Tribe Got Talent, Just Not What Was Needed

The Cleveland Indians did pull off a deal before the Major League Baseball trading deadline, in fact, it was a mega-deal, perhaps the biggest in the game.

It was the type of deal a rebuilding team makes, the kind that accelerates the process of returning to the post-season.

However, the Indians currently reside in first place in the American League Central Division. We are sure the Twins and White Sox, the other two teams vying for the division lead are thrilled that the Tribe dealt their #2 starter, Mike Clevinger, to the San Diego Padres.

Team president Chris Antonetti and GM Mike Chernoff got a lot of talent in the transaction, they usually do. But the Indians need help right now. And once again, this seems like a trade made for the future.

Clevinger and OF Greg Allen and a player to be named later to San Diego for OF/1B Josh Naylor (whose brother was the Tribe’s first round draft pick in 2018), P Cal Quantrill, C Austin Hedges, and three minor leaguers who were in the Padres’ top 15 prospects according to Baseball America, SS Gabriel Arias (#9), LHP Joey Cantillo (#11), and INF Owen Miller (#15).

Cleveland has a glaring weakness in the outfield, where they collectively have a batting average under .200, but didn’t address it with a proven bat.

We like Naylor, a left-handed hitter, but he has 289 big league at bats. He does have great numbers away from Petco Park, a lifetime 807 OPS, and his reputation is that of a guy who works the count and doesn’t strikeout a great deal. He should get time in LF. He hasn’t faced a lot of southpaws (51 AB’s), but has 16 hits in those opportunities.

Quantrill, a right-hander, should claim a spot in the Tribe bullpen, and could convert to the rotation next spring. A former 8th overall pick in 2016, he has a 2.60 ERA in 17 innings this year, with 18 whiffs.

Hedges is 27 and has been around for six seasons in San Diego. He’s an excellent defensive catcher, which is what the Tribe wants in the position, but can’t hit. He has a career .199 average (616 OPS). He’s not eligible for free agency until 2023.

As for the prospects, Arias and Cantillo haven’t played above the Class A level. Arias has some pop in his bat (17 HR last season), but strikes out a lot (over 128 in his last two minor league seasons). Cantillo is a power arm, with 144 punchouts in 111 innings in 2019.

Miller is older (23) and has a lifetime minor league batting average of .307 (808 OPS), and primarily is a second baseman. He probably would have been at the AAA level this year, if there was a minor league season.

Still, fans should be disappointed that Naylor was the only thing done to correct a huge weakness on a contending team, especially when the Indians gave up perhaps the best pitcher on the market. While Clevinger was the Tribe’s #2 starter, he’s an ace for most teams in the league.

Meanwhile, Cleveland still has a gaping hole in CF, and apparently, the organization spun the wheel and it landed on Oscar Mercado, who will get another opportunity according to some.

The Indians made a deal from depth, because they can replace Clevinger with Zach Plesac, who will start Tuesday night in Kansas City and they still have Triston McKenzie in the rotation. And they have Adam Plutko, Scott Moss, and Logan Allen, among others in reserve.

However, they didn’t get the professional bat they desperately needed, and that’s why there is a tinge of regret in the move. Perhaps Naylor fills the void, but again, no one will know right away.

What the Tribe did was add more prospects to an already strong farm system, particularly at the lower levels. And while Arias has some ability, Cleveland is filled with prospects who play middle infield spots, including four of their top ten players.

Remember the old kids game, Kick the Can? That’s what it seems the organization is doing, kicking the can down the road of contention. They are getting like the Browns in terms of promising to try to be all in next season.

It’s a strange move by a team in first place. Instead of making a deal to put them over the hump in 2020, the Indians looked toward 2021 and beyond.

How Is Tribe Roster Shaking Out?

There have been some standouts during the Cleveland Indians’ “summer camp” since the intrasquad games began a week ago.

Rookie Daniel Johnson was “Tito’s star” in the first game and Yu Chang has put on quite the power display since arriving in town on July 3rd.

However, how much of an impact do these performances have on the 30 man roster the team will finalize before the season begins a week from Friday at Progressive Field against the Royals (Danny Duffy will start for KC).

Here is how we see the players who will for sure be on the roster as of today:

Catchers (2): Roberto Perez, Sandy Leon
Infielders (4): Carlos Santana, Cesar Hernandez, Francisco Lindor, Jose Ramirez
Oufielders (5): Franmil Reyes, Oscar Mercado, Jordan Luplow, Tyler Naquin, Domingo Santana
Starting rotation (5): Shane Bieber, Mike Clevinger, Carlos Carrasco, Aaron Civale, Zach Plesac
Relievers (5): Brad Hand, Nick Wittgren, James Karinchak, Oliver Perez, Adam Cimber

That means 21 of the 30 spots are pretty much locked up barring injury or illness. We would include OF Delino DeShields, but it appears he will open the season on the 10 day injured list.

That leaves nine spots open.

We know at least one spot will go to a utility infielder, perhaps two to start. The three most likely candidates are Chang, Mike Freeman, and Christian Arroyo. Freeman isn’t currently on the 40 man roster, so he would have to be added if he makes the team.

Of the trio, Freeman is the most accomplished at the plate, hitting .272 last season with the Tribe. Chang is the best option at SS defensively. To this point, those two have performed the best in the scrimmages.

That makes 23.

At least one other outfielder will be added in DeShields’ absence, and right now, we suspect Greg Allen is the front runner. Another spot could open up if Luplow’s back becomes a problem, but if he’s healthy, he’ll be in the lineup Opening Night with the southpaw Duffy on the hill.

We know Francona loves relief pitchers, and he would normally carry 13 hurlers, so with the 30 man roster to start, you have to figure he will carry 14, and perhaps 15.

Relievers like James Hoyt, Phil Maton, Hunter Wood should be the leading candidates, and Adam Plutko figures to be on the roster as a long reliever. The possible 10th bullpen spot could be lefties Scott Moss or Kyle Nelson or righty Dominic Leone.

And that brings us to 29 players.

Does Francona keep all three extra infielders, or does he go with Jake Bauers, another left-handed bat, who can also spell Carlos Santana at first base?

Or he could go with Bradley Zimmer, who would provide speed and defense at the every least in the outfield. Or perhaps even a third catcher, like minor league veteran Beau Taylor.

Even though Johnson has done well, it’s doubtful he starts the season on the active roster, and the same goes for slugging 1B/DH Bobby Bradley.

We do wonder how much weight will be put on the three games against the Pirates, which begin Saturday night at PNC Park? We know the starters will begin the game, but will likely be pulled early. The players on the bubble will get a shot against pitchers or hitters who aren’t their teammates.

Although some will criticize Francona for not going with young guys, we don’t blame him. With the 60 game schedule, you have to come out of the gate running, and you have more of an idea what you will get out of veterans.

We will find out soon how much of an impression the “summer camp stars” have had on the front office.

Zimmer’s First Impression Still Resonates For Some.

Sometimes, a person makes such a strong first impression that is resonates for a long time, even after there is a whole bunch of evidence to the contrary.

There are actors who make a great screen debut, and then never make a movie as good again. Yet, they are still famous, and still keep getting cast in films. You can insert a name here.

For a lot of Cleveland baseball fans, that’s how they view Indians’ outfielder Bradley Zimmer. But at 27 years old, he’s at a career crossroad, and this shortened season isn’t likely to provide a lot of help for him.

Zimmer came up in May 2017 when with the defending AL champs struggling a bit at 20-17. Terry Francona was starting to use Lonnie Chisenhall is centerfield, while rightfield was a combination of Abraham Almonte and David Robertson.

And playing Chisenhall in CF was definitely a compromise to the defense.

Zimmer started off very well after being called up on May 16th. Heading into the all star break, the rookie left-handed hitter was batting .285 with 5 HR, 25 RBI and had a 790 OPS.

He did strikeout 43 times in 165 plate appearances, a not great, but manageable 26% rate.

Since that time, Zimmer has batted .199 with 5 HR and 23 RBI in 267 at bats, including stints in 2018 (34 games) and 2019 (9 games), mostly due to injuries.

And in those 295 plate appearances, he fanned 107 times, a 36% rate. For a comparison, last year’s major league leader in striking out, Eugenio Suarez of Cincinnati, struck out 189 times in 662 plate appearances, a rate of 28.5%.

Oh, by the way, Suarez also hit 49 HR and knocked in 103 runs with a .271 batting average. The point is a player can strikeout a lot if he is productive when he makes contact.

Zimmer’s walk rate, while never good, has also dropped to 6.1% in ’18.

Again, a big part of Zimmer’s issue has been injuries. He suffered rib and chest injuries crashing into the wall at Yankee Stadium in 2018, and then hurt his shoulder swinging a bat just a week after being sent to AAA during that season.

The latter injury involved surgery and a lengthy rehab process, so much that the former first round pick played in only 15 minor league games in 2019, getting just 50 at bats.

He was called up in September, and went 1 for 13, striking out seven times.

This shortened season isn’t doing to help someone who needs to get in the batter’s box and face live pitching. It is difficult to see him getting a big opportunity with the major league club, as in the reserve OF category, he is clearly behind Delino DeShields, Greg Allen, and probably Daniel Johnson, although his defensive ability and speed could be a help.

Especially his speed. Zimmer can fly, which makes his lack of contact at the plate more frustrating. We understand this is an era of launch angle and hitting the ball through defensive shifts, but Zimmer would appear to us to be a guy who should be hitting the ball on the ground and running fast.

To us, that would make him a more productive player. Swinging from the left side, any ball he would hit to the left side of the infield and the defender had to move has a good chance of being a base hit.

We understand that’s old school, but it’s also better than batting .199.

It has been reported that Zimmer made some changes to his approach last year, and if he did, it’s another reason he is hurt by the lack of a minor league season in 2020. He needs reps.

There is no question the injuries have hurt his career, but you have to wonder how long the Indians’ front office will hang with the potential of Bradley Zimmer before moving in another direction.

At the very least, Zimmer shouldn’t pass up an opportunity to play winter ball if there is a season later in the year.

Simulated Tribe Off To Good Starts

These are different times we live in, particularly without the sport which symbolizes the beginning of spring and summer, baseball.

With no real games going on, we are curious each and every day to see what is going on in a couple of sites running simulated seasons. We understand it is not real, so readers should have no concern about our sanity.

The two simulated games we are following are at Baseball Reference.com, which uses Out of the Park Baseball 21, and the game we grew up with, Strat O Matic, which shows results online daily.

Both simulations have the Cleveland Indians off to good starts, perhaps because the early schedule would’ve had a lot of games with the Detroit Tigers and Chicago White Sox, although the latter is supposed to be much improved this season.

Baseball Reference. This site has the Indians getting off to a 5-4 start through April 4th, a game and a half game behind the White Sox, who did sweep the Tribe in a three game set at Progressive Field earlier in the week.

The Indians have taken all five games from the Tigers thus far.

Franmil Reyes is off to a great start, going 11 for 30 with five home runs and eight runs batted in. Newcomer Cesar Hernandez is also doing well, tied for second on the team in RBIs with seven.

This game surprisingly has Greg Allen getting the bulk of the time in the outfield, going 8 for 28. Carlos Santana is 13 for 31, and Francisco Lindor is 12 for 38 with 4 HR.

On the negative side, Jose Ramirez is off to a slow start (4 for 35), as are Oscar Mercado (3 for 24) and Roberto Perez (5 for 29 with 14 strikeouts).

Pitching wise, Zach Plesac is 2-0 with 4.50 ERA, while Shane Bieber has a 3.00 ERA and 18 strikeouts in 15 innings.

The simulation does not include Mike Clevinger or Carlos Carrasco, instead rookie Scott Moss made the big club to open the season.

Also, Sandy Leon is not on the big league roster, and weirdly, John Axford is, apparently acquired in a trade with Toronto.

Strat O Matic Their simulation has the Indians off to a 8-1 start, a game ahead of the Royals, who started off 6-1. FYI, the Twins have started at 3-6 to date.

They have Jefry Rodriguez in the rotation, and the righty has been very good, going 2-0 with a 1.35 ERA in two starts. Zach Plesac is also 2-0 with a 3.00 ERA and 18 strikeouts.

Reyes has started hot in this simulation too, belting six dingers and knocking in 13 in the first eight games of the season.

Domingo Santana is batting .417 and Carlos Santana is at .375 with 7 doubles on the season.

They have Jose Ramirez at .303 through eight games, while Lindor is off to a slow start, batting just .211.

Brad Hand blew two saves in the Chicago series, but the Indians rallied to win both contests, one on a Reyes walk off shot in the bottom of the ninth.

They have used a platoon of Jake Bauers and Jordan Luplow in RF, with Delino DeShields getting a couple of starts in center.

This game also does not have Clevinger or Carrasco available, and Cam Hill made the Opening Day roster. In fact, they already had Terry Francona using a bullpen day in game #5, using Hunter Wood as the starter.

Without actual games, this is making the best of the situation. And happily, the Indians are off to a good start in both simulations.

Let’s hope we see some baseball on the field for real soon.

Stay safe and stay healthy.

No One Seizing Tribe’s OF Openings

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

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

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

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

Check out these stats–

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Can The Tribe OF Produce Enough?

With spring training opening in two weeks, it appears the Cleveland Indians are going with the quantity over quality approach when it comes to their outfield and designated hitter spots.

We combine the two because if the Tribe is going to use Franmil Reyes as a regular right-fielder, then they need a regular DH. If Reyes is the DH on most days, then the Tribe should be looking to fill both corner outfield spots, or least one and a half outfield spots, because Jordan Luplow fills at least one spot vs. left-handed pitching.

Here is a look at the contenders to make the major league roster out of camp with their projected 2020 season stats (courtesy of BaseballReference.com)

Jake Bauers (.231/15 HR/ 53 RBI/733 OPS). The left-handed hitter is just 24 years old, and his big weakness was Progressive Field. Bauers hit .279 with an 812 OPS on the road a year ago, but was putrid at home (538 OPS). He was a very patient hitter in the minors, but it hasn’t translated to the big league level.

Greg Allen (.248/8 HR/37 RBI/696 OPS). The switch-hitter will be 27 entering the 2020 campaign, and has been kind of a fourth outfielder type the last three years. However, he can’t hold a job because he doesn’t hit enough. He should be a guy who gets on base a lot, but has walked just 27 times in almost 600 plate appearances. That’s not nearly good enough. And he’s another guy who can’t hit at home, a career 532 OPS in Cleveland.

Bradley Zimmer (.239/6 HR/24 RBI/695 OPS). When we last saw Zimmer he couldn’t hit water if he fell out of a boat, striking out 44 times in 114 plate appearances. It has been reported he changed his swing, but he fanned seven times in 13 at bats at the end of last year. With his speed, he needs to put the ball in play and get on base. We don’t know if he can make that adjustment.

Delino DeShields (.247/7 HR/34 RBI/685 OPS). DeShields came over in the Corey Kluber trade, and is another player who makes too many outs. He has the biggest track record, but in over 1900 plate appearances, has a .326 on base percentage. He simply hasn’t shown any ability to hit.

Bobby Bradley (.249/8 HR/27 RBI/764 OPS). If Reyes plays a lot in right, then there is an opening at DH, and Bradley could figure in at that spot. Bradley has immense power, but has had major issues making contact. He fanned 20 times in 49 plate appearances in the big leagues a year ago. He struck out in 28% of his at bats in the minors.

We didn’t include Tyler Naquin as he will be out early in the season, and we are anxious to see rookie Daniel Johnson, who had a solid year in the minors, and should get a long look in Arizona.

However, the four guys we listed here don’t seem make anyone very confident playing for a contending ballclub. Especially when CF Oscar Mercado doesn’t have a proven track record, and you have to figure some regression from Carlos Santana, who had a career year in ’19, and Roberto Perez.

That’s why many people felt the front office should have added another proven hitter for the outfield.

The best bet might be to hope Bauers can draw more walks and learn to hit at Progressive Field. Because if Reyes is the DH, the Cleveland outfield might be the least productive in the game.

In the regular season, you need to score runs. Can the Indians do that with the outfield they currently have?

Patience Should Still Be Short For Tribe.

We know the Cleveland Indians are in a race for a post- season spot, even if the team’s front office may not realize it, or in fact, may not want them to be.

Yes, we are being slightly facetious here, but if you are trying to win as many games as you can, you don’t use extreme patience with young players.

There is no question the Tribe received a tremendous boost from OF Oscar Mercado, whose production kind of forced the Indians to move on from Leonys Martin.

The rookie has the third highest OPS on the squad right now, behind Carlos Santana and Francisco Lindor, and his .837 OPS is a true 800+, meaning the magic “800” number came from having an on base percentage of at least .350 and a slugging percentage of over .450.

Mercado does, with a .360 OBP and a .477 slugging mark. He’s not doing it by slugging a bunch of home runs, so his slugging mark is like .550 and he can get on base.

Since they should be vying for a wild card spot, they may have to make some tough decisions on other young players.

This doesn’t mean writing them off for ever. We know some players don’t catch on in their first call up, but need to go back to the minors for more seasoning. It’s not a crime, nor is it a horrible thing, it’s just baseball.

Two such players for the Indians are Jake Bauers and Bobby Bradley.

Bauers has received a longer leash, playing in 77 of the Tribe’s 83 games, but quite frankly, we hasn’t produced up to expectations, hitting just .226 with a .300/.389/.689 OPS make up.

And Bauers has received most of his time playing left field, and let’s just say, he’s not reminding anyone of a gold glover at the position.

As for Bradley, the Indians hoped to catch lightning in a bottle because he was mashing homers at a crazy pace in Columbus, but since being moved up hasn’t homered and has whiffed in half of his last 18 at bats.

If the Indians were 15 games out of a wild card spot, we’d say play both on an every day basis to find out if they can hit. But they aren’t, they need very much to win games.

And they seem to have players ready to go at Columbus.

Switch-hitting OF Greg Allen was hitting at the big league level right before he was sent out when Carlos Carrasco had to be put on the IL and the Tribe needed an extra reliever for a bullpen game.

Allen was 7 for his last 21 with two triples, a home run and four RBIs before going back to AAA.

The other player who should be brought up is 23-year-old left-handed hitting Daniel Johnson, who came over from Washington in the Yan Gomes deal.

Johnson started the year in Akron, and combined at AA and AAA, has hit .272 with an 884 OPS (.358/.527/.884). At Columbus, he has fanned 27 times and walked 17 times in 161 plate appearances.

Plus, he has played a lot of centerfield in his past, so his defense will be better than Bauers if he would play LF, or he could go to RF and have Tyler Naquin DH.

Terry Francona would still need a back up first baseman to give Carlos Santana a half day off, but that’s the only downside to this.

Again, the time to have patience is when you are losing or it’s the beginning of the season. Right now, the Cleveland Indians shouldn’t have much of the virtue.

If they show an excessive amount, it might tell you what they think of this year’s team.

Is Lack Of Tribe Moves Based On Patience, Stubbornness, Or Fear?

The Cleveland Indians have started to play better baseball now that the schedule has lightened up a bit.

They have won four of their last five, and six of their last eight. They are currently 9-4 in June, and won series against the Twins and Yankees, two of the American League’s better teams.

The offense has been better lately, moving up to 11th in the AL in runs scored and OPS, but the Tribe is still 13th in slugging percentage, ahead of just Toronto and Detroit.

And Terry Francona still writes three hitters in nightly lineup with OPS of under 650: Jason Kipnis, Leonys Martin, and Jose Ramirez.

Despite hitting for the cycle on Friday night, Jake Bauers (.223/.306/.379) isn’t striking fear into the hearts of opposing pitchers.

These guys haven’t hit for awhile and yet, no changes have been made. Ramirez is different because he was one of the best players in baseball in 2017 and 2018, so he has earned and should get the benefit of the doubt.

Although, whether or not he should be hitting fifth is up for debate.

Fans and media alike have asked about the unreal amount of patience given to Kipnis, Martin, and Bauers. However, is it patience or fear?

The Indians sometimes operate as if they are afraid to give young players a chance for a variety of reasons. They worry about how a young player handles failure. They worry about a player they let go going somewhere else and having success.

We operate by a different theory. It’s called the “can’t do any worse” theory.

That takes the fear factor out of the equation.

Take Martin, for example. He’s hitting .204 with a 637 OPS to date this season. His strength was how he hit right-handed pitching, he’s never been a factor against southpaws. But he batting .220 with a 700 OPS vs. RHP thus far.

He’s batting .189 overall since May 1st.

Now, ask this question…could Greg Allen be worse than those numbers? We aren’t saying Allen is the next coming of Willie Mays or Mike Trout, but you have to think he could be better than what Martin has given you over the last six weeks.

Martin is also striking out at a career high rate, so it’s not as though he’s hitting in tough luck. Why not bring up Allen and give him regular playing time?

As for Jason Kipnis, we have heard him finding something in his swing before, so let’s say we are skeptical as to his success for the rest of the season. It’s pretty clear he’s not the same guy he was in 2016, and after two and a half years, that ship has sailed.

So, why not try Mark Mathias, who is hitting .294 with an 827 OPS at Columbus? Yes, we understand those numbers are much better than how he has performed at AA Akron the past two years, but maybe he found something in his swing.

You can also replace Bauers with Bobby Bradley, who is crushing the ball at Columbus.

We wouldn’t give up on Bauers, we think he can still be a productive major league hitter, but right now, he can’t put together any consistency. And that’s the name of the game in baseball.

Would switching out a third of your lineup turn the Tribe’s offensive fortunes around? What we do know is it couldn’t hurt.

It may be just getting over fear of the unknown to make it happen.

A Little Patience Needed For Tribe Hitters and Fans

First of all, it’s way too early.

The Cleveland Indians have played all of four games in the 2019 season, and depending on who is doing analysis, you can’t reach any conclusions about a baseball team until they’ve played at least 27 games (1/6th of a season) or 40 games (1/4th of the schedule).

Still, it’s not as though the Tribe allayed people’s fears after an opening series against the Twins in which they scored five runs, had three extra base hits, and struck out a total of 39 times, which for you math majors is 13 times per game.

You get 27 outs, so fanning 13 times in a game is almost half of the outs are coming without making contact.

To calm everybody down, the 1995 defending American League Champions, a team that featured Albert Belle, Carlos Baerga, Manny Ramirez, Jim Thome, and Kenny Lofton, also started the year scoring three runs in the first three games of the season.

They had one run and four hits in the opener, a single tally and nine hits the next game, and a run and six hits in game three. The difference? That team struck out 12 times. In the three games combined.

Right now, one of the issues is the lack of walks. The Indians had just 10 in the three game set vs. Minnesota. And if you are a frequent reader of this blog, you know we don’t like hitters who have high strikeout and low walk rates.

Imagine an entire team doing that. That’s as good of an answer as any as to why the Indians couldn’t score runs against the Twins.

Yesterday, at Progressive Field it was a different tale. Cleveland hitters struck out just six times and drew five free passes, including two in a four run eighth inning which gave the Tribe the victory.

The shame of the win was that Mike Clevinger didn’t get the victory. We know the new age baseball people have devalued the win, and we guess their point is made by Clevinger getting a no decision despite throwing seven innings of one hit baseball, striking out a career high 12 batters.

Some of the negative statistics simply cannot continue. Tyler Naquin is 1 for 10 with six whiffs, Brad Miller is 2 for 11 with five punch outs. And as a team, the Tribe has just six extra base hits, getting three yesterday, and only one of them is a home run.

As for walks, Leonys Martin has three, and Carlos Santana (Mr. Walk), Hanley Ramirez, and Greg Allen, who hasn’t played much, all have two.

We said before the season started the walk was going to be to have to be a big weapon for the Indians, and we are sure they will start coming more frequently.

The problem is the start of the season magnifies things, especially if it agrees with your preconceived notions. And we felt the Tribe’s offense was going to be a problem even with a healthy Francisco Lindor and Jason Kipnis.

In the meantime, let’s all take a deep breath and relax and let the season play out a bit. Almost all hitters go through these stretches as we showed with the 1996 Indians, who were as good a hitting team as there has been in the last 50 years.

More patience would be good for both the Tribe hitters and their fans.

Tribe OF Candidates Off To Slow Start

It is almost universally reported that the biggest question mark the Cleveland Indians have heading into the 2019 baseball season was their outfield.

Granted it’s early, but how have the candidates performed now that we are a week into exhibition play in the Cactus League.

We have said all winter that centerfield was the one spot we were comfortable with heading into spring training, and early returns have provided us with support for that feeling.

Leonys Martin has returned from his life threatening illness from last season and hit the ground running, getting seven hits in his first 13 at bats, and has a walk too. One of his hits has been a home run.

We felt Martin was an underrated get at the trade deadline because of his defense and ability to hit right-handed pitching, and felt he would be a big contributor to the roster in 2019 if healthy.

It certainly looks like that’s the case thus far.

We figured Greg Allen to be Martin’s platoon partner, but the switch-hitter is trying to get an everyday gig, starting off at 5 for 13, with a double, home run, and a walk. If he keeps it up, you may just see Allen in leftfield and Martin in center with a right-hander on the mound.

The other “serious” candidates, basing that on either veteran status or minor league numbers have struggled a bit.

Matt Joyce, 34, who had a poor year in Oakland last year after some solid years as a platoon piece has started off the spring 0 for 12, with just one walk and four strikeouts. In his situation, he better start hitting as soon as possible to avoid drawing his release papers.

Tyler Naquin, who homered in his first spring at bat, has gone just 2 for 13 since with a double, and has yet to draw a free pass. We understand that players aren’t working the count like they would in the regular season, but Naquin isn’t a guy with a high walk rate in his brief big league tenure.

The hope for a right-handed bat, Jordan Luplow, who had good AAA numbers in the Pirates’ organization, is also off to a tough start. He’s just 1 for 11 with two walks, and has fanned six times. Let’s just say he’s not making a very good first impression.

Oscar Mercado was considered a long shot coming into camp, but Luplow’s struggles probably increase his chances of sticking. He’s had five hits in his 15 at bats with a home run. He has whiffed four times without drawing a walk.

These performances could be why management has been looking for Hanley Ramirez to provide some hitting. Unfortunately, he’s only been a premier hitter at the major league level once in the last four seasons.

If he can stick, it would move Jake Bauers to the outfield, probably with Martin in CF and Allen in RF against righties. When a southpaw starts? Your guess is as good as mine, but it could be Allen in CF, with either Luplow or Mercado in RF.

It would have been nice if the front office brought in a proven big league performer to play the outfield, but the cost cutting mandate from ownership prevented that.

For now, the Tribe has to hope someone starts hitting and continues it when the season opens on March 28th.