Tag: ryan raburn

Tribe Bats Need to Pick It Up

The Cleveland Indians are entering a key part of their schedule starting tonight when the Twins come in for a three game series at Progressive Field.

Those are the only home games the Tribe will play until Labor Day, when the Orioles come in, and in between, the Indians visit Atlanta and Detroit for three game series, the teams with the best record in the National League and second best mark in the AL, respectively.

When the Orioles depart Cleveland on September 4th, we should have a pretty good idea whether or not all 162 games on the schedule will be meaningful for Terry Francona’s squad.

To get through these dozen games, the Tribe will need to start scoring runs.

While the Wahoo’s have a 10-10 record for the month, they have done so scoring just 71 runs in that span, an average of 3.5 per night.

Teams that score that way on an everyday basis just don’t have a lot of success.

The White Sox are last in the American League in scoring, crossing the plate an average of 3.74 times per contest.  They have the second worst record in the junior circuit at 52-74, and over the last 20 games, Cleveland isn’t even scoring at that level.

At some point, the bats have to wake up and starting tonight would be very nice.

Since the Tribe still ranks fourth in the league in runs scored at 4.60 per night, the law of averages says there should be a bushel of runs coming soon.

It would be very odd to score almost five times a game for the first 117 games and then only get 3.5 for the balance of the season.

Odd, but not impossible.

There are some encouraging signs, like Nick Swisher’s sudden power burst, hitting four bombs this month, his second best calendar month of 2013.  He hit five in May.

Still, during August only three players are hitting over .250:  Yan Gomes, Mike Aviles, and Ryan Raburn. 

While Gomes has been getting more playing time as of late because he is hitting, you would have to say that none of this trio are regulars, meaning the guys who are playing on a day in, day out basis simply have to pick it up.

Some of the numbers are straight out ugly—

Lonnie Chisenhall:  6 for 44 (.136), 1 HR, 3 RBI
Asdrubal Cabrera:  12 for 66 (.182), 1 HR, 6 RBI and he had a decent trip
Carlos Santana:  14 for 71 (.197), 3 HR, 6 RBI
Michael Bourn:  18 for 82 (.220), 1 HR, 5 RBI, 5 SB with a whopping 25 strikeouts

And they aren’t taking walks like they did earlier in the season, either.  Outside of Jason Kipnis (10), Swisher (9), and Santana (9), no one else on the roster has walked more than five times this month.

Even the usually reliable Michael Brantley is in a bit of a funk, hitting just .230 in August.  He is easily the most consistent of the Tribe bats and he is struggling.

The Indians’ starting pitching has exceeded expectations for the most part, and although they have had some hiccups, it has been solid.

And even if that continues, the offense has to start producing more runs if the Tribe wants to stay in the race through Game 162. 

It’s time for the bats to pick up their share of the load.

MW

Tribe Bats Need to Pick It Up

The Cleveland Indians are entering a key part of their schedule starting tonight when the Twins come in for a three game series at Progressive Field. 

Those are the only home games the Tribe will play until Labor Day, when the Orioles come in, and in between, the Indians visit Atlanta and Detroit for three game series, the teams with the best record in the National League and second best mark in the AL, respectively.

When the Orioles depart Cleveland on September 4th, we should have a pretty good idea whether or not all 162 games on the schedule will be meaningful for Terry Francona’s squad.

To get through these dozen games, the Tribe will need to start scoring runs.

While the Wahoo’s have a 10-10 record for the month, they have done so scoring just 71 runs in that span, an average of 3.5 per night.

Teams that score that way on an everyday basis just don’t have a lot of success.

The White Sox are last in the American League in scoring, crossing the plate an average of 3.74 times per contest.  They have the second worst record in the junior circuit at 52-74, and over the last 20 games, Cleveland isn’t even scoring at that level.

At some point, the bats have to wake up and starting tonight would be very nice.

Since the Tribe still ranks fourth in the league in runs scored at 4.60 per night, the law of averages says there should be a bushel of runs coming soon.

It would be very odd to score almost five times a game for the first 117 games and then only get 3.5 for the balance of the season.

Odd, but not impossible.

There are some encouraging signs, like Nick Swisher’s sudden power burst, hitting four bombs this month, his second best calendar month of 2013.  He hit five in May.

Still, during August only three players are hitting over .250:  Yan Gomes, Mike Aviles, and Ryan Raburn. 

While Gomes has been getting more playing time as of late because he is hitting, you would have to say that none of this trio are regulars, meaning the guys who are playing on a day in, day out basis simply have to pick it up.

Some of the numbers are straight out ugly—

Lonnie Chisenhall:  6 for 44 (.136), 1 HR, 3 RBI
Asdrubal Cabrera:  12 for 66 (.182), 1 HR, 6 RBI and he had a decent trip
Carlos Santana:  14 for 71 (.197), 3 HR, 6 RBI
Michael Bourn:  18 for 82 (.220), 1 HR, 5 RBI, 5 SB with a whopping 25 strikeouts

And they aren’t taking walks like they did earlier in the season, either.  Outside of Jason Kipnis (10), Swisher (9), and Santana (9), no one else on the roster has walked more than five times this month.

Even the usually reliable Michael Brantley is in a bit of a funk, hitting just .230 in August.  He is easily the most consistent of the Tribe bats and he is struggling.

The Indians’ starting pitching has exceeded expectations for the most part, and although they have had some hiccups, it has been solid.

And even if that continues, the offense has to start producing more runs if the Tribe wants to stay in the race through Game 162. 

It’s time for the bats to pick up their share of the load.

MW

Tribe Offense Succeeds or Fails as Team

The Cleveland Indians hitting has struggled as of late.  That is no secret.

They have scored just 21 runs in their last eight games, seven of which have been losses.  Scoring less than three tallies per night will not translate to a lot of victories in the American League.

However, a look at the AL team batting statistics shows the Tribe ranked fourth in the junior circuit in runs scored, making them one of the more prolific attacks in the league.

Why doesn’t it seem that way?

Certainly, any team that is not hitting looks lethargic and that is playing into the feeling that the Indians need some hitting.  The other reason is that there isn’t really one Tribesman having a huge year at the dish. 

Jason Kipnis is having a solid season, his best in the major leagues, but his numbers project to this for a full season:  .290, 20 HR, and 94 RBIs.  Good numbers, but they aren’t big time statistics.

With Mark Reynolds being released (he is still tied for the team lead in home runs), it appears Kipnis will be the only Indians who will hit 20 dingers, and unless someone gets scalding hot, no Cleveland player will knock in 100 runs this season.

The only other regular with an OPS of over 800 is Carlos Santana and right now his numbers projected to .262, 17 HR, and 68 RBI, numbers comparable to last season, which was considered a down year for the switch-hitter.

There is no question Terry Francona has received a huge lift from his bench, particularly from Ryan Raburn and Yan Gomes, who is starting to get more and more playing time.

Raburn has 13 homers and 38 ribbies in a little over 200 plate appearances, but he is succeeding because he has been used on a limited basis.  His previous employers tried using him everyday and he has a horrible year.

That’s the reason he is in Cleveland rather than Detroit.

Gomes is just 25 years old and is giving the skipper more and more reasons to put him in the lineup more often.

The catcher acquired in the heist that also brought Mike Aviles in exchange for Esmil Rogers, has 8 home runs and 28 RBIs in less than 200 plate appearances, and he’s hitting for average too at .310 for the season.

And he’s hitting over .300 against both right-handed pitchers and southpaws, which gives Francona more reason to start giving him everyday at bats.

Yes, the Tribe bats have got hot at times and that is a reason they rank 4th in the league in scoring. 

They are 6th in the league in home runs, but as noted earlier, they may not have anyone hit more than 20. 

They are 5th in the AL in drawing walks, but no one will walk 100 times for the season.  The leaders in getting free passes are Santana (60), Kipnis (54), and Nick Swisher (54). 

The point is that the Tribe has a very balanced lineup.  That works to their advantage at times, but when many guys aren’t hitting, they don’t have that one great bat that can carry them.

Kipnis did it in June when he was red-hot, but no one else has approached that level since. 

That’s why the attack is sputtering.  If no one gets hot and soon, it will be very difficult for the Indians to reach the post-season this season, and it makes it a necessity to get a big time hitter for next season.

KM

Things That Make Us Say “Who Cares”

With two sports talks stations in the Cleveland area, there are many times the hosts have to try to create controversy to get people to call in to their shows.

Since the Indians were swept in a huge series and the Browns played their first exhibition game this week, you would think this would be one of those times where the action on the respective fields would have been enough to generate an audience.

Here are four subjects that made us say “Who Cares?”

INDIANS

Neither thing took place on the field, because a real fans would have to be upset at four straight defeats at the hand of the Tigers.

The first was the “Detroit’s bankrupt” chant that offended some people as a response to the Tigers’ fans rubbing it in the faces of Tribe fans during the games at Progressive Field.  Why does this bother anyone?

They weren’t chanting the city was morally bankrupt, that might be considered offensive.  The fact is the city did file for bankruptcy protection, so there was nothing untrue involved.

Cleveland, the city, and its fans have been taking it from people all around the country for years, and now, we can’t give a little jab to another city who is having it tough?  Besides, we have gone to games in other cities over the years, and we aren’t obnoxious in our support for the hometown squad.

Cheer for your team all you want you are a supporter of a visiting team, just don’t start chants rubbing it in the face of the host squad.

Actually, it was quite funny that Tribe fans thought of this.  Made us wish we’d have started it.

The second “incident” was the Indians’ players laughing when Ryan Raburn pitched the top of the ninth in the last game of the Detroit series.

No doubt, the players were chuckling over seeing a popular teammate on the hill for the first time.  It does not mean that Terry Francona has “lost” the team, nor does it mean the players don’t take the game seriously.

Baseball isn’t a sport where you can say if you try really, really hard in the bottom of the ninth, you could make up the eight run deficit Cleveland was facing.  In fact, after the game Jason Giambi held a team meeting to remind everyone there is a long way to go in the season.  No one was laughing about being swept or losing 10-2.

There was no reason to make a big deal about it.

Browns

The big debate for football fans was Trent Richardson not playing in the first preseason game vs. the Rams.  After all, the second year man out of Alabama has never played in one of these games.

Here’s a big reason that the coaching staff held Richardson out…IT DIDN”T COUNT!!!!

If Rob Chudzinski decides to get his starting running back carries in games #2 and #3, and sits him out in the last exhibition tilt, that would be perfectly fine here.  It is better to keep him fresh for the regular season, where he will be expected to carry a large load.

The same goes for any nicked up player held out by the staff.  It is better to have them ready in September.

The biggest “who cares” is regarding the results of the first preseason game.  Yes, the Browns won, and yes, they looked like they knew what they were doing, in sharp contrast with the past few seasons.

However, the game didn’t count, and the Browns will still be 0-0 for three more weeks.

And yes, we’d be saying the same thing if they would have lost.  There were things to be excited about, but the score ranked way down on that list.

MW

 

Looking at Tribe After Two Months

The calendar turns another page today and as we enter June, we are also entering the third month of the major league baseball schedule.

And it is fitting that the Cleveland Indians played their 54th game last night/this morning, which also marks 1/3 of the schedule has been played.  The Tribe’s record is 29-25, which means they are on pace to win 87 games in 2013.

For the record, for the first 27 games of the season, Cleveland went 14-13, which means they improved slightly in the last 27 contests.

The Indians’ offense has been a little better than expected, ranking fourth in the American League in runs scored per game at 4.93, trailing just Detroit, Baltimore, and Tampa Bay.  They rank 7th in on base percentage, but 3rd in slugging behind the Orioles and Rangers, both of whom play in great hitters parks.

The Tribe is 4th in the AL in home runs, behind those same two teams and Toronto, another team that plays in a very good place if you have a bat in your hands.

The one concern about the Cleveland offense going into the season was strikeouts, and that concern has manifested itself.  The Indians hitters have struck out 455 times, an average of 8.4 per game, although you have to go down to 10th among the league leaders to find an Indian, with Mark Reynolds and Drew Stubbs tied for that spot.

Both players have fanned over 200 times in a season, so that’s not a surprise.

Individually, really no one really overachieving among the everyday players, although fans should be pleasantly surprised by the production of Ryan Raburn (.296, 5HR, 16 RBI in 98 at bats) and Yan Gomes (.310, 5 HR, 14 RBI in just 71 at bats).

Jason Kipnis has been streaky and his numbers reflect it (.238 average, .307 OBP).  The Tribe needs better out of the second baseman if they are to contend all season.  Asdrubal Cabrera got off to a slow start, but had a solid May (.278, 2 HR, 13 RBI, 806 OPS) and actually leads the Indians in extra base hits with 24, ahead of Nick Swisher and Carlos Santana’s 21 each.

To us, an elite offensive player is a guy who has an on base percentage over .350, and a slugging percentage of over .450.  The Tribe currently has two of these players:  Santana and Swisher.  That should put to rest any concern about these two players.

Santana’s average slipped big time in May, but he still takes walks and has a .390 on base percentage.  We’ve heard some mild concern about Swisher, but people have to realize big money doesn’t make you a better player.  Swisher is who he is, a player who has pop and gets on base.

The recent problem for the Indians has been pitching, with the staff ranking 10th in the AL in ERA.  However, the starting pitching, supposedly the weak link of the team, hasn’t been bad, but the bullpen has struggled mightily of late.

New pitching coach Mickey Calloway has emphasized throwing strikes, and all five Tribe starters have strikeout to walk ratios of over 2:1, which is outstanding.

The only complaint about the starters is the need to work longer in the games.  With the bullpen struggling, the starters need to get through six innings consistently.  There have been too many “five and flys” this season.

With Chris Perez on the disabled list, much focus has been put on the back-end of the ‘pen, but the left-handed relievers have been terrible.  Terry Francona cannot be confident in any situation where he needs to get a tough left-handed hitter out, because Nick Hagadone, Scott Barnes, and Rich Hill have not been effective, nor have they been able to throw strikes.

Hill has walked 10 in 15-1/3 innings, and Hagadone has also issued 10 in 13-1/3 frames.  Barnes has only walked three in eight innings, but has allowed three home runs.

The team needs to find someone who can be effective in this role, or it will haunt them all season.

The Cleveland Indians hit the one-third point in the campaign in good shape, on pace to win 87 games and just a half game out of first.  Fortifying the bullpen, especially with an effective southpaw would seem to be #1 on the priority list right now.

MW

Aggressiveness Continues for Tribe Front Office

For the past several years, the management of the Cleveland Indians has seemed to be in a state of inertia.

Of course, this winter the front office went out and did something, getting Terry Francona to manage and inking several free agents, most notably Nick Swisher, Michael Bourn, and Mark Reynolds.

They’ve received a lot of credit for making those moves.

However, the maneuvers continue for the management into the regular season, something that hasn’t been the case the past few years.

Who is responsible for both styles of roster management?  Was GM Chris Antonetti shown religion by Francona, who seems to insist on having a representative roster for every game, or did former skipper Manny Acta make the same requests, but was not heard by the GM?

Since day one of this season, the Indians have been very active in sending players up and down from Columbus in order to give the manager lineup flexibility.

A couple of moves in the last two weeks illustrate what we are talking about.

While Bourn was out with his finger injury, the Indians were short an outfielder, but were able to get by using Swisher and Ryan Raburn in right, moving Drew Stubbs to centerfield.  However, Francona felt these guys needed some rest, so when Ezequiel Carrera was designated for assignment by Philadelphia, the Tribe picked him up.

Carrera was used as a pinch-runner in his first game and started the next night, getting two hits.  The next day, the Tribe DFA’d him again, and he went through waivers and is now at Columbus, still in the organization.

This is something the front office wouldn’t have done in the past.  But you know who does do stuff like that?  The Boston Red Sox used to bring guys in and out all the time, and perhaps it’s not a coincidence that the Indians are doing it now, if you know what we mean.

Today, the Tribe sent struggling third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall back to AAA, but the move was probably made as insurance for Chris Perez’ tender shoulder.  The Indians wanted an extra arm out of the bullpen with a doubleheader against the Yankees, and the only position player who could or deserved be moved was Chisenhall.

The guess here is Chiz will be back in ten days to two weeks, which will allow him to get his swing and confidence back.  In the meantime, Raburn, Mike Aviles, and a little Reynolds will hold down the hot corner.

With the bullpen not over-exposed in the twin bill and an extra player needed in Philadelphia, where the pitcher will have to hit, look for a relief pitcher (probably Nick Hagadone, who has struggled to throw strikes in his last two outings) to be sent back to Columbus in favor of another position player, possibly Cord Phelps.

Again, it is just the Tribe getting the most of their organization, and putting the major league team in the best position to win on a night in, night out basis.

It’s what all the big teams do.  And this season, it looks like the Cleveland Indians are joining the big boys, not only in the standings, but in attitude.

MW

Good Start, But Tribe Needs Consistency

After Saturday’s 7-3 victory over the Minnesota Twins, the Cleveland Indians completed their 27th game, hitting the 1/6th pole on the season.

What have we learned about this baseball team?

We have learned that the offense is about what most people figured it would be, which is a lot of feast and famine.  The Indians rank fifth in the American League in runs scored, but through 27 games, they scored three runs or less in more than half of the contests (14).

On the other hand, they scored eight or more runs eight times.  That leaves only five games where they scored between four and seven tallies.

That’s very inconsistent, although to be fair, they have been missing Michael Bourn for the last two weeks. 

We have also learned that it appears Carlos Santana is becoming the all around hitter we thought he would be when he was called up in 2010.  The switch-hitting catcher is batting .379 with six homers thus far, with an OPS of 1.160. 

While it would be crazy to suggest he will end the year with those numbers, it looks like Santana is on his way to an outstanding season.

Free agent signee Mark Reynolds has also had a tremendous start, and is on his way to topping 30 HRs barring injury.  He will have a period where he struggles, based on his past, but he seems to be getting better as a hitter, giving in a little bit with two strikes. 

He doesn’t even lead the Tribe in striking out so far.

Asdrubal Cabrera (.222, 2 HR, 13 RBI), Jason Kipnis (.218, 2 HR, 10 RBI), and Lonnie Chisenhall (.231, 3 HR, 11 RBI) are all off to relatively slow starts, and should produce better as the season goes on, and some of the hot hitters tail off a bit.

We have learned that the Indians have quality depth in INF Mike Aviles and OF Ryan Raburn, both of whom have been very productive when called upon.  Yan Gomes and Jason Giambi have contributed as well.

The bullpen has been very good as Bryan Shaw and Cody Allen have allowed Terry Francona to have five solid hard throwing right-handers at his disposal.  And Rich Hill has done a good job as the ‘pen’s LOOGY (left-handed one out guy).

The starting rotation, which figured to be the club’s biggest weakness, has been strong lately, but had a shaky start. 

Ubaldo Jimenez continues to be the biggest question mark, pitching well in his first start and last start, however, the three in between were brutal.  At this point, Francona can’t know what he is going to get on a start-by-start basis.

The other wild card is southpaw Scott Kazmir, who has got better in each of his three starts, and looks to be a very pleasant surprise. 

Zack McAllister has continued to show that he is solid, capable of keeping his team in the game in every start.

Justin Masterson was tremendous in his first five starts, but the last two have been so-so.  He needs to go out there and give Francona seven quality frames on most nights. 

The key going forward for the Tribe is the number of quality innings their starters can give them.  They need to get to the sixth or seventh most of the time.  Doing that will keep the bullpen fresh throughout the season.

The first checkpoint for the season shows the Tribe has held ground.  They’ve been up and down, but they haven’t played themselves out of the race. 

If they can be more consistent, both on offense and in starting pitching, it may be an enjoyable summer of baseball at Progressive Field.

MW

Great Move by Tribe to Upgrade Bench

Much of the excitement over the fine off-season the Cleveland Indians front office had been based on getting Terry Francona to manage the squad, and the signings of free agents Nick Swisher, Mark Reynolds, Michael Bourn, and Brett Myers.

They also remade the bench, and so far those guys have come up huge in the early going for the Tribe.

With the injuries to Bourn and Swisher, and remember Carlos Santana and Jason Kipnis missed some time as well, the bench guys have received playing time and have been productive.

Mike Aviles is tied for third in RBIs and Ryan Raburn in sixth on the club despite having played less than many of the players Francona writes in the batting order everyday.

And what may be even bigger, they understand their role.

Gone are the days of having to play Aaron Cunningham, Brett Lillibridge, and Vinny Rottino when a starter can’t go.

GM Chris Antonetti did an excellent job of getting veterans, who understand their job and their role, to come off the bench.   These guys don’t need everyday at bats to stay sharp.

On the recent five game winning streak, Aviles had a five RBI game vs. Kansas City, and Raburn reincarnated Babe Ruth slugging a pair of homers in back to back games, and getting 12 hits in 14 at bats.

That’s getting help from the bench.

It helps that  both Aviles and Raburn are 32 years old.  They’ve been around the game for a while and they aren’t looking for a chance to play every day.

Aviles was the Red Sox’ starting shortstop last season, but his career shows he’s been much better when he doesn’t play everyday.  He hit .250 in 2012, but is a career .276 hitter.

Raburn suffered through a terrible season in 2012, batting just .171 with only one home run.  However, he averaged 15 dingers a year from 2009-11 with the Tigers and can play both corner outfield spots, as well as 2B and 3B.

Certainly, Aviles and Raburn have been the key contributors, but you can’t overlook the play of reserve catcher Yan Gomes and DH Jason Giambi.

Gomes, who came in the same deal with Toronto as did Aviles, is slowly but surely replacing Lou Marson as the back up catcher, showing more offense in his limited at bats as Marson ever did.  The Brazilian native has four extra base hits in 31 at bats, compared to 10 all last year from Marson.

Giambi has two doubles, two homers, and three walks in limited playing time.  He’s also well-respected in the clubhouse, a great role model for the young players like Jason Kipnis and Lonnie Chisenhall.

And Francona has experience in using a veteran bench too.  He tries to put all of these guys in positions where they can succeed.

The production from the bench will also keep the regulars fresh over the long haul of baseball’s regular season.  Last year, it was evident that Asdrubal Cabrera and Kipnis wore down from playing every day as the Tribe didn’t have a quality reserve that the manager, Manny Acta, could trust.

No one should expect Raburn to continue channel Hank Aaron for the rest of the season, and there will certainly be days and weeks where the reserve players won’t produce.

Still, the Indians filled some holes on the bench which are just as important as the ones they filled in the starting lineup.

Those moves have helped the Indians tread water during the first month of the season.

KM

Tribe Organizational Depth in View Early

The baseball season is just 11 games old, and the depth the Cleveland Indians acquired in the off-season has already been put to the test.

First, the starting rotation had a horrible two turns through, with many pitchers not being able to go more than five innings.  That took a toll on the bullpen, so Terry Francona and the front office were able to change on the fly and add an extra relief pitcher. 

Of course, the two rainouts helped because they were able to skip a start for the fifth guy in the rotation.

Scott Kazmir made a rehab start with Columbus last night and he is on track to make his first start in Houston this weekend, so Francona got away without having to use somebody he didn’t want to use.

With the nagging elbow injury for 2B Jason Kipnis, the skipper has had to use Mike Aviles and Ryan Raburn, both established major league players, to fill in.  This is different from having to use players like Aaron Cunningham, Austin Kearns, or Luis Valbuena as substitutes.

Aviles was the starting shortstop for Boston last season, and although the Sox wound up with virtually the same record as the Indians, both teams fell apart in the last two months, so it wasn’t like either team was like the Astros and Marlins of 2013.

Raburn is also experienced, having appeared in over 100 games three times with the Tigers and hitting double digits in home runs in three different seasons.

Tito has had to alter his catchers early this season too.  Carlos Santana hurt his thumb/wrist during the home opener, and Lou Marson hurt his neck in a home plate collision, so Yan Gomes was called up from Columbus, and has done a good job handling the pitchers and also hit a home run on Saturday.

Now, CF Michael Bourn is going to miss perhaps of week’s worth of games with stitches in his finger.  No problem.  Francona will move Drew Stubbs to center, and he can play Raburn in right, or he can put Nick Swisher in right, use Mark Reynolds at first base and give Jason Giambi some at bats as the DH.

Giambi may be 42 years old, and won the American League MVP in 2000, but he has made his living in recent years by being a productive bat off the bench in Colorado.

Besides Gomes, the added depth also extends to the minor leagues.  For example, with Bourn down and Kipnis out, the Tribe called up Cord Phelps, who had an excellent spring and has a very good history of hitting in the minors, to the 25-man roster.

They no longer have to use a player who has no business being in the big leagues.

At other times, they stayed longer with a struggling player because they didn’t have a better option available.  This was the case with Johnny Damon last season.

And that bodes very well for the success of this ballclub.  You have to have options because things never work out the way it is planned in the off-season.  In the past few years, this organization had few alternatives.

This year, the depth they’ve accumulated is being put to the test before the first month of the season plays out.

KM

One More Change Needed For Tribe

With spring training ready to start in less than a week, Cleveland baseball fans have a reason to feel optimistic.

They have a new manager, not just any recycled skipper, but a man who has two World Series victories under his belt in Terry Francona.  They signed a high-profile free agent for the first time in many years in Nick Swisher.  And they have to feel good about a trio of young players who are poised to make an impact in 2013 in Jason Kipnis, Lonnie Chisenhall, and Michael Brantley.

However, there is one more thing that needs to change for the organization when the team convenes in Goodyear next week.  Spring training needs to be meaningful, meaning the 25 man roster shouldn’t be set before camp begins.

Earlier this week, MLB Network’s Peter Gammons reported that the Indians’ front office was going to bring starter Trevor Bauer to the major leagues when he is ready, and were not going to rush him, meaning it will probably be a mid-season call  up for one of the top prospects in the minors.

GM Chris Antonetti may have been trying to take pressure off of Bauer, and lowering the expectations of fans, who look at the right hander just acquired from Arizona as a savior for the starting rotation.

That, in itself, is not a bad thing.

However, if Bauer pitches well in spring training and is dominant in the exhibition games, don’t think for a moment that Francona isn’t going to push for the kid to come north for Opening Day.

That’s the way is should be.  Remember that Charlie Manuel had to lobby hard to keep a 20-year-old left-hander on the big league roster in 2001.  C.C. Sabathia did just fine, going 17-5 in his rookie year.

Antonetti has brought in some veterans to compete for roster spot in Arizona, and some of those players are good risks.  Ryan Raburn and Ben Francisco could make the team as reserves, and Matt Capps could earn a bullpen spot as well.  All three have been good players in the past.

However, if they struggle in spring training and a guy like Tim Fedroff or even Ezequiel Carrera do very well, then Francona and Antonetti should keep the players who earned the spot.  Too many times in recent years, the Tribe has kept the veteran who had a marginal spring,  and have to release him during the season because he’s not getting the job done.

If a young player out-performs one of these non roster invitees to spring training, they should open the season with the big club.

Although Capps has a much better track record than pitchers like Jamey Wright, Chad Durbin, and Dan Wheeler, here’s hoping he’s not lumped in with them at the end of the season.  The latter three were all borderline hurlers, yet the Indians let them make the team and only Durbin lasted an entire season, albeit in a mop up role.

It is our belief that Francona will not let Antonetti bully him on the make up of the roster.  Manny Acta seemed to allow the GM to decide what players would make the roster, and Eric Wedge never picked the right team coming out of spring training.

Francona has a great relationship with both Antonetti and team president Mark Shapiro, but he also wants to win, and win right away.  If he feels a young player is ready to help the Indians win when April 1st comes around, he is going to fight for that guy to make the big club.

That’s just one more change that is going to help the 2013 version of the Cleveland Indians.

MW