubaldo Jimenez and Scott Kazmir, and several bullpen pieces, most notably Joe Smith and Chris Perez.

We are telling fans to relax, take a deep breath. The Tribe will make some moves to improve this club soon.

You see, most baseball experts will tell you that the players who have already signed are being overpaid. Hasn’t Seattle learned from the Alex Rodriguez and Albert Pujols deals that paying huge amounts of money to a 41-year old player isn’t a good idea?

Kazmir received two years at $11 million per season. With his recent past of pitching in the independent league, would you feel comfortable paying him that kind of money?

As for Smith, we’ve heard several people on MLB Network saying there are many relievers on the same level as the former Tribesman that will be paid far less in 2014.

There are still some quality starting pitchers on the market and our guess is the Tribe is interested in them. The two most interesting names are former Indian Bartolo Colon, who will turn 41 next season, but he won 18 games for Oakland in ’13 and threw 190 innings. His arm is still good because he throws mostly fastballs.

Another veteran arm Cleveland could have interest in is Bronson Arroyo, who pitched for Terry Francona in Boston. Arroyo will turn 37 in a few months, but has thrown 199 innings or more for nine consecutive seasons, and has a career ERA of 4.19. He did very well in Cincinnati despite pitching in a home stadium known for offense.

Antonetti could also work the trade market. Since last winter, SS Asdrubal Cabrera’s name has been bandied about as bait, and it may be time to pull the trigger with top prospect Francisco Lindor nearing ready status.

Stephan Drew is still available and could be intriguing as a one year bridge to Lindor if Cabrera is indeed dealt.

As for the bullpen, Antonetti could sign a veteran arm, but he has several options on the roster to look at as well. The Tribe kept Blake Wood, who they signed last year after Tommy John surgery, and the former Royal was throwing in the high 90’s in his September call up. They also will have Frank Herrmann back too.

And they have youngsters like C.C. Lee, who got some big league time in 2013, and another hard thrower in Austin Adams, who had elbow surgery in 2012.

Just because the Indians didn’t spend money like crazy so far doesn’t mean they won’t improve this ballclub. Hopefully, Antonetti remembers 2007 when the Tribe made the post-season, and followed it up by doing nothing in the off-season.

Tribe Starts Hot Stove Season Positively

The Cleveland Indians made their first moves of baseball’s off-season and they should have surprised absolutely no one.

First, the Tribe inked DH Jason Giambi to a minor league contract and there is no doubt that if he is healthy next spring, he will be on the Opening Day roster on March 31^st in his old stomping ground in Oakland.

The grizzled veteran hit just .183, but did hit 9 HR and knocked in 31 runs, many of them key.

He had perhaps the biggest hit down the stretch with his dramatic pinch hit two run homer off of Chicago’s Addison Reed to turn a 4-3 potential loss into a 5-4 victory.

Anyone who has read the book that Terry Francona did with Dan Shaughnessy about his years in Boston understands how much the skipper values veterans who provide leadership like Giambi.

The guess here is that as long as “Big G” can get around on a fastball, he will have a spot on a Francona led team.

GM Chris Antonetti also announced the Indians were cutting ties with closer Chris Perez. While the speculation will be it is because of his poor finish to the season and his off field problems, it really comes down to just dollars and cents.

If the Tribe was to keep Perez for 2014, they likely would have had to pay him in excess of $8 million, an amount way too exorbitant based on his productivity.

The shame of it is the Indians should have dealt Perez each of the last two seasons, because the signs he was losing effectiveness were there.

His strikeout to innings pitched ratio had declined, and at that time, Cleveland had a viable alternative in Vinnie Pestano, who was making a lot less than Perez, thus freeing up cash for other needs.

As it is, Antonetti and Francona have several in-house options to close out games, including Pestano if his arm bounces back, along with Cody Allen and Bryan Shaw.

Former Indians’ GM John Hart used to say that closers fall out of trees, and when you think about it, there aren’t a lot of teams who pay closers huge sums of money. This is mostly because they aren’t effective for long periods with Mariano Rivera being the exception.

The Indians completed the trio of moves by getting LHP Colt Hynes from San Diego. Hynes spent the second half of last year with the Padres, compiling a 9.00 ERA, which hardly sounds impressive.

However, he did hold left-handed hitters to 5 for 32 with six walks, making him a classic LOOGY (left-handed one out guy). He may be designated for assignment as the Indians make room on the 40 man roster before the winter meetings, but if he goes to spring training he has a chance to supplant Rich Hill in the bullpen.

The news today that Ubaldo Jimenez turned out his option for next year is no surprise either, and Cleveland will make him a qualifying offer by Monday to ensure draft pick compensation.

Jimenez will likely get a four or five-year contract offer from somewhere, and the Tribe is right in staying away from that length of deal based on the pitcher’s volatile career while here.

The hot stove season started as soon as the World Series ended for the Cleveland Indians. After a couple of days, things are going according to plan.