Re: Articles
1951White probably won't make it, but it's way too early to write off Pomeranz and his 1-6 Rockies debut.
Re: Articles
1952“Everybody’s doing something; we’ll do nothing!”
By Anthony Castrovince/MLB.com
On Twitter: @Castrovince
The MLB Trade Deadline has passed, and what did the Indians do?
They did nothing.
Well, sure, they acquired Brent Lillibridge last week and they got Lars Anderson from the Red Sox just before the deadline, but, you know, like I said:
They did nothing.
For the better part of the past two months, those of us who like to discuss such things talked about the Indians’ needs: Should they pursue a right-handed bat or starting arm? Starting arm or right-handed bat? Bat, arm. Arm, bat. Both? Tribe fans studied Jason Vargas’ game logs. They tried to talk themselves into Alfonso Soriano. And just when there seemed to be some consensus that, yes, an arm was what the Indians needed most, well, that’s when a new opinion intervened…
The Indians should sell! Yes, that’s right. They went 6-11 after the All-Star break and fell five games back of first place. Time to blow it up and start all over! Time to send your best player, Shin-Soo Choo, to Pittsburgh or Los Angeles or maybe even back to South Korea, as long as the return is Major League-ready. Send Justin Masterson — two years and two months away from free agency, mind you — back to Boston. Send Chris Perez to San Francisco and let him complain about their fans. Ship off anything that’s not nailed down… and yes I’m looking at you, Jose Lopez.
These were, to put it bluntly, especially schizophrenic circumstances, and perhaps they were unavoidable when you’re talking about a mediocre (minus-66 run differential, second-worst ERA in the league) contender (“Verlander Schmerlander”).
Rather than sway toward any side of the line, Chris Antonetti stayed Switzerland, content to let 2012 play out as-is.
It was not a surprising stance.
As discussed last week, this club’s needs were too many to address at the Deadline (and for this, the front office definitely deserves some blame, as Josh Willingham and/or Yoenis Cespedes would have been excellent and affordable additions last winter), and the trading chips on hand were too scarce. The 2012 Indians simply did not give Antonetti enough reason to pull the trigger on any trade that would have weakened an already frail farm system in exchange for a short-term rental. And that frail farm system (which, mind you, is also the fault of the front office) caught up to the Indians once again, as they don’t seem to have the adequate pieces to bring in an impact acquisition under control beyond 2012.
That addresses the “buy” situation, but what about the “sell”?
Well, when Antonetti made the Ubaldo Jimenez trade on July 30, 2011, he embraced a so-called “window of contention” based on the contractual control the Indians held on Jimenez, Choo, Masterson, Perez and Asdrubal Cabrera, each of whom would have been eligible for free agency either after 2013 (Choo, Jimenez, Cabrera*) or 2014 (Masterson, Perez).
*Cabrera, of course, has since been extended through 2014, and the contractual status remains the same for the rest.
Now, it’s my opinion that the Indians whiffed on Ubaldo. I don’t know how to put it any other way. We have no way of knowing what Drew Pomeranz (especially) and Alex White would have become in Cleveland instead of the pitcher’s nightmare that is Colorado, but the Indians at least would have had six years to find out. Instead, they got two years and two months of Jimenez, and the first calendar year has been an unqualified disappointment. Jimenez is 12-14 with a 5.08 ERA and 1.55 WHIP in 32 outings with the Indians. As my friend and colleague Jordan Bastian notes in this piece, Ubaldo currently leads the league in walks and stolen bases allowed and wild pitches thrown. He’s a mess.
But if you’re Antonetti, in the immediate, you have to make the most of that mess. You have to hope, perhaps against hope, that Jimenez, even if he’ll never become the ace-type arm he once was, at least rights himself enough to become a dependable middle-of-the-rotation guy. You have to hope the backward steps taken by Masterson and Carlos Santana this season are not indicative of future results and that the coaching staff you helped put in place is capable of righting them.
That’s the immediate, because the Trade Deadline, by nature, doesn’t seem to be the best time to make bold decisions about the future of the franchise (the Ubaldo and Cliff Lee deals, neither of which have gone particularly well, best illustrate the basis of that belief).
But the Indians are going to have an awfully interesting offseason ahead, because now that they have a feel for the outside interest levels in the likes of Choo and Masterson and Perez, maybe they’ll delve further down those roads.
I’ve expressed my opinion that the Indians ought to seriously consider parting with Perez for a variety of factors, not the least of which is money. The arbitration costs you’d save by dealing from a position of strength could be applied elsewhere, and Lord knows the Indians have plenty of places to apply them.
This 2012 season ought to serve as a lesson that, no, the almost completely left-handed lineup and the right-handed rotation do not lend themselves to the kind of sustained winning stretches it takes to be a true contender. Both of those issues absolutely need to be addressed, one way or another, if the Indians are going to contend in 2013, and perhaps Travis Hafner and Grady Sizemore coming off the books will help Antonetti do so. You can look at the Indians’ lineup, factoring in a healthy Lonnie Chisenhall and matured Jason Kipnis, and see the seeds of a competitive club. But as I wrote earlier, if the Indians do ultimately decide to deal Choo, they’d almost assuredly be taking a big step back with regard to their 2013 outlook, and that’s a tough sell to a fractured fan base.
Still, given the way the Jimenez trade has transpired and some notable core elements have disappointed this season, perhaps a step back in 2013 in order to augment the 2014, ’15, ’16 outlook is the way to proceed. I suppose that all depends on just how aggressive Antonetti plans to be (or, rather, has the budget capability to be) this winter in the construction of the 2013 club.
For now, Antonetti wasn’t aggressive at all at the 2012 Trade Deadline. I’m sure he racked up the cell phone minutes, but, ultimately, he did nothing.
And given the schizophrenic nature of a club that is not quite good enough to contend but not quite bad enough to detonate, maybe “nothing” makes sense.
~AC
By Anthony Castrovince/MLB.com
On Twitter: @Castrovince
The MLB Trade Deadline has passed, and what did the Indians do?
They did nothing.
Well, sure, they acquired Brent Lillibridge last week and they got Lars Anderson from the Red Sox just before the deadline, but, you know, like I said:
They did nothing.
For the better part of the past two months, those of us who like to discuss such things talked about the Indians’ needs: Should they pursue a right-handed bat or starting arm? Starting arm or right-handed bat? Bat, arm. Arm, bat. Both? Tribe fans studied Jason Vargas’ game logs. They tried to talk themselves into Alfonso Soriano. And just when there seemed to be some consensus that, yes, an arm was what the Indians needed most, well, that’s when a new opinion intervened…
The Indians should sell! Yes, that’s right. They went 6-11 after the All-Star break and fell five games back of first place. Time to blow it up and start all over! Time to send your best player, Shin-Soo Choo, to Pittsburgh or Los Angeles or maybe even back to South Korea, as long as the return is Major League-ready. Send Justin Masterson — two years and two months away from free agency, mind you — back to Boston. Send Chris Perez to San Francisco and let him complain about their fans. Ship off anything that’s not nailed down… and yes I’m looking at you, Jose Lopez.
These were, to put it bluntly, especially schizophrenic circumstances, and perhaps they were unavoidable when you’re talking about a mediocre (minus-66 run differential, second-worst ERA in the league) contender (“Verlander Schmerlander”).
Rather than sway toward any side of the line, Chris Antonetti stayed Switzerland, content to let 2012 play out as-is.
It was not a surprising stance.
As discussed last week, this club’s needs were too many to address at the Deadline (and for this, the front office definitely deserves some blame, as Josh Willingham and/or Yoenis Cespedes would have been excellent and affordable additions last winter), and the trading chips on hand were too scarce. The 2012 Indians simply did not give Antonetti enough reason to pull the trigger on any trade that would have weakened an already frail farm system in exchange for a short-term rental. And that frail farm system (which, mind you, is also the fault of the front office) caught up to the Indians once again, as they don’t seem to have the adequate pieces to bring in an impact acquisition under control beyond 2012.
That addresses the “buy” situation, but what about the “sell”?
Well, when Antonetti made the Ubaldo Jimenez trade on July 30, 2011, he embraced a so-called “window of contention” based on the contractual control the Indians held on Jimenez, Choo, Masterson, Perez and Asdrubal Cabrera, each of whom would have been eligible for free agency either after 2013 (Choo, Jimenez, Cabrera*) or 2014 (Masterson, Perez).
*Cabrera, of course, has since been extended through 2014, and the contractual status remains the same for the rest.
Now, it’s my opinion that the Indians whiffed on Ubaldo. I don’t know how to put it any other way. We have no way of knowing what Drew Pomeranz (especially) and Alex White would have become in Cleveland instead of the pitcher’s nightmare that is Colorado, but the Indians at least would have had six years to find out. Instead, they got two years and two months of Jimenez, and the first calendar year has been an unqualified disappointment. Jimenez is 12-14 with a 5.08 ERA and 1.55 WHIP in 32 outings with the Indians. As my friend and colleague Jordan Bastian notes in this piece, Ubaldo currently leads the league in walks and stolen bases allowed and wild pitches thrown. He’s a mess.
But if you’re Antonetti, in the immediate, you have to make the most of that mess. You have to hope, perhaps against hope, that Jimenez, even if he’ll never become the ace-type arm he once was, at least rights himself enough to become a dependable middle-of-the-rotation guy. You have to hope the backward steps taken by Masterson and Carlos Santana this season are not indicative of future results and that the coaching staff you helped put in place is capable of righting them.
That’s the immediate, because the Trade Deadline, by nature, doesn’t seem to be the best time to make bold decisions about the future of the franchise (the Ubaldo and Cliff Lee deals, neither of which have gone particularly well, best illustrate the basis of that belief).
But the Indians are going to have an awfully interesting offseason ahead, because now that they have a feel for the outside interest levels in the likes of Choo and Masterson and Perez, maybe they’ll delve further down those roads.
I’ve expressed my opinion that the Indians ought to seriously consider parting with Perez for a variety of factors, not the least of which is money. The arbitration costs you’d save by dealing from a position of strength could be applied elsewhere, and Lord knows the Indians have plenty of places to apply them.
This 2012 season ought to serve as a lesson that, no, the almost completely left-handed lineup and the right-handed rotation do not lend themselves to the kind of sustained winning stretches it takes to be a true contender. Both of those issues absolutely need to be addressed, one way or another, if the Indians are going to contend in 2013, and perhaps Travis Hafner and Grady Sizemore coming off the books will help Antonetti do so. You can look at the Indians’ lineup, factoring in a healthy Lonnie Chisenhall and matured Jason Kipnis, and see the seeds of a competitive club. But as I wrote earlier, if the Indians do ultimately decide to deal Choo, they’d almost assuredly be taking a big step back with regard to their 2013 outlook, and that’s a tough sell to a fractured fan base.
Still, given the way the Jimenez trade has transpired and some notable core elements have disappointed this season, perhaps a step back in 2013 in order to augment the 2014, ’15, ’16 outlook is the way to proceed. I suppose that all depends on just how aggressive Antonetti plans to be (or, rather, has the budget capability to be) this winter in the construction of the 2013 club.
For now, Antonetti wasn’t aggressive at all at the 2012 Trade Deadline. I’m sure he racked up the cell phone minutes, but, ultimately, he did nothing.
And given the schizophrenic nature of a club that is not quite good enough to contend but not quite bad enough to detonate, maybe “nothing” makes sense.
~AC
Re: Articles
1953As trade deadline passes, Cleveland Indians are a team adrift and in need of renovation: Terry Pluto
Published: Tuesday, July 31, 2012, 9:34 PM Updated: Tuesday, July 31, 2012, 9:34 PM
By Terry Pluto, The Plain Dealer
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Heading into Tuesday's game at Kansas City, the Indians were 6-11 since the All-Star break. They rank 14th (dead last) in the American League in runs scored since the break. Batting average? Read it and weep: .229.
They rank 13th in pitching with a 5.18 ERA, about where they've been all season.
Bad hitting. Bad pitching, except for a few bullpen guys and starter Jake McAllister. This was not time for them to dip into the farm system for another Ubaldo Jimenez deal.
A year ago, the Tribe was 53-52 and 2 1/2 games out of first in the AL Central when they sent Drew Pomeranz, Alex White and two others to Colorado for Jimenez. He was supposed to be the top of the rotation starter needed to contend.
A year later, the prospects have been rocky in Denver. But Jimenez is 12-14 with a 5.08 ERA in 32 starts for the Tribe. He was 4-4 with a 5.10 ERA last season, 6-8 with a 5.05 ERA this year. We have a pattern here, and it's a warning that something is wrong with the 28-year-old right-hander.
Rather than make another deal like that, it was wise the Indians did nothing of consequence.
They could have traded Shin-Soo Choo for prospects, creating another hole in the Swiss cheese that serves as the outfield. But apparently, they didn't believe what was offered now was any better than what would be available in the winter.
But the lack of trades this month (other than Brent Lillibridge and Lars Anderson) are the result of other deals that didn't work out.
A bad year
The last 12 months have seen a series of bad moves by the front office. Let's count the ways:
1. The Jimenez trade.
2. Signing Grady Sizemore for $5 million, knowing his knees were a major problem. He has yet to play in a game.
3. Casey Kotchman has done a nice job at first base with the glove, but he's hitting .226. He signed for $3 million, but the Tribe was hoping he'd supply more offense. He hasn't.
4. The Tribe hoped some combination of Shelley Duncan, Aaron Cunningham, Jason Donald and others would help as platoon players, especially against left-handed pitchers. Didn't happen.
5. They couldn't find anyone to hit lefties. The only Indians above .250 vs. lefties are Michael Brantley (.294) and Asdrubal Cabrera (.270).
6. Derek Lowe has been fading, but he helped early in the year. I don't consider picking him up for $5 million as a mistake, he was supposed to buy time for young starters to develop.
7. From the group of Jeanmar Gomez, Kevin Slowey, Corey Kluber, David Huff and Zach McAllister, only McAllister has claimed a spot in the rotation for the rest of this season.
8. Johnny Damon was a $1.1 million lottery ticket in left. He's hitting .226 with no real power.
9. They picked up a $7 million option on Fausto Carmona for this season, only to learn that he's Roberto Hernandez and can't start a game until Aug. 11 because of identity fraud. To be fair, as with the Lowe move I was OK with keeping Carmona/Hernandez for another year.
10. Kosuke Fukudome and Jim Thome were solid stop-gap moves last season. To be fair, before he officially became general manager in 2011, Chris Antonetti did have a hand in several moves that did work out -- Casey Blake/Carlos Santana, Mark DeRosa/Chris Perez, Ben Broussard/Shin-Soo Choo, etc.
Looking ahead
View full sizeChuck Crow, The Plain Dealer
With experienced -- but under-performing -- veterans having failed to provide help in the outfield, it's time for the Indians to give young players such as Ezequiel Carrera another chance.
So now what? The Indians took the field Tuesday at 50-52, five games out of first and the front office facing reality. No playoffs this season.
So here's what should be done:
1. Why is Damon still with the team? He's 38. The move didn't work. He should immediately be released, and the Indians can call up almost any outfielder from the minors.
2. I like Zeke Carrera, who is hitting .500 (22-of-44) in his last 10 games and .385 since the All-Star break. Fine. He's 25, a career .295 minor-league hitter with speed. If the Indians think he's ready, bring him up.
3. Duncan is 32. He's hitting .225 with nine homers. He entered the season with a career .239 average. Is there any reason to believe he will improve at this stage of his career? He should be sent to Class AAA (or he can be claimed on waivers).
4. The Indians have a lot of options for a right-handed hitting outfielder: Matt LaPorta (.276, 18 HR), Russ Canzler (.268, 16 HR), Jared Goedert (.320, 10 HR). Pick one.
5. There's Tim Fedroff, a 25-year-old lefty hitter batting an outrageous .373 since being promoted from Class AA Akron (where he was hitting .305). He's not a power hitter, but he entered the year with a career .290 average (.761 OPS) and deserves a shot at some point. Odds are that only Brantley is certain to be in the 2013 Tribe outfield.
6. Josh Tomlin is 7-11 with a 5.60 ERA since the 2011 All-Star break. He came out of the bullpen to relieve Lowe Tuesday night. Send someone else to the minors and recall Kluber (11-7, 3.59) who leads the International League in strikeouts. He's 7-2 with a 2.90 ERA in his last 10 starts.
7. See if another team has an interest in Lowe, who may be able to help a contender in relief -- which he's done before. Jeanmar Gomez (4-2, 3.54 ERA) or Chris Seddon (11-5, 3.44 ERA) could be recalled.
8. The Indians picked up Lars Anderson from the Red Sox for Class AA knuckleballer Steven Wright. They sounded very upbeat about the 24-year-old lefty first baseman/outfielder. He's a .262 hitter (.779 OPS) with 33 homers in 1,440 Class AAA plate appearances over the last three years. Those numbers aren't inspiring, but I'm open to seeing him play, too.
At this point, the Tribe has to look inward and see if there are any prospects at the upper levels of the farm system, and reward some of these guys who are producing at Columbus.
Related topics: cleveland-indians-2012
Published: Tuesday, July 31, 2012, 9:34 PM Updated: Tuesday, July 31, 2012, 9:34 PM
By Terry Pluto, The Plain Dealer
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Heading into Tuesday's game at Kansas City, the Indians were 6-11 since the All-Star break. They rank 14th (dead last) in the American League in runs scored since the break. Batting average? Read it and weep: .229.
They rank 13th in pitching with a 5.18 ERA, about where they've been all season.
Bad hitting. Bad pitching, except for a few bullpen guys and starter Jake McAllister. This was not time for them to dip into the farm system for another Ubaldo Jimenez deal.
A year ago, the Tribe was 53-52 and 2 1/2 games out of first in the AL Central when they sent Drew Pomeranz, Alex White and two others to Colorado for Jimenez. He was supposed to be the top of the rotation starter needed to contend.
A year later, the prospects have been rocky in Denver. But Jimenez is 12-14 with a 5.08 ERA in 32 starts for the Tribe. He was 4-4 with a 5.10 ERA last season, 6-8 with a 5.05 ERA this year. We have a pattern here, and it's a warning that something is wrong with the 28-year-old right-hander.
Rather than make another deal like that, it was wise the Indians did nothing of consequence.
They could have traded Shin-Soo Choo for prospects, creating another hole in the Swiss cheese that serves as the outfield. But apparently, they didn't believe what was offered now was any better than what would be available in the winter.
But the lack of trades this month (other than Brent Lillibridge and Lars Anderson) are the result of other deals that didn't work out.
A bad year
The last 12 months have seen a series of bad moves by the front office. Let's count the ways:
1. The Jimenez trade.
2. Signing Grady Sizemore for $5 million, knowing his knees were a major problem. He has yet to play in a game.
3. Casey Kotchman has done a nice job at first base with the glove, but he's hitting .226. He signed for $3 million, but the Tribe was hoping he'd supply more offense. He hasn't.
4. The Tribe hoped some combination of Shelley Duncan, Aaron Cunningham, Jason Donald and others would help as platoon players, especially against left-handed pitchers. Didn't happen.
5. They couldn't find anyone to hit lefties. The only Indians above .250 vs. lefties are Michael Brantley (.294) and Asdrubal Cabrera (.270).
6. Derek Lowe has been fading, but he helped early in the year. I don't consider picking him up for $5 million as a mistake, he was supposed to buy time for young starters to develop.
7. From the group of Jeanmar Gomez, Kevin Slowey, Corey Kluber, David Huff and Zach McAllister, only McAllister has claimed a spot in the rotation for the rest of this season.
8. Johnny Damon was a $1.1 million lottery ticket in left. He's hitting .226 with no real power.
9. They picked up a $7 million option on Fausto Carmona for this season, only to learn that he's Roberto Hernandez and can't start a game until Aug. 11 because of identity fraud. To be fair, as with the Lowe move I was OK with keeping Carmona/Hernandez for another year.
10. Kosuke Fukudome and Jim Thome were solid stop-gap moves last season. To be fair, before he officially became general manager in 2011, Chris Antonetti did have a hand in several moves that did work out -- Casey Blake/Carlos Santana, Mark DeRosa/Chris Perez, Ben Broussard/Shin-Soo Choo, etc.
Looking ahead
View full sizeChuck Crow, The Plain Dealer
With experienced -- but under-performing -- veterans having failed to provide help in the outfield, it's time for the Indians to give young players such as Ezequiel Carrera another chance.
So now what? The Indians took the field Tuesday at 50-52, five games out of first and the front office facing reality. No playoffs this season.
So here's what should be done:
1. Why is Damon still with the team? He's 38. The move didn't work. He should immediately be released, and the Indians can call up almost any outfielder from the minors.
2. I like Zeke Carrera, who is hitting .500 (22-of-44) in his last 10 games and .385 since the All-Star break. Fine. He's 25, a career .295 minor-league hitter with speed. If the Indians think he's ready, bring him up.
3. Duncan is 32. He's hitting .225 with nine homers. He entered the season with a career .239 average. Is there any reason to believe he will improve at this stage of his career? He should be sent to Class AAA (or he can be claimed on waivers).
4. The Indians have a lot of options for a right-handed hitting outfielder: Matt LaPorta (.276, 18 HR), Russ Canzler (.268, 16 HR), Jared Goedert (.320, 10 HR). Pick one.
5. There's Tim Fedroff, a 25-year-old lefty hitter batting an outrageous .373 since being promoted from Class AA Akron (where he was hitting .305). He's not a power hitter, but he entered the year with a career .290 average (.761 OPS) and deserves a shot at some point. Odds are that only Brantley is certain to be in the 2013 Tribe outfield.
6. Josh Tomlin is 7-11 with a 5.60 ERA since the 2011 All-Star break. He came out of the bullpen to relieve Lowe Tuesday night. Send someone else to the minors and recall Kluber (11-7, 3.59) who leads the International League in strikeouts. He's 7-2 with a 2.90 ERA in his last 10 starts.
7. See if another team has an interest in Lowe, who may be able to help a contender in relief -- which he's done before. Jeanmar Gomez (4-2, 3.54 ERA) or Chris Seddon (11-5, 3.44 ERA) could be recalled.
8. The Indians picked up Lars Anderson from the Red Sox for Class AA knuckleballer Steven Wright. They sounded very upbeat about the 24-year-old lefty first baseman/outfielder. He's a .262 hitter (.779 OPS) with 33 homers in 1,440 Class AAA plate appearances over the last three years. Those numbers aren't inspiring, but I'm open to seeing him play, too.
At this point, the Tribe has to look inward and see if there are any prospects at the upper levels of the farm system, and reward some of these guys who are producing at Columbus.
Related topics: cleveland-indians-2012
Re: Articles
1955We're going to get to August 1 no more than 6 games out.
Mathematically, we're very much a team in a pennant race. 6 games out on August 1 is a pretty interesting season for most our years here of Cleveland Indians Fandom.
I think no big trades for us at the deadline was the right call with the cards at this stage of Cleveland Indians Baseball. I won't fault the organization for rolling the dice on Ubaldo last season, and I won't fault for no moves today.
That said, I'll be disappointed if the Front Office does not shake things up with the roster with some releases and call ups. This is definitely one of those times in life that fresh blood cannot hurt, and might help.
And I still think Detroit and Chicago are quite capable of playing lesser baseball in the next 60 days and coming back to the division.
If our Front Office sits and does nothing this week, off with their heads.
(yeah, I know Bastille Day was over two weeks ago)
Mathematically, we're very much a team in a pennant race. 6 games out on August 1 is a pretty interesting season for most our years here of Cleveland Indians Fandom.
I think no big trades for us at the deadline was the right call with the cards at this stage of Cleveland Indians Baseball. I won't fault the organization for rolling the dice on Ubaldo last season, and I won't fault for no moves today.
That said, I'll be disappointed if the Front Office does not shake things up with the roster with some releases and call ups. This is definitely one of those times in life that fresh blood cannot hurt, and might help.
And I still think Detroit and Chicago are quite capable of playing lesser baseball in the next 60 days and coming back to the division.
If our Front Office sits and does nothing this week, off with their heads.
(yeah, I know Bastille Day was over two weeks ago)
Re: Articles
1956I ditch Damon and Duncan immediately. I supported the gamble on Damon for the expenditure, but it's time to move on.
They are not complete ballplayers considering their arms in left field, and neither is hitting a lick with any consistency or timeliness.
I still like Hannahan and Kotchman as both have the glove and baseball sense and occasional bright times at the plate.
That said, if we let one or both go, so be it.
They are not complete ballplayers considering their arms in left field, and neither is hitting a lick with any consistency or timeliness.
I still like Hannahan and Kotchman as both have the glove and baseball sense and occasional bright times at the plate.
That said, if we let one or both go, so be it.
Re: Articles
1957As discussed last week, this club’s needs were too many to address at the Deadline (and for this, the front office definitely deserves some blame, as Josh Willingham and/or Yoenis Cespedes would have been excellent and affordable additions last winter), and the trading chips on hand were too scarce. The 2012 Indians simply did not give Antonetti enough reason to pull the trigger on any trade that would have weakened an already frail farm system in exchange for a short-term rental. And that frail farm system (which, mind you, is also the fault of the front office) caught up to the Indians once again, as they don’t seem to have the adequate pieces to bring in an impact acquisition under control beyond 2012...
...Still, given the way the Jimenez trade has transpired and some notable core elements have disappointed this season, perhaps a step back in 2013 in order to augment the 2014, ’15, ’16 outlook is the way to proceed.
Here's the thing. The last time the Indians did one of these total rebuilds, they ultimately didn't win, but they at least had one playoff appearance and one other 90-win season out of the run.
If you date this most recent rebuild as having begun with the trades of Lee and Martinez, the Tribe has yet to even get one winning season out of it for their troubles. "Stepping back" from total mediocrity? Yippee!
Which is another way of saying that if there's a decision made to blow it all up yet again, there needs to be a different set of hands pressing the button.
What really sucks about the way this season has fallen apart is that we don't even NEED stars. If this team was getting average production out of left field and first base--just average--they would be right there in the race. And with Willingham, someone they could have had by committing Damon + Sizemore money for just three years, they might be damn close to leading the division.
...Still, given the way the Jimenez trade has transpired and some notable core elements have disappointed this season, perhaps a step back in 2013 in order to augment the 2014, ’15, ’16 outlook is the way to proceed.
Here's the thing. The last time the Indians did one of these total rebuilds, they ultimately didn't win, but they at least had one playoff appearance and one other 90-win season out of the run.
If you date this most recent rebuild as having begun with the trades of Lee and Martinez, the Tribe has yet to even get one winning season out of it for their troubles. "Stepping back" from total mediocrity? Yippee!
Which is another way of saying that if there's a decision made to blow it all up yet again, there needs to be a different set of hands pressing the button.
What really sucks about the way this season has fallen apart is that we don't even NEED stars. If this team was getting average production out of left field and first base--just average--they would be right there in the race. And with Willingham, someone they could have had by committing Damon + Sizemore money for just three years, they might be damn close to leading the division.
Re: Articles
1958Bingo. The holes on this team have been painfully obvious for a long time and the management has done absolutely nothing to address them. It appears that they either don't care, or they are just too helpless financially, or they are simply incompetent - or some combination of those things.Charlie T. wrote:As discussed last week, this club’s needs were too many to address at the Deadline (and for this, the front office definitely deserves some blame, as Josh Willingham and/or Yoenis Cespedes would have been excellent and affordable additions last winter), and the trading chips on hand were too scarce. The 2012 Indians simply did not give Antonetti enough reason to pull the trigger on any trade that would have weakened an already frail farm system in exchange for a short-term rental. And that frail farm system (which, mind you, is also the fault of the front office) caught up to the Indians once again, as they don’t seem to have the adequate pieces to bring in an impact acquisition under control beyond 2012...
...Still, given the way the Jimenez trade has transpired and some notable core elements have disappointed this season, perhaps a step back in 2013 in order to augment the 2014, ’15, ’16 outlook is the way to proceed.
Here's the thing. The last time the Indians did one of these total rebuilds, they ultimately didn't win, but they at least had one playoff appearance and one other 90-win season out of the run.
If you date this most recent rebuild as having begun with the trades of Lee and Martinez, the Tribe has yet to even get one winning season out of it for their troubles. "Stepping back" from total mediocrity? Yippee!
Which is another way of saying that if there's a decision made to blow it all up yet again, there needs to be a different set of hands pressing the button.
What really sucks about the way this season has fallen apart is that we don't even NEED stars. If this team was getting average production out of left field and first base--just average--they would be right there in the race. And with Willingham, someone they could have had by committing Damon + Sizemore money for just three years, they might be damn close to leading the division.
As it is with most crappy businesses, this team's problems start right at the upper levels of ownership and management - and all the fans who pay attention to this team know it. We have known it for many many years now. They simply don't seem to be serious about competing. It's really hard to care about the Indians until there is some sign that this has changed.
Someone should explain that to Chris Perez one of these days.
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1959Anybody that doesn't think ownership makes a difference, take a look at the Dodgers since the club was sold.
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1960Antonetti says:
ntonetti said Anderson will play first base, while also getting action at times in the outfield and as a designated hitter.
"He's a big, physical left-handed hitter," Antonetti said. "He's very good around the bag and has a good approach at the plate. He has good strike-zone discipline. We feel he's got ingredients to be a potentially productive Major League player for us."
Wright had gone 9-6 with a 2.49 ERA in 20 starts for Double-A Akron this season.
"We certainly hold Steven in high regard," Antonetti said. "But in order to get a player of value, you have to give a player of value. To Steven's credit, he's done a great job in his transformation to a knuckleball pitcher and is really commited to learning the craft."
Sounds to me like they are gathering cheap options for Kotchman in 2013. In fact even cheaper options than Kotchman himself and we know how much that discount price bought us.
ntonetti said Anderson will play first base, while also getting action at times in the outfield and as a designated hitter.
"He's a big, physical left-handed hitter," Antonetti said. "He's very good around the bag and has a good approach at the plate. He has good strike-zone discipline. We feel he's got ingredients to be a potentially productive Major League player for us."
Wright had gone 9-6 with a 2.49 ERA in 20 starts for Double-A Akron this season.
"We certainly hold Steven in high regard," Antonetti said. "But in order to get a player of value, you have to give a player of value. To Steven's credit, he's done a great job in his transformation to a knuckleball pitcher and is really commited to learning the craft."
Sounds to me like they are gathering cheap options for Kotchman in 2013. In fact even cheaper options than Kotchman himself and we know how much that discount price bought us.
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1962If Kotchman is gone, why not try LaPorta again? Surely he can hit .230 and will have a little more power than Kotchman, plus he is RH. We have really given up on Matt. I would have brought him up again play LF and 1B and Kotchman could be late inning defensive replacement.
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1965I'll admit that I read that interchange three times before it clicked.....VT'er wrote:1956 you mean? No, that was his sen.
(It took me years to realize that Civ's forum name was not from the Greek or Latin, but should have been anagram obvious to any 1960's Tribe Fan.......Civ picked a perfect name)