Disappointing Cavs, troublesome social media, and so much good music, While We’re Waiting
May 5, 2015Ohio State No. 1 in way-too-early CFB Top 25; Joey Bosa No. 1 in 2016 draft?
May 5, 2015It is May 5 and your Cleveland Indians are 9-15. As an unfortunate coincidence, that’s an identical start to that of the infamous 1987 Tribe—the original “SI Jinx” team that all the paranoid soothsayers kept bringing up back in March. Sure, the ’87 Indians also had a slumping center fielder who had to be moved down in the order (Brett Butler / Michael Bourn), a porous defense (Brook Jacoby and Co. made a league worst 153 errors that year), a veteran slugger hobbled by knee problems (Andre Thornton / Nick Swisher), and a young stud shortstop stuck in Triple-A waiting for his opportunity (Jay Bell / Francisco Lindor). But for the most part, it’s apples and oranges. It’s not 1987, nobody is Wang Chung-ing, and the Indians are just fine.
Is it possible I’m only taking this uncharacteristically hopeful stance because the Indians came back Sunday from a 6-2 deficit to beat the Blue Jays? Yes. But blind, fleeting contentment is as good a motivator as anything. So let’s look at some details about the 2015 Indians that at least should earn them something more than your complete indifference.
1. Kip on the Radar
Remember Jason Kipnis? He was an All-Star in 2013—he drove in 84 runs, had an .818 OPS, stole 30 bases, and enjoyed singing to himself in the infield. Last year, we basically gave him a six-month mulligan for an injury-plagued drag of a season. But after another slow start this April, some were giving up on the thought of the JK Kid as a major difference maker altogether. If you were one of those sad souls, take note, the reports of Kip’s demise were greatly exaggerated. After going homer-less the final two months of 2014 and the first month of 2015, Kipnis has suddenly swatted three long balls in the past week, while also raising his average from the Mendoza line to .273. As a further random stat of interest, the Indians are 6-1 in games in which Kipnis has driven in a run this year. A healthy Jason Kipnis dramatically changes the look of this line-up, whether he’s leading off or back in the middle of the order somewhere.
2. Get a Whiff of That
Despite the ups and downs of the pitching staff, the Indians currently lead the American League with 225 strikeouts, and their 9.65 K/9 rate is by far the best in all of baseball. Danny Salazar went from not making the club out of camp to being 3-0 with a K/9 rate of 13.3. Carlos Carrasco, while victimized by a few old school Carrasco innings (inflated by a .379 BABIP), has an equally bonkers 12.05 K/9 rate, and Trevor Bauer (who has been sensational outside of yesterday) is at 8.90. Yes, Corey Kluber has stumbled in his last three starts, but his opponents’ batting average on balls in play is also unusually high at .345, and his K rate remains seventh-best in the AL at 9.0. Clearly strikeouts don’t automatically equate to victories, but they certainly can help the cause (especially when your defense is bad), and they tend to be calling cards of an exciting team that’s actually worth watching.
When it comes to comparisons to the 1987 Indians, there is certainly no comparison here. The ’87 pitching staff was almost unbelievably old and devoid of electric stuff, with a washed up 42 year-old Steve Carlton joining 48 year-old Phil Niekro and his 29 year-old knuckleballing protégé Tom Candiotti. The “other guy” in that mix, 32 year-old Ken Schrom, followed up an ’86 all-star season by going 6-13 with a 6.50 ERA and 3.6 K/9. No one is listening to the Pet Shop Boys right now!
3. Have You Noticed We’re Not Alone?
Early season underachieving is not a disease confined to the greater Cleveland area. Among the teams most widely projected to be World Series contenders this season, more than a few find themselves at least temporarily stuck in the quicksand of mediocrity. This includes the supposedly invincible pitching staff of the Washington Nationals (13-14), the highly touted Mariners (11-15), the retooled Red Sox (12-14), and Cleveland’s own division rival White Sox (8-14), who added a ton of firepower in the off-season to little avail (or Avisail) thus far. As Danny DeVito once asked the Batman, “You don’t really think you’re gonna win, do you?” And as Michael Keaton responded, “Things change.” Look no further than the playoff bound Indians of 2013, who found themselves at 11-13 through 24 games—although it would admittedly be nice not to have to depend on a 10-game winning streak in September this time around.
4. The Doctor Looks Well
After missing much of the first week of the season with a somewhat concerning, nonspecific back issue, Michael Brantley is back (pardon the pun, I guess) and looking very much like Michael Brantley. From a 1987 perspective, Dr. Smooth is proving himself a Joe Carter rather than a Ken Schrom. Much as Carter did that year, Brantley is following a top-10 MVP season by going out and picking up where he left off. His .352 batting average currently has him at No. 7 in the AL. Rejoice, your best player was hurt and now he seems to be fine! That’s a Cleveland triumph.
5. The Yan-imal Shall Return
Of course, the injury news on Yan Gomes was decidedly less pleasant than that on Brantley, and his absence has been felt probably more than many expected. As the best right-handed bat on the roster—not to mention a terrific defensive catcher and major cog in the success of Kluber and others—Gomes’ return could be the biggest ingredient in the Indians fully reversing the engines and making a run this summer. And according to all reports, his rehab is well ahead of schedule. A late May or early June return isn’t out of the question.
6. The McAllister Experiment
Some bullpen chaos felt almost inevitable after how strong the unit was a year ago, and indeed, the late innings have been a mess. Still, there could be renewed hope for plugging some of these leaks in a prompt manner. Back in spring, the idea of trying to permanently convert longtime starter Zach McAllister into a Wade Davis breed of reliever seemed like a fun experiment, but Zach wound up in the rotation for the first week of the season thanks to Danny Salazar’s spring struggles. Now, McAllister is back in the pen, and he’s starting to thrive. Over his last four appearances, he has whirled 5.2 innings of scoreless baseball, with just 3 hits allowed and 8 strikeouts. It’s a small sample size, clearly, but if McAllister can indeed become a reliable new arm to spell Atchison, Shaw, or even Cody Allen, it could literally save the club some ballgames.
7. Moss is Growing on You
The Brandon Moss trade was great. There is no debate to be had here. It doesn’t matter that he’s left-handed, plays a horrendous right field, and strikes out a lot. The Indians needed another run producing bat with Nick Swisher’s fate up in the air, and they got a good one for the cost of a mid-level prospect named Joey. For you 1987 fans, Moss is basically Cory Snyder—a 150 K / .235 guy who you’ll complain about endlessly only to later notice that he’s hit 30 homers and driven in 80 or 90 runs (although Cor-Dog did have a far more accurate hose out in right field). Right now, Moss leads the team with 18 RBIs, 11th in the league.
8. Sure, Get Lindor Fever, Just Be Patient
The struggles of Jose Ramirez have heated up the rumors of an imminent call-up for 21 year-old Francisco Lindor, but in all likelihood, that still isn’t coming for another month or two, and it shouldn’t. Fact is, Lindor has been a bit up-and-down himself in Columbus (he currently has a .244 avg, .667 OPS, 6 steals, and 4 errors at shortstop), so we might as well appreciate the slow build up. Back in ’87, people clamored for 21 year-old Jay Bell to get his shot. He came up in July and hit .438 in his first four starts, then eventually wound up at .216 for the season. With Lindor, though, the expectation is less about adding a big bat, anyway. It’s about dynamic speed on the bases and grace, range, and reliability at short. If the Indians are headed in the right direction by June, Lindor could be an ignitor that propels them back into contention. No harm in hoping so, anyway.
9. Ryan Raburn is hitting .400.
Now go out there and face the day with a smile.
38 Comments
10. We still have Terry Francona. If anyone can pull off a Major-League style aboutface it is him.
Now I’m sold! He did do that with the Red Sox one year, didn’t he? Worst start in decades, great finish? Or is my Browns optimism somehow seeping into the dark Indians corner of my psyche, causing hallucinations?
11. LONG SEASON.
12. It’s a marathon, not a sprint.
13. We only need ___ wins to reach ____ wins.
It is a Cleveland thing, not a Browns thing 😉
http://news.yahoo.com/red-sox-waste-lackeys-start-fall-5-0-061543978.html
They came back from a bad April (11-15) to lead the East but then lost like 18 of their last 24 games, blowing a 9 game lead, to miss the playoffs after being heavily favored to win the World Series.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Boston_Red_Sox_season
A lot of reasons to be excited for sure. Kipnis playing well has got me jacked. Brantley is awesome and Carlos is consistent. Couple that with the additions of Gomes, Swisher and Lindor and there is a lot to be excited about. And Raburn. Awesome.
Late season collapse for the Sox doesn’t do much for my nascent Indians optimism. It’s fading fast. Somebody get me another 10 reasons, stat!
Nick is bringing back his bro: Rally-Squirrel. ’nuff said.
http://www.reactiongifs.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/relieved.gif
Tom ….the biggest problem though is not in the Indians control, it’s that both the Royals & Tigers appear to be really good, and that means 38 games with arguably the best 2 teams in the AL.
The Twins also seem improved, & the White Sox are much in the same situation as the Tribe… You might need 95 wins just to get the 2nd wild card.
Plus we don’t have the egos that team did.
What’s this “we?” I certainly do.
Egos or multiple All-Stars either!
The only thing Santana is consistent at is drawing walks and if I’m an opponent based on the Indians lineup I’ll give Carlos as many walks as he wants. This lineup is far and away inconsistent at best and that’s why you are seeing what you are seeing. Unless they all hit at the same time really all an opponent has to worry about is Brantley & Santana.
Thanks … I needed that
Averaged 23 homers a year for the past four seasons.
Bauer, Kluber, Carrasco, possibly Salazar
Brantley, Santana, Kipnis
I could see any of those guys making the All Star game without squinting and that is w/o the obvious Yan.
81-57 the rest of the way to get to 90! 59% winning. It’d be nice to start that now though.
I am going to go out on a steady branch (not a meek limb) when I say that it will not take 95 games to get the second wild card.
How many years will we have to wait for it to happen? And I’m sure just like that one game playoff where it can be claimed the Indians made the playoffs if these players make it once you’ll be okay calling them All-Stars.
Mgbode…of course, no guarantee…let’s say for fun
Tigers 98 Royals 95. The west who knows?
Yankees 96 Redsox 95….this or a similar scenario is possible. ?
I thought McAllister should have been a reliever all along, but it’s nice to see his career splits:
SP: 4.52/1.44, 7.4K/9, 2.4K/BB, .773 OPS against
RP: 2.33/1.22, 9.3K/9, 4.7K/BB, .573 OPS against
Let’s just keep him in long relief, shall we?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3bQnxlHZsjY
sure, anything is possible but that scenario would require the top teams in the AL crushing the bottom and middle teams.
AL WC2 ’14 88wins
AL WC2 ’13 92 wins
AL WC2-slot ’12 93 wins
AL WC2-slot ’11 90 wins
AL WC2-slot ’10 88 wins
AL WC2-slot ’09 87 wins
AL WC2-slot ’08 89 wins
Mg…you may be right, it’s just that the Tribe being in arguably the best division with the 2 best teams is not to their advantage.
Yea. I just want to watch good baseball.
I am going to hug the whole damn tree and say that whoever gets the wild card will need at least 90 wins. second slot.
good chance at that ya’ tree hugger 🙂
agreed.
What? Kluber won the Cy, Brantley finished 3rd in the MVP and won Silver Slugger, Yan won Silver Slugger, Carlos is coming off 5 straight OPS+ over 120, Kipnis only had the 1 big year but may be starting another.
Carrasco, Bauer, and Salazar would be developing in uncharted territory, but what player that I listed would it be out of bounds to call a potential allstar for THIS season?
and averaged over 30 doubles over those years too
I think we all did, well timed and written article.
Ah potential okay that’s a very important word I suppose anything is possible although as we sit here today I would say it’s highly unlikely that the current Indians have more then 2 All-Stars let alone another Cy Young, a third runner up for MVP let alone 2 Silver Slugger award winners.
Btw I was right about OKC not making the playoffs and the Spurs not only not repeating but not even making the western conference finals. For those keeping score at home.
Sorry if what LeBron does isn’t good enough then either is 23 HRs from Santana. Welcome to Cleveland!
When in doubt, go conservative lol
LET MY PEOPLE GO!!
Royals are hitting WAY over their heads so far. Check out all those .300 hitters in their lineup and then reads the names next to those numbers. It won’t last. They were last in the league in HRs last year and once balls stop falling in they’ll have a tough time scoring runs. Rotation is thin behind Ventura and Duffy. Bullpen is great but expecting greatness (let alone the transcendent dominance that propelled them to the postseason last year) from relief pitching two years in a row is risky.
As for Detroit, they started out great last year and wore down as the season went on. Cabrera and Victor are injury prone and Alfredo Simon and Kyle Lobstein will be starting 40 percent of their games.
Not saying the Tribe will catch either team, but there is hope
Mark…sure, the Royals & Tigers should fall back a bit, but at this time I’d suggest they are the 2 best teams in AL..The Tribe for me are a funny team, basically solid, no stars (Brantley, Kluber maybe) about an 83-85 win team, if everything fell right, could sneak into 88-90 win territory, & maybe backdoor nto the playoffs, but could fall back just as easily.
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