How Tribe Can Keep Lindor And Still Win

We have maintained for awhile now that the Cleveland Indians should most definitely get a long term contract done with Francisco Lindor, and the money shouldn’t be an object.

We understand it will take a major financial commitment to keep the All Star shortstop, with the Tribe having to pay him over $30 million per year.

One of the arguments we hear against this is teams can’t devote a large percentage of their payroll to one player and remain competitive, particularly if they are not a large market franchise.

We feel there are exceptions to every “rule”, and Lindor should be that exception.

Besides, it can done if your front office is smart, and you continue to develop your farm system.

Two contracts are always brought up in this regard.

The first is Joey Votto’s 10-year, $225 million deal with the Reds, signed in 2013. Votto was entering his 29-year-old season that year, and has given Cincinnati five very good to excellent years to this point, although at 35, he is showing signs of age this year.

Cincinnati hasn’t been over .500 since ’13, but that is hardly Votto’s fault.

You could make a very good and valid point, that the problem was the organization having a $50 million commitment to 32-year-old Brandon Phillips, and giving $56 million to Homer Bailey, who was injured and terrible over the next five seasons.

Those are mistakes you cannot mistake if you want to win.

Their farm system has ranked between 11th and 14th (MinorLeagueBall.com ranking) since the contract was signed, and the only young position player making an impact was catcher Devon Mesoraco. All the other regulars were 26-32.

Their top prospect was Billy Hamilton, who flamed out, but by 2016, they added Eugenio Suarez (from the Tigers in a trade) and Tucker Barnhart. And they didn’t add a solid pitching prospect until they added Luis Castillo in a deal with the Marlins in 2017.

Another example pointed out is look at the Angels with Mike Trout, who has unfortunately made the post-season once in his eight years with Los Angeles.

Of course, the Angels have the Albert Pujols albatross contract, but they’ve made some questionable big money signings too.

They paid Ricky Nolasco $12 million for the two seasons, and in 2018, gave Zack Cozart, who had one good season in his career, a three year, $38 million deal.

If you are going to pay a superstar big money, you can’t pay mediocre players substantial bucks, or it does hamstring your franchise.

The Angels’ farm system is on the rise, thanks to Jo Adell, but they ranked between 28th and 30th from 2015 to 2017, before moving up to 20th last season.

As for the Indians, the farm system has ranked 21st in 2015, then 13th in ’16, 10th in ’17, and 15th last season. By most accounts, following the deadline deal which brought Logan Allen, along with the development of players in the low minors, Cleveland has a top ten system.

This is important because it keeps bringing low cost talent on to the big league roster. And if those players can make a solid contribution, like Aaron Civale and Oscar Mercado, it allows you to keep a high priced player like Lindor.

As for not getting involved with bad contracts, Jason Kipnis’ deal is over after this season (Cleveland will not pick up the option), and Corey Kluber’s and Carlos Santana’s end after 2021.

The only “star” player who will be eligible for arbitration by then is Mike Clevinger.

This gives the Indians plenty of payroll flexibility providing they don’t go out and overspend on a young player or potential free agent. History says they will not do that, they have proven to be very smart is this regard.

But you can’t ignore player development and this includes trading solid prospects for borderline players in a pennant race.

The blueprint is there to keep Lindor and still be a competitive franchise while paying him big money. It’s not impossible, you just have to be very prudent.

Revivals And Rookies Key Tribe Hot Streak

No matter when you think it started, there is no question the Cleveland Indians have been blistering hot for over two months to climb back into the American League Central Division race.

We like to point to May 28th, when the Tribe was trailing Boston in the ninth inning 5-2, heading to their 8th loss in nine games, when they rallied for five runs and won 7-5. Cleveland is 43-20 since.

Others point to the first game after the White Sox series, where they lost three of four. Looking at a homestand where they were playing the Twins, Yankees, and Reds, they took two of three vs. first place Minnesota. They are 41-17 in that span.

It doesn’t matter what date you start, there is no question the revival can be traced to the renaissance of some veteran players and the emergence of some rookies.

Oscar Mercado made his major league debut on May 14th after a strong spring training and great start in AAA. He hit his first home run on May 26th, and became an everyday player when the team went to Boston, which was the 27th.

The rook is currently in a 2 for 18 slide, which happens to rookies, but overall has hit .277 (768 OPS) and has fit nicely into the #2 hole in the lineup between Francisco Lindor and Carlos Santana.

This is a gigantic upgrade from the 619 OPS they were getting from Leonys Martin.

Zach Plesac made his major league debut that turn around game in Boston, and has proved to be a reliable starter since, going 6-3 with a 3.13 ERA.

He’s allowed more than three runs just three times in 13 starts, and one of those resulted in a win vs. Houston. He pitched at least five innings in 11 of those appearances, and one of those was because of a rain delay situation.

While Mercado helped the offense, the hitting still needed help and a couple of veterans got it going.

Jason Kipnis, who on June 6th was hitting .206 with a 565 OPS, starting hitting like he did in 2016. Since June 1st, he’s hit .281 with 9 home runs and 43 RBI.

That helped lengthen the lineup.

It also was helped when a player who has finished in the top three in the MVP voting the past two seasons, emerged from a slump that dated back to mid August of 2018.

On June 12th, Jose Ramirez was batting .198 with a 586 OPS. Since then, Ramirez has played like one of the best hitters in the game, batting .319 with 12 HR and 43 RBI.

His revival has made a huge difference and with the deal that brought Yasiel Puig and Franmil Reyes to Cleveland at the deadline, the Indians should have an offense which measures up to the other contenders in the American League.

Another rookie, Aaron Civale, has given Terry Francona and his staff two solid starts and will be counted on to do the same until Corey Kluber, who should return to the rotation by the end of the month, is ready.

And let’s not overlook the contributions of Nick Goody (1.30 ERA), the OF platoon of Tyler Naquin and Jordan Luplow, and Greg Allen (.293).

A team needs the contributions of many to be this hot for this long. The Indians have had that and will continue to need it over the last month and a half of this season.

Overcoming an 11.5 game lead to tie for the division lead is one thing. But you have to finish the job and they are still 45 games remaining.

If the rookies can keep performing and Kipnis and Ramirez can stay hot, the AL Central title can be achieved.

Tribe Still In Race, But Identify Problem Areas

After last night’s loss to the Minnesota Twins, the doomsayers were out in full force concerning the Cleveland Indians.

They dropped to 7.5 games behind the Twins. They dropped out of the second wild card spot. It’s time to start trading off assets because they should look toward 2020.

But going into the series, we felt getting one win was all that was needed. Certainly, it would have been better to win the series or sweep it for that matter, but the reality is the Tribe only lost one game in the standings, so they are still very much in it.

This series should send a clear message to the front office as to what needs to be addressed between now and the end of the year if you want to make the playoffs and once you get there, make a run.

The Twins have the second best ERA (3.92) in the American League, much better than the teams the Indians have played over the last month: Baltimore (15th-5.70), Kansas City (12th-5.03), Detroit (11th=5.00), and Texas (8th-4.80).

Cleveland scored just nine runs in the three games, so really, they were kind of fortunate to win one.

That’s because they simply don’t have enough solid bats in the lineup. Against good pitching, guys like Jake Bauers (although he had a key double today) and Jason Kipnis struggle.

Bauers was 1 for 10 in the series, Kipnis was 2 for 11 with both hits being squibbers to the left side of the infield. The only multi-hit games in the set by Indians’ players were Jose Ramirez’ two hit game on Friday and Tyler Naquin had two hits today.

Ramirez was an offensive bright spot with four hits, including a double and a home run.

And while everyone loved Bobby Bradley’s long home run on Saturday, the truth is he went 1 for 9 in the three games.

It’s nothing we haven’t said all year. The lineup needs to add some solid bats. Perhaps one can come from the farm (Daniel Johnson, Yu Chang?) and the other through a deal.

With Ramirez showing signs of good things to come and the right field being a solid platoon these days (Naquin and Jordan Luplow are doing well), the targets should be 2B, LF, and DH.

Another weakness that showed was the lack of bullpen depth.

Cleveland was the better team through six innings, but outside of Brad Hand and Adam Cimber, the rest of the relievers struggled.

Nick Goody, AJ Cole, Oliver Perez, and Tyler Clippard all allowed runs in the late innings to either give Minnesota a lead or let them extend a lead.

The Tribe needs another power arm to pitch in the 7th or 8th inning. Again, maybe some help comes from Columbus (James Karinchak, Cam Hill) and you can get another in trade.

One other thing that came from the series is maybe the Tribe discovered another ace in Shane Bieber. In kind of a must win game, Bieber was sensational today until some odd calls by replay umpires kind of did him in.

Bieber needed to keep the Twins off the scoreboard and he delivered six shutout frames, and maybe could’ve given them seven if not for the hit by pitch fiasco.

He made the All Star team, and could be the new 1-2 punch going forward with Mike Clevinger who also was very good in the series’ opener, and also has ace stuff.

So, the Tribe is still in the Central race, just 6.5 out and very much in the mix for a wild card. Keep in mind, they are also 11 games over .500.

It’s not like they are hovering around .500. Their starters can stop good offenses, the ones they will see in the post-season.

Now, it’s up to the front office to get Terry Francona what he needs. This could still be a fun late summer baseball-wise in Cleveland.

Tribe Front Office Shouldn’t Be Satisfied With Recent Winning.

The Cleveland Indians resume play on Friday night, and they go right into the fire with a three game series against the division leading Minnesota Twins.

The Tribe is 5-1/2 games behind the Twins at the All Star break, and while it is a big series to start the second half of the season, unless they get swept, it shouldn’t change what their plans are going into the trading deadline.

Even if Minnesota takes two out of three, the Indians will be 6.5 games out, and will still be very much in the wild card race, and with the following schedule filled with games against Detroit, Kansas City, and Toronto, Terry Francona’s squad should still be in the think of it when the calendar turns to August.

Last season, the top five scoring teams in the AL made the playoffs. Looking at the runs scored in the league right now, the top four teams are squarely in the race, with Seattle being an also ran, ranking fifth.

Tampa Bay and Cleveland rank 9th and 10th, respectively, meaning if history holds true, the Tribe front office should still be looking to improve the hitting.

In our opinion, although the Tribe’s offense has been much better the last 30 days, the front office cannot be complacent or satisfied.

Jason Kipnis had a very good stretch in the middle of the month, but has gone just 4 for his last 23, and is a liability against southpaws right now. He also struggles against power pitchers, hitting just .176 against them.

Jose Ramirez has slashed .353/.514/866 over the last 28 days, but can anyone be convinced he has returned to the guy who finished in the top three of the MVP voting in each of the last two years?

And then you have the young guys, can they hold up after opposing pitchers make adjustements?

Oscar Mercado has been a big boost to the lineup, but he had a rough week going into the break. Is that the beginning of hitting a rookie wall? We can say the same about Jake Bauers, who despite some early patience at the plate, now has a 80:28 strikeout to walk ratio.

That doesn’t bode well down the stretch.

If Mercado slumps, does the lineup have enough length to continue to put up the runs required to win in the AL?

That’s why we would still look to add at least one bat at the deadline. A veteran hitter would be nice, so that if Mercado continues to hit, and Bauers keeps providing some pop, then the added bat can be much needed depth.

We are also worried about the back end of the bullpen, especially with Brad Hand’s struggles (yes, we know he was damned near perfect up to this point) recently.

Nick Wittgren has done a fine job, but over the last month has allowed six runs in nine innings, serving up three of the five home runs he’s allowed this season.

And we still are worried about Tyler Olson’s effectiveness.

Nick Goody has looked good recently, but in today’s game, where the power arm out of the bullpen is king, the Indians don’t really have one. They could use a guy who can pitch the 8th (moving Wittgren to the 7th) who can blow away hitters.

What will the Indians do? We don’t know, but Frankie Lindor did kind of put pressure on the front office to add to the roster.

The point is, the organization shouldn’t and can’t be satisfied. They shouldn’t make a bad move, but they do have some depth at the farm to be able to help the big league club.

Halfway Through, Tribe Still In A Race.

After finishing the first third of the season right at the .500 mark, the Cleveland Indians went 17-10 in their next 27 games to sit at 44-37 at the halfway point of the season, an 88 win pace for the entire campaign.

Here is how the season has gone in groups of 27 games (1/6th of the schedule):

First 27: 15-12
Next 27: 12-15
Third 27: 17-10

After 81 games, the Indians sit just a game and a half behind Texas for a wild card spot, tied with Oakland, and are a half game ahead of Boston.

So, the Tribe is still in the midst of a playoff hunt, but the bigger question is how hard will the organization go after it.

The Indians have dropped to 4th in the American League in ERA after back-to-back shellackings at the hands of the lowly Baltimore Orioles, but have moved up to 10th in the league in runs scored despite being shutout in consecutive games by a pitching staff with the worst ERA in the league.

And playing in a major hitter’s yard.

Jason Kipnis has had a rebirth in the last couple of weeks, but is it sustainable? Jose Ramirez has a 918 OPS and a .306 batting average in the last 14 days. Is this yet another sign that the two time top three MVP finisher has turned the corner?

What we are trying to say is if they want to make a run at the playoffs, the front office still needs to improve the offense.

Right now, Cleveland’s third or fourth best hitter on most nights is Roberto Perez, who is having his best offensive season (14 home runs, 825 OPS), but how long will that keep up, especially considering Perez plays a position where the schedule takes its toll on your body.

Are young players the answer? Well, Oscar Mercado has been a revelation to date, helping lengthen the lineup with a .307 and 812 OPS, but should that mean a wholesale influx of people from Columbus.

To date, and we know it is very early, Bobby Bradley has not. After going 2 for 6 in his first two games with a couple of key RBIs, he has been the all or nothing hitter we feared, going 1 for 14 with six strikeouts.

Again, it’s an extremely small sample size, but what the Tribe needs is not more swing and miss hitters that occasionally run into one, but more guys who get on base, and hit doubles and triples with an occasional long ball.

Cleveland is 11th in slugging, and 12th in doubles, and tenth in triples and home runs.

Again, using Mercado as an example, he has nine doubles and four homers, to go with his .352 on base percentage.

And it’s why we’d like to see Mark Mathias (.358 OBP, .459 slugging) or even Daniel Johnson (.350 OBP, .518 slugging) get a shot with the big club.

We touched on some of the power arms for the bullpen in the organization earlier this week, and that is another area we would like to see improved in the second half.

We feel guys like Tyler Olson and Adam Cimber can’t be trusted to get big outs in important games and that puts a bigger load on Brad Hand and Nick Wittgren, who probably should be a 7th inning guy, not an 8th inning one.

But it comes down to the front office and a commitment from ownership to go after a post-season spot.

And to those who say the Indians can’t beat New York or Houston? They may have a slim chance of that, but they have no chance if they don’t qualify for the playoffs.

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.

The Time To Act For Tribe Is Now

As we wrote about a week ago, the next two weeks will say a lot about how the rest of the baseball season will play out for the Cleveland Indians.

Between now and when the best players in the sport descend on Progressive Field on July 9th, the Tribe plays 23 games against teams with some of the worst records in the game.

Yes, they have four in Texas next week, and two more against Cincinnati right before the All Star Game, but the rest of the slate is filled with contests vs. the Tigers, Royals, and Orioles.

We know baseball is a sport designed around series, so the teams themselves are best served by taking each game as it comes, but we don’t have to do that.

It’s not far-fetched to think the Indians could go 15-8 in those 23 games, which would make their record 48-40 heading into the Midsummer Classic.

Does it make sense to sell at that point?

Then, after the All Star Game, Terry Francona’s squad has three with the Twins at home, followed by more games against Detroit, Kansas City, and Toronto, before ending the month with a series against Houston.

This means with the trade deadline coming at the end of July, Cleveland could be a good way above the .500 mark.

That’s the good news.

The bad news is it will be difficult unless the attitude of the front office and Francona changes.

They split with the Reds despite scoring just four runs in the pair of games. The lineup, beyond Carlos Santana hitting in the three hole, is filled with a lot of guys who are very proficient at making outs.

And this is as good a time to change this as there is.

Oscar Mercado’s success, and make no mistake, he hasn’t been great, merely solid, should have Chris Antonetti, Mike Chernoff, and Francona looking at Columbus for some help.

Since the end of April, Leonys Martin is hitting .193 with 3 HR, 8 RBI, and has drawn seven walks (in 31 games). Usually reliable vs. right-handers, he has a .294 on base percentage and a 696 OPS in 2019.

Jason Kipnis is batting .218 for the season, and .224 since May 1st. His OPS vs. righties? Try 646.

Jake Bauers has hit .148 over the last 28 days with 28 strikeouts in 81 at bats.

It’s time to end this madness.

Greg Allen is eligible to be recalled from Columbus this weekend, and he was hitting a bit the week or so before he was sent down.

Make your outfield rotation Mercado, Allen, Jordan Luplow, and Tyler Naquin, and give them extended opportunities. It’s doubtful they can be worse than Martin and Bauers.

We would bring up Bobby Bradley, even though we have concerns about his strikeout rate. His numbers indicate he is not simply piling up numbers at Huntington Park in Columbus.

As for second base, why not give Mark Mathias an opportunity. He has an 816 OPS at AAA, and gets on base (.354). And he’s been better on the road.

What to do with the others? Bauers can be sent to AAA to relocate his batting stroke. As for Kipnis and Martin, the season is just about half over, so just designated them for assignment. If you have to release them, which is likely, then so be it.

We don’t think they can help the Indians going forward.

We understand it is a very difficult decision. On the other hand, by and large, players know who should be playing, and our guess is there were puzzled looks in the clubhouse last week when Allen was sent out.

This is a critical stretch for this baseball team, and the front office can’t wait any longer to make a tough decision.

Talk Of Tribe Fire Sale Is Crazy

The Cleveland Indians are struggling in 2019, there can be no doubt about that. But talk about the team’s window closing or going into a total rebuild is just stupid, in our opinion.

First, the Indians aren’t some old team that has been together for seven or eight years, and haven’t been able to get over the hump.

Nor are they are team loaded with free agents to be. When fans and media alike start talking about a fire sale, who are they talking about? The only players who will be a free agents after this season are Leonys Martin, and probably Jason Kipnis, because there is no way the Indians are picking up his option for 2020.

Those two players aren’t bringing you back anything substantial in a trade.

And talk of trading Francisco Lindor is just living in your own fears. Look, we have serious doubt that ownership will pony up the money to keep Lindor here long term (although they can and should).

But Lindor will not be a free agent until after the 2021 season, meaning they still have him here for 2-2/3 seasons. Remember, he’s one of the five best players in the sport. It would be foolish to move him now.

Despite some blips in the radar recently, the Indians also have an excellent pitching staff, still ranking 3rd in the AL in ERA. And in addition to Corey Kluber, Trevor Bauer, and Carlos Carrasco, they have developed more hurlers who look to be top of the rotation starters.

Mike Clevinger was excellent last year and got off to a tremendous start before going on the IL in April. He should be back in a couple of weeks. Shane Bieber is another horse who looks like he will be a very good starter.

And Tuesday night, it appears we will see this year’s version of Bieber when 24-year-old Zach Plesac starts against the Red Sox. Plesac is 4-1 with a 1.41 ERA in nine starts at the AA and AAA levels this season, allowing 38 hits and striking out 56 in 57-1/3 frames.

The Indians are still over .500 and just a half game out of a wild card spot. The problem is the ownership has a history of trying to make a big splash only when the Tribe is in front, they don’t seem to do it when they are trying to catch up.

Now, dealing from a strength is a different story. It’s what we thought the Indians would do in the off-season.

With Kluber’s injury, he can’t and won’t be moved. But Bauer is another story.

We should say here that we love Bauer, and have always thought he could be a staff ace. But the best trades are made from a position of strength, and a rotation of Carrasco, Clevinger, Kluber, and Bieber in ’20 would still be one of the game’s best.

Especially if you can get an impact bat. We believe they shopped Kluber and Bauer in the winter to try to get a young stud hitter, but they couldn’t get one, or demanded a second piece.

If you can do it now, it might make a big difference.

The Indians have what everyone wants, pitching. However, if you want to rebuild, trading a young, great player isn’t the way to do it. You build around that guy.

It’s also too soon to think about 2020. The Indians can still make the post-season, but the front office has look to add, not subtract before the deadline.

Talking Tribe Lineup Change

Former Indians’ manager Mike Hargrove used to say that two things everybody thinks they can do better than you are cook a steak and manage a baseball team.

Those Tribe squads that Hargrove managed were so loaded offensively, it probably didn’t matter what order the skipper put them in, they were going to score a lot of runs.

This season’s edition of the Cleveland baseball team cannot make the same claim. They are 13th in the American League in runs scored, so lineup construction is very important, or at least it should be.

Terry Francona’s batting order is curious to say the least.

For example, the Tribe has one hitter with an on base percentage over .400 and one hitter with a slugging percentage over .500.

Logic would tell you it makes sense to have the man who gets on base batting before the player with extra base power, but that’s not how the Indians do it.

Francisco Lindor has a slugging percentage of .513 but he leads off on a daily basis. Carlos Santana gets on base 40.9% of the time (he also has a .488 slugging percentage) and he bats third right now, and hit 4th for much of the year.

Lindor also led off last season when he had the third best OBP on the team (behind Jose Ramirez and Michael Brantley).

We understand Francona wants to A). get Lindor as many at bats as possible and B). likes the shortstop to set a tone in each game, but he is the team’s best hitter, and the new age baseball people will tell you the best hitter should bat 2nd.

The manager has used Santana in the leadoff spot before, but for much of this season, the switch-hitter has been the only source of offense.

Jose Ramirez has been hitting in the #3 or #5 hole all season long, even though he has a 600 OPS. The struggling third baseman is second on the team in walks, so we thought perhaps a switch to the top of the order would have him concentrating more on getting on base, rather than driving the ball.

The Indians have informed us that Jason Kipnis has reached base in 17 straight games, going 17 for 67 (.259) with nine walks. This is a big improvement, but he’s hardly tearing the cover off the ball.

Again, Francona’s logic in hitting the second baseman there is that he’s comfortable. We understand the feelings of the players should be taken into consideration, but the Indians need to make the most of their run scoring opportunities.

What would we do? Here is the lineup we would put out there vs. a right-handed pitcher:

Ramirez 3B
Santana 1B
Lindor SS
Bauers DH
Luplow RF
Kipnis 2B
Perez C
Martin CF
Mercado LF

We know Francona has a problem with hitting all the switch-hitters together, but again, dire circumstances. The rest of the lineup features an alternating left and right.

If Mercado keeps performing, he can be moved higher in the order, but having him right before Ramirez, Santana, and Lindor should help the offense.

We hesitated with Bauers at the #4 spot because he has struggled as of late, but he has done well working the count, and can hit left-handed pitching.

Something has to change to get this out of the funk, and patience has to be thrown out of the window.

Mostly though, this change was designed to get Lindor at the plate with runners on base, instead of coming up at least once a game with no one on. And Santana gets on all the time, so it makes sense.

The Ramirez change is done hopefully to shock him back into being Jose Ramirez. Again, let him focus in getting on base, so maybe it stops him from chasing.

There have been too many games where the quantity of hits and walks isn’t producing runs. Mainly because there are guys not producing mixed in with those who are.

Maybe next week, we’ll tell you about a good way to cook a steak.

How Long Of A Leash Will Some Tribe Players Get?

When you rank last in the league in runs scored, shouldn’t patience go out the window?

We have always said people in the front office have to be more patient than fans. Heck, many fans want to cut players because they go hitless in two straight games, or even worse, strikeout with the bases loaded in a one run game in the bottom of the ninth.

Baseball professional always talk about the numbers on a guy’s baseball card. What they mean is players who have reached a certain level will almost certainly return to those levels.

It’s why the Tribe brass isn’t panicking about Jose Ramirez’ slow start, even though it extended from the last six weeks of last season.

Last year, Paul Goldschmidt, a frequent MVP candidate, hit .144 (14 for 97) in May. He rebounded to hit .364 with 10 home runs in June.

That’s the way baseball is.

However, there should be a sense of urgency when you have played roughly a fifth of a baseball season, and your team in last in the AL in runs scored, which is the tale of the Cleveland Indians’ 2019 season right now.

Surely, it is easy to have patience with Jose Ramirez, who is 26 years old, and coming off a season in which he finished in the top three in the MVP voting. He may have been the best hitter in the league from the beginning of the 2018 season until the middle of August.

However, when a player gets past his 30th birthday, and he goes into a slump, it is natural to wonder if it is indeed a slump, or the beginning of a decline.

In the Indians’ case, if the offense was rolling, and everyone except for one player was producing, it would be easy to overlook the struggling player and give him time to work out whatever issue he is having at the plate.

But when they are only one or two hitters putting up decent numbers, there comes a time where the manager simply can’t wait anymore. And save your overly patient Tito comments for the time being.

Which leads us to ask, how long does the rope go for two non-performing veterans right now, Jason Kipnis and Carlos Gonzalez?

Since the end of the 2016 season, Kipnis has hit .227 with a 688 OPS. That’s below average production.

CarGo has just two extra base hits in 65 plate appearance this year, and last season had just 17 non-singles in 265 times at bat. Compare that to 35 in 239 times at the dish in Coors Field.

The question of whether or not the veteran outfielder was a product of the thin air in Colorado seems appropriate.

Keep in mind, Kipnis is 32 and Gonzalez is 33.

We get that it is not fair, but that’s the way it is in baseball today. Young players get the benefit of the doubt. Studies have shown ball players reach their peak between ages 27 to 29.

Once you reach 30 years old, there is additional pressure to maintain your production in order to keep a roster spot.

So, if the Tribe’s offensive struggles continue, at what point do they move on from the two veterans?

In Kipnis’ case, there really isn’t any alternative. The club’s best middle infield prospect in the high minors, Yu Chang, is hitting .151 at AAA. Does journeyman Mike Freeman start getting at bats in place of Kipnis? Not likely.

As for CarGo, the shadow of spring training sensation Oscar Mercado looms. If he starts hitting like he did earlier in the season, can the club afford to leave him in Columbus?

And if they bring him up, whose playing time decreases?

The point is the overall malaise of the offense doesn’t afford the opportunity to be patient for Terry Francona and the front office.

It’s not fair, but it’s reality.