It isn’t every day that a blogger gets to talk with a member of the mainstream media. I’d like to think that the odds are even slimmer if said member has been twice honored with the award of Nation’s Top Sports Columnist; not to mention one who has been nominated for the Pulitzer Prize on two separate occasions. But Terry Pluto, author of 23 books (including Dealing and The Franchise), as well as a featured columnist within the Cleveland Plain Dealer, was gracious enough to take time out of his busy schedule to field questions from yours truly.

If you live in Cleveland, or follow Cleveland sports, you have read – and most likely admired – the works of Terry. Since coming over to the Plain Dealer, he is featured several times per week, garnering the entire back page of the Sunday sports section with his weekly “Talkin’” column. Assuming you’ve read his work, you know why he is the eight-time recipient of the Ohio Sports Writer of the Year award.

This discussion took place right after the Tribe was finished getting swept by the Chicago White Sox, which obviously  occurred not long after the Cavaliers were eliminated by the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Playoffs. What follows the jump is a pretty lengthy discussion, but one that could not have been more timely given the current state of Cleveland sports. Please feel free to leave your comments below. And again, we are very thankful for the opportunity. As always, do enjoy.

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Let’s start off with the Tribe. Regarding the Indians, things have not been too pretty; starting an 11 game road trip, heading to Kansas City only winning two of the last 10. Off of the top of your head, are there any immediate thoughts regarding the last three (or so) weeks?

If you look at most teams, you have four areas that determine how well you play – and if you do not have at least three of them working for you, you’re in trouble. The four are your starting pitching, your bullpen, your defense and your hitting. The Indians problem is that two of the four have consistently been wildly malfunctioning. If you consider all of the hitting metrics, the offense has been awful. [Read more...]