Tribe Play, Moves Puzzling

There is no question the six game losing streak on the west coast trek for the Cleveland Indians turned a so-so month of April into a disappointing one. The Tribe left Cleveland at 11-11, a .500 record, and they returned home 11-17, and in last place.

More concerning to the media and the fans is the sloppy play of Terry Francona’s bunch. Using two of the major defensive statistics available, the Indians rank last in the American League in defense. They’ve made the most errors and they have the worst defensive efficiency.

Thank goodness Cleveland pitchers rank third in the league in strikeouts. The less balls put into play, the better.

Sometimes, the errors don’t allow runs to score, but they make pitchers have to throw more pitches. This was never more evident than Friday night, when Elliott Johnson’s error in the fourth inning made Danny Salazar throw at least 15 more tosses to home plate. Otherwise, Francona could’ve squeezed another inning out of the starter.

Along with the poor play, the front office has made some curious moves thus far, and we aren’t talking about having Carlos Carrasco start the season in the rotation, we could understand the reasoning for that.

Two of these strange moves were made yesterday. The Indians announced Josh Tomlin would start on Tuesday against Minnesota. While Tomlin deserves to be back with the big club (2-1, 2.06 ERA), he’s not the Columbus starter with the best statistics.

That would be Trevor Bauer, who owns a 3-0 record with a 1.10 ERA and 31 strikeouts in 32-2/3 innings.

Why not reward Bauer for his outstanding pitching, plus his presence in the rotation would send some excitement to both a fan base and perhaps a clubhouse that appears to need a jolt.

Look, this is not to say make the move for the fans. Bauer’s performance merits a promotion. He’s pitching well, his confidence should be at an all time high, and he’s got the look of a potential ace.

With all due respect to Tomlin, we know what he is. He’s no better than a third starter, a guy who won’t be spectacular, but will keep you in games. And we’ve advocated bringing up the right-hander when he was the only starter having success in AAA when he came up in 2010.

The other puzzling move was bringing up reliever Nick Hagadone to provide an extra arm in the bullpen until Tomlin gets the call on Tuesday. (Hagadone was sent back today to make room for Nyjer Morgan, needed because of Michael Bourn’s hamstring problems).

Really, there wasn’t anyone on the 40-man roster they could’ve brought up other than a hard throwing lefty, who can’t find home plate?

Wouldn’t you rather give a guy like Austin Adams a shot? Or bring Vinnie Pestano up for a few days?

Hagadone has an electric arm, but he’s never demonstrated an ability to throw strikes consistently. Why does the front office continually reward him with major league time? That said, it’s a moot point now, and again, he would’ve been sent out on Tuesday anyway.

With Bourn day-to-day, the Indians have another problem. With Francona’s preference for carrying 13 pitchers, the Tribe can’t have a roster spot for a player who may be out several days. They almost have to put that player on the disabled list. That’s why it wouldn’t be a surprise if Bourn has to go back on the DL when Tomlin comes up in a few days.

For now, what the Indians need most is to tighten up their defense and win some ball games. The season is more than 1/6th through. You can’t use the “it’s early” excuse much longer.

Carrasco Is Tribe’s Enigma

One of the regular debates surrounding the Cleveland Indians is what to do with Carlos Carrasco. Is he a starter or is he better suited for the bullpen?

One thing that no one doubts is the right-hander’s arm. He has outstanding stuff, getting his fastball to the plate around 95 MPH and he has a fine slider as well.

However, that stuff hasn’t translated to success at the big league level.

Carrasco was out of options at the beginning of the season, so the organization had to bring him north or risk losing him to another team. And again, with that arm, there really was no choice.

When there was debate about keeping the guy who is the last link of the Cliff Lee deal or keeping Josh Tomlin instead, the argument is simple: Tomlin is at best a back of the rotation pitcher, while Carrasco could be a #1 or #2 starter if he could put it all together.

Our thought on the righty is that it is a mental issue. He struggles when he has to think about his pitching between starts. When he doesn’t know when he is going to pitch, such as being in relief, he seems to have better success.

The other reason the bullpen looks like a good option is Carrasco’s pretty good the first time through a batting order, but has problems the second time through.

Last Sunday, he mowed down the first nine Toronto hitters he faced, and then gave up six hits and three walks in the next 2-2/3 innings.

Is that an effective start? Overall, 5-2/3 innings with six hits allowed doesn’t look bad, but when you consider all the damage was concentrated in an eight out span, it really isn’t good.

Last year, when pitching in relief, Carrasco held hitters to a .156 batting average in 13-2/3 IP last year, compared to a .383 average in 33 IP as a starting pitcher.

On the other hand, we said the same things about Ubaldo Jimenez last season.

Mickey Callaway worked a miracle with Jimenez a year ago, and by the end of the season, he was one of the best pitchers in the American League. Doesn’t Carrasco get the same benefit of the doubt?

The question is, though, whether Carrasco’s problems are mechanical or between his ears. To be sure, Jimenez’ problems were thought to be strictly with his delivery, but we are sure that the pitching coach had to build back the hurler’s confidence too.

If we read between the lines after Carrasco’s starts, we can sense frustration from Terry Francona and Callaway in the pitcher’s inability to maintain what he is being told.

It seems like Carrasco makes changes in his delivery, but when he gets in trouble, he abandons the alterations and goes back to just trying to throw harder.

Is that correctable? Of course, but the manager is trying to win games too.

Some pitchers don’t function well in certain roles. Former Indian reliever Steve Karsay was great as a set up man, but had problems trying to be a closer.

Francona needs to get the most out of Carlos Carrasco. It will be interesting to see if the pitcher can follow the Jimenez success story, or if he will wind up pitching out of the bullpen.

Management has to be more patient than fans. That’s a lesson we can all learn.
KM

Too Early For Panic, But Tribe Fans Can Be Concerned

It is not a secret that the Cleveland Indians haven’t played great baseball thus far this season. They are sitting at 7-10 on the season, but right now the American League has nine of its 13 teams within three games of the .500 mark.

It wouldn’t be a surprise if the entire season went that way, because there aren’t many bad teams in the junior circuit. So, while the Tribe is struggling, only two teams (Oakland and Texas) have won more than 10 games already, s0 it is hardly time to panic.

We realize that Cleveland is a football town, and it has a football mentality. Last year, there were many fans who wanted the Indians to trade for prospects when the team was five games out of a playoff spot in late July, when the trade deadline hit.

Of course, Terry Francona’s bunch played much better down the stretch and made the playoffs, winning 92 games.

We are saying once again that it is a long season. The Indians have played a little more than one-tenth of their schedule, so there is no need to be going crazy about the Tribe’s play thus far.

None of the Indians’ key players have been hot thus far, and no matter what the team’s harshest critic has to say, it is doubtful that Nick Swisher will hit .174 this season, nor will Carlos Santana hit .153. It’s probably amazing that Francona has Cleveland at 7-10 with the paltry production of these two important players.

However, we did say that the four key players for the Indians this season were Corey Kluber, Danny Salazar, Swisher, and Michael Bourn. Through 17 games, only Kluber has lived up to expectations. Sure, he is 1-2 with a 5.40 ERA, but those numbers are affected by his first start. He’s had three pretty good starts since.

Salazar was cruising in his last start on Thursday, giving up one run in his first four innings. The Indians got him a lead, and he suddenly couldn’t find the strike zone, walking the first two Tiger hitters, and then giving up a three run homer to Ian Kinsler.

That makes three consecutive outings where the youngster couldn’t get through six innings.

Bourn has been hurt, missing the first 13 games of the year with a hamstring issue, but he hasn’t shown any signs of changing his approach, striking out five times in his first 13 at bats.

The centerfielder hit .232 after the All Star Game last year, with an on base percentage of under .300, unacceptable for a leadoff hitter. He needs to cut down on his swing and put the ball in play, using his legs more. If he doesn’t start producing soon, his contract could become an albatross for the organization.

Outside of Kluber and Zack McAllister, the starting rotation has also been questionable. Justin Masterson has been good twice, which is only half of his starts. Carlos Carrasco has a big start this afternoon, mainly because Josh Tomlin and Trevor Bauer are breathing down his neck to take his spot in the rotation.

If Carrasco doesn’t do well today, he likely will be moved to the bullpen with one of those two being called up to make a start Friday. We believe that’s why Jason Giambi reactivation was moved to Monday, so the front office can decide who gets sent down, a position player or a bullpen arm.

Let’s wait another 10 games, when the Tribe has played 1/6th of their schedule to make any rash comments. The likelihood is that the American League will still look the same, a jumbled group of teams with similar records.

Tribe Pitchers Need to Throw Strikes

The biggest worry most fans of the Cleveland Indians had going into the season was the starting pitching. With two weeks of the season having been played, that concern still exists.

Despite the absence of Michael Bourn and slow starts by Nick Swisher, Asdrubal Cabrera, and to some extent Carlos Santana, the Indians have scored enough runs. They rank 3rd in the American League in runs scored, averaging 4.83 tallies per game and the team’s OPS ranks tied for 4th in the junior circuit.

Unfortunately, the two teams they trail in runs per night are teams they have played thus far in the 2014 season: The Twins and White Sox. Are those teams hot, or are the struggles by Cleveland’s starters responsible for their impressive ranking.

Terry Francona and Mickey Callaway’s pitching staff has struggled throwing strikes, leading the American League in allowing walks. They also lead the AL in striking hitters out. This combination leads to high pitch counts for the starting pitchers, and that puts a huge burden on the bullpen. And we all know how Francona likes to protect his relief corps.

In the Tribe’s 12 games thus far, the starter has completed seven innings just twice (Justin Masterson on Opening Night, and Zack McAllister vs. San Diego), and in only two other games have they thrown six frames (Corey Kluber and Trevor Bauer, both this past week against the Padres).

That’s two out of every three games that the bullpen is forced to get more than nine outs per game.

To be sure, Callaway and the skipper would prefer the starters to be more efficient, throw strikes and let hitters put the ball in play to get outs. Masterson has walked nine in 15-1/3 frames, Carlos Carrasco has walked five in 10-1/3 innings, and Danny Salazar has issued five more free passes in 9-1/3 innings.

Speaking of Carrasco, it appears he isn’t pleasing his bosses. He struggled in his second start of the season on Friday night, but what had to have Francona and Callaway shaking their heads were the two walks he issued after the Tribe tied the game at three for him. Response runs have been a problem this season for the whole staff, but when they occur because of walks, it makes the manager upset.

After the game, reporters received the dreaded “ask him” answer from the pitching coach, a very good sign of his anger. Callaway sent a clear signal to the pitcher that he is no longer covering for him. And both he and Francona go out of their way to take the player’s side when at all possible.

The right-hander had his next start, scheduled to be Thursday at Detroit, delayed until at least Saturday vs. Toronto, but the guess here is that the front office is buying time to see whether or not to use Bauer or maybe Josh Tomlin in that spot with Carrasco staying in the bullpen.

Blake Wood (seven walks in 4-1/3 IP) could be sent to Columbus to make room in the ‘pen for Carrasco, as the organization tries to find a spot for the young right-hander and his electric stuff.

If he fails in the relief role, GM Chris Antonetti will likely have to cut ties with Carrasco.

While it is still very early in the campaign (less than 10% of the season has been played), the Tribe needs to get more length out of the starting pitchers. If the current guys can’t do it, Francona will make changes. He isn’t about to throw away a season because of this problem.

Tribe Starters Need Length, Decisions to be Made

First of all, let’s all calm down Tribe fans. The season is only one week old and the Cleveland Indians emerged at the break even mark at 3-3 even though the performance of the starting pitchers wasn’t good.

It is too early to panic because outside of Justin Masterson, each of the starters made just one appearance. Let’s give each of the starters three or four starts before jumping to any conclusions.

However from a team standpoint, Terry Francona can’t be happy about having to use his bullpen this much this early. Already, the Indians’ starters have gone less than five innings in exactly half of the games, and the club has had five straight starts where the starter hasn’t gone six complete frames.

So, it will be interesting to see the games tonight and tomorrow when Corey Kluber (3-2/3 IP) and Zack McAllister (4 IP in his first start) take the hill against the San Diego Padres. If both can pitch up to the level they achieved last season, then any concern will be eased for both fans and the skipper and Mickey Callaway.

Fortunately, the bullpen has done the job so far, allowing just seven earned runs in the six contests, and five of the eight members of the relief corps haven’t allowed an earned run as of yet.

But it’s the amount of innings they have pitched so far (24-2/3, an average of 4 per game), that has to concern Francona and Callaway

We could be sitting here a week from today after five consecutive solid outings by the starters and be concerned about the relief pitchers getting enough work. That’s why you can’t make bold statements regarding a baseball team after one week.

The Tribe front office will have some decisions to make in the next week or so regarding the make up of the roster when Michael Bourn and Jason Giambi are ready to be activated from the disabled list.

OF Nyjer Morgan has gotten on base (.500 OBP) so far, and it is easy to say he stays over Elliot Johnson (0 for 5 thus far) when Bourn is ready, but it is more complicated than that because Morgan swings from the left side, and the Tribe is overloaded with left-handed hitters.

If Morgan was right-handed it would be a no-brainer, and it is difficult to see Francona and GM Chris Antonetti going with six left-handed batters (with three more switch-hitters) among their 12 position players.

The fact that Johnson can hit from the right side may be (along with his versatility) his biggest edge. With the opponents throwing southpaws in five of the next six games, Johnson will get a chance to prove he should stay.

When Giambi comes back, it could be at Lonnie Chisenhall’s expense, or the Tribe could decide to go with one less relief pitchers. This would assume the starting pitching gets straightened out.

If that’s the case, the two candidates to sent back to Columbus would be Vinnie Pestano and Blake Wood. Wood had a leg up until yesterday when he took to loss by walking two, hitting a batter, and then allowing a three-run double to give Minnesota the lead.

Pestano has allowed runs in both of his outings in the young season.

The battle(?) between these two is something else to keep an eye on this week.

Even though spring training is over, the front office and the skipper still have roster decisions to be made. That’s something to watch this week.

It’s Opening Day!

Today is the day that signals spring is officially here in northeast Ohio. It’s the home opener for the Cleveland Indians, a day for the even the casual fans around town to stop talking about the NFL draft and salute the return of the Tribe.

We have seen a lot of Opening Days in town and we thought we would share a couple of the most memorable.

The one that stands out right away is 1975, a historic day for the sport of baseball as well as the Indians. It was Frank Robinson’s first game as the first African-American manager of a major league team, and he put his name in the lineup as the DH and hit a home run off Doc Medich in his first at bat, leading his team to a 5-3 victory over the Yankees.

The other obvious choice in most fans’ memories occurred 20 years ago, as then Jacobs Field played host to its first regular season game. Walking into the new building after spending so many years at the armpit known as Municipal Stadium was a thrill. You couldn’t believe a facility like this was built right here in Cleveland.

The game was a classic as well, and it was a harbinger of things to come. The Tribe was being no-hit by Randy Johnson into the eighth inning before rallying to tie and then won the game in extra innings on a Wayne Kirby single, the first of many, many walk off wins by the home team in the new park.

People as old as we are still refer to Progressive Field as the “new ballpark”, and it is now 20 years old.

There were other more obscure games that we recall though.

The ’71 opener was a 3-2 victory for the Indians, highlighted by a game winning single by utility infielder Gomer Hodge who went 2 for 2 and proclaimed he was hitting 2.000 after the game.

In 1974, an opening day record of over 74,000 packed the old stadium to watch Gaylord Perry and the Indians outduel Mickey Lolich and the Tigers 2-1 on Chris Chambliss’ home run.

In 1980, the Tribe came home after a 1-5 west coast swing to beat the Blue Jays 8-1 behind the pitching of Rick Waits and a home run by eventual American League Rookie of the Year Joe Charboneau, who went 3 for 3 on the afternoon.

The 1986 loss to Detroit was perhaps the coldest opener we attended. Phil Niekro started for the Tribe and seemingly went 3 and 2 on every Tiger hitter that day which made the 7-2 loss even more chilly.

The first home game in 1992 went 19 innings, before the Red Sox won 7-5 with Tim Naehring winning the game with a two run homer off Eric Bell. In the starting lineup for Cleveland were these guys who were cornerstones of the teams that game the post-season year after year later in the decade: Kenny Lofton, Carlos Baerga, Albert Belle, and Sandy Alomar Jr.

The 1996 lidlifter featured the Indians getting their 1995 American League Championship rings in a 7-1 loss to the Bronx Bombers. Why else was that game significant? Yanks’ rookie SS Derek Jeter hit his first big league homer in the game.

Today, someone will have a memory that will stick with them for many years. That is the magic of baseball and the home opener in particular. It’s a special day especially if you are a real fan.

Finally, it’s here. Let’s play ball!

Tribe Needs Five Players to Come Through in 2014

The Cleveland Indians will open their season less than a week from today and they are pretty much the same team that lost the wild card game against Tampa, 4-0.

The question is will that be enough again this season?

A lot probably depends on the other teams in the Central Division.

The Tigers seems to not be as strong as they were last season, losing Prince Fielder, Jhonny Peralta, and Doug Fister, plus they have suffered a rash of injuries in spring training.

However, they still have Justin Verlander, Max Sherzer, and Anibal Sanchez at the top of their rotation, perhaps the best 1-2-3 combination in the major leagues.

The Royals stayed in the race until the middle of September and their young core of talent is starting to mature. They’ve also added 2B Omar Infante, leadoff hitter Nori Aoki from Milwaukee, and starting pitcher Jason Vargas.

If ever Kansas City is going to make the leap into the playoffs, this looks to be the season.

While the Royals were adding to the roster, the Indians lost two starting pitchers from last year’s squad, Ubaldo Jimenez and Scott Kazmir, who the Tribe is trying to replace from within.

We don’t think the Indians will win 92 games again this season, but we also see them in contention because we don’t believe any team in the Central will win more than 90 games.

It will be a three team race with the White Sox hanging around the fringe, with the Tigers, Indians, and Royals all winning between 84 and 88 games.

For the Tribe, their success depends on better seasons from their two big free agent signings a year ago, Nick Swisher and Michael Bourn, and a free agent to be at the end of this season in Asdrubal Cabrera.

All three had down years in ’13, and an adjustment to their career averages would certainly help the offense that finished 4th in the league in runs scored. They will need the extra production because it is doubtful that Ryan Raburn will duplicate what he did last year.

Last year, the Indians jumped into contention because of their pitching which finished the year 7th in team ERA as new pitching coach Mickey Calloway performed magic with his young starters and also salvaged Jimenez’ career.

The front office is asking Calloway to do it again, putting more pressure on him to duplicate the success Corey Kluber had last season, and to bring along fireballing phenom Danny Salazar, and making him a successful starter for an entire season.

Because if the Tribe wants to get back to the post-season this fall, the starting pitching needs to be better than it was last summer. And that means Kluber and Salazar have to perform at a high level.

Justin Masterson will give Terry Francona 200 innings as usual. Carlos Carrasco, if he indeed starts the year in the rotation, is the wild card, capable of winning 10 or more games, but he could also be in the bullpen by May.

The Indians need Kluber and Salazar to be consistent; giving the ballclub quality starts throughout the season. If they can, Cleveland will contend.

If they can’t the organization will be scrambling for replacements. Josh Tomlin looks like the 2011 version of himself, but is Trevor Bauer ready to take a regular turn in the rotation?

They would be the next pitchers up.

The key to whether or not this will be a fun summer at Progressive Field depends the how the Tribe’s young starters will perform. In what should be a competitive division, that could make all the difference.

Tribe Should Get Deal Done with Masty

No one knows how to throw a wet blanket on growing enthusiasm like the Cleveland Indians.

After a September that woke up the interest in the team enough that the wild card game was attended by a sellout, boisterous throng, the front office’s biggest splash this off-season was signing OF David Murphy, who hit .220 for Texas last season.

And now, with the Tribe compiling the sport’s best record in exhibition play and fans looking forward to Opening Day next week, comes the word that talks on a long-term contract with starting pitcher Justin Masterson have broken off.

There are pros and cons on Masterson, the biggest con being that he has spent four years in Cleveland as a starter, and has had two solid seasons (12-10, 3.21 ERA in ’11, and 14-10, 3.45 ERA in ’13) out of those four. The other seasons were 6-13, 4.70 ERA in ’10 and 11-15, 4.93 ERA in 2012.

He’s been inconsistent, although when he has had pitching coaches who stress pounding the strike zone (Tim Belcher in 2011 and Mickey Calloway in 2013), he has been successful.

The other thing you can’t take away from the big right-hander, who just turned 29 years of age, is that he’s an innings eater, throwing an average of 199 innings per season in those four years.

Masterson was willing to sign a shorter term deal with the Indians, which would be club-friendly, but at a fair market value. That way the Tribe would be protected from a long-term commitment.

Our premise is there is nothing bad about a one-year deal because the club is out of it after one season. For example, did the Brett Myers signing really have an adverse effect on the Cleveland Indians? Of course not.

So, a three-year deal even at the reported $17 million per year, isn’t the crippling deal that the Travis Hafner contract became. Hafner’s five-year contract was a bust because of injuries over that span.

A three-year deal is reasonable and manageable, especially for someone with the durability of Masterson.

The fact of the matter is this is the baseball climate the Indians are playing in, and the amount of money the guy who has started each of the last three Opening Days for Cleveland is the market value, whether the front office likes it or not.

Homer Bailey received a six-year contract with Cincinnati over the winter at a similar dollar per year figure, and Masterson’s numbers are comparable if not better.

And most baseball people consider the best starting pitchers on the market after the 2014 season are James Shields, Max Scherzer, Jorge De La Rosa, Jon Lester, and…Masterson.

So, he’s going to get a big deal from someone after this season.

The Indians are still living in the moral high ground concerning free agency, apparently one of the last teams to do that.

They will tell you that Masterson hasn’t proven he can put two solid seasons back to back, and that’s why they can’t make that kind of financial commitment. However, the days of teams paying for past performance are in the past.

Today, teams have to pay based on what’s going to happen over the next three years.

The point is this is the market value for solid starting pitchers. The really good ones (Kershaw, Verlander, etc.) get $22 million per season.

If the Dolan ownership can’t pay the market value for players, then their really isn’t a bright future for Indians’ fans as long as the current ownership is in place.

To have that pointed out once again right before the start of the season is another kick in the teeth for Indians’ fans. And another reminder that an ownership that is unable to pay market value for players should think about selling the team.

Thoughts on How Tribe Pitching Staff Shakes Out

The regular season for the Cleveland Indians starts in less than two weeks, and there are still some unresolved issues on Terry Francona’s pitching staff.

The skipper has named four of his starting pitchers with Justin Masterson, Corey Kluber, Zack McAllister, and Danny Salazar getting the nod, with one spot remaining open.

In the bullpen, John Axford, Bryan Shaw, Cody Allen, Mark Rzepczynski, and Josh Outman seem to have nailed down spots with two openings in what figures to be a seven man bullpen to start the campaign.

That leaves several candidates for the three remaining spots on the staff when the season opens in Oakland on March 31^st.

The battle for the last spot in the rotation boils down to Carlos Carrasco, Josh Tomlin, and Aaron Harang.

Carrasco struggled last year as a starter, but pitched very well in relief, while Tomlin missed most of 2013 with Tommy John surgery. When healthy, the right-hander is a strike thrower and has demonstrated an ability to give his team at least five innings per start.

Harang was brought in right before spring training started to compete for a spot in the rotation and has pitched nine innings in “A” games, allowing two runs.

Carrasco and Tomlin have also been impressive thus far.

Our guess is that Carrasco will start the season in the fourth spot in the rotation while Tomlin will go to Columbus to length out his arm at the minor league level, which is needed since he pitched very little in 2013.

As for Harang, GM Chris Antonetti will have to work some magic to keep him in the organization after March because other teams are looking for starting pitchers.

The Tribe would like to keep the veteran around because Trevor Bauer doesn’t look ready to pitch in the bigs yet, and outside of Tomlin, there isn’t much starting pitching depth in the organization.

Perhaps the Indians can get Harang to go to Columbus with an out clause if he isn’t recalled by the end of April.

In the bullpen, the candidates for the last two spots are Vinnie Pestano, Blake Wood, David Aardsma, Scott Atchison, and C.C. Lee.

Pestano would seem to have a leg up based on his success in 2011 and 2012 when he was one of the best set up men in the game. He’s done okay this spring, allowing one run and two hits in five innings.

Wood is another Tommy John survivor and has big league experience with the Royals. He’s allowed one run in seven innings, striking out eight.

Aardsma has had arm troubles too, but was the Mariners closer a few years ago. He’s allowed two runs in six innings, while Atchison, who was with Francona in Boston, has given up a run in five innings of work.

Lee is a prospect who spent bits of last year with the Tribe, and he’s allowed two runs in six frame in Arizona.

Our prediction is that Atchison makes the squad, taking the Matt Albers role from 2013. That is to say, pitching extended outings (two or three innings) if needed if the starter has to depart the game early.

The Tribe has also pointed out that Wood has an option remaining, so the other spot looks to be Pestano’s to lose.

Aardsma would be welcome in Columbus, but more likely will ask for his release so he can pursue a job elsewhere.

Of course, a late injury or a couple of horrid appearance could change these spots before Opening Day.

Thoughts of Dealing Masterson are Silly

The Cleveland Indians avoided arbitration with Justin Masterson yesterday by signing him to a one-year deal at a little less than $10 million per year.

They can still talk about a multi-year deal since Masterson can be a free agent at the end of this season, but with the recent deal between Ubaldo Jimenez (four years, $50 million) and the likelihood that the Reds and Homer Bailey will agree to a six-year, $100 million deal, the odds of the Tribe’s #1 starter staying here past 2014 seem remote.

Of course, the reflex for all Indians’ fans was to trade the big right-hander since he likely will walk away at the end of the season.

As usual, there are several flaws in that argument.

First, everyone assumes that Masterson will have the same kind of season he had last season when he won 14 games with an ERA of 3.45. However, you don’t have to go that far back to find a season where Masty went 11-15 with a 4.93 ERA.

That was 2012.

Another season like that, and Masterson’s price will come way down.

The second reason is that the Indians were a playoff team last season, and would like to make it again this season.

No matter what you get for Masterson, they likely won’t impact this year’s team as much as a proven starting pitcher who will throw 200 innings for Terry Francona’s team.

If the Tribe had won 76 games last season, you might consider trading a player you may not be able to sign after the season, and looking toward 2015, but the reality is Cleveland won 92 games in ’13, and would like to make the playoffs again this season.

Now, if the Indians struggle at the start of the season and approach the July 31^st trade deadline being out of the race for the post-season, then it makes sense to see what you could get in return for the big righty.

But, you can’t move him right now unless you could make a deal that helps the ballclub this season.

Now we’re going out on a limb here, but another situation that bears looking at is the qualifying offer the Tribe made to Jimenez after last season.

GM Chris Antonetti could do the same with Masterson, thus keeping him in a Cleveland uniform for one more season at $14.1 million for 2015.

And we don’t know if Masterson has to have a six-year deal like Bailey appears to be getting in Cincinnati. Perhaps, he would be willing to listen to a four-year hitch, because he likes it here and of course, the Francona factor.

In recent seasons, the Indians have not wanted to go more than three years with a pitcher, but a guy who has been a horse and an innings eater might be an exception.

Of course, the pressure is on Masterson to have another solid season to make the Indians and/or other teams want to offer him a four-year deal following the 2014 campaign.

The point is you can’t deal your #1 starting pitcher coming off a playoff season and heading into a season where you want to get back to the post-season

It wouldn’t make sense to the players who inhabit the clubhouse, or to an already questioning fan base.