Tribe Missed An Opportunity

One of the best things one can say about the Mark Shapiro led Cleveland Indians is they didn’t waste downtime.

When the Tribe fell out of contention in a given season, Shapiro didn’t hold on to players who weren’t part of the future in Cleveland, mostly players who were not coming back the following season.

If the player’s contract expired at the end of the season, the then-GM made a move to try to get something for that player.

That’s how the Indians acquired several key players: SS Asdrubal Cabrera came in exchange for Eduardo Perez. Ben Broussard was traded for Shin-Soo Choo, and Mark De Rosa was sent away to get Chris Perez. Carlos Santana was picked up for Casey Blake.

Unfortunately, the current GM, Chris Antonetti forgot the organizational roots.

After an 11 games losing streak and relative inactivity at the trading deadline (getting Brent Lillibridge doesn’t count as doing something), the time to start looking toward 2013 would have been August 1st.

For some reason, the Tribe front office still isn’t looking forward, and that is mind-boggling.

It is apparent that the players currently on the roster who will be free agents don’t have any value to other teams, and certainly aren’t going to bring back another team’s good to very good prospect, like a Choo or Cabrera.

Still, that doesn’t mean there aren’t moves that can be made.

People can pretty much be sure that players like Casey Kotchman, Jack Hannahan, and Shelley Duncan will not be wearing a Cleveland uniform when spring training starts next February.

Yet, they are still on the major league roster, and manager Manny Acta continues to give them at bats.

That’s crazy!

The organization will tell you there aren’t any prospects in Columbus, no one that can help the big league club.

The response to that is how can they be sure? They are the same people who think the three players listed above could be contributors on this season’s team.

Matt LaPorta was just added to the roster last Friday, and right now he needs to play every day, not just against left-handers. A decision must be made on him, and the only way it can be decided he’s not part of the future is by giving him regular and consistent playing time.

He’s probably not the answer, but why not find out for sure?

The same with Russ Canzler. Obviously, Antonetti saw something in him last winter when he claimed the right-handed hitter off waivers from Tampa Bay.

He ranks in the top ten in most slugging categories in the International League, so why isn’t he getting some at bats in the majors to see if those numbers can translate?

We’ve said this before about Canzler…you cannot classify him as a AAAA hitter because he’s had a grand total of three at bats in the big leagues.

You can make the same argument about looking at Jared Goedart and Tim Fedroff.

The Indians had a tremendous opportunity to get at least a few of these players perhaps as many as 200 at bats to find out if any of these guys could help the ’13 version of the Tribe.

Why it hasn’t been done is just one more mystery for the Shapiro/Antonetti leadership, adding to several others that have caused fans to roll their collective eyes this season.

Although all of those guys could get a September look, baseball people understand that you have to look at stats compiled in this month with a jaundiced eye.

This is another reason to be critical of the current administration. Another “could have” moment.

Who is to Blame With Tribe?

The one thing the Cleveland Indians have done during this collapse which has extended to 18 losses in 22 games in put their entire organization under the public microscope.

Unfortunately, most of the blame is placed at the feet of the ownership. From the standpoint of they are the ones writing the checks and putting the people in charge, then they should shoulder that burden.

But this horrible situation is like an onion, there are many layers to peel away and doing it makes your eyes water.

Certainly, the Dolan family has put Mark Shapiro in charge of the organization. Under his watch, the Indians have put together nine of eleven losing seasons.

There are people who think Shapiro should stay because he’s not involved in the day-to-day running of the baseball operations. However, he would hire the new GM if he chooses to fire Chris Antonetti, and more than likely, he will hire someone with similar ideas.

So, there wouldn’t be a new direction there.

Others feel Manny Acta should be the fall guy. But if Antonetti and Shapiro stay, do you really think the new manager will be different from Acta or his predecessor Eric Wedge? Doubtful.

Fans blame the organization for not wanting to go a third year for Twins’ slugger Josh Willingham last winter, but whose decision was that?

Did the ownership tell Antonetti not to include a third year or did the baseball people decide it wasn’t worth the risk?

Did the ownership push the baseball people to sign Grady Sizemore or Casey Kotchman? Doubtful.

Did the ownership say not to call players up from Columbus? Also doubtful.

Did the GM make the decision to deal three top ten prospects for a pitcher with make up problems in Ubaldo Jimenez, and then deal a pitcher who could have helped the bullpen in Zach Putnam for Kevin Slowey?

On the other hand, did Acta push for Kotchman in order to improve the infield defense?

Does the skipper have a problem with young players Matt LaPorta and Lonnie Chisenhall and that’s why they both started the season in Columbus?

Does anyone know if Acta went to the front office and asked for reinforcements at the beginning of June, or did he assure Antonetti and Shapiro that the Indians could contend with its current roster.

We just don’t know. Nobody does, and it is doubtful anyone will find out the answers to these questions any time soon.

That’s why the Dolan family have to do something we know they are loath to do, and that is clean out the entire organization.

Since they’ve owned the team, they have put a great deal of trust in Mark Shapiro, but seriously name one area of the franchise that is in top-notch shape right now.

The farm system is ranked very low by experts. The top two levels (Columbus and Akron) don’t have many impact players.

We’ve talked about the performance of the big league team over the same time frame. It also doesn’t pass muster.

And fan morale and belief in the front office is at an all-time low. That means it is getting more and more difficult to sell new season ticket packages.

What makes it more difficult is that the Dolan’s seem to be good people. It would be very hard to get rid of someone who they have worked very closely with since they bought the team.

It’s time for a new fresh set of ideas. That can only come with new leadership.

To borrow a phrase from a different sport, Mr. Dolan, the ball is clearly in your court.

Manny Acta’s Imaginary Job Interview

When Manny Acta was hired as the skipper of the Cleveland Indians, both GM Chris Antonetti and team president Mark Shapiro were very impressed with the way he knew a lot about the organization. He did his homework.

Here is how we imagine the interview wrapped up:

Shapiro: Congratulations, Manny. You are the next manager of the Cleveland Indians.

Antonetti: We do have some things we want to discuss as to how we run things here before we make the announcement.

Acta: What do you mean?

Antonetti: Well, things like we have total control over the roster. You can make out the lineup, but we get total control over who is on the 25 man squad.

Acta: You mean to open the season? No problem. I get to make suggestions right?

Shapiro (laughing): Oh yeah, we’ll listen to you, but no, we get to have total control of the roster for the entire season.

Antonetti: And we have to talk about how we speak to the public. You have to use words like “process” and phrases like “in our situation”.

Shapiro (laughing again): You can’t use “grinding” anymore. Wedgie used it so much that people are sick of it. They make fun of him now.

Acta: OK?

Antonetti: We like to use platoons too. We think instead of getting one good player, you can use two limited ones and get the same production. Can you like with that?

Acta (thinking about not getting the job): Sure, no problem.

Shapiro: That’s good. You know, we had Showalter and Farrell in the organization and they kept telling us different things we did wrong. We told them we had to be in charge for the process to work.

Antonetti: Good one, Mark! You used “process”.

Acta: Well, what if a guy who makes the opening day roster starts out struggling, how long do we stay with him?

Antonetti: We are very patient. I’d say we have to wait until around the All-Star game before we can be sure the guy can’t hit. We don’t want to give away someone who can play.

Shapiro: Like Phillips. I told Wedge that was going to bite us in the rear end. We won’t make that mistake again. By the way, Manny, you said “what if”. I like that. I think we can do something with that phrase.

Acta: Ok, I think. Does the ownership plan to invest if we are contending?

Antonetti: We tell the public that, but we’re in this to make money. If we win great, but the owners want to recoup the cash they put up when they bought it. Old man Jacobs really snookered them.

Shapiro (sternly): Chris! We’re not supposed to talk about that. We’ll spend a little, but when a player starts creeping up on free agency, we have to think about moving them. Remember, I’m good at that, I stole three good players for Colon. Damn, we should’ve kept Phillips!

Acta: I think I’m fine with that. I’m not a real fiery guy, is that ok with you?

Antonetti: No problem. Hey Mark, remember when Manuel got thrown out of a couple of games early in his first year? We had to talk to him about calming down. It doesn’t present the right corporate image.

Acta: Corporate? This is baseball, I’m a little confused.

Shapiro: This is the new age, Manny. Heck, if we could make Polo shirts part of our uniform, we would. You’ll see in a few years, every team will operate like we do. We’re on the cutting edge.

Acta: I hope so. I’m your man, let’s do this.

Who Is Tribe Management Talking About?

As the Cleveland Indians’ season continues to fall into oblivion, one of the mantras GM Chris Antonetti chants consistently is the players currently on the roster have to do better.

That’s easier said than done.

However, who is Antonetti talking about? How many players on the current roster are underachieving?

Certainly, the starting pitchers have not done as well as the organization thought going into the season. Justin Masterson, in particular, looked like a guy who turned the corner in 2011, and has been terribly inconsistent this season.

Ubaldo Jimenez? He’s been up and down since coming over from Colorado last July. Has he under performed? If you compare him to his excellent 2010 season, yes.

But if the front office expected great things based on what we did last year, then they are crazy.

Josh Tomlin had a solid year in ’11, but he’s a control guy with marginal stuff, and struggled in the second half of last season. It can’t be a total surprise that he hasn’t been good this year.

On the offensive side, no one can complain about the job being done by SS Asdrubal Cabrera, 2B Jason Kipnis (although he’s slumped lately), CF Michael Brantley (a breakout player this year), and RF Shin-Soo Choo.

You can’t expect more out of those four players.

Carlos Santana has been a disappointment after last season. His minor league numbers show he’s too good of a hitter to be consistently around .240. He does walk a ton, and lately has started to be productive.

Even in a disappointing season, he still ranks third on the team in RBIs, behind Kipnis and Brantley.

So, what players are failing?

Travis Hafner is having a disappointing season, particularly with his batting average, but the truth is, he hasn’t been really productive since 2007. Why would the front office expect more?

Casey Kotchman is a journeyman 1B, who had a good season in ’11 with Tampa, hitting .306. However, he has a lifetime .263 batting average. It doesn’t take a great deal of vision to see he probably wasn’t going to hit that well this season.

What are the front office’s expectations for Kotchman? It seems they may be looking for too much.

Jack Hannahan? He’s a journeyman as well. He’s 32 years old and has had over 400 at bats in a season just once. Why? Because he’s not a good hitter.

Was the front office fooled into thinking he woke up one morning and became Mike Schmidt?

The management completely ignored the LF issue, unless you consider signing the oft-injured Grady Sizemore as a remedy. Most people, including the fans and media, thought that was a bad idea.

So, again we ask, who exactly has underachieved?

It appears it is the front office because they deluded themselves into thinking that players who haven’t been productive for several years, or who have no real track record for hitting were going to start hammering the baseball.

That’s foolish, and it’s one more reason changes need to be made on the corner of Carnegie and Ontario.

There aren’t many players on the Cleveland Indians who aren’t doing what was expected. The disappointment comes from a management team who was expecting the impossible from certain players, who weren’t capable of performing.

Perhaps Antonetti is deflecting attention from the inactivity that has plagued this organization over the past 12 months.

The only people who need to perform better are in offices at Progressive Field. For the most part, the players are doing exactly what should be expected.

A Few Suggestions for the Tribe.

It appears the last gasp of the 2012 baseball season for the Cleveland Indians was the four runs outburst in the seventh inning to beat Justin Verlander last Thursday night at Progressive Field.

It’s been downhill ever since both on the field and in the front office.

Fans of the Tribe are understandably both frustrated and infuriated as the organization sits back and does nothing while there are still a chance to compete for the division title.

Now, it appears very likely that the franchise will endure another season below the .500 mark, the ninth in the last 11 years under the Dolan/Shapiro/Antonetti stewardship.

The baseball season is over for the most part, and we can thank the inactivity of the front office, both in the off-season and during this season for that.

The funniest comment made yesterday by GM Chris Antonetti was that the organization learned in discussing trades was how other teams judged the Indians’ players.

The hidden message was opponents don’t think much of what the Tribe has on the big league roster and the upper levels of the minors.

So, what can the Indians do going forward to help repair their relationship going forward? Here are a few suggestions…

First, end the “what if” advertising campaign. With the lack of moves and winning, the commercials have become a source of ridicule for the organization.

Yes, the period from 1994-2001 may have been the best span in club history. It’s over! Showing us clips of Jim Thome, Kenny Lofton, and Sandy Alomar Jr. just makes fans angry that the Indians refuse to compete now.

Focus on the present. Tell fans why they should come to Progressive Field now. And if you can’t come up with a good reason, that’s another problem altogether. Get better as an organization.

Second, it’s time to get better at player development. When support is written or said for the Ubaldo Jimenez trade, the main argument is that Drew Pomerantz and Alex White aren’t doing anything with the Rockies.

That’s an indictment of the scouting system since they were both first round draft picks.

This organization has just one drafted player (Jason Kipnis) among its starters, and another Lonnie Chisenhall, who would start if he wasn’t injured and the manager didn’t have a man crush on Jack Hannahan.

For a small to mid market team, that’s a recipe for disaster. And that’s why the Indians is consistently under .500.

If you look at the best prospects in the game, only one player from the Cleveland organization is on the list, 2011 first round pick SS Francisco Lindor.

The talent in the organization has to be improved, or the failure rate is going to continue.

The last thing Antonetti should do is start building for 2013 right now. We are echoing what several people have said already.

It is time for departure to players who aren’t going to be part of group that meets in Goodyear, AZ next spring.

That means good-bye to Johnny Damon, Casey Kotchman, Shelley Duncan, Derek Lowe, and Jack Hannahan.

Let’s take a look at some of the players from Columbus, who by the way leads the International League in batting average and runs scored.

We have said this many, many times. Russ Canzler, Matt LaPorta, Ezequiel Carrera, Tim Fedroff, Corey Kluber, and Chris Seddon can’t be any worse than the players whose place they would be taking.

They should be called to the big leagues immediately.

It would also allow for some players from Akron to be moved up. The Aeros have a lot of players repeating the AA level for the second time, and it’s time to see if those guys are prospects or not.

At least it would make the games somewhat worth watching for hardcore fans.

The Dolan family, Shapiro, and Antonetti have some fence mending to do. It may already be too late.

The Tribe Shouldn’t Sell Right Now

After losing the first three games of a four game set against the Baltimore Orioles, the rats are jumped off the S.S. Tribe very, very quickly.

There are people even saying that perhaps the Indians should now be sellers at the July 31st trading deadline instead of trying to improve the team.

As horrible as the Indians have looked since the All-Star break, and they have been bad, especially on offense scoring just 31 runs in 10 games with 19 of those occurring in two contests, they remain just 4-1/2 games out of first in the AL Central Division, and a mere 3-1/2 games off the pace for the second wild card spot.

A few people have mentioned how many teams the Indians would have to climb over to get the latter spot, but that would only hold water if there were a couple of weeks remaining in the season. However, there are more than 60 games remaining, more than enough time to pass a number of teams.

That’s why GM Chris Antonetti cannot start trading his most marketable people in the next eight days. In fact, he still should be looking to help the current roster, because it is obvious the Indians cannot make gains in the standings with its current personnel.

While everyone wants the team to make a huge splash, dealing for an all-star type player, that may not be necessary. Improving the roster could involve cutting bait on players who haven’t been productive for the Tribe from day one.

That would mean finding replacements for the deadwood currently on the team, guys like Casey Kotchman, Aaron Cunningham, Jack Hannahan, and yes, even Travis Hafner. Replacing two of them could have an impact.

The same would be true getting another starting pitcher, even replacing one with someone from Columbus. Who knows? You might just catch lightning in a bottle.

The other night saw a rumor saying the Indians were close to getting Phillies OF Shane Victorino, a free agent at the end of the season. That’s not a sexy pick up, but Victorino is a switch-hitting outfielder, who has been productive in the past.

Let’s say the Indians get him. They would no longer have a need for Cunningham because Victorino is a CF by trade. Victorino could play LF for the Indians, upgrading the OF defense.

It strengthens the bench because Johnny Damon or Hafner would no longer be in the lineup everyday, and it adds another right-handed bat (and a productive one, he’s hitting .318 with a 981 OPS vs. lefties) when facing a southpaw.

And it would also allow Michael Brantley and Shin-Soo Choo to get an occasional day off, keeping them fresh.

It would also lengthen Manny Acta’s batting order, where production ends after the cleanup hitter usually bats (although with Carlos Santana starting to hit a little, it would be after the 5th spot).

It’s one smaller type move, but it should make a decent impact on the team.

Plus, it would also show the players that the front office believes in them, and is concerned with winning baseball games.

Two or three more moves like that could make an even bigger impact, and we’ve been advocating making these subtle moves for over a month.

Yes, the White Sox have lost five straight, but look at the immediate impact Kevin Youkilis made upon his arrival. By the way, does anyone else think it’s odd that the Red Sox wanted either Josh Tomlin or Zack McAllister from Cleveland, but accepted Brett Lillibridge (since released) and Zach Stewart (in the minors) from Chicago?

We’ve always thought you are in the race if you hit Labor Day five games or less out of first. There’s still five weeks or so before that holiday and the Indians have a smaller deficit.

It’s not the time to sell right now. Antonetti needs to help his team, not take it apart.

Tribe Front Office Needs to Look in Mirror

The news broke yesterday that the local television ratings for the Cleveland Indians are down significantly from last year. This shows the interest in the team is definitely waning, and they are starting to lose even the hard-core fans.

This can’t be good news on the corner of Ontario and Carnegie.

The powers to be in the front office will probably issue the usual spin they put on things, and try to bamboozle the fan base with corporate babble and say the numbers are incorrect based on their research.

Much like they did when Forbes Magazine said they made a tremendous profit last season.

What Mark Shapiro, GM Chris Antonetti, and the Dolan family aren’t hearing is their fans are fed up with the way things are with this franchise.

It’s time they looked in the mirror and realized their “process” isn’t getting it done.

First, if the Indians finish under .500 in 2012, that will be 9 out of the last 11 seasons that has been the case. Sounds a lot like the 1960’s and 70’s, doesn’t it?

The front office will freely admit they have drafted poorly over these years, with just one first round draft pick, Lonnie Chisenhall, that was drafted prior to 2011 still being in the organization.

Moreso, only one home-grown player, Jason Kipnis, can be considered a regular right now, and Josh Tomlin is the only starting pitcher originally drafted by Cleveland.

For a small market team that doesn’t attract free agents, that’s completely unacceptable.

The people who pay tickets realize it’s just a matter of time before Shin-Soo Choo will be dealt away or leave as a free agent, and the same is true for Asdrubal Cabrera.

That’s based on history.

Meanwhile, the Cincinnati Reds, at least a similar size market (most likely smaller) decided to pay their best player, Joey Votto, so he will spend the majority of his career with the team.

How can they do it?

That’s the question Tribe fans keeping asking and they are dissatisfied with the answers they are getting. They feel betrayed by an ownership and front office that does nothing more than offer excuses and reminds everyone that they are losing money at very opportunity.

At some point, doesn’t someone stand up at a staff meeting and say this isn’t working? Right now, that won’t happen because the organization is loath to hire someone from another team.

Yes, the organization has made some good moves, but name one from recent vintage? Is signing Jose Lopez, a limited bench player really a success?

The front office blew it in the off-season by not getting the right-handed bat it sorely needed, and they made a huge mistake in handing $5 million to the oft-injured Grady Sizemore.

They complain about attendance, but tickets are sold in the off-season, and the team did NOTHING in the winter to spur interest in the team. That’s not something that can be blamed on the fans, that’s on the guys who run the Indians.

They need to do something that excites the fans. If that takes spending money, then so be it.

Fans are tired on the same old, same old.

After last year’s great start, a season in which the team was in contention for most of the year, they didn’t capitalize, and the people buying tickets found something else to spend money on.

Perception is reality, and the reality is the fans don’t trust the Dolans, Shapiro, or Antonetti. That’s why fans seem to cater to the Cavaliers, they trust Dan Gilbert.

They believe he wants to win. They don’t have that same feeling about the Indians.

Change for change sake usually isn’t a good idea. After 11 years of mostly mediocre baseball, it’s time for an internal audit.

That last comment is something the corporate front office of the Indians might understand.

Tribe Paying for Off-Season Sins

After last weekend, when the Pittsburgh Pirates took the last two games of a three game set at home, Cleveland Indians’ fans were irate about the lack of relief pitching and lack of production at the plate.

The Tribe won the next four, and all was right with the world.

Then, the Indians lost the last two games of a road series against the lowly Houston Astros and fans once again are concerned about the lack of relief pitching and lack of production at the plate.

See a trend here?

The Indians problems are not going away, and the team is paying for not addressing the huge need for a quality right-handed bat in the off-season. They reportedly did not want to give free agent OF Josh Willingham a third year on his deal, and that is proving to be a huge mistake for GM Chris Antonetti.

Wouldn’t Willingham look nice with a “C” on his hat, especially with his .274 batting average, 14 home runs, and 47 RBIs. By the way, those last two statistics would lead Cleveland in those categories.

Manny Acta’s squad is struggling, particularly against southpaws, because the players on the roster for that purpose in particular aren’t doing the job, and the front office is being extremely, perhaps overly patient.

The only role player on the team to hit lefties that can be considered doing his job is INF Jose Lopez, hitting .262 with 2 HRs against left-handed pitching. Check out these numbers:

Shelley Duncan             .211, 2 HR, 6 RBI
Aaron Cunningham    .167, 0 HR, 1 RBI
Jason Donald                .095, 0 HR, 1 RBI

In addition, Carlos Santana, one of the two switch-hitters among the everyday players in batting just .209, without a dinger and 10 RBI.

It makes you think that Lou Marson, with a .240 average (6 for 25) should be in there when a lefty takes the mound for the opposition.

Among the regulars, just Asdrubal Cabrera (.316, 3 HR, 12 RBI) and Michael Brantley (.281, o HR, 10 RBI) have respectable numbers.

So why doesn’t the front office make any changes? Isn’t the definition of insanity the act of doing something over and over again and expecting a different result?

Cunningham is quickly becoming this year’s version of Austin Kearns, as a player who no one can explain is still doing on the major league roster.

Apparently, Cleveland tried to deal for Kevin Youkilis, but with Chicago giving up two players from their major league roster, it was more than the Tribe (and we) would go.

The former Red Sox player wouldn’t have solved the Indians’ issue, but he would have been a start. Although he has struggled since last year’s All Star game, he is a proven hitter, with a lifetime .286 batting average.

Besides, if he would produce more than Lopez, Duncan, and Cunningham, isn’t that an improvement?

The Tribe front office spin is they would need more than one bat, which they do, but is that a reason not to take any action?

Sometimes it appears the Indians’ management is in some kind of fantasy world, spouting out stats like Casey Kotchman is 7 for 21 in his last six games.

So what! He’s hitting .230 over the last month and .225 overall. He’s just not producing enough for a contending team, especially at a position where hitting is needed.

By the way, over the last 30 days, check out these batting averages for the role players on the Indians:

Duncan .189
Lopez .186
Cunningham .150

Besides getting no production out of the right-handed hitters on the squad, the bench isn’t doing anything either. That makes it concerning for the starters going into the heat of the summer. Acta can’t give them a day off, because whoever he puts in, isn’t able to hit.

The Cleveland Indians have made their proverbial bed, and now are forced to lay in it. Unfortunately, the front office is comfortable, because they don’t seem anxious to get a new mattress.

Passive Tribe Need to Make Moves

The Cleveland Indians are a conservative organization when it comes to making roster moves during the regular season. It is difficult to tell whether that is the philosophy of GM Chris Antonetti or manager Manny Acta.

Some clubs, like the Red Sox, are always tinkering with the last four or five spots on the roster, trying to squeeze out wins anyway they can. However, the Tribe prefers the patient approach.

The season has reached the middle of June and there are now less than 100 games remaining in the season. And we go with this theory when it comes to players: The “Can’t be Any Worse Theory”.

That being said, here are several moves the Tribe could make right now that do not involve trades (because you need a partner to do something like that).

1. DFA Aaron Cunningham, purchase the contract of OF Trevor Crowe.
Cunningham is hitting .185 with a 479 OPS. Acta has to find it difficult to give the outfielder any playing time outside of a defensive replacement for either Johnny Damon or Shelley Duncan. Crowe hasn’t shown anything but being a marginal major leaguer in his time in Cleveland, but he has a .245 lifetime average in 653 at bats. He’s been hurt, but is hitting .307 (849 OPS) in Columbus this year.

He can take Cunningham’s place as defensive replacement and back up CF easily, and provide at least some offense.

2. Option Josh Tomlin to AAA, recall Zack McAllister.
We’ve always liked Tomlin and advocated for his call up in 2010, but that season and most of 2011, he was a solid starting pitcher, going at least six innings in most of his starts, and allowing less than a hit per inning.

This year is a different matter. He’s given up 68 hits in 56-2/3 frames, and his consistency is no longer there. He’s had four solid starts in which is ERA is an excellent 2.54. In the rest of his appearances, he has an 8.58 ERA.

Tomlin has marginal stuff and has to be pinpoint in accuracy to get out big league hitters. Let him rediscover his control at Columbus.

Meanwhile, McAllister did a solid job in four starts in Cleveland and has a 2.98 ERA at AAA with 47 strikeouts vs. 18 walks. If he can keep the Tribe in the game most nights, then he should be up here.

DFA Shelley Duncan, call up Jason Donald or Russ Canzler
Again, this is another tough decision. The front office likes what Duncan brings to the clubhouse and we have always supported Dunc because he’s had a track record of hitting lefties.

However, he’s lost the plate discipline he had early in the year (13 walks in 19 April games, 5 walks the rest of the season), and he’s hitting just .222 vs. southpaws.

Donald’s defensive issues aside, he’s hitting .283 at Columbus (.383 OBP) and hit .318 in 39 games with the Tribe last season.

Canzler deserves an extended shot in the bigs after a 931 OPS last year in AAA. He’s hitting just .263 this season with the Clippers, but sometimes guys just get too comfortable (read: bored) at AAA after success there.

There are other moves the Tribe could make as well. Tony Sipp should be sent out, but the Indians just sent LHP Scott Barnes back to the minors, and they don’t have another lefty ready at Columbus.

And anytime the Johnny Damon experiment is ready to be ended would be alright too. It’s tough for Acta to have to put out lineups on a nightly basis where his LF and 1B are out makers.

As we wrote, the Indians are very judicious in making roster moves, so don’t look for anything soon.

The AL Central race looks to be one that goes to the wire, so you can’t give away any games. If you can make your roster stronger with even small moves, the Indians need to do just that.

Acta Shorthanded With His Bench

With the Cleveland Indians struggling since their sweep of the Detroit Tigers, the weaknesses fans have been concerned about all year have started to raise their ugly heads.

The starting pitching has been the main culprit, as in those nine games (the Tribe has gone 2-7 in those contests) only Derek Lowe’s performance against Minnesota in which he pitched 6-2/3 innings and allowed one run, can be considered very good.

The struggles of the starters has forced the Indians to play from behind quite a bit, and with their lack of power, that is not a good situation.

The Tribe is 8-18 in games they haven’t hit a home run. More to the point, they are 20-7 when they do hit one over the wall.

The Twins’ series was a perfect example. Friday night, Lonnie Chisenhall and Jason Kipnis went deep in a Cleveland win. There were no round trippers the rest of the weekend, and the Indians dropped the final two games of the weekend.

And of course, the last problem area to show up again is the problem the Tribe has against southpaws. Scott Diamond started for the Twins Sunday afternoon, and the Cleveland bats took a nap, losing 6-3.

However, the roster construction doesn’t do Manny Acta any favors. Right now, there are two players on the pines who are there because they play a certain position. That is their only qualification for being on the team.

Aaron Cunningham is here because he can play CF if something happened to Michael Brantley, and Juan Diaz is on the roster because he can play shortstop.

GM Chris Antonetti hasn’t been able to develop or acquire a legitimate fourth outfielder or a utility infielder.

That is troublesome because it doesn’t give the skipper a lot of flexibility.

Neither player has shown he can hit, particularly with the limited at bats they receive, and on a team that has difficulties hitting left-handed pitching, that’s tough to digest.

Cunningham can play all three outfield spots, but there has to be someone within the organization that can provide better hitting and has the ability to play centerfield.

The same is true for Diaz at SS, although he is here because the guy whose job he has, Jason Donald, didn’t hit, and is having trouble defensively at short in Columbus.

The problem is Acta cannot have any confidence putting either of these guys in a lineup when needed. And if that’s the case, a change needs to be made.

The same problem is occurring in the bullpen with lefty Tony Sipp. The reliever has done a good job the past few years, but this year is struggling.

He came in Saturday with the team trailing 5-4 to face two left-handed hitters, Ben Revere and Joe Mauer. A single and a home run later, the score was 7-4.

This isn’t to bury Sipp, but he needs to go back to the minors to work on getting back to where he was in 2010 and 2011.

Right now, it is doubtful that Acta can find any situation in which to use him except in a blowout situation.

That’s not fair to the manager.

Most major league managers need a 25 man roster to work with, especially those who pilot small to mid-market teams.

Right now, Manny Acta has a 22 man team because his roster is littered with players like the three mentioned.

Maybe Acta’s the one who wants these guys, but that’s doubtful.

The front office needs to upgrade this roster, and the sooner they do it, the better the Indians can hang in the race to win the AL Central.