Tribe’s OF In Flux

It is almost universal throughout the baseball community that the Cleveland Indians currently have an outfield substandard for a team which should be a World Series contender.

The loss of Michael Brantley, the best hitter among the players who patrol the grass, makes the weakness even more prominent.

In 2018, the Tribe searched for a centerfielder most of the season. Bradley Zimmer opened the season as the regular, but he was striking out at an alarming rate (44 times in 114 plate appearances), and Rajai Davis and his 559 OPS wasn’t the answer either.

The front office thought it fixed the problem by dealing for Leonys Martin at the trading deadline, but he went down with a serious illness, and the problem was there again.

Greg Allen finished the year strong, but he was displaced by Jason Kipnis when Josh Donaldson was acquired.

Melky Cabrera settled down RF after Lonnie Chisenhall was hurt, but he isn’t a plus in the field, and Brandon Guyer never regained the production he was achieving when he arrived in 2016.

This brings us to 2019 Spring Training.

We actually like the situation in center, where Martin and Allen figure to platoon. The former had a 799 OPS vs. right handed pitcher a year ago, hitting .279 with a .451 slugging percentage.

Allen hit .297 after August 1st in ’18, and although he is also stronger against righties, he’s not as bad as Martin vs. southpaws. He might get some time in rightfield against right-handers too, if he can hit like he did at the end of last season.

Tyler Naquin is slotted to garner a good share of playing time, but after a very hot start to his career, he has struggled. Since August 1, 2016, he has batted just .247 with 5 HR and 35 RBI. And he will be 28 years old in April.

He has also had problems staying healthy over the past two years. Defensively, he seems better suited to a corner outfield spot, which is where he figures to play this season.

25 year old Jordan Luplow is an interesting case. He couldn’t find playing time in a crowded and talented Pittsburgh outfield, and he’s hit just .185 (631 OPS) in 92 big league at bats.

However, in AAA, he’s a .300 hitter (857 OPS) with 51 extra base hits in 132 games at that level. To us, he deserves a long look as an everyday player at one of the corner positions.

Recently signed Matt Joyce (34), had solid seasons in 2016 and 2017 with Pittsburgh and Oakland respectively. But last year, he hit just .208 (675 OPS). He’s a platoon piece, with a career OPS of 802 vs. right-handers and a .184 batting mark vs. lefties at the big league level.

At his age, the big question is can he hit like he did in the two seasons prior to 2018.

The unknown player (and often forgotten) is Oscar Mercado, who came over from St. Louis at the trade deadline for Connor Capel in a rare prospect for prospect deal.

A right-handed bat, Mercado spent all of last year in AAA, hitting .278 with 8 HR and 47 RBI between Memphis and Columbus. He also stole 37 bases.

As a bonus, his strikeouts have dropped and his walks have increased as he has advanced in the minor leagues. He’s just 24 years old.

Our guess is the Indians’ management would like Mercado to start the year in AAA, but if he has a great spring, who knows…

Based on past production, Terry Francona will earn his money figuring out who are the best three guys to play in the outfield on a game by game basis. Hopefully, by the end of May, it becomes clearer who can contribute and will the Indians need to add someone by the end of July.

Meet The Tribe Bullpen Options

Last year, one of the biggest problems the Cleveland Indians had was its bullpen. The relief corps was beset with injuries from early in the season, and never really righted itself.

While the starters had a 3.39 ERA in 2018, the bullpen ERA was 4.60, up almost two full runs per game (2.89 ERA in ’17) from the previous year.

Bryan Shaw signed with Colorado as a free agent after 2017, and Andrew Miller was felled by a series of injuries, and only pitched in 37 games last season.

And Nick Goody, who was very effective in the early relief role, also missed much of the year.

That put a major strain on Cody Allen, and he was worked hard early in the year because of the absences of the others, and by the end of the year, he was pretty much out of gas.

However, we feel pretty optimistic about the relief pitching heading into spring training because, unlike the outfield, the front office has brought in plenty of alternatives. It’s the proverbial throwing a bunch of stuff against the wall, and hoping some of it sticks.

With the volatility of relief pitching in the sport, that’s an acceptable way of doing business.

One holdover candidate we got a glimpse of at the end of ’18 was Jon Edwards, who appeared in nine games and had a 3.12 ERA, striking out 10 in 8-2/3 innings. Unless Edwards is shelled in camp, he would appear to have the team made.

Jefry Rodriguez came to Cleveland in the Yan Gomes deal, and made his debut in the big leagues a year ago with the Nationals, pitching as both a starter and a reliever. He has control issues (37 walks in 52 innings), but he has a 6.75 ERA starting and a 2.70 ERA in six relief gigs.

If he can harness his control, he could be a factor late in games for the Tribe.

Chih-Wei Hu was acquired from Tampa Bay and has a 3.52 ERA in 11 major league appearances, spanning two seasons, striking out 21 hitters in 23 innings.

Hu had a 3.06 ERA in AAA in 2017 before returning as a starter, which he was most of his career, in the minors last season.

Nick Wittgren, who just came over from Miami, has made 118 trips out of the ‘pen in the bigs over the last three seasons, compiling a 3.60 ERA, and is coming off his best season a year ago, with a 2.94 ERA in 31 contests in 2018.

Last Friday, the front office brought in their most accomplished reliever, inking Alex Wilson to a minor league deal. The 32 year old right-hander has a 3.23 ERA over 290 appearances in his six year career, with the Red Sox and Tigers.

Wilson is on a minor league deal, as is A. J. Cole, who was with the Nationals and Yankees a year ago, and had a 4.26 ERA with New York, punching out 49 in 38 innings.

Cole did allow 15 home runs in 48 innings total, but 8 of those came in dinger friendly Yankee Stadium.

And don’t forget they resigned Oliver Perez, who was a godsend a year ago when he signed on June 2nd. The lefty had a 1.39 ERA and 43 punch outs in 32-1/3 frames for Terry Francona in ’18.

They also have Tyler Olson (13 scoreless appearances in the second half after returning from the disabled list), and Adam Cimber, who was outstanding with the Padres, and Francona never found a comfort level with him.

The whole bullpen is set up because you have a closer in Brad Hand, and he’s a good one. As many wise baseball people have said, you start with the closer and build back from there.

Hand has saved 53 games over the past two seasons, and has whiffed over 100 hitters in relief over the past three years.

The only fear we have is the loyalty factor. Will Tito go with Goody and Neil Ramirez instead of let’s say Hu or Rodriguez even if the latter two pitch better in Arizona?

Making that mistake could be the difference between getting off to a quick start or a slow start to the 2019 season.

Bad Winter For Supporters Of Tribe Ownership

If you have been a proud supporter of the Dolan ownership of the Cleveland Indians, this has been a tough winter for you.

The goodwill that came from hiring Terry Francona as manager after the 2012 season has been used up and once again, fans are questioning the ownership’s commitment to winning.

And when we say winning, we mean winning a World Series.

Perhaps the Dolan family got caught up in the emotion of getting to Game 7 of the Fall Classic in 2016, and gave Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff more to spend in the next two seasons, but that appears to be short lived.

A few days ago, Antonetti said in a story by Paul Hoynes in The Plain Dealer that we was told to trim the payroll. This is what has been feared all off-season. We figured the front office was just re-allocating money from declining veterans to younger players with upside.

However, we were fooled.

The ownership’s mantra has always been that they will spend when the time is right, and most fans figured that is when they had a chance to win. Most fans have to be scratching their collective heads wondering why the time isn’t right now!

The Indians have two of the best position players in the sport in Francisco Lindor and Jose Ramirez. They have arguably the best starting rotation in baseball.

When MLB Network aired it’s Top Ten Starting Pitchers Right Now, three Cleveland Indians’ were mentioned: Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, and Trevor Bauer. You could easily put all three in the top 15.

They are trimming the payroll when almost everyone who comments on the sport is proclaiming their outfield situation a mess. Their current set up would appear to be Tyler Naquin in LF, a platoon of Leonys Martin and Greg Allen in CF, and maybe Jordan Luplow or Oscar Mercado in RF.

Now, we like the centerfield situation. Martin is a solid bat against right-handed pitching and we have always liked Allen’s potential. We like him better than Bradley Zimmer, which may be heresy for some.

Since the end of July 2016, Naquin has accumulated 335 at bats, batting .248 with five home runs and 35 RBI. That’s not good enough for a team that should be viewing themselves as a World Series contender.

Luplow has very good minor league numbers, but he has less than 100 at bats at the big league level, and is hitting under .200 in those plate appearances.

Mercado has never had a big league at bat.

Couple those two positions with Jake Bauers (very good potential, but a .201 hitter and 726 OPS) and Roberto Perez, a lifetime .205 batter in the majors (638 OPS), and you have a lineup that would appear to have problems scoring runs.

As we always say, we aren’t expecting the Cleveland payroll to reach the same levels as the Red Sox, Yankees, and Dodgers. Why cut $15 million off the payroll going into the season where the front line talent is there?

We don’t believe for a single minute that the Indians are losing money, and we understand people own businesses to make cash.

In professional sports though, there is an obligation to win, particularly if you own a team that has the longest span without a championship in that respective sport.

Where is the commitment Indians’ fans deserve from the ownership? Let alone the commitment players like Lindor, Ramirez, Kluber, Carrasco, Bauer, and the rest of the players should be getting.

Tribe’s Kipnis Dilemma

In game seven of the 2016 World Series, Indians’ fans thought Jason Kipnis won the team’s first world title since 1948 with a drive down the right field line.

The ball went foul, the Tribe lost, and Kipnis’ career may have reached its apex.

The native of Chicago, had a great Series, going 9 for 31 with two home runs, including one which put the fourth game away for Cleveland, giving the Indians a 3-1 lead.

The Tribe second baseman was outstanding that year, hitting .275 with a career high 23 home runs and 82 RBIs (811 OPS). It was his third season like that in a four year span, with only 2014 as the exception.

He was 29 years old that season.

Since that time, Kipnis had an injury plagued 2017 campaign, playing just 90 games, and hit just .232 (705 OPS) in just 90 games. And the Indians got hot when, he was hurt, and Terry Francona shuffled Jose Ramirez to second base, and playing Yandy Diaz and Gio Urshela at the hot corner.

When he returned, Francona moved him to centerfield for the playoffs, keeping Ramirez and Urshela, a better defensive infield, right where they were.

Last season, at age 31, it didn’t get much better for Kipnis. His OPS was 704, with a .230 batting average, 18 homers and 75 ribbies. He did stay healthy, and was able to play 147 games.

When the front office acquired Josh Donaldson on August 31st, Kipnis again moved to the outfield, and Ramirez moved from third back to 2B.

Now, Kipnis is coming off two consecutive seasons where he has not performed to the level he established early in his career, where from 2011-16, he made two all star teams and was a key offensive cog for the Indians.

Unfortunately for management, Kipnis’ compensation, which was based on his early success for gone from a little over $4 million in 2015 to $13.7 million last year, and he will make $14.7 million in 2019.

Talk about getting less bang for your buck!

That’s the dilemma for Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff. They would love to deal the player, because he’s not performing up to his salary, but because his production has dropped since 2016, no one is interested.

We are sure they tried to make deals where they move another player with more value and attach Kipnis, taking back less in return, but to be sure, management didn’t want to (nor should they have) give up anything of value.

And he’s the player they have tried to phase out in each of the last two seasons.

What has changed for Kipnis is the pop in his bat. His extra base hits have declined from 59 in 2015 and 68 in ’16 to 37 in 2017 and 47 last season. His walks haven’t changed much.

Plus, it’s clear to most people that Ramirez is the superior defensive second baseman. Kipnis isn’t terrible, but Ramirez is better.

If the Tribe had a solid lineup, Kipnis’ declining production wouldn’t be as much as an issue, but they don’t, so he becomes a liability. And if his numbers continue to go down, as he will be 32, he becomes a player who shouldn’t be getting everyday at bats, and right now, he’ll be in there everyday.

The Indians need to have at least six solid hitters to have a good offense this season. As we said, they have three. If Kipnis doesn’t get off to a good start, it will represent another tough decision for Francona and the front office.

Tribe Front Office Not Exactly Appealing To Fan Base

The Cleveland Indians made some news this week, but not the kind the fans of the team wanted.

No, they didn’t sign a free agent bat, or trade a member of their deep starting rotation. But they did cause a stir because team president Chris Antonetti pretty much said the roster the Indians have now will be the one which will take the field in late March in Minnesota for Opening Day.

So, while the franchise isn’t in rebuilding mode, it does seem like they are no longer in “go for it” mode either.

Look, we understand the Cleveland Indians cannot have the same payroll as the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, and Los Angeles Dodgers. The market size simply doesn’t support that.

Last year, according to USA Today, Cleveland ranked 15th in the sport in money allocated to players salaries. Smack dab in the middle of all MLB teams.

They’ve shed the high salaries of Edwin Encarnacion, Michael Brantley, Andrew Miller, Yonder Alonso, Yan Gomes, and Cody Allen. The only high salary taken in this winter was Carlos Santana.

We agreed with many of these moves. Most of that group were aging players, their performance likely declining with the onset of Father Time. Unfortunately, it’s not like they’ve been replaced with young stud on the upswing.

Jake Bauers and Jordan Luplow could wind up being solid, if not very good, major league players, but in our experience, you can’t depend on two young players making quantum leaps to becoming solid contributors on a contending team.

Bauers has a career batting average of .201 in 350 at bats, while Luplow’s mark is .185 in less than 100 at bats.

And we know some of the money saved goes to increasing money to some of the Tribe’s stars. Francisco Lindor will make $10.5 million, Trevor Bauer around $12 million, and Corey Kluber will make an estimated $7 million more in 2019.

There’s too much risk in the current strategy. Would it be a shock if Bauers and Luplow don’t develop? Or Tyler Naquin can’t hit enough to play everyday? Or Jason Kipnis declines even more?

Even if only one of those happens, one would think the Indians are going to struggle to put runs up on the board.

Right now, they are assured of production at three spots: shortstop, third base, and wherever Santana plays.

With arguably the best starting rotation in the game, and two superstars in the lineup, why not spend at the same level as 2018? That’s the question for the Dolan ownership.

First, we would find it highly doubtful that the Indians lost money in 2018, or in any of the last five to ten years for that matter. The sport is flush with cash. They signed a new television deal that will provide all teams additional money in 2022.

Keep in mind, each team received $50 million last year when MLB Advanced Media sold some assets to Disney.

Stop blaming attendance too. While that took a slight dip in 2018, it is still 39% higher than the 2015 figure.

It figures to increase in ’19 because of the All Star Game being at Progressive Field this summer and there will be no Cavs playoff this year.

So, there’s no reason for ownership not to spend as much money as they did a year ago. Absolutely none.

A year ago, the Indians were on the same level as the Astros, Red Sox, and Yankees as the best teams in the American League. They’ve clearly taken a step back.

It’s not on the fans. It’s a decision made by the front office. If the Indians wanted to spend an extra $20 million in payroll in 2019, they could. It might not be prudent, but they could.

And there is no percentage of revenue teams must spend on payroll either.

Right now, the front office/ownership is showing they don’t want to go for it. And that’s something that should disturb the fan base.

What Options Remain For Tribe OF?

A couple of weeks ago, we talked about what free agents we wanted the Cleveland Indians to pursue this off-season. We felt Nick Markakis and D.J. LeMahieu were two guys who could be signed at reasonable deals and could help the Tribe.

Now, both are signed, Markakis to a very club friendly $6 million, one year deal, and the Indians still have a gaping hole in the outfield. Their options are getting slimmer by the week.

This has been rehashed before, so why not one more time. If the season began today, the likely outfield alignment would be Leonys Martin and Greg Allen in center, Tyler Naquin in left, and Jordan Luplow in right.

Doesn’t exactly sound like a threat to contend for the World Series winner, does it?

To be fair, we like Luplow’s potential. He had 36 extra base hits and 39 walks in 88 games at AAA last season (829 OPS), and slugged .535 at AA the year before that. He could be an interesting guy to watch in Arizona.

And we actually think there could be potential in the Martin/Allen platoon. Martin had close to an 800 OPS (799) against right-handed pitching a year ago.

There has been talk to getting a third baseman, which would move Jose Ramirez to 2B, and potentially move Jason Kipnis to left, but neither he nor Naquin would be another solid, proven bat this lineup badly needs.

Once again, right now, the Indians have three of those: Francisco Lindor, Jose Ramirez, and Carlos Santana. Our opinion is you need six or seven to have an offense good enough to get you to October.

So, who is left on the open market, which is what the Indians’ front office will have to go to unless they decide to deal one of their starting pitchers.

Carlos Gonzalez has the highest OPS among attainable free agent hitters (Bryce Harper not included), but he hasn’t hit away from Coors Field since 2016.

Curtis Granderson is 38 years old and is at best a platoon player at this point in his career.

A. J. Pollock would be a great fit for Cleveland, but at 31 years old, he’s looking for a multi-year deal, and his price is probably out of the Tribe’s range, especially based on how they have been cutting the payroll this winter.

And it’s been reported he is signing with the Dodgers.

Adam Jones, who will play at 34 years old this upcoming season, has been linked to the Indians since last summer. Jones is coming off his worst season since he became a regular, and may be a candidate for a rebound season. However, his low career walk rate doesn’t hold much hope for that.

You also have Mike Moustakas, who could be signed and move Kipnis to the outfield, or Marwin Gonzalez, a multi-positional player who is looking to cash in his last two seasons. He took a big dip in ’18 though, looking more like the player he was earlier in his career.

Hopefully, the Cleveland front office is looking at Jones and/or Moustakas. They need to lengthen their lineup badly, and that duo could do that and at a seemingly reasonable price.

We would like Luplow and say, Jake Bauers, to make the leap and become solid everyday players. But you can’t depend on that when your goals are beyond winning the division, which with the top line talent the Indians have, should be the goal.

The fan base is becoming impatient, and that doesn’t help sell tickets.

Is The Tribe A Playoff Certainty in ’19? Maybe Not

In writing about the Cleveland Indians, we have referred to them as the favorites to win the American League Central Division, pretty much assuming they will get to the playoffs in 2019.

The question today is–based on the current roster, is that a correct assumption? Or are we thinking with our heart instead of the head.

Last year’s Indians scored 80 more runs than their closest competitors, the Minnesota Twins, a year ago. They allowed 127 runs less than the Twins.

They were the closest to the Tribe in both of those categories in 2018, and not coincidentally, the Twins finished second in the division, 13 games behind Cleveland.

Since the season’s end, the Indians have lost four of their top six hitters in OPS: Michael Brantley, Edwin Encarnacion, Yan Gomes, and Yonder Alonso. Replacing them are question marks.

They also have cut ties with the players with the three highest OPS figures among the non-regular players–Josh Donaldson, Lonnie Chisenhall, and Yandy Diaz.

While pitching may rule in a short series, you have to score runs to get to the post-season. In the AL, the top five teams in runs scored all made the playoffs, and in the National League, five of the top seven teams in runs scored advanced.

By the way, the Twins were the highest scoring team in the AL last season that did not make the playoffs, and they added C. J. Cron and Nelson Cruz to their lineup, while substracting Robbie Grossman and Joe Mauer, who retired.

Cron (816 OPS) essentially replaces Logan Morrison, who had the Twins’ lowest OPS among regulars, while Cruz (850 OPS) would rank as Minnesota’s best hitter, and had an OPS over 100 points higher than Mauer.

It would not be a stretch to say the Twins may score more runs than the Indians in 2019. We like Eddie Rosario and Max Kepler a lot, and the latter in particular should improve on his 2018 numbers.

Where the Indians have a huge advantage is in the starting rotation, arguably all five of the Cleveland starters could have better years than any of the Twins’ rotation members.

We like Jose Barrios, but right now he would be the fifth starter for the Indians.

Looking at the two teams, we would say the Indians are banking on their rotation’s ability to hold opponents’ hitters down, so they can win a lot of games 3-2 and 4-3. That’s difficult to sustain over an entire season, and puts a lot of pressure on the Cleveland bullpen, which is also in a state of disarray.

The Twins, led by former Indians’ assistant general manager Derek Falvey, haven’t been super aggressive this off-season, but they have made moves to improve their ballclub, which we can’t say about the Tribe.

Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff shouldn’t be comfortable about ruling the division again next season, especially with uncertainty at pretty much every spot save for shortstop, second or third base (depending on where Jose Ramirez plays), and first base/DH (wherever Carlos Santana is).

While the Cleveland starting pitching is the most impressive and best unit among the two rosters, the gap has definitely narrowed. And spring training is less than a month away.

We also haven’t mentioned the Chicago White Sox who are wooing free agent all-star Manny Machado.

Perhaps we should scale back our “certainty” that the Indians will get back to the playoffs in ’19. They have a lot to do to be considered a lock.

Tribe Bullpen Is Still A Concern Too

Another Cleveland Indian left the reservation yesterday with the announcement that Cody Allen is signing with the Los Angeles Angels as a free agent.

So, add him to the list of Michael Brantley, Andrew Miller, Edwin Encarnacion, Lonnie Chisenhall, Yan Gomes, Yandy Diaz, and we guess you can even include Josh Donaldson, as Tribe players who have departed since the end of the 2018 season.

Who has replaced them? Jordan Luplow, Jake Bauers, Kevin Plawecki, Max Moroff, Chih-Weh Hu, Jefry Rodriguez, and A.J. Cole.

One group isn’t a lot like the others is it?

Perhaps the front office has a big move up its sleeve, and perhaps it will be coming soon, but right now, you would have to be the biggest optimist in the world to think the Cleveland Indians are better today than they were when the season ended.

We understand why most of the players who are no longer here were let go. The Indians were getting old, and the front office needed to get younger players with upside.

It might work out that way in the end, but right now, the Indians might win the AL Central Division for the fourth consecutive year only because the rest of the division is in various states of rebuilding.

We agree with those who say a baseball team simply needs to get to the playoffs to have a chance, but with the current roster (and we know this won’t be the roster heading into the season, let alone the post-season), but clearly the Indians are behind their fellow playoff brethren, the Red Sox, Yankees, Astros, and probably the Rays and A’s too.

The outfield and bullpen are still a mess.

We have talked about the everyday lineup quite a bit, but the relief corps hasn’t improved since the end of last year, and it wasn’t a strength in 2018.

The best news is if those who say a bullpen is built from the closer back are correct, then Cleveland has a good foundation as they know their closer is Brad Hand.

The southpaw had 32 saves in ’18 and fanned 106 hitters in 72 innings.

Beyond that? Herein lies the problem.

Right now, who would be the set up men for Terry Francona?

Do any of these names inspire confidence? Adam Cimber, Neil Ramirez, Tyler Olson, Dan Otero? We didn’t think so.

Cimber was very good in San Diego and was thought to be an underrated piece coming over in the trade that brought Hand here, but he struggled with Cleveland, allowing 33 baserunners in 20 innings.

Besides, he’s a situational right-hander, and struggles against left-handed hitters.

Ramirez allowed nine home runs in 41 innings. That’s a lot. Otero allowed 12 gopher balls in 58 frames. So is that.

Olson is another lefty, the same as Hand. Francona likes Jon Edwards, who was a September call up, and had some moments after arriving, but he’s pitched eight innings in the bigs since 2015.

Maybe Ben Taylor or Rodriguez, who throws hard, or Cole can become reliable arms in relief, but that’s an awful large gamble for a team who is supposed to make a deep post-season run.

Stranger things can happen. But it’s a huge gamble for a team that should have World Series aspirations. If whoever breaks camp with the Indians doesn’t succeed right away, the front office will be shuffling the bullpen all year.

And perhaps they will be forced into a move made out of desperation.

It’s Up To Tribe To Cause Excitement In Team

The Cleveland Indians held their annual TribeFest last weekend, meaning spring training is just around the corner.

In about 30 days, the Tribe will convene in Goodyear, trying to defend three consecutive Central Division titles. The question is, who besides the players currently on the roster will be joining them.

Baseball seems to be in a bit of a holding pattern, waiting for the two marquee free agents, Bryce Harper and Manny Machado, to sign.

While many teams have been bolstering their rosters for the upcoming season, the Indians have said thank you for your service to several mainstays from the past three years.

Gone are Michael Brantley (Houston), Andrew Miller (St. Louis), Edwin Encarnacion (traded to Seattle), Cody Allen (free agent), Yan Gomes (traded to Washington), and Yonder Alonso (dealt to the White Sox).

Carlos Santana is back, but otherwise, no one would recognize any of the players the front office has brought into the clubhouse.

Right now, the projected lineup appears to be dotted with holes, and the bullpen, a major area of weakness a year ago, hasn’t been approved.

Meanwhile, ownership seems to have taken the position that because attendance was down in 2018, they not only aren’t going to increase the payroll, they aren’t going to hit the figure they spent heading into the ’18 season.

That position is the root of the problem baseball fans here have with the Dolan family. They feel the front office should spend when they have a chance to win the World Series, not simply when they get an attendance boost.

With arguably the best starting rotation in the game, and two of the best position players in baseball, why not take a shot at ending a title drought at 71 years. This isn’t the time to draw a line in the sand with the people who buy tickets to watch your team.

Perhaps once Harper and Machado sign, the front office will spring into action and will the holes that exist in the everyday lineup, notably the outfield and the bullpen.

There are plenty of options still out there, and maybe the waiting will play into the hands of the Indians’ braintrust and they will get real good players at below market prices.

However, that approach doesn’t exactly sell tickets. With all of the excitement surrounding the Browns right now, shouldn’t the folks at the corner of Carnegie and Ontario want to muscle in on that spotlight?

We understand it is a business and they have a right to make a profit, but on the other hand it’s an entertainment business. People go to games as a night out, a recreational activity, so you have to give them a reason to travel to Progressive Field.

There was a buzz after the World Series, and the Tribe capitalized on it by signing Encarnacion as a free agent. During the season, they added Jay Bruce when Michael Brantley was injured, and dealt for bullpen help in Joe Smith.

After that season, Santana left and Yonder Alonso replaced him, which got no one excited.

Last year, the Indians made a splash in the bullpen getting Brad Hand from San Diego and picked up Leonys Martin at the deadline. The Hand move created buzz, but it was more about trying to fix a disastrous bullpen.

What we are saying is that it’s the responsible of the team to create excitement, it’s not up to the fans.

We would tell everyone about Frankie Lindor, Jose Ramirez, Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, and the other all star caliber players wearing an Indians’ uniform.

Instead they complain about attendance and ask out loud why people don’t go to the games. That’s not going to help.

Tribe Needs To Go For It, Not Reduce Payroll

In Sunday’s issue of The Plain Dealer, columnist Terry Pluto clubbed fans of the Cleveland Indians in the heads with his comment that the Tribe’s front office wasn’t going to equal last season’s payroll for this year’s team.

Many of us who thought the Indians were simply re-allocating payroll, meaning moving some high salaried veteran players to bring in some younger guys with more of an upside were living in a fantasy rule.

By the way, we don’t doubt Pluto has this correct. He’s one of the most respected writers in the country, and has very good contacts within the Tribe organization.

So, all of the critics of the ownership of the city’s baseball team can claim to be correct in believing this was a payroll dump all along.

Once again, it appears the Dolan ownership is hitting supporters of the team with the idea of spending money when fans buy tickets.

We understand the Indians have been very successful on the field over the last three season, reaching the World Series in 2016, and making the playoffs in each of the last two years.

Attendance jumped from 1.39 million in 2015 to 1.59 million in ’16, and then to 2.05 million after winning the pennant.

The number of paying customers did dip last season to 1.93 million. However, this is still 340,000 more people than visited Progressive Field in 2016.

It seems all ownership looks at is the slight dip from ’17 to ’18, and not the gain made from 2015, when attendance was a half million less than last season.

Look, we understand ownership probably went to the max in regards to payroll a year ago, but when you have a chance to win a World Series, which the Indians do, make no mistake about it, cutting the amount of money you want to spend on players seems counter intuitive.

First of all, the Indians have two of the best players in the game on the roster in Francisco Lindor and Jose Ramirez, and a starting rotation that is the envy of every other team in the sport.

As for this year’s attendance, we would project a bump because of the All Star Game being in Cleveland this season, and also because the Cavaliers won’t be a factor this spring.

In the past four years, the Tribe has been kind of an afterthought as the Cavs made their way through the post-season, which had them playing into June.

That won’t be the case this year, which we would imagine would free up some sports entertainment dollars for the Indians, if the organization would give people a reason to be excited.

News of a reduction in the payroll isn’t going to get people in northeast Ohio excited about the Indians. Signing a free agent or making a trade to improve potentially the least productive outfield in the game might garner some interest.

And starting to put out comments like the payroll is going to be cut because attendance dropped in 2018 certainly isn’t going to fuel positive interest.

We have said this before, but fans don’t care about whether or not the Dolan family makes a profit. To them, success is measured by wins on the field, and after 2016, when the Indians were this close to their first world title since 1948, they want progress in the post-season.

They want the front office to go for it.

We understand the financial limitations operating a team in this market, and we believe most fans get the Tribe can’t spend with the Yankees, Red Sox, and Dodgers.

There is still a month before the Indians gather in Goodyear for spring training. Let’s hope management spends some of the cash saved to improve the team from last year.