For 150 years…Baseball, America’s pastime, has always been there through the good times and the bad. As Terrence Mann (played by James Earl Jones) said in “Field of Dreams” “America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It’s been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball.”
Covid-19, social unrest, and a terrible economy have taken away hope for many Americans. Sports being gone has helped many of us focus on the real problems we are all dealing with, but it has also not allowed us to have the distraction many of us turn to when we want relief from real world concerns.
At a time when we need baseball more than ever, the owners and players have bickered about money, for months, and it cost us the possibility of seeing the players on the field for the 4th of July. But now, as we move on from the ugliness (we hope) and count down the days until the start of a 60-game season, maybe the prospect of making it through the season can bring hope to other parts of our lives as well.
While seeing the game back on the diamond won’t fix everything that divides us, it can help bridge the gap and lessen the anger. One thing all Clevelanders can agree on is that it will be a lot of fun to see Francisco Lindor at the plate and Mike Clevinger on the mound at Progressive Field. Unfortunately, the current Covid crisis means 99 percent of us won’t actually be there, but most of us will be ready for the entertainment it will provide us on our TV’s and radios.
As for the season itself, it is very hard to predict how the Indians, or any team, will fair in a 60-game sprint to the finish line. The shorter season means teams that would normally not contend over a marathon 162-game campaign have a much better chance to compete with the big boys.
I think the shortened season both helps and hurts the Indians chances of capturing that elusive trophy. The Indians will play one-third of their schedule against the Tigers and Royals and while anything can happen in a short season, I would still be surprised if those two teams were not bad. Unfortunately, the Twins and White Sox also get to play those clubs 20 times as well. We already knew that the Twins were the main competition for the Indians, but clearly a shortened season puts the White Sox in the mix as well. They may have been a contender in a traditional season anyway, but I like their chances better with a very young, but talented, team having to be good for 60 and not 162.
It’s been a great run for the Tribe since Terry Francona became the manager in 2013. In the previous 11 years, the Indians went to the playoffs 1 time and had just one other winning season. Whereas, in the seven seasons under Tito, the Indians have been to the playoffs 4 times, including the 2016 trip to the World Series and have been over 500 every season. The Indians have averaged a remarkable 95 wins over the past four seasons but they have obviously fallen short of the big prize. This could be the year they get it…and it might be their last best chance, at least for the next few years, with Lindor likely to be traded this offseason as part of a further payroll purge.
The Indians strength is in their starting rotation. Shane Bieber, Mike Clevinger and Carlos Carrasco give them a trio of top starters that can’t be even close to matched in the division and could be one of the best in all of the game. Aaron Civale and Zach Plesac really impressed as rookies last season and both have potential for growth. Adam Plutko, Jefry Rodriguez and Logan Allen, who was acquired last season in the Trevor Bauer trade, give the Tribe plenty of depth in a season with so many unknowns.
The bullpen on the other hand has plenty of question marks outside of Brad Hand. The closer struggled in the 2nd half last year, but he has been one of the most reliable relief pitchers in the game over the last 4 seasons. Nick Wittgren was an excellent under-the-radar pickup for the Indians last year and preformed well in a set up roll, striking out a career-high 60 batters. After that, you are hoping for some luck. James Karinchak has a big arm and tons of potential, but like most young fireballers he has some common issues to work out. Oliver Perez is a steady veteran but he will be 39 in a few weeks and is coming off a not-so-great year. Adam Cimber, Phil Maton, James Hoyt, Hunter Wood and Dominic Leone are just some of the names that will need to step up for the Indians bullpen to improve.
Could this be Francisco Lindor’s last season in Cleveland? Might he have already played his last game here? These are questions that no one outside of the Tribe’s front office know the answer to. My best guess is that he will still be here for this season but will be traded away this winter, and that is a damn shame.
I have always believed that the MLB owners have the ability to spend more than they do and not lose money. Cardinals owner Bill DeWitt Jr. recently claimed that the baseball industry “isn’t very profitable” in an interview with 590TheFan in St. Louis. I’m not buying it. The DeWitt family bought the Cardinals for 150 Million dollars 25 years ago. The franchise is now worth 2.2 billion according to Forbes magazine. The Dolan family bought the Indians for 323 million 20 years ago and the organization is now worth 1.15 billion. If it were not a profitable business, then why would so many other billionaires be dying to get in the mix?
Francisco Lindor is everything you want in a player. He is a great leader on and off the field and brings an energy to the team that can’t be matched by any of his teammates. He has no weakness in his game either at the plate or on the field and is not only the face of the franchise but one of the biggest stars in the game. Letting him walk or even trading him is just terrible for the franchise. It will erode even further a season ticket base that is not strong to begin with. Indians fans are there for this team, the TV ratings prove it, but losing Lindor will permanently sour a percentage of the group. Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff are a top front office team. Maybe the best in the business. No one can convince me that if they had “only” 70 million to spend per year (although in reality it should be more), in addition to Lindor’s hefty contract, that they couldn’t consistently compete in the AL. Signing Lindor to a long term extension would forever change the way many fans see Paul Dolan. Unfortunately, that is not likely to happen and since the Indians can’t just let him walk away, a winter deal seems likely- as sad as that may be. So this year may be the Tribe’s last shot to get in done with their best player still in the fold.
2019 was a huge disappointment for the Indians second best player in Jose Ramirez. Coming off two straight all-star seasons, Ramirez, who struggled at the end of 2018 continued to flounder in the 1st half of 2019. He picked it up in the 2nd half and was more like the player we expected, but he got hurt last August and missed most of the rest of the season. The Indians must get the all-star caliber Ramirez for most of this short season for the lineup to have success.
Carlos Santana bounced back big time in his return to Cleveland last season and was the Tribe’s most consistent performer last year. Oscar Mercado burst on to the scene with a tremendous rookie campaign in 2019. A 2.5 WAR in 115 is pretty impressive for a first year player. I think he has plenty of room to grow and could become a star for the Indians over the next few years.
Another acquisition in the Bauer deal last year was slugging OF/DH Franmil Reyes…the power potential is unlimited but he still has a way to go to improve as a more well rounded player. Roberto Perez has always been an excellent back-stop but last year he gave the Tribe more than they probably expected at the plate. I don’t buy that he is that good a hitter, but even if he drops off some, hits defense and his work with the pitchers make him a very solid starter.
The other three spots in the lineup are certainly question marks…but Cesar Hernandez should be serviceable for a year at second base and Domingo Santana could provide some good power. It would be nice if this is the year that Bradley Zimmer could stay healthy and contribute as well.
The competition in the division is better, but in this weird season, I like the Indians chances led by Terry Francona - one of the best managers in the game. The starting pitchers should be in mid-season form just as the playoffs are about to start, and I think that works to the Indians advantage. I believe they will win the AL Central and are definitely capable of winning it all if they get there. But if they do, will we look at it as tainted? That’s a story for another day.