Does Straw Solve The Leadoff Puzzle?

At the trade deadline, Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff made on trade that didn’t involve getting a prospect when they moved reliever Phil Maton and a minor league catcher to Houston for centerfielder Myles Straw.

So far, so good for Straw, who has played 21 games for Cleveland, batting .318 with a .389 on base percentage. For the entire season, the right-handed hitter has a .273 average and gets on base at a .349 clip.

That figure is slightly better than his career mark of .342, over 217 games.

If Straw can continue to get on base at this clip, could he solve the leadoff problem the Indians have had since Grady Sizemore was injured?

Since Terry Francona arrived in 2013, it seems like the Tribe has been searching for a leadoff hitter. That season, Michael Bourn was the primary lead off man, doing the job in 124 games. Bourn had the look of a guy who should fit in the top spot, and in the previous seasons to ’13, he did have close to a .350 OBP.

Bourn got on base just 31.6% of the time, a figure that ranked 5th among the everyday players. He led off 104 times the next season (2014) with a .314 OBP, which was 4th best on the team.

Remember, those squads included on base machine Carlos Santana, but Francona favored having the switch-hitter with more pop in his bat (47 HR in these two seasons) lower in the lineup.

In 2015, Jason Kipnis was the primary guy at the top of the order, taking over the role in late April and was the leadoff man for 121 games. It was the smart move as he was second on the team in OBP, behind only Michael Brantley, who was the primary #3 hole batter. He also contributed 59 extra base hits, including 43 doubles.

When Cleveland won the American League pennant in 2016, Francona used kind of a platoon situation at the top of the order. Against lefties, Rajai Davis played center and when he played, he hit first. When a right-hander started, Tyler Naquin played CF, and Santana was the leadoff man in 85 games.

Santana had his usual excellent on base percentage, ranking second on the team at .366. Davis didn’t really get on base that much, even against southpaws, but it was old school thinking putting a speed guy at the top of the order.

Francisco Lindor moved into the leadoff spot in August of 2017 (in total, he led off 63 games), but he ranked 5th in OBP, behind Santana, Brantley, Jose Ramirez, and Edwin Encarnacion. Francona liked the pop, but really the Indians took off after Lindor started hitting first, going 42-9 after the move, including the 22 game winning streak.

Lindor stayed at the spot until early last year until even though his on base percentage didn’t really fit the spot, his best year was .352 in ’18, and dropping into the .330 range from then on. We always felt Lindor should hit lower in the order, and advocated for Santana to be there.

Francona tried to use Cesar Hernandez there to start last season, but switched back to Lindor late in the season in an effort to get him going offensively.

He used Ben Gamel and Jordan Luplow early this season before going back to Hernandez, but the second baseman’s ability to get on base waned, dropping to .307 before they got Straw from Houston.

Mike Hargrove used to say if you have a leadoff man and a clean up hitter, you have the basis for a solid lineup. With Franmil Reyes in the #4 hole, perhaps Straw gives the Indians a traditional leadoff hitter. Someone who is perfect for the role, and not a better fit somewhere else.

It’s early to be sure, but the early returns are promising for Myles Straw. He could fill the leadoff role perfectly in 2022.

An Intriguing Week For The Tribe, To Be Sure.

With the Major League Baseball trade deadline at the end of July, Tribe fans had to know it would be an eventful week, and it lived up to the billing.

Yes, team president Chris Antonetti and GM Mike Chernoff made some deals, but the big news was the announcement that Terry Francona was leaving the team for health reasons, and would not be back this season.

Francona’s health has now caused him to miss parts of the last two seasons, and we hope that he gets the medical attention he needs and will be back in the dugout for Opening Day 2022. And if he chooses to retire, his next stop will be Cooperstown.

Many Indians’ fans have decried the trades as throwing in the towel on the season or as ownership cutting more payroll.

Let’s face it, the Tribe has an uphill battle to make the post-season, but that doesn’t mean they won’t keep battling for interim skipper DeMarlo Hale, and although Cesar Hernandez and Eddie Rosario were among the highest paid players on the team, it’s not exactly like they were having all-star caliber seasons.

Hernandez did have a career high in home runs, but his on base percentage was down almost 50 points from a year ago and almost 40 points from his career mark. And his defense noticeably dipped as well. So, the team will get a look at youngsters Owen Miller and/or Andres Gimenez, although when the latter comes up it should be to play shortstop.

Would we be shocked if either provided more offensively than Hernandez? We would answer only slightly.

As for Rosario, everyone was excited by his signing because of the way he hit against Cleveland as a member of the Minnesota Twins. That Eddie Rosario didn’t show up this season, certainly in terms of power. His slugging percentage is almost 100 points less than his days in the Twin Cities.

He was second on the team in RBIs when he was injured, so he did contribute there.

Still, the team’s production at both positions was below league average, and in the case of Rosario, he was unlikely to be back in 2022.

Both of those moves were predictable, but the other two deals weren’t to us. We figured a reliever might be moved, but most thought it would be Bryan Shaw. However, it was underutilized (at least to us) Phil Maton that went to Houston for a very intriguing piece in CF Myles Straw.

Straw was the Astros primary centerfielder, hitting .262 with a 665 OPS. He’s got speed, currently 4th in the American League in steals. Oddly, Straw didn’t like hitting in Minute Maid Park, compiling a .297 batting average and 739 OPS on the road. Hopefully, that’s the guy the Indians will see.

What does Straw means for the future of Bradley Zimmer, Oscar Mercado, and even Daniel Johnson in a Cleveland uniform? We would certainly like to see more of Johnson, who after starting the season 0 for 9, actually has gone 9 for 35. Not great, but an Indians who gets a hit in every four at bats isn’t exactly common.

Trading Jordan Luplow thins out the crowded (not production wise) outfield, and that was the biggest surprise. Luplow had tremendous number vs. southpaws and we would have liked to seen him get a full time chance because his minor league numbers showed he could hit righties.

The pitcher Cleveland received from Tampa for Luplow, Peyton Battenfield, has 95 strikeouts in 67-1/3 innings this season in the minors, so it could be the Tribe really wanted the arm. This year showed they needed some pitching depth in the high levels of the minor leagues.

Are the Indians a better team than they were on Wednesday? It remains to be seen, but they didn’t exactly break up an offensive juggernaut. Maybe Straw provides better hitting than what Tribe centerfielders have contributed so far. Maybe Owen Miller starts to show the stroke he had in the minors.

While not truly giving up on the season (see, Chicago Cubs and Washington Nationals), the front office is looking toward 2022. And based on the last month, which saw a nine game losing streak, why not?

Tribe Slump A Result Of All Phases

On June 24th, the Cleveland Indians beat the Minnesota Twins 4-1 to bring their record to 41-31, and were just two games behind the White Sox in the American League Central Division.

Since that day, the Tribe has gone 7-17, including a nine game losing streak from June 30th, when they lost a doubleheader to Detroit to July 7th, when they lost a twin bill to Tampa.

And they’ve also lost 11 straight games to the Rays, spanning back to 2019.

The injuries to the starting pitching gets quite a bit of the blame for this bad streak, but in Cleveland’s last 29 games, a span that actually started earlier than the losing, the Indians have scored more than four runs just seven times.

Amazingly, they have lost three of those games.

Since the beginning of July, the Tribe has lost three games where they had the lead going into the 9th inning.

The point is this stretch has been brutal for Terry Francona’s squad, with each area of the roster contributing to the losing.

The team had to be happy when a starting pitcher gives them five quality innings, but recently, Zach Plesac has returned to give them some good outings, and Cal Quantrill has gone 2-0 with a 3.22 ERA in four starts.

Rookie Eli Morgan has been able to pitch five innings in each of his last five outings. His ERA has been 6.12 in those starts, but he has given the team a chance to win each time.

So, despite the injuries to their top three starters, the starting pitching hasn’t been awful. Triston McKenzie has been better since his most recent visit to Columbus either. Unfortunately, JC Mejia continues to show he’s not ready to pitch in the majors.

The bullpen has shown signs of wear and tear to the three late inning relievers, with Emmanuel Clase blowing two ninth inning leads and James Karinchak one, and Bryan Shaw has allowing 11 runs, nine earned in his last 17 appearances.

The offense has struggled along with their best weapon, Jose Ramirez. In his last seven games, Ramirez is just 2 for 18, with a homer. Over the last 14 days, he is hitting .160 (4 for 25). Even worse, over the last 28 days, he’s hitting .230 with four long balls. He still has an 846 OPS in that span.

His production has dropped since he was hit in the foot by a pitch against Pittsburgh, which coincidentally is when the Cleveland offense hit this cold patch over the last 29 games. He has also been battling a sore elbow.

Ramirez is by far the best position player on the team, and because of that, if he is struggling, it is very difficult for this offense to get anything going. The only consistent hitters Francona has are Jose, Franmil Reyes, and Harold Ramirez, and for some reason, the latter gets left out of the lineup far too often.

Yes, some players have pitched in from time to time, such as Bobby Bradley who has belted 11 homers, but in July, he has batted .158 with 30 strikeouts in 72 plate appearances. He has taken some walks, but the swing and miss issues are still a major issue.

The defense also breaks down a lot. Cesar Hernandez’ work with the glove has taken a dramatic dip. Amed Rosario has range issues and problems turning the double play. Fly balls hit to anyone besides Bradley Zimmer and Oscar Mercado have become adventures.

That doesn’t help a young pitching staff either.

Among the everyday players, outside of the two Ramirez’s and Reyes, could the front office make a deal that would weaken any other position? We doubt it. Let’s say Hernandez is moved, it would give Owen Miller another shot. Amed? They could get another look at Andres Gimenez, who would at least provide better defense.

No, the Indians shouldn’t go into tank mode, but they should look to reshape the roster with an eye towards 2022. Getting Shane Bieber and Aaron Civale back should mean an improved offense put the Indians in contention next year.

But they should look to get stronger in all areas too. There is room for that in all phases of the game.

Some Areas Where Tribe Would Like To Get Answers.

Friday night, the Cleveland Indians will commence the second half of the baseball season with a three game series in Oakland, which over the past few seasons has been a house of horrors for the Tribe.

Eli Morgan, Cal Quantrill, and Zach Plesac take the hill against the A’s, which is a bit comforting in that the first two have at least given Terry Francona five solid innings for the most part, and Plesac is the only holdover from the opening day rotation.

Regardless of what happens during these critical first ten games after the break, the Tribe organization would like to get some questions answered for the rest of this season.

Centerfield. Francona has mixed and matched at this position all season long. Bradley Zimmer has played the most games in center (36), followed by Jordan Luplow (22), Harold Ramirez (20), and amazingly Amed Rosario (18).

But Zimmer has shown no offensive ability other than being hit by pitches and stealing bases. He is probably the best defender at the position though. Oscar Mercado was called up a couple of weeks ago, and so far, has done okay at the plate (843 OPS in 35 plate appearances). Is that sustainable?

When can Luplow return? Can he provide another option in the middle of the outfield?

It would be nice if someone could seize the job for the rest of the season. However, we don’t see that happening.

First Base. Certainly, Bobby Bradley is giving the Indians much better production than they received out of the Jake Bauers/Yu Chang platoon. But can the left-handed power hitter provide consistency?

Bradley started out like a house afire, going 12 for his first 32 (.375) with four home runs and 11 RBIs. Then, he went through a stretch where he went 2 for 28, striking out 10 times. In his last 44 at bats, he has 11 hits, four of them dingers.

Hopefully, Bradley can keep the cold streaks to a minimum and even when he’s not hitting balls over the walls, he can contribute offensively by mixing in some base hits and walks. That’s been a problem for him in his career.

Triston McKenzie. If Cleveland is to weather the storm until Shane Bieber and/or Aaron Civale get back, they need McKenzie to step up. The soon to be 24-year-old has had trouble throwing strikes all year long, walking 7.3 hitters per nine innings.

However, he has also struck out 12.4 batters per nine. He returned from AAA last Friday night and threw seven one-hit innings, fanning nine Kansas City hitters. He also set a team record earlier in the season, whiffing eight straight White Sox batters.

The stuff is obviously there. If the young right-hander can repeat his delivery and throw strikes consistently, he can take a huge stride toward being a legitimate starting pitcher in the majors.

And he doesn’t have to throw seven innings allowing just one hit to do that.

Defense. To be kind, the Tribe’s defense to date has been atrocious, and that of course, doesn’t help the pitching staff. Some of the reason for that was putting players in spots they really can’t handle defensively in order to get their bats in the lineup (see Harold Ramirez CF).

But Cesar Hernandez has had a tough go this season, and Amed Rosario still makes people nervous every time a ground ball is hit his way.

Hopefully, this area improves as the season goes on.

No games until Friday is a tough thing for a baseball fan. Hopefully, when play resumes this weekend, the Indians’ can start getting some clarity on these questions.

Tribe Should Have Heeded Tito’s Adage

Terry Francona has always said when you think you have enough pitching, you go out and get some more. It’s too bad his bosses didn’t heed his advise.

We know the Indians have traded away a lot of pitching over the last two and a half years, moving former Cy Young Award winner Corey Kluber, and then Trevor Bauer and Mike Clevinger in deadline deals in 2019 and 2020 respectively.

The organization has done a tremendous job developing young pitchers. The current (if healthy) top of the rotation features three pitchers drafted in 2016: Shane Bieber, Zach Plesac, and Aaron Civale. Going into spring training, the fourth and fifth spots appeared to belong to Cal Quantrill and Triston McKenzie.

We wrote at the time that outside of Bieber, none of those guys had more than 300 big league innings under their belt, and it would be wise to trade for or sign at least one experience arm.

Pitchers like Tijuan Walker (6-3, 2.38 ERA with the Mets), Jake Odorizzi (2-3, 4.08 ERA with Houston), and Tyler Anderson (3-8, 4.75 ERA with Pittsburgh) among others all were available shortly before spring training started. And none of them signed for huge amounts of money, always a consideration for the frugal Cleveland franchise.

Perhaps the organization got too caught up in the success of Bieber, Plesac, and Civale, all of whom seemed to have very little growing pains coming up to the bigs. Or more realistically, the ownership would not allow for the signing of a veteran hurler to add another proven arm.

Quantrill had command issues in spring training (he’s still going through them), so he went back to the bullpen, because of that and the fact that Logan Allen pitched extremely well in Arizona.

When the regular season started, Allen couldn’t keep the ball in the yard, and McKenzie, who opened as the 5th starter, couldn’t throw strikes.

They tried 24-year-old Sam Hentges, 24-year-old JC Mejia, and 25-year-old Eli Morgan, none of whom had any major league experience, and none were experiencing any great success in the minors.

When Bieber got the call in 2018, he was 6-1 with a 1.47 ERA in 13 starts at AAA and AA. Plesac came up in 2019 out of necessity due to injuries, but he was 4-2 with a 1.70 ERA in 10 starts in the high minors. Civale was 7-1, 2.43 in 13 starts in ’19 when he got the call.

By contrast, Hentges didn’t even pitch in the minors this year, nor last season due to the pandemic. His last minor league season was spent in Akron in ’19, where he went 2-11 with a 5.13 ERA.

Mejia had made two career starts above Class A in his life, both this year, before getting called up. He was 3-1 with an ERA just over four in Hi-A ball, in 2019, pitching just 33 innings.

Morgan made four starts this year at Columbus (4.67 ERA) and made 19 starts in AAA two years ago, with a 3.79 ERA.

We understand the organization didn’t think the latter trio was ready for the big league rotation now, but they left themselves no room for error.

And when Plesac went down on May23rd, the Tribe could’ve signed a free agent not currently in anyone’s organization and they would be ready now to help the team over this hurdle.

Rick Porcello, Cole Hamels, and Anibal Sanchez are just three pitchers still unattached, and another Homer Bailey, just signed with Oakland. Could any of those guys have helped? There is no way of knowing, but at the very least, they could have bought time for the youngsters.

They could’ve made a trade as well, although we would like to think Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff tried. It is well documented the organization has a ton of middle infielders regarded as good prospects. Move one of them for a starter who can soak up innings without taking the team out of a game early.

Perhaps the Indians can whether the current storm and stay in the race for the playoffs, and if they do and come up just short, they could point to these games pitched by men who weren’t ready to handle the job.

The point is the front office (including ownership) should have listened to their skipper. Heading into spring training, the pitching staff was very inexperienced. They pretended it wasn’t an issue.

Tribe Still Has Leadoff Woes

Former Indians’ manager Mike Hargrove used to say if a team had a leadoff hitter and a cleanup hitter, everything else kind of fell into place in terms of making out the batting order.

This season, the #4 spot in the order has been one of the more productive spots for the Tribe, with an OPS of 746, ranking third for the season behind the #3 spot, occupied by Jose Ramirez, and the #5 spot, which has an OPS of 781, and has the most home runs (19) of any spot.

However, the leadoff spot continues to be troubling.

Since the job at that spot is to get on base, having a .287 on base percentage from that spot means more often than not, the game starts with one out. And only the #7 and #9 have a more difficult time reaching base safely.

Last season, Cesar Hernandez did a great job in the leadoff spot. He had a .355 OBP, pretty much in line with his career norm. However this season, that figure has dropped to .299. Ideally, a .350 figure equals being a good leadoff man. Right now, it’s a problem for an offense that struggles to score runs, ranking below average in the AL in that department.

The .299 figure is based on the entire season. After Hernandez was moved into the #1 hole by Terry Francona in May, his on base average is actually the same at .299

Granted, the switch-hitter has hit in tough luck for much of the season. He has hit an inordinate amount of line drives that have resulted in outs. So, maybe those liners will start dropping and the former Phillie will get on a hot streak.

He does have a 792 OPS vs. southpaws, but that is a result of hitting for more power right-handed. He has a .476 slugging percentage vs. LHP compared to just .337 vs. right-handers. His on base figure is comparable, .289 vs. RHP and .316 vs. lefties.

The real problem for Francona is there isn’t a viable alternative on the roster. Among players with more than 100 plate appearances, Ramirez gets on base the most at .347, but moving him to the leadoff spot creates a hole at #3.

By the way, that isn’t a reason to not hit him there. We would seriously consider it because it would also get him up to the plate more often.

Ranking behind Ramirez is the injured Jordan Luplow (.331), who actually did leadoff quite a bit before Hernandez was moved there. He still ranks third on the team in walks behind Hernandez and Ramirez. Following Luplow is Amed Rosario with a .331 OBP.

Bradley Zimmer has a .353 on base average, but that figure is skewed because he has been hit by six pitches to date. Without those, his figure drops to .288. If he could promise to keep getting hit, maybe he could bat first, but it doesn’t seem like that’s something that can be sustained.

At Columbus, Owen Miller has a .407 figure, but he struggled when given an opportunity with the big club. Both Gabriel Arias and Nolan Jones are over .350, but neither has spent a day in the majors and thrusting them into the leadoff spot puts a lot of pressure on a young player.

So, the alternatives are hoping Hernandez’ line drives start falling in or putting Ramirez in the top spot in the order, which might work when Franmil Reyes comes back. Francona could go–

Ramirez
A. Rosario
E. Rosario
Reyes
Bradley

Getting guys on base leading off an inning really helps an offense, it doesn’t take a genius to see that. It certainly would help the Cleveland offense.

If Tribe Can Hang In, Will The Front Office Get Some Help?

The Cleveland Indians were thought to have a softer part of their schedule in June. Starting June 4th, the Tribe started a stretch of 24 games in which only the Cubs and Cardinals had winning records.

To date, they probably haven’t fared as well as they would have liked, with an 9-7 record entering play on Monday night at Wrigley Field. However, they have trimmed a game and a half off the AL Central Division lead, and now sit just two games out (just one in the loss column).

And they are also just two games out of the second wild card spot in the American League, meaning they are very much in the post-season race.

As we approach the end of July trading deadline, the question must be asked: Will the Indians be buyers or sellers come the end of next month.

Certainly, much depends on how Terry Francona’s squad does in the brutal stretch coming up as the calendar turns. Leading up to the All Star Game, Cleveland plays four at home against the Astros, three in Tampa, and come back home for four with the Royals.

The Astros have the league’s best record and the Rays are fifth.

Then, coming out of the break, the Tribe has three with Oakland (currently with the 2nd best record in the AL), three more with Houston, and four at home vs. Tampa, with the Cardinals coming to Progressive Field for two more.

If the Indians emerge from that gauntlet still in the race, doesn’t the front office have to do something to help the current roster down the stretch?

Keep in mind, Cleveland has a boatload of prospects in the lower rungs of the minor leagues, some of which will need to be protected for the Rule 5 draft at the end of the Winter Meetings. They cannot protect all of those players, so it could be prudent for the organization to try to move some for some help on the major league roster.

We aren’t suggesting the team should move the organization’s top prospects, Nolan Jones or Tyler Freeman, and really when you look at deadline deals, it is very rare for another organization to part with their top two or three prospects in the system.

The question is will the Cleveland organization be open to such a move?

Yes, we know that has been the recent history. In 2016, they made a move to get Andrew Miller. In 2017, they got Jay Bruce, and in ’18, it was Brad Hand. The following year, the made the deal to get Franmil Reyes and Yasiel Puig, although it cost them Trevor Bauer.

But those teams had higher expectations coming into the season, although the 2021 Tribe were expected to be competitive, we have a feeling the front office figured this team wasn’t going to be this close at this point in the season.

We don’t know that for sure, but the severe payroll reduction points to just that.

If the front office (and we are including ownership in that group) were really interested in getting to the playoffs this season, they would fortify the roster, particularly the starting pitching staff prior to the stretch of games coming up starting July 1st.

There are plenty of teams already making plans for the winter, so why not try to swing a deal for a serviceable starting pitcher? We know JC Mejia and Sam Hentges did well over the weekend (the former after a bad first inning), but remember, the Pirates have one of the game’s worst offenses.

Playing well over the next six weeks would put a lot of pressure on the organization to help the 2021 edition of the Cleveland Indians. And based on how this group of players and their manager have battled to this point, we wouldn’t put it past them.

Tribe Need Quality Innings Out Of Guys Who Start

It was another week involving injuries for the Cleveland Indians. After the shocking news at the beginning of the week that Shane Bieber had a shoulder strain, the Tribe also lost Austin Hedges to a concussion on Thursday and in Friday’s 11-10 loss to the Pirates, they lost Jose Ramirez with a bruised foot after being hit by a pitch.

That necessitated veteran Ryan Lavarnway being called up to help out behind the plate, and yesterday, Bobby Bradley, who doesn’t have 100 big league at bats yet, was forced to hit third.

Amazingly, the Indians cobbled together a sweep against Baltimore despite not having any starting pitcher throw more frames than the five pitched by Aaron Civale in game three of the series.

In fact, the last Cleveland starter to go more than five was Bieber last Sunday and he only went 5-2/3. The last Tribe hurler to see the seventh inning was Civale, who pitched eight, one hit innings against the Mariners a week ago Friday.

It’s difficult to imagine that working over a decent period of time without taking a toll on the entire pitching staff.

It was encouraging to see both JC Mejia and Cal Quantrill both go five innings against Pittsburgh in the last two games, so maybe they are finally stretched out enough to get into and perhaps complete six innings in their next start.

The relief corps has taken a heavy toll this past week and yesterday’s game might have been the first sign of pitchers showing wear and tear on their arms.

Bryan Shaw’s comeback story has been remarkable, but he has walked 24 hitters in 28 innings this season, although the damage has been limited because he only gave up 15 hits. However, his last three appearances have been dreadful, pitching two innings, allowing five hits and five walks.

Overall in June, the veteran righty has pitched 7-1/3 innings, giving up nine hits and eight walks for a 9.82 ERA. You have to think Terry Francona will look elsewhere the next time the seventh inning of a close game arises.

James Karinchak also has shown signs of a little wear. Remember, he pitched only 27 innings a year ago, and has already topped that this season. He pitched three days in a row last week in the Baltimore series.

In April, Karinchak was beyond dominant, allowing just two hits and striking out 22 of the 34 batters he faced. In May, he fanned 21 of the 45 batters that came to the plate and allowed only six hits, although three of them were homers.

To date in June, he has whiffed just 12 of the 27 batters who dug in against him, and allowed another home run yesterday. Just something to keep an eye on.

We are sure Francona and the Tribe front office look at the Tampa Bay model in handling the pitching staff without real starters. However the Rays have four pitchers with over 25 appearances, five with over 20, but only one (Ryan Thompson) with over 30 games pitched.

Cleveland has six pitchers with more than 20 appearances, but three of them, Shaw, Karinchak, and Emmanuel Clase, have appeared in more than 30 games.

This might be a subtle difference, but it is something to keep an eye on, and shows again, the need for starters to provide more length. It is very tough for a bullpen to keep this kind of burden over a long season.

The Indians are a team built on starting pitching. To us, as soon as Logan Allen and Triston McKenzie showed they weren’t ready, the organization should have started grooming Quantrill for one of those spots.

After all, he was set to be a starter in spring training. They are doing it now, but they may have lost a couple of weeks of development.

Hopefully, by the All Star break, Plesac and Bieber will be close to returning if not ready. That could provide a boost to a rotation currently running on fumes.

Baseball Needs Someone To Care. The Commish Doesn’t

Hall of Fame player Bill Terry once said “baseball must be a great game to survive the fools who run it”. Terry was born in 1898 and played from 1923-36, and managed through 1941. However, his words seem to be just as true today.

The latest controversy in the National Pastime is the sticky substances being used by pitchers to gain an advantage. Every sport deals with players trying to get an edge on their opponents, but when taken to extreme measures, the sport has to deal with the problem.

We agree some of the substances being used are giving pitchers a huge advantage. We’ve all seen the pitches which show up on the daily highlights where it appears the man on the mound is throwing a whiffle ball to opposing hitters. Our opinion is those pitches are mainly the result of using super sticky stuff, like pine tar or the latest thing, Spider Tack, to accomplish these results.

We digress.

The real problem with baseball right now is who is taking care of the game? And it might be the fans, and only the fans.

The commissioner and his office serve the owners, who don’t seem to be concerned with the play on the field. In the past year, they have instituted a terrible extra inning rule, putting a runner on second base to start the 10th and any subsequent inning in an effort to get games over with quicker.

They’ve also shortened doubleheader games to seven innings. What would be the reaction if the NFL announced Thursday night games were only going to be three quarters because both teams are likely only getting three days off?

You don’t have to worry about the reaction because it will never happen.

The sport seems to go out of its way to tell you how bad it is. The game’s are too long, there is not enough action, etc.

Baseball’s in-house network tries to promote the young players coming into the game, like Fernando Tatis Jr., Vlade Guerrero Jr., and Shohei Ohtani, but they seem to focus on the teams in the bigger markets and home runs and/or strikeouts. They don’t talk enough about players who play a solid brand of baseball, winning baseball.

It’s not up to the players to care for the game either. It is their way of making a living, and therefore their first thought is making money.

That said, you can tell some of them love the game and want to do what’s right, and want to promote the sport.

This latest issue though just shows the disconnect within the sport. Instead of just banning all substances immediately and proposing suspensions, why not talk to the players and work out an agreement everyone is happy with?

There have been articles that the “go to” mixture of rosin and sunscreen helps the grip but doesn’t affect spin rates and velocity. That’s the competitive advantage, being able to throw with more velocity and wicked movement on that speed.

Or as was pointed out on the Indians’ telecast on Tuesday evening, Terry Francona wondered why MLB just doesn’t do what Japan does. Apparently, the balls already have some tackiness when they are put into play if we understood correctly.

Either way, there could have been a better solution presented with both parties having some input. That way, both sides have skin in the game and feel better about things, instead of one side dropping a heavy handed edict.

The commissioner and by association the owners seem to want to do things their way without paying attention to the players and even more odd, their customers, the fans. It’s an odd way of trying to work things out.

Someone needs to care about the grand ol’ game, that is besides the fans.

Tribe Needs Starting Pitching…And Quickly

The news came like a gut punch to Tribe fans all over the nation. Shane Bieber was placed on the IL with the shoulder strain.

The Indians are currently sitting with a 34-28 record and are in second place in the American League Central Division, 5-1/2 games behind the White Sox. They are also just 1-1/2 games behind Houston (although tied in the loss column) for the second wild card spot.

That seems good, doesn’t it.

Until you think about the state of the starting pitching for the Tribe, at least currently. Right now, the rotation consists of Aaron Civale, one of the better starting pitchers in the majors right now. It also included Shane Bieber, but he won’t pick up a baseball for at least two weeks.

Civale currently leads the AL in wins with nine, tied for the Major League lead with the Dodgers’ Julio Urias.

Hopefully, Zach Plesac will return sooner than later, perhaps after the All Star break, and he will give Terry Francona a third starter who should be able to give him at least six solid innings.

As for the rest of the pitchers who have started games recently, the numbers aren’t exactly pretty. The once plentiful supply of good arms in the farm system has appeared to have dried up.

Remember what Francona has always said, when you think you have enough pitching, you go out and get some more.

Triston McKenzie has made 10 starts, totally 38-2/3 innings. He has a 6.75 ERA in those frame. The good news? He has struck out 54 hitters. The bad news? He has walked 35.

By the way, that comes to less than 4 innings per start, which is not good.

Left-hander Sam Hentges has made four starts, with a 8.56 ERA in 13-2/3 innings. That’s an average of 3-1/3 frames per start.

Another youngster (McKenzie is just 23, Hentges just 24), 24-year-old JC Mejia, has made three starts. His first was pretty good, going three scoreless innings at Baltimore as the Indians were getting him stretched out. In his second, he didn’t make it out of the first inning in St. Louis, giving up four runs. Last night, he went four innings.

Cal Quantrill has a similar experience. His first start was pretty good, going 3-2/3 and allowing just one run vs. the White Sox, but in his second start, he lasted just an inning and a third, allowing seven runs, five of them earned.

If we include Logan Allen’s five starts at the beginning of the year, which totaled 15-2/3 innings, an average of just over three innings per start, the starting pitchers not named Bieber, Civale, and Plesac are creating a big burden on the bullpen.

Added up, that comes to 24 starts made by other pitchers than the top three in the rotation, and the average number of innings pitched in those starts is 3-1/3.

And we are not counting the opener start made by Phil Maton or the start made by Eli Morgan, which by the way would lower that average, since he worked just 2-2/3 innings.

We understand that average is skewed somewhat by trying to get Quantrill and Mejia stretched out so they can give the team at least five innings. So, their starts this week against the Orioles are huge in figuring out what will happen over the next two weeks.

With Bieber now out, it’s clear the organization needs to do something about the starting pitching if they want to remain in contention for a playoff spot.

There are teams that have fallen out of the post-season race, like the Rangers, Pirates, Diamondbacks, Rockies, and Orioles. However, the reason a few of them have dropped out is because their starting pitching stinks.

Still, you might be able to pry lefty Tyler Anderson (3-6, 4.52 ERA) or right-hander JT Brubaker (4-5, 3.90 ERA) out of Pittsburgh, or might Texas give up Kyle Gibson (4-0, 2.13 ERA, but making almost $18 million over the next two years) for the right price.

Remember, the Indians farm system is deep at the lower levels, particularly in the middle infield, so there could be a fit.

We know the Cleveland organization is known for their patience, but if they are too patient, they could start to see the lack of starting pitching take its toll. Considering how hard they have fought to be in the race, that would be a shame.