Until Ramirez, Lindor, C. Santana Start Hitting, Tribe In For A Bumpy Ride

Last night’s game between the Cleveland Indians and the Detroit Tigers marked the 27th game of the season, which would be the 1/6th point of a normal 162 game slate.

While many baseball people like to point to the quarter pole of a season (40 games), we think 27 games is effective because the campaign has gone along enough to make some judgments.

And despite occasional flashes from Tribe hitters, you have to conclude that the Cleveland offense isn’t very effective.

The Indians rank 13th in the AL in runs scored per game, ahead of only Kansas City and Texas. The other four teams that join them in the bottom five of this category have a combined 41-66 record, which is a .383 winning percentage.

The bottom five in the National League have a combined record of 47-63, which is a slightly better, but still poor .427 record of winning.

Therefore, it is remarkable that Cleveland has a 17-10 record despite their limited ability to score runs, but it seems important to winning games, that you have to produce some runs.

It also points to how unbelievable the Tribe pitching has been this season.

We anticipated the Indians might struggle to score runs because the bottom of their batting order was largely unproven, or in their because of their defense. The outfield was thought to be a possible problem all winter. It’s one of the reasons they signed Domingo Santana.

As of today, the highest OPS of the bottom four in the lineup (most frequently Santana, Tyler Naquin, Roberto Perez, and Delino DeShields) is 648.

The league average is 735.

However, the top of the lineup has also performed less than anticipated, with only Franmil Reyes and Cesar Hernandez doing what was expected.

Reyes is the only Indian hitter with an OPS over 800 (888), and the only Cleveland player with a slugging percentage of over .450 and an on base percentage over .350.

Hernandez has done his job, which was to get on base. He has a .370 on base percentage, and has seen a lot of pitches and worked counts.

Carlos Santana has been a walk machine, leading the league by a wide margin (27, next best player has 20), but he has just five extra base hits on the season, two doubles and three home runs, with a batting average of just .193.

Jose Ramirez and Francisco Lindor, the duo supposed to be the best offensive players on the team, have really scuffled.

Lindor is hitting .252 with just six walks (723 OPS), and has grounded into a league high seven double plays. To our eye, he is trying to pull outside pitches instead of hitting them into the gaps. And he is swinging at a lot of borderline pitches when he is ahead in the count.

The last couple of days, he is taking a bit of an opposite field approach in an effort to stay on the ball, and has had some hits.

Ramirez has had a couple of huge games (a pair of two homer contests), but hitting only .233, and hasn’t had a hit since last Sunday. He has taken some walks (he’s in the top ten in the AL), but has really been feast or famine in 2020, mostly the latter.

If the trio of Ramirez, Lindor, and Carlos Santana aren’t producing on a consistent basis, this offense is in big trouble. Their track records indicate they will hit at some point, but until then, it’s pretty ugly.

We’ve seen suggestions of moving Lindor back to the leadoff spot recently, but we don’t think that’s a good remedy. His career high in on base percentage (2016) is .358, which is less than what Hernandez is giving the team now.

Terry Francona and the front office can keep shuffling the deck in the outfield, but what will that accomplish? The hope that someone gets hot? Hope isn’t a plan.

Until the mainstays of the Cleveland lineup (Ramirez, Lindor, Santana) get going, this offense is going to struggle. The pitching will need to remain excellent until that happens.

Can Tito Afford To Keep Handing It To Hand?

It is hard to come up with any criticism of the Cleveland Indians’ pitching staff. They lead the American League in ERA at 2.56.

They also lead the AL in strikeouts, least walks, and shutouts. The only category they are struggling a bit in is allowing the long ball. They’ve allowed the fifth most in the league, but that is really a product of being around the strike zone so much.

Most of the home runs are of the solo variety, and throughout the history of baseball, some of the game’s best hurlers have allowed tons of homers. The career leader is Jamie Moyer, and the next four pitchers are all in the Hall of Fame: Robin Roberts, Ferguson Jenkins, Phil Niekro, and Don Sutton.

However, there is one thing that should be a concern for Terry Francona and his pitching coaching staff of Carl Willis, Ruben Niebla, and Brian Sweeney. And it may be the most important pitching spot for a contending team. It’s the status of closer Brad Hand.

Last night, Hand picked up his 5th save, but it certainly wasn’t pretty. Coming in with a 3-0 lead handed to him by Shane Bieber and Nick Wittgren, Hand walked the lead off hitter on five pitches.

He then got Miguel Cabrera to lineout to LF, while the next hitter, Jonathan Schoop reached on catchers’ interference, which wasn’t Hand’s doing.

Another line drive to left was followed by an RBI double, so suddenly, the Tigers had the tying runs in scoring position. Cameron Maybin bounced to the mound, and the Tribe won the game.

In Hand’s 5-2/3 innings this season, he’s allowed five hits and four walks, along with seven runs, four of them earned.

He’s made seven appearances on the season, and has produced just one clean inning, that on August 4th. And he’s yet to protect a one run lead heading to the ninth.

He did come into a scoreless tie vs. the White Sox on July 29th, but proceeded to allow four runs (three earned) facing five hitters, retiring just one.

If the rest of the bullpen were struggling, we could understand Francona’s reticence to move away from Hand as the closer, but that is not the case. In fact, the skipper has started to use rookie James Karinchak in high leverage situations, aka the “Andrew Miller” role.

Nick Wittgren, who closed some a year ago when Hand was down with a tired arm, has pitched eight times (8 IP) to a 2.25 ERA and striking out 10. He’s prone to giving up the long ball, he gave up 10 gopher balls in 2019, but just one this season.

Another rookie, Cam Hill, has also earned a save, and outside of an outing against the Cubs last week, has also been very effective.

The questions are these for Tito, does he feel confident using Hand in a one run save opportunity? Would he use Karinchak in that spot, if he hadn’t already use him earlier? Would he go to Hill or Wittgren?

Again, it would be one thing if the veteran lefty, and three time All Star struggled once or twice, but he’s been shaky in six of his seven outings, and his velocity seems down, and he’s had command issues with his slider.

If Francona isn’t nervous, everyone else is.

This isn’t a normal 162 game season. The Indians are a little over a third of the way through the season, so patience is in short supply.

Perhaps Willis and his guys see something to indicate Hand is close to regaining his usual form. If they aren’t, it will be interesting to see what course of action is.

DeShields May Be Tribe’s Best CF Option For Now.

The outfield of the Cleveland Indians has been a supposed weakness for several years, at least according to the national baseball media.

Some years, Terry Francona’s use of the platoon advantages, the skipper covers up the problem. However, centerfield seems to have been an issue for several years.

A few weeks ago, we wrote a piece about Bradley Zimmer, detailing that he was called up in 2017 because Francona wasn’t happy with having to use Lonnie Chisenhall in center, and he needed a left-handed hitter to platoon with Austin Jackson.

Abraham Almonte wasn’t hitting and Tyler Naquin’s defense wasn’t gold glove worthy in the middle of the outfield.

The following year, Jackson, who was tremendous both offensively and defensively (869 OPS) was gone to free agency and the platoon was Greg Allen and Rajai Davis, neither of whom provided much offense.

That necessitated the deal for Leonys Martin, who unfortunately fell ill shortly after being acquired from Detroit.

Jason Kipnis was moved to centerfield late in the season after Josh Donaldson came over from Toronto at the end of August.

When Francona was hired in 2013, it coincided with the signing of Michael Bourn as a free agent. Bourn was never an offensive juggernaut (career high of 739 OPS to that point), and didn’t really hit in Cleveland either, compiling a 660 OPS here over two and a half seasons.

He also stopped stealing bases when he arrived in Cleveland, which was probably his best offensive weapon. And he was just okay defensively.

Last year, Oscar Mercado came up in mid May and became, we guess, the first everyday centerfielder since Bourn, playing in 115 games and hit .269 with 15 homers and a 761 OPS.

Our lone concern about Mercado was his strikeout to walk ratio (84/28 in ’19), and he’s never been a big base on balls guy in the minors. However, that is something that can be gained through experience.

Perhaps if the other Tribe outfielders had been hitting, Mercado’s slow start to the season would have been overlooked and he would have time to get going, but they didn’t, so the second year player’s 5 for 41 start became a problem.

Drawing just two walks while fanning 13 times hasn’t helped either.

So, “summer camp” sensation Zimmer got more opportunities, and at first took advantage, but after starting 3 for 9, including a homer, he’s gone 3 for 19, and the strikeout bugaboo has returned, as he has fanned in seven of his last 16 plate appearances.

As a result, we are writing something we didn’t expect to…right now, the best option for the Indians is Delino DeShields.

Yes, the outfielder who the Tribe acquired in the Corey Kluber deal from Texas, and the guy who has a career 670 OPS, even though he played half of his games in the hitters paradise the Rangers used to play in.

So far, he’s taken some walks (4) and even squeezed home the lead run in the 10th inning of Sunday night’s win over Chicago. And he’s solid defensively in centerfield, as are Mercado and Zimmer, which is needed if Domingo Santana is playing the outfield.

This isn’t to write off Mercado, but again, with the team struggling as a whole (last in the AL in OPS and last in the majors in slugging percentage), management has to look for alternatives.

Zimmer earned an opportunity for more time, but right now, he is falling back a bit into what he showed as a hitter after his first couple of months at the big league level.

We scoffed about getting DeShields when the trade was made, but right now, he might be the best option the Indians have. Funny how some things play out.

No Panic Yet, But Tribe Offensive Is A Concern

Normally, there wouldn’t be any concern about the Cleveland Indians’ offense after just eight games. But as we all know, there is very little about 2020 that can be considered normal.

In a 60 game season, when the Indians and Twins finish their series in Minnesota on Sunday, the Tribe will have played 1/6th of their schedule, equaling 27 games on the usual docket.

And that makes the offense a concern, and it puts Terry Francona in a tough spot.

Cleveland is second to last in the American League in runs scored per game, ahead of only the Texas Rangers, who sit at 2-4. The Indians are 5-4, because their pitching staff has been brilliant thus far.

Yes, Mike Clevinger didn’t have a great outing Friday night, the first “poor” start of the campaign for the team, but the staff did hold Minnesota, who is second in the AL in runs per game, to just four tallies, and Carlos Carrasco gave up just three runs last night, but the Tribe mustered none.

The average American League team is scoring 4.4 runs per game to date, and the Indians have passed that standard just twice in the nine games. If you remove the nine run outburst against the Royals’ bullpen game last Sunday, the Tribe hitters are producing a paltry two runs a contest.

They are also last in the league in extra base hits with just 13 in the nine contests.

Eventually, you have to think the pitching staff is going to have a hiccup. They’ve allowed four runs a game (less than the league average) twice, and lost both games. The way they have pitched, the Tribe should be undefeated, instead of 5-4.

The bottom of the order to date has been dreadful, and right now, Francona doesn’t seem to have figured out the correct combination in the outfield.

Domingo Santana has been fine, mostly because he has drawn seven walks, leading to an on base percentage of .458. But Cleveland signed him for his pop, and he has one extra base hit.

In fact, Tribe outfielders (and we will include Franmil Reyes, if you want to call what he hit last night a double) have just three extra base hits. Santana has a double, Bradley Zimmer has a home run, and the Reyes double.

Zimmer is 5 for 17 thus far, the the summer camp sensation had one game where he went 2 for 4 with the HR, so the rest of the games, he is 3 for 13.

Reyes is 6 for 30 with 2 RBI, but hasn’t hit the long ball yet. His lone extra base hit was a squibbler up the middle that eluded the shortstop and second baseman.

Jordan Luplow is hitless in 12 at bats, and Oscar Mercado is 2 for 22 with no walks and five strikeouts.

Mercado’s at bat Friday night in Minnesota is what we worry about him, a lack of strike zone discipline. Randy Dobnak was trying to walk him, but Mercado didn’t take ball four, he fouled them off until he waved at a pitch in the dirt.

Again, normally, there wouldn’t be a concern for a few weeks, but this season is different. Right now, we would use Zimmer in center, especially vs. RHP, with Santana in right, and why not take a look at Daniel Johnson in LF?

And we might give Christian Arroyo a few at bats, although it might be tough. After all, he hasn’t had one to this point in the season.

Understand this also, Cleveland isn’t going to get any offense from the catching spot with Roberto Perez out. The organization wants defense and game calling first from that position, and that’s why Sandy Leon and Beau Taylor are there.

We understand Francisco Lindor hasn’t got going either, and neither has Carlos Santana, but both of them look like Stan Musial compared to the bottom four in the order.

We would not use the word panic, but instead say concern about the Cleveland outfield. For now, Terry Francona is searching for the hot bat, to help the Indians generate some runs.

Baseball Is Back And The Strategy Of The Three Batter Rule…

Baseball is back, and how great is it to say that and hear that? The 60 game sprint is on, even if it has been made less urgent by the expansion of the playoffs to eight teams in each league.

We are all aware of the new rules this year too. There’s a DH in the National League (hooray!), and there are two rules we aren’t very fond of because it messes with the purity of the sport.

(Yes, we are, and we hate this expression–“a baseball purist”.

The rules putting a runner on second base to start the tenth inning is understandable for this year (a little bit), but games that last more than 12 innings are rare, and we can tell you the last long game the Indians were involved in, the 19 inning affair in Toronto in 2016, was beyond exciting.

We were in a public place, and as the game went on, more and more fans drew close to the televisions in the establishment, and when the Indians won the game, a cheer went up throughout the building like the Tribe has clinched a playoff spot.

We bring this up, because the other new rule, the three batter minimum came into play during Friday night’s opener against the Royals.

With two outs in the top of the 7th and Adam Cimber on the mound, he walked Nicky Lopez, and Kansas City manager Mike Matheny countered by pinch-hitting left handed hitter Franchy Cordero.

We wondered if Terry Francona would counter with Oliver Perez to get the lefty, because we forgot about the rule, but remembered that Whit Merrifield was on deck, followed by switch hitting Adeberto Mondesi.

Now, if Perez got Cordero, all is good. With the inning ended, Perez did not have to face the three batter minimum, and Tito could bring in a right-hander to start the 8th.

But if Perez failed to get Cordero, he then would have had to face Merrifield with two men on and the game very much in the balance.

In the past, we think that’s what Francona would have done, bring in Perez to get the pinch-hitter, and then bring in Nick Wittgren to face the all star, Merrifield.

Cimber, who still makes us a tad nervous when he faces a left-handed hitter, got Cordero to ground out to Cesar Hernandez, and the inning was over.

We feel the new rule really affects a specialist, like Cimber, because he has been very good in his career vs. right-handed hitters (.240 batting average against, 624 OPS), but left handed hitters turn into Ted Williams (.313, 1.008 OPS).

If those numbers continue, the skipper will have to be very judicious in how to use him, and perhaps it is so difficult to use him in the correct spots, that it is not worth having a roster spot.

And for those wondering if Shane Bieber earned the Opening Day gig over Mike Clevinger, how was six scoreless innings with 14 strikeouts? It would be tough to beat that, no?

Yes, it was against Kansas City, but the Royals have some good hitters. Merrifield is a machine at the plate, and Jorge Soler did lead the AL in homers a year ago. Salvy Perez is a solid bat and Mondesi is a player to keep an eye on.

The best thing about baseball is they play again today, then tomorrow, etc. It’s the best reality show around in our opinion.

We wonder what the television ratings, usually high for the Indians, will be this season.

Tribe Depending On Some Young Players Continuing To Progress

Many people, including us, feel the Cleveland Indians will be a contender for a playoff spot this season, and to us, it wouldn’t have mattered if the season were 162 games or just 60.

However, much of those good vibes are based on some players with very little major league experience coming through in 2020.

For us, until a player establishes a track record, they have to be viewed with a jaundiced eye. And no doubt, the Tribe has their fair share of these players.

First is centerfielder Oscar Mercado. Remember, the Cardinals gave up on the former second round pick in 2013, trading him to the Indians for a couple of lower tiered prospects in 2018.

Mercado had a solid rookie season, hitting .269 with 15 HR and a 761 OPS, but walked just 28 times vs. 84 strikeouts. However, he thrived at Progressive Field, hitting .289 with 11 dingers (844 OPS) vs. .250 (679 OPS) on the road.

He struggled mightily in August, before having a good September.

If he regresses, Terry Francona does have some alternatives. Delino DeShields can fill the bill defensively for sure, but he’s never really hit well in the big leagues, and if Bradley Zimmer continues on the torrid pace he has set since summer camp started, he could wind up there.

It is worth keeping an eye on though.

The other area where much is counted on from young players is in the starting rotation, where Cleveland needs Aaron Civale and Zach Plesac to be solid starters right away.

The recently turned 25-years-old Civale pitches like a veteran, but has only thrown 58 innings at the big league level, and have less than 400 innings in the minor leagues.

He’s made 10 starts with the Indians, and in only two of them did he see the 7th inning.

His numbers last year were excellent, 44 hits allowed, striking out 46 while walking just 16, and he reminded many people of Corey Kluber in his manner and the way he attacked hitters, but he’s slated as the fourth starter, and the front office is counting on him to be the guy he was a year ago.

Plesac, who is also 25, is barely more experienced at the major league level than Civale, making 21 starts, firing 115 innings.

He actually threw less in the minors though, pitching just 259 innings because he had Tommy John surgery in college and the Tribe brought him back slowly.

After six starts at Akron, compiling an 0.96 ERA, he was on the fast track to Cleveland, and injuries had him with the big club for his debut in Fenway Park on May 28th.

The short season actually helps both Civale and Plesac because they won’t have deal with an innings increase threshold this season.

As for alternatives? Adam Plutko would be the first option should either falter, and the organization has Logan Allen, Scott Moss, and if he is healthy, Jefry Rodriguez as options. However, the latter group doesn’t have a real track record of success in the bigs either.

And then there is James Karinchak, counted on to be a set up man for Brad Hand.

We all know about Karinchak’s gaudy strikeout feats, his high octane fastball, and his knee buckling curve.

However, he has walked a lot of people in his minor league career, which only spans three seasons and a little over 100 innings (82 games). His walk ratio per nine innings is 5.5, and that’s probably why Francona hasn’t fallen in love with the soon to be 24-year-old.

Relievers who don’t throw strikes aren’t any manager’s friend, and Tito is no different.

The biggest problem is Francona doesn’t have a lot of alternatives if Karinchak isn’t effective. He would have to turn to prospects Kyle Nelson or Cam Hill or maybe veterans Phil Maton or Hunter Wood, but none have the filthy stuff Karinchak has.

It’s a bit of a high wire act for the organization, but the safety net is how these players performed last season. But, no doubt the Tribe needs progress from this quartet of young players.

How Is Tribe Roster Shaking Out?

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

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

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

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

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

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

That leaves nine spots open.

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

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

That makes 23.

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

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

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

And that brings us to 29 players.

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

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

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

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

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

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

Zimmer’s First Impression Still Resonates For Some.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

All In All, Tito Is Definitely An Asset For Tribe.

There was a recent debate on social media about the Indians’ success since 2013 (three American League Central Division titles, four post-season berths in total) and what factors are the biggest reason for it.

We know there are critics out there, but there should be no denying the front office structure the Tribe has is top notch, and Chris Antonetti has done an outstanding job running the baseball operations.

Have they been perfect? Of course not, no one is.

On the other hand, the Cleveland organization has not had to go through a period where they had to bottom out, lose 100 games, and trade their best players for prospects to speed up that process, like the Cubs, Astros, and currently, the Tigers, Orioles, and Pirates.

Another factor for this success is Terry Francona.

Yes, Francona’s kind of an old school manager. Does he bunt too much? Yes. Does he cling to veterans at times? He does have that tendency.

And if you have performed for him in the past, he has a fierce loyalty to you.

He’s still one of the best managers in the game, and likely will be inducted in Cooperstown some day because of his managing, and he will likely deflect praise for that honor, because that’s what Tito does.

Francona ranks 18th all time in career wins by a manager, and only Dusty Baker has won more among active managers. And of the 17 skippers with more wins than Francona, 12 of them are enshrined in the Hall of Fame, and our guess is Bruce Bochy will make that number 13 sooner or later.

In a normal season, he had a real good chance of passing Lou Boudreau as the Indians’ all time winningest manager too. With 91 more victories, he accomplishes that.

His winning percentage is behind only Hall of Famer Al Lopez and Oscar Vitt among Tribe skippers.

And while many may take umbrage with his in-game strategy at times (and we confess, it drives us nuts sometimes too), he sets a tone in the clubhouse for what is expected from the players.

In this unique 60 game season, we believe one edge the Indians have is the consistency Tito shows to his players. His mindset right from the get go has been there are only 60 games, and the Indians will look at it as when the first game is played on July 24th, as if they are tied for first place and heading into the homestretch.

Many teams have gone to hiring younger men to relate to today’s players, like Rocco Baldelli in Minnesota, Aaron Boone in New York, and Tito’s old foil in Cleveland, Kevin Cash in Tampa. But even though he’s 61 years old, Francona still relates to Frankie Lindor and Jose Ramirez.

Lindor’s prank on the skipper early this week exemplifies the relationship between the star shortstop and the manager.

Yes, Francona does get irritated with certain players, most notably Trevor Bauer a year ago, but those players also know their boss has their backs. We’ve heard people complain that he should get on players for making mistakes or for not hustling.

He does, but he does it privately, not in the media. That earn respect, and the players return it to him by playing hard. You don’t see players dog it that often in Cleveland.

We aren’t saying the Indians aren’t the only Major League team who will come into the season with the “no excuses” mantra, but we will bet there will be teams who won’t treat it as seriously as others because it’s not a “real season”.

Yesterday, he said he wants his players to be ready to “be prepared to kick somebody’s ass”.

Francona doesn’t allow for excuses, for himself and his players. He understands there won’t be a feeling out process in 2020. However, that doesn’t mean he will have the same level of patience as the typical fan.

All in all, fans of the Indians should feel grateful that Terry Francona is guiding this team. Long time supporters of the club should remember a list of people who weren’t even close to him.

Tribe Probably Looking For A New Closer…For 2021

It has been a long time since Terry Francona has needed to groom a closer, but other than winning baseball games, that might be his most important secondary chore in the 2020 season.

When Francona took over as Tribe skipper in 2013, Chris Perez was the closer, coming off a 39 save season in 2012, and although he had some injury issues during the campaign, he saved 25 for Cleveland in ’13.

When Perez was out, Francona used Vinnie Pestano and Bryan Shaw to close, but he was using a young 24-year-old right-hander drafted just two years prior as a set up man.

That pitcher was Cody Allen, and he took over the closer role the following season and saved a club record 156 games for the Tribe over the next five years, including seven in post-season play in 2016 and 2017.

With Allen on the roster and pitching effectively, Tito didn’t have to worry about who was pitching the ninth inning, he simply handed the ball to Allen, and the reliever was always ready to get four outs if need be.

Allen was such a good fit and a team player, that when the Indians traded for Andrew Miller in ’16, Francona used the southpaw as a “super reliever” bringing him in whenever the fire was the hottest.

He could do that because of the confidence he had in Allen.

In 2018, when both Allen and Miller started to leak some oil, perhaps because the extra work in the ’16 run to the World Series, president Chris Antonetti and GM Mike Chernoff traded for San Diego closer Brad Hand, who saved eight games that season, and 34 a year ago.

Hand is signed through this season, but has a club option for $10 million for the 2021 season, and even without the uncertainty of baseball finances next year due to the coronavirus, we would doubt Cleveland wants to pay a closer that kind of cash.

At the initial spring training, people were looking forward to seeing the combination of youngsters Emmanuel Clase, 21, who came over in the Corey Kluber trade, and rookie James Karinchak, 23, who debuted last September, setting up the veteran Hand.

A righty, Clase has a 100 MPH cutter that Frankie Lindor said was the nastiest pitch he’s ever seen, and appeared in 21 games for Texas, going 2-3 with one save and a 2.31 ERA in 23.1 innings with 21 strikeouts.

Karinchak is famous, at least here, for his gaudy strikeout rates coming through the Indians’ farm system.

However, Clase has been suspended for the ’20 season due to PED usage, so the manager will not get to see him under fire this season.

So, it would seem that if Karinchak can throw strikes, which has been an issue in his minor league career, he could give Francona enough confidence to use him as the closer in 2021, and in turn, allow the front office to either pick up Hand’s option and trade him or not pick up the option at all.

On the other hand, as former Tribe GM John Hart used to say, closers fall out of trees, so as the 2020 season plays out, it may be someone else who earns the skipper’s confidence.

Perhaps a veteran like James Hoyt or Phil Maton, or maybe injury plagued prospect Triston McKenzie gets used as a bullpen arm. Or it could be someone like Cam Hill or Kyle Nelson.

Remember, it’s not just the arm that makes a solid closer, it’s dealing with the pressure of pitching with the game on the line. The closer has to be someone who can shake off a bad performance and go out and do the job the next night. Kind of an “everyday” pitcher.

We know the Indians want to win ballgames this season, but finding a successor to Hand might be the most important secondary thing to come out of the 2020 season.