You Trade For Prospects When You Are Rebuilding. The Indians Aren’t.

In recent years, the sports talk shows in Cleveland spent a lot of time talking about the NFL Draft. It seems like folks like to talk about the possibility of getting players more than the players that actually play in northeast Ohio.

When it comes to the Cleveland Indians, it comes down to trading for prospects. Apparently, it’s better to deal for young players rather than sign the great players who are already here.

Yes, we are talking through a thin veil here about Francisco Lindor. There are many in the area who think the Indians are better off rebuilding a team that won 93 games last season, rather than trying to get over the hump and get back into the post-season.

Look, if the Tribe was 75-87 this past season and had a roster loaded with a bunch of 30 year olds, we might think the same thing.

But here is a list of the Indians’ leaders in WAR for 2019–

Shane Bieber (24 years old)
Lindor (25)
Carlos Santana (33)
Mike Clevinger (28)
Roberto Perez (30)
Jose Ramirez (26)

Does this look like a team on its last legs and ready to be rebuilt?

We also subscribe to the theory that until proven otherwise, prospects are suspects until proven otherwise. Now, that doesn’t mean we don’t appreciate top minor league talent, because we do.

In 2013, there were those in the media saying the Indians should deal Lindor to get help for Terry Francona’s first year here, and we gave the opinion that was ridiculous.

Still, dealing a player like Lindor is now, and he’s one of the best ten players in the sport, for prospects is dicey at best.

For example, here is a list of the Top Ten prospects in baseball in 2016, according to Baseball America:

Corey Seager
Byron Buxton
Yoan Moncada
Jose Urias
Lucas Giolito
JP Crawford
Alex Reyes
Orlando Arcia
Trea Turner
Joey Gallo

Of those ten, Seager and Turner are very good players, and Moncada looks to be on his way. Giolito had a great year in ’19, but struggled before that.

Reyes has been hurt a lot, and Gallo has always had immense power, and looked to be improving his game this past season before he was injured.

The other have been disappointments, and getting one of them back for a player like Lindor would be a swing and a miss.

The following year’s (2017) list contained Dansby Swanson, Reyes, Nick Senzel, Willy Adames, and Amed Rosario.

That year also featured Andrew Benintendi, Moncado, Gleyber Torres, Austin Meadows, and Cody Bellinger, any of which would be a solid return for a star player.

That’s still a 50/50 proposition.

And trading a great player for three above average players isn’t a good deal either, because if you have the former, you can likely find average guys to fill in those spots.

(Think Julio Franco for Pete O’Brien, Jerry Browne, and Oddibe McDowell for you older fans).

We are sure we will hear about how the Washington Nationals went to the World Series after Bryce Harper walked away in free agency. But the Nats had Juan Soto on the horizon to basically replace Harper.

Back in 2000, the Seattle Mariners lost Alex Rodriguez to free agency and won a Major League record 116 games the following year. Just like the Nationals without Harper.

Except the Mariners haven’t been back to the playoffs again.

Look, the Indians are going to do what they are going to do. However, we think it’s better to keep great players, which Frankie Lindor is.

And he’s here for two more years, and it would be a surprise if the Indians were not contenders in either of those years.

It’s not time for a rebuild, nor it is time to trade Francisco Lindor. And people shouldn’t assume the return will be three blue chip players.

Tribe Should Be Active In Hot Stove

Let’s make this very clear, the Cleveland Indians have never asked us for advise on running the team.

However, that doesn’t stop us from making suggestions on what they should be thinking about this winter.

Here is what we would do starting the day after the World Series ends so the Indians can return to the American League playoffs in 2020 as Central Division champions.

We agree with the decisions they’ve said they will make already. That means we would pick up the option on Corey Kluber and decline the options on Jason Kipnis and Dan Otero.

Yes, we know Kluber struggled in his seven starts in 2019, but as we just said, it’s seven starts. And there will be less burden on the two time Cy Young Award winner, with the emergence of Mike Clevinger and Shane Bieber. If Kluber can provide 200 innings in ’20, he is well worth the $17.5 million the Tribe will pay him.

We would also decline to offer Danny Salazar and Cody Anderson arbitration and we would add one more name to that list in Kevin Plawecki. If we were Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff, we would look for an upgrade to back up Roberto Perez.

To replace Kipnis, we would look for a third baseman, either on the trade market or in free agency (most likely the former) and move Jose Ramirez to second base.

We think there will be some bargains available in free agency at one of those positions. A one year deal would be ideal because top prospect Nolan Jones is on the horizon, if he can cut down on his strikeouts.

We would also strongly suggest to Terry Francona to get Francisco Lindor out of the leadoff spot. Besides Jordan Luplow, Lindor had the highest slugging percentage on the team, clubbing 74 extra base hits, nine more than Carlos Santana.

Wouldn’t it be nice if some of those extra base knocks came with men on base? The shortstop bats at least once every game with no one on by leading off.

We know Francona likes Lindor to set a tone in that spot, but when the offense has fallen off like it did in ’19, it might be more efficient to put someone who gets on base consistently in the leadoff spot (Carlos Santana?) and move Lindor to the #2 or #3 spot.

Speaking of Lindor, the biggest thing the Indians front office should do is take care of his contract situation, and by that we mean open up the purse strings and sign him long term.

And as we have said before, we don’t buy for a minute the notion that the ownership can’t keep Lindor in a Cleveland uniform long term, nor do we think the Tribe can’t be competitive and pay the shortstop a boatload of money.

Somehow, they have to shore up leftfield, which was a sinkhole for much of 2019. We would recommend seeing if Jordan Luplow can man the spot. Luplow was lethal vs. southpaws (.439 OBP, .742 slugging), but in the minors, he handled right handers well.

He would get the first shot at the job, but we also would take a long look at Daniel Johnson in spring training.

The bullpen needs work too. In today’s game, you need more power arms, something the Indians lacked last season. James Karinchak is a start, but more are on the way, guys like Kyle Nelson and Cam Hill.

In terms of trade pieces, the rotation depth the Indians developed in ’19 could be key.

The projected starters right now would be Clevinger, Bieber, Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, and for the sake of argument, let’s say Aaron Civale.

That leaves Zach Plesac, Adam Plutko, Jeffry Rodriguez, Logan Allen, and don’t forget Triston McKenzie as possible pieces to get some bats.

If you trade one of them, you still have a lot of depth.

Hopefully, the front office feels it is imperative to get back to the top of the heap in the AL Central. They need to get better against good teams and good pitchers.

Let’s see what happens in the hot stove season.

Six Games To Decide The Playoffs For The Tribe

They always say the baseball season is a marathon, not a sprint, but with a week to go in the regular season, the Cleveland Indians are involved in a mad dash with the Tampa Bay Rays (and to a lesser extent the Oakland A’s) for the American League’s last playoff spot.

There are six games remaining for each team, and the Tribe is on the road for all of them, three with the White Sox, and three more with the Nationals, where the Indians will not be able to use the designated hitter.

Tampa has one more with Boston and a pair with the Yankees in Tampa, before heading north of the border to take on Toronto.

It does appear Terry Francona is getting some good news in that Jose Ramirez may return to the lineup tonight in Chicago. How effective Ramirez will be has to be seen, but judging from who has replaced him in the lineup, it won’t take much for him to be a positive impact.

Cleveland is able to start their current top three starting pitchers against the Sox, a team they have struggled with in 2019, going 7-9. Mike Clevinger, Shane Bieber, and Aaron Civale draw the assignments in an effort to hold down the Chicago offense.

Clevinger will be available if the Indians need to win the last game of the season to get into the wild card game or to force a one game playoff with the Rays to qualify for the wild card game.

The other tough decision for Francona and his staff is what to do with Franmil Reyes in the nation’s capital. Reyes has mostly been a DH since coming over at the trade deadline, but to us, the Indians can’t afford to take his bat out of the lineup in the most important series of the year.

We would put Reyes in LF, and if the Tribe can get a lead after five innings, take him out for defensive purposes. Something tells us that the skipper will use him for an important pinch-hitting appearance.

More bad news is the Nationals are currently a half game up on the Brewers for the wild card in the National League, so home field for that game could be at stake, meaning Washington could be playing their “A” lineup and their best starters for all three contests.

A week ago, there was a hope the Nats would have a spot wrapped up, and they might, but the home field is up for grabs. However, a 5-5 stretch for Dave Martinez’ squad has made that possibility less likely.

With the Rays win last night, the Indians are down a half game starting the series.

We feel the Indians can only lose one game at a minimum and still make the post-season. And they may have to win all six.

Another positive for the Tribe is the performance of Carlos Carrasco, who was huge in the series against his former organization. Carrasco picked up a save on Friday night going 1-1/3 innings, and Sunday night, got a key double play with men on first and third and one out in a tie game.

If he can continue this, he could be a big weapon for Francona in these six games.

So, it all comes down to this: Six games. Six games you have to win. The post-season for the Indians starts in reality tomorrow night. It’s a nerve wracking time for a baseball fan.

Developing Starters Is The Tribe’s Business

Over the past decade, the Cleveland Indians have been in the pitching development business.

When the Dolan family bought the team, they promised to make pitching a priority. After all, the slugging Tribe teams of the 90’s got to two World Series, but didn’t win.

That championship drought is currently at 71 years, but you can’t blame in on the pitching staffs Cleveland has put together.

In 2012, the last season in which Terry Francona was not managing the Indians, they finished 14th, second to last, in ERA.

That is also the last season the franchise has ranked in the bottom half of the American League in that statistic.

Since then, here are the rankings–

2013: 7th
2014: 5th
2015: 2nd
2016: 2nd
2017: 1st
2018: 4th
2019: 3rd

All the while playing half of their games in one of the better hitter’s parks in Major League Baseball.

It’s a tribute to the player development staff, because many of the cast and characters who have contributed to the success of the team did not arrive in Cleveland as “can’t miss” prospects.

Corey Kluber was a 4th round pick by San Diego, but wasn’t regarded as a top prospect when traded to Cleveland in 2010. Two Cy Young Awards and five consecutive 200 inning seasons, and his work ethic are testament to the pitcher he has become.

And he isn’t the only success story.

Carlos Carrasco was a highly regarded prospect when dealt to the Indians in 2009, but struggled to stay in the bigs until 2011, when he needed Tommy John surgery just as he looked to be turning a corner.

When he returned from that injury, he couldn’t find any consistency until the coaching staff put him in the bullpen to regain his confidence.

He has been one of the most reliable, if not unheralded, starting pitchers in baseball since, winning 35 games in 2017-18.

Mike Clevinger was another 4th round pick, in 2011 by the Los Angeles Angels. However, he pitched in just 14 games in his first three years of professional ball, another victim of elbow surgery.

When the Indians traded for him in 2014 (for Vinnie Pestano), he was struggling with a 5.37 ERA in the Class A California League, although he was striking out over a batter per inning.

He turned the corner the following year with a 2.73 ERA at Akron, and has a 3.33 career ERA now since his big league debut in 2016.

Shane Bieber was the Indians’ 4th round (common thread, eh?) pick in 2016, and quickly moved through the farm system, arriving last season, and this year has emerged as one of the AL’s best pitchers, and was the All Star Game MVP.

Certainly, the work put in by these guys played a huge role as well, and you can’t ignore the recently traded Trevor Bauer’s effort either.

This comes into play because the Indians will depend on two more products of the system to carry them until Kluber returns.

Aaron Civale was a 3rd round pick in ’16, and has made one big league start (six shutout innings vs. Detroit).

This year in 13 minor league starts at Akron (2.67 ERA) and Columbus (2.13 ERA) he has fanned 70 hitters in 72-2/3 innings, walking just 15, similar numbers to what Bieber did last year (77 strikeouts, 7 walks in 79-2/3 frames).

Adam Plutko made his first appearance in the bigs in ’17, and although he is prone to the home run ball (15 allowed in 59-1/3 innings), he has kept his team in the game for the most part.

As a starter, he is 4-2 with a 4.12 ERA this season.

The organization needs Civale and Plutko to jump in and have similar success as Bieber did a year ago to help get this group of Indians to the post-season.

The success of these two and Zach Plesac (12th round pick in 2016) will go along way toward where the 2019 Cleveland Indians will wind up.

Player development indeed.

The Only Way A Bauer Deal Makes Sense

The rumors keep swirling around Major League Baseball about the Indians trading Trevor Bauer, and quite frankly we don’t understand it.

Yes, we understand that Bauer is going to get a significant increase in pay for 2020 through the arbitration process, and is going to be a free agent following that season.

We hear the arguments about dealing Bauer and improving the team now, and if you can do that, we are all ears. We have said it many times before, we would trade anyone for the right price.

And maybe someone will pay that price for Trevor Bauer, we just don’t think anyone will.

That’s because the right price for Bauer would include getting a major league starting pitcher in return. That’s what the Indians need unless they decide to do the mind boggling task of giving up on a season in which they are on pace to win more than 90 games.

No one has been more critical of the Indians’ offense than us, and the series against the Twins showed the need to fill holes in the lineup, even with Jose Ramirez starting to resemble the guy who finished in the top three of the MVP voting the past two seasons.

However, trading Bauer for someone who can impact the lineup right now and not getting a MLB caliber starter as part of the package is just robbing Peter to pay Paul.

If you deal Bauer, you have a shortage of starting pitching in our opinion.

One of the reasons the Indians are in possession of a playoff spot right now is their pitching, which ranks second in the American League in ERA, and the strength of that staff recently is the ability to trot Bauer, Mike Clevinger, and Shane Bieber out there every three of five games.

Moving Bauer creates a void in that strength. Without him, your rotation is Clevinger, Bieber, Adam Plutko, rookie Zach Plesac, and who? Another rookie in Aaron Civale?

Can you win enough games to make the playoffs with this rotation?

And spare us the “we’ll get Corey Kluber and maybe Carlos Carrasco back soon” talk.

If you can tell us how Kluber will pitch when he comes back, then please supply us with the next numbers for the MegaMillions drawing. Kluber was up and down before he was injured, and he is basically starting his season over.

Could Kluber be the pitcher he has been for the last five years? Sure. Is it worth gambling a playoff spot on that chance? Of course not.

We understand the offense is still below par, so go out and get a rental bat, even though we know the front office doesn’t like to do that. Let’s say you can get a Nicholas Castellanos for a prospect not currently in the Cleveland top ten?

That way you boost the offense without touching the rotation.

Or you can get a young starter with some big league experience in exchange for Bauer. We don’t think a team will do that with Bauer eligible for a big payday in ’20 and free agency in ’21.

Maybe you make two deals, one for a starter, say Marcus Stroman, and then move Bauer somewhere else.

That would be more prudent so you can continue to compete this season.

The Minnesota Twins are a good team, but they no longer have a 10 game lead in the division, it’s now three. You can’t weaken the strength of this team, which is starting pitching.

If you make the team better, then make the deal. But if you are going to weaken part of the team to fix something else, that doesn’t make sense.

Mercado, Perez, and Bieber Key Tribe Resurgence

On May 26th, the Cleveland Indians lost to Tampa Bay, 6-3 at Progressive Field, ending a four game series against the Rays losing three out of four.

Their record was 26-26 and they were floundering, especially on offense. Their lineup that day featured five hitters with OPS under 681.

The starting rotation lost Corey Kluber at the beginning of the month, and Carlos Carrasco would make his (to this point, hopefully) last start four days later in a 10-4 loss to the White Sox. Mike Clevinger was still on the injured list, after making just two starts.

With games coming up against the Red Sox, Yankees, and Twins, it was easy to see the season quickly going down the toilet.

Then something weird happened, the Tribe started winning, going 23-12 since then, helped by playing well against the big boys of the American League (they went 6-3 vs. NY, BOS, and MIN) and taking advantage of a decidedly soft schedule.

Who were the big players in this turn around?

First, Oscar Mercado started getting regular playing time. Mercado received a call up on May 14th, and instantly gave the offense a shot in the arm.

His OPS is 777 and his batting average hasn’t dipped below .259 at any point in that period. He gave Terry Francona another solid hitter to add to Carlos Santana and Francisco Lindor.

He has some pop in his bat, slugging .440, and also is not a big swing and miss guy, with 34 strikeouts in 182 plate appearances.

Another huge contribution came from Roberto Perez, who since that date has belted 10 home runs and knocked in 21. Many criticized the veteran early in the season when he was hitting under .200 as late as April 26th, but we always liked Perez’ patience at the plate.

Even when he wasn’t hitting, and he had a .212 lifetime batting average coming into the year, he didn’t swing at a lot of bad pitches. We felt with regular playing time, he would be a better hitter than he had shown.

His emergence gave Francona a fourth bat in the lineup, and with Jason Kipnis’ recent hot streak (he has since cooled, going 3 for his last 23), and Jose Ramirez showing signs of regaining at least some of his old form, the offense suddenly wasn’t anemic.

And the rightfield platoon of Tyler Naquin and Jordan Luplow has been contributing too.

As for the pitching, with the top three in the rotation (Kluber, Carrasco, and Bauer) down to just one, someone had to step up.

Rookie Zach Plesac gave the squad several solid starts, although he has had rookie struggles lately. And another rook not on the radar when spring training began, Aaron Civale pitched in with a solid outing too.

Adam Plutko made seven starts, five of them very good, including a win at home over the Yankees.

But the breakout star, much like Clevinger in 2017, has been Shane Bieber, who was voted to the All Star team this week.

The righty, who made his major league debut just a year ago, is 8-3 with a 3.45 ERA on the season with 141 strikeouts in 112-1/3 innings.

The strikeouts put him 4th in the AL (behind Garret Cole, Chris Sale, Justin Verlander, and Matthew Boyd), while the ERA is 12th in the league.

His batting average against is the league’s 6th best figure.

With Clevinger back, Bieber gives the Tribe a new big three at the top of the rotation with Bauer, who has been the constant.

And if Kluber and Carrasco return this season? That’s a helluva rotation.

Who knows where the Tribe would be without this trio of players? We can be sure the front office would be contemplating who to sell off at the end of July.

That’s how important these three have been to the Cleveland Indians.

Upcoming Schedule Is Tribe’s Friend

The Cleveland Indians starting rotation took another blow yesterday when it was announced that Carlos Carrasco, one of baseball’s best starting pitchers over the past four seasons, has a blood disorder and will be out indefinitely.

First of all, let’s all hope the illness is not serious and Carrasco will make a full recovery.

His absence gets added to fellow starters Corey Kluber (broken arm) and Mike Clevinger (shoulder/back muscle issue), and turns the strength of the team into a mess.

The only starters now remaining from the beginning of the season are Trevor Bauer and Shane Bieber, who might be the Tribe’s best starting pitcher this year with a 3.57 ERA in 13 appearances.

However, Carrasco’s not being with the team doesn’t change our stance on the future of the 2019 season for the Cleveland Indians.

As of today, while it is true the Tribe is 10.5 games out of the lead in the AL Central, they are only two games out of the second wild card spot.

Until they mathematically fall further behind any chance of a post-season spot, we have a problem giving up on a season.

Can you imagine how excited an Indians’ fan in the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s would have been had the Tribe been a game out of a playoff spot in early June?

If you were around then, you are probably like us and think cashing in the season at this point is simply ludicrous.

We guess fans have gotten spoiled since Jacobs Field/Progressive Field opened up 25 years ago.

After this weekend’s series against the Yankees, here is who the Tribe plays until the All Star break on July 8th:

June 11th and 12th: Cincinnati (28-32)
June 14th-16th: Detroit (23-35)
June 17th-20th: Texas (31-28)
June 21st-23rd: Detroit again
June 24th-26th: Kansas City (19-42)
June 28th-30th: Baltimore (19-42)
July 2nd-4th: Kansas City again
July 6th and 7th: Cincinnati again

As you can see, Texas is the only above .500 team Cleveland will play over a four week stretch, and only the Reds are close to the break even mark.

Yes, we know the Indians have struggled against some bad teams (KC and Miami most notably) this season, but wouldn’t you bank on making up some ground in the standings before the Midsummer Classic?

Even after the break, there are five games the rest of July with Minnesota and Houston, but the balance of the schedule is more of the Tigers, Royals, and Blue Jays.

We haven’t changed our mind about dealing Trevor Bauer either. As we said a few days ago, a deal like that could save the 2019 season, if you can acquire some hitting.

The pitching could be good enough with Bieber and the hopefully soon return of Clevinger, and maybe the Tribe caught some lightning in a bottle with Zack Plesac.

Another good thing about the upcoming schedule is four off days between now the the All Star Game, which could minimize the need for a fifth starter.

We understand the Indians have had issues with some of the bottom teams in the league this year, but if they can start playing a little better, getting a little more offense, they have a good opportunity to make up some ground.

Soon, the schedule will be the Indians’ friend. That’s a good enough reason to not start looking toward 2020.

For All The Talk About Hitting, Tribe Chances Depend On Starters

The Indians unlikely come from behind win over Boston Tuesday signaled the 1/3rd mark of the Major League Baseball season, and the Tribe sits right at .500.

They went 15-12 during the first 27 games of the season, so they reversed that mark over the next 27 contests.

Depending on your perspective, the Indians were either a huge disappointment to this point, or they are extremely fortunate to be at the break even mark considering the state of their offense.

We are well aware of the offensive issues at this point. Cleveland ranks in the bottom three in the American League in most offensive categories, but the most concerning thing might just be the starting pitching staff.

The starters were supposed to be the part of the team that Terry Francona would lean on. The quintet of Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, Trevor Bauer, Mike Clevinger, and Shane Bieber were thought to be the best in the game.

Injuries have ravaged the rotation.

Clevinger was the first to go down, making just two starts before going down with an upper back muscle pull.

The bell cow of the staff, Kluber, always good for 200 innings over the last five years, fractured his arm getting hit by a line drive.

That forced Francona to use Jefry Rodriguez for seven starts (the same as Kluber), and Cody Anderson, and Adam Plutko have each received two starts. Zach Plesac, who wasn’t even considered in the big league club’s plans in spring training, made his major league debut on Tuesday.

It hasn’t been just the injuries though. Bauer was dynamite in April, but suffered through a poor May. Carrasco has been prone to the home run ball, allowing 14 on the season.

He has a very good 72 strikeouts to just 10 walks, but he’s allowing more hits than innings pitched, something he hasn’t done since he returned to the starting rotation in 2014. Normally one of the most reliable starting pitchers in the game, he has been anything but that in 2019.

Kluber wasn’t very good before he was injured either. The normally precise righty walked in runs twice this season, something he never did in his career. And he’s allowed more hits than innings pitched as well.

To this point, the guy who was the fifth starter coming into the year, has been the most effective. Bieber has the best ERA at 3.67, has allowed less hits than innings pitched (58 in 68-2/3) and has fanned 85 batters, walking just 17.

He didn’t have great stuff Wednesday night in the 14-9 win over the Red Sox, but still persevered long enough to get the win.

If the Indians are to get back in the race for the division title, and despite what you hear, there is still plenty of time to do just that, they need the April edition of Bauer, and the Carrasco they have seen in over the last four seasons.

Despite the recent offensive explosion in the past few days, we don’t think the Indians, as constituted, will be an offensive juggernaut. They need outstanding starting pitching.

The hitting being what it is, the determining factor on the Indians getting into the divisional title race will be the starting pitching. It simply has to get back to its expected level.

Tribe Pitching As Good As Advertised To Date

The Cleveland Indians have played 14 games so far this season, and as of now, their pitching has been as good as advertised.

Opponents have scored more than four runs in just three of the contests, and remarkably, Cleveland pitchers have held the other team to three runs or less in 10 of the games on the slate.

That’s how the Tribe has managed an 8-6 record despite having the second worst runs per game total in the American League, ranking only ahead of Detroit.

Their pitchers rank third in the league in ERA, are fourth in strikeouts and have issued the third least walks in the AL. So to date, they are as good as advertised.

The usually reliable Carlos Carrasco has two of the three bad starts, but in his other effort vs. Toronto, he struck out 12 Blue Jay hitters in five innings. Corey Kluber had the other poor effort in the second home game of the year against Chicago.

It appears Shane Bieber has made the leap many projected for him in his two starts, and Trevor Bauer was dominant in his first two outings, and not bad in his third.

The loss of Mike Clevinger, who was spectacular in his first two starts, likely until after the All Star Game, does put a damper on things, but Jefry Rodriguez stepped up last night and gave Terry Francona a solid effort.

Yes, the Indians have played the other two worst offenses in the Junior Circuit to date in the Tigers and Blue Jays (the Tribe is the third), but they do get a solid test starting tomorrow in Seattle, where the Mariners have scolded the baseball through the first three weeks of the season, averaging over seven runs per game.

On the other hand, Toronto scored just six runs in a four game set at Progressive Field, but has averaged over four runs per game in games that didn’t involve the Tribe pitching staff.

So, the Tribe is keeping its head above water despite getting production above replacement player status from just two positions on the diamond, first base (Carlos Santana) and centerfield (Leonys Martin).

In fact, Cleveland shortstops and leftfielders rank as the worst in the AL. The first spot will take care of itself with the hopefully soon return of the league’s best, Francisco Lindor.

But LF has been manned by Jake Bauers, who is putting the ball in play and drawing some walks, but is batting just .159 so far, with an OPS of 518. The contact and patience make us feel good about his future, but his production is magnified by the black holes the Indians have at short, and Jose Ramirez’ continued slump.

And the bullpen has been fine too. Jon Edwards struggled with his control and was sent back to the minors yesterday, but otherwise, there have no major hiccups in the first few weeks.

When the offense has scored enough runs, they have made the leads stand up.

Hopefully, the hitting will give the pitching staff some relief when Lindor and Jason Kipnis return, and Jose Ramirez returns to form.

Right now, the pitching has been as billed. They may have to continue to be spectacular with the offense performing this way.

Despite Criticism, Tribe Still Team To Beat In AL Central

We haven’t been fans of the off-season the Cleveland Indians had. We thought their plan was to reallocate the payroll, moving from higher paid older players to some younger players with upside.

Unfortunately, only the first half of that equation was true. Gone were Michael Brantley, Edwin Encarnacion, Yan Gomes, Andrew Miller, and Yonder Alonso. In their place appeared the return of Carlos Santana, and a bunch of players with pretty much unproven track records.

So, a team with World Series aspirations is depending on guys like Jordan Luplow, Jake Bauers, Tyler Naquin, and others to provide enough offensive production to get back to the post-season.

It says here that Terry Francona will use his managerial magic to manipulate the batting order to score enough runs, and the Tribe will win their 4th consecutive American League Central Division title.

Last year, the top five teams in the AL in runs scored made the post-season, and although that may not be the case this year, there is no question that although pitching is the story in the playoffs, you have to score runs to get to the post-season.

There is no question the strength of this squad is the starting pitching. With the emergence last season of Mike Clevinger, and the expected improvement in second year hurler Shane Bieber, Francona can put a starting pitcher out there pretty much every night that gives his team a chance to win.

We also believe the bullpen will be improved, probably because it can’t be much worse than a year ago. Brad Hand is the closer, and we think Jon Edwards will emerge as a solid set up man.

Dan Otero should be better than in 2018, and Tyler Olson was very good after returning from the disabled list a year ago.

Offensively, the Indians will have to be carried by their two MVP candidates, Francisco Lindor and Jose Ramirez, and the return of walk machine extraordinaire, Carlos Santana.

Hopefully, Lindor won’t miss too much time with the calf injury suffered prior to spring training, because opening the year with a keystone combo of Eric Stamets and Max Moroff doesn’t seem optimal.

So, early in the season, the Tribe may have to win their share of low scoring pitchers’ duels, and take advantage of the ability to draw walks that many who will start the season in the lineup will have.

The keys could be what Leonys Martin can contribute vs. right-handed pitching and is Greg Allen’s development in the second half of the year for real.

The switch-hitter batted .307 with a 783 OPS after the All Star Game, and right now, figures to be an everyday player for Tito.

Bauers and Luplow have very good minor league numbers at the AAA level, and the Indians need one of them to have those numbers translate to the big league level to have an acceptable offense.

And the last reason we feel the Tribe will win again is the state of the division. Cleveland won by 13 games a year ago, and really underachieved according to their run differential.

Their profile was that of a 98 win team, and they won 91. And although Minnesota has improved their offense (they were 6th in the AL in runs scored), they were still 9th in ERA, and the pitching still is questionable.

No doubt, it will be a tighter divisional race, particularly if Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff can’t pull off a move to improve the hitting during the season.

However, the Tribe should still have enough to get to the playoffs once again. And that would still be considered a successful season.