Cleveland Sports Forum

BA Quesiton/Answer session:

David (Selkirk, MB): Can Cleveland's Jose Ramirez be a starting IF for the Indians?
Josh Norris: With Chisenhall, Lindor (soon) and Kipnis already there, it’s not likely.

Branyan is back! Playoffs here we come!

Giambi must have sent the pictures he has on Francona and Antonetti to Branyan.

I thought the Branyan comment had to be a joke, but there he is on the Columbus starting lineup. Hadn't played a game in America in a couple years.

It’s the summer of reunions in Cleveland. First Chris Gimenez and now Russell Branyan.

The Indians announced the signing of Branyan on Friday afternoon and assigned him to Columbus.

This is Branyan’s fourth stint with the Indians organization. He was originally a 7th round draft pick of the Tribe in 1994, and was traded to the Reds in 2002 for Ben Broussard.

Branyan returned for the first time in 2007 and played just one game for the Buffalo Bison before his contract was purchased by the Phillies. He later returned to the big league club briefly in 2010 and was then shipped to Seattle in exchange for Ezequiel Carrera and Juan Diaz.

Branyan’s career in Cleveland was brief, but in terms of home run production he ranks among the most prolific power hitters in franchise history

It’s unlikely that Branyan makes a significant impact at the major league level, if he even gets called up, but if Jason Giambi is unable to return to full health Branyan could be a viable left-handed pinch hitter for the Tribe in September.

Branyan hasn’t played in the majors since hitting five home runs in 68 games for the Diamondbacks and Angels in 2011, and most recently played for the Toros de Tijuana of the Mexican league where he was teammates with other long-since-forgotten majors leaguers such as Ramon Ortiz and Jose Contreras

Jose Ramirez making Francisco Lindor wait: Paul Hoynes rant of the week CHICAGO, Ill. – The little guy has made the big guy wait. Sometimes that's how life and baseball works.

Jose Ramirez and Francisco Lindor aren't the biggest guys in the locker room, but right now Ramirez is playing shortstop for the Indians and Lindor is playing the same position at Class AAA Columbus. Unless something usual happens, Ramirez will stay with the Tribe and Lindor will probably go home when Columbus finishes its postseason run in the International League.

Lindor is the Indians' top prospect, their No.1 pick in 2011, the shortstop of the future. It's just that the future hasn't arrived yet.

Ramirez is the present. What he'll be in the future is unknown – he's probably slotted for second base or a utility role – but right now he's doing a good impersonation of a big league shortstop.

"He's been all over the place at shortstop," said manager Terry Francona. "When we traded Cabbie (Asdrubal Cabrera), we did it for a reason and it wasn't because we didn't like Cabbie."

For Lindor to get a September call-up, at least three things had to happen.

-He had to be playing great at Columbus. He's been OK.

-Ramirez and Mike Aviles had to struggle with the Tribe. They've been fine.

-The Indians had to be a lot closer to the postseason than they are right now.

Yes, the Indians could be using Ramirez so they don't have to start Lindor's arbitration clock, but if they needed his bat for one last push to the postseason, they'd be foolish not to do it.

There's still a month of baseball left so things could change, but it's not like Ramirez and Lindor are going anywhere. Ramirez is 21, Lindor 20. Their careers are just starting to unfold.

another disappointment for Joe. Tribe can counter with Giambi.

The A’s, struggling to score since trading Yoenis Cespedes to Boston for Jon Lester, acquired lefty slugger Adam Dunn from the White Sox for righander Nolan Sanburn.
Oakland is 20th in runs scored this month with 102 and its offense has sputtered, particularly in a crucial series with the Angels in which the A’s have scored only three runs.
According to reports, Oakland will pay about $1.2 million of the remaining $2.5 million from Dunn’s $15 million contract, which expires at the end of this season. He originally signed a four-year, $56 million deal with the White Sox in December of 2010.

WHITE SOX ACQUIRE


Stockton (CAL) HiA 3 1 3.28 42 6 71 78 29 26 6 25 73


ATHLETICS ACQUIRE

Adam Dunn, dh
Age: 34

In the final year of a $56 million, four-year deal, Oakland has only to assume $1.2 million of the remaining $2.5 million on Dunn’s deal. The lefthanded slugger fits the A’s profile as a power hitter with the ability to work a walk. At 34, Dunn’s power is still largely intact, especially against righthanders against whom he is slashing .232/.357/.457 with 18 homers.


Chicago (AL) MAJ .220 106 363 43 80 17 0 20 54 65 132 1 .340 .433

The Orioles, who lost third baseman Manny Machado for the season and have Jonathan Schoop with a .611 OPS at second, acquired the versatile Kelly Johnson and third baseman Michael Almanzar from the Red Sox for infielders Jemile Weeks and Ivan De Jesus.

Johnson’s acquisition by Baltimore means the 32-year-old infielder/outfielder has now played for all five AL East teams since 2011. He’ll likely play the majority of third base with Machado out.

3ds_redsox80
RED SOX ACQUIRE

Jemile Weeks, 2b
Age: 27

Weeks was acquired by the Orioles from Oakland in the offseason for closer Jim Johnson, but was beaten out for the second base job by Jonathan Schoop. The 12th pick overall in 2008 by the Athletics out of Miami and a former Team USA infielder, Weeks flashed outstanding tools but has not been able to translate them into success in the majors, in part due to injuries.

At his best, he drew comparisons to Ray Durham as a top-of-the-order catalyst and he maintains a good approach, walking more than he strikes out. But his defense has been inconsistent, as he can make the occasional spectacular play but struggles with routine plays and double play pivots. He’ll join the Red Sox.

Ivan DeJesus, if
Age: 27

DeJesus returns to the Boston organization, where he spent part of 2012 after he was acquired in the blockbuster salary dump with the Dodgers. This season with Triple-A Norfolk, DeJesus slashed .282/.358/.389, seeing time at second base, third and short.

O's get:
Michael Almanzar, 3b
Age: 23

Almanzar, drafted from the Red Sox in the Rule 5 draft only to be returned to Boston in July, goes back to Baltimore. He was originally signed by the Red Sox from $1.5 million out of the Dominican in 2007—the largest deal of that year—and is the son of former big league righthander Carlos Almanzar. The righthanded hitter has raw power and did hit 16 homers at Double-A in 2013, but has a long swing and little plate discipline.

Kelly Johnson, if/of
Age: 32

Johnson completes the AL East cycle within a four-year span and pulls the rare feat of playing for all three traditional AL East rivals in the same season. In fact, within a month. He was traded by the Yankees to Boston on July 31 for Stephen Drew and now heads to Baltimore, where it’s expected he’ll see the majority of time at third base with Machado out. Johnson’s valuable for his versatility—he’s played first, second, third, left and right field—and he has some pop and has the ability to draw a walk.

Cleveland Indians playing meaningful baseball in September, and that's amazing -- Terry Pluto



CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Indians are back in town for a big series with the Detroit Tigers.

And it's September.

And I'm still not sure how this happened, how the Tribe is in contention for anything in September.

But they were only 3 1/2 games behind Kansas City in the Central Division heading into Monday's 4:05 p.m. game with Detroit.

These are not the Indians of 2013, the team that won 92 games and secured a wild card playoff berth.

Or are they?

Heading into September last season, the Tribe was 71-64 -- and 7 1/2 games behind the Tigers in the Central Division.

No one saw a 21-6 record in the final month of the season. And the exclamation point -- make that TEN EXCLAMATION POINTS -- was the 10-game winning streak to end the season.

In the name of T.J. House and Zach Walters, can they do that again -- or at least something like that?
Corey KluberCorey Kluber is the ace of the staff, and he has only 64 career starts.Chuck Crow / The Plain Dealer

THE STARTERS

Consider that only two members of the current starting rotation had the same job this time a year ago.

That's Corey Kluber and Danny Salazar.

Gone are Ubaldo Jimenez, Justin Masterson and Scott Kazmir.

Three veterans. Three starters who have been replaced by the following: Trevor Bauer, Carlos Carrasco and House.

That would seem to be a sign of trouble, but nothing is quite exactly what it seems with these Indians.

No one in the current rotation has had that job for more than two years.

Consider the career starts:

Kluber -- 64
Carrasco -- 48
Bauer -- 29
Salazar -- 25
House -- 14

That list of pitchers looks too young, too inexperienced to carry a team into contention. But the Indians were 17-9 in August and had baseball's best ERA of 2.40. The highest ERA on the team in August was 4.02 by Josh Tomlin.

This team is pitching driven.

And this rotation has two guys (House and Bauer) who opened the season in Class AAA.

And one guy (Carrasco) who began in the rotation and ended up in the bullpen, before returning to the rotation.

And another guy (Salazar) who opened in the rotation, was sent to the minors and then returned.

And then there's been Corey Kluber, the only one to make every start.

This shouldn't be happening.
Cleveland Indians 3, Houston Astros 1After warming up in the bullpen, Cleveland Indians starter Trevor Bauer walked in with catcher Roberto Perez and pitching coach Mickey Callaway. Give Callaway a lot of credit for helping the Tribe build a young, effective rotation. Chuck Crow / The Plain Dealer

THE OLD GUYS, THE NEW GUYS

Masterson was supposed to be the ace of the staff. But he was a mess with the Tribe, and has been worse since traded to St. Louis at the end of July. The 2013 All-Star is 2-3 with a 7.90 ERA for the Cardinals, who appear ready to take him out of the rotation.

Jimenez signed a four-year, $50-million contract with Baltimore. He's 4-9 with a 4.96 ERA and the Orioles have put him in the bullpen.

Kazmir signed a two-year, $22-million deal with Oakland. He made the All-Star team (11-3, 2.38). But since then, the lefty has been wearing down as he's 3-4 with a 6.21 ERA in the second half. We'll see if Kazmir is just going through a tough stretch, or if he is having physical problems -- something the Tribe feared when they decided not to offer him more than a one-year contract.

But those thee guys combined for 37 victories last season. How could the Tribe replace that, especially without signing a veteran starter?

The farm system supplied House and Salazar, both signed and developed by the Indians. Bauer came in the Tribe steal of a deal with Arizona, which also supplied Bryan Shaw. Other players were involved, the main one traded from Cleveland was Shin-Soo Choo.

Manager Terry Francona and pitching coach Mickey Callaway have rebuilt the rotation. The Indians also credit bullpen coach Kevin Cash with helping to put back together the pieces of Carrasco, turning him into a starter.

In August, Carrasco was 3-0 with a 1.82 ERA. He is modeling himself after Kluber -- Throw Strike One, Don't Walk Anyone!

What has happened to the rotation is remarkable.

Early in the season, Salazar and Carrasco were monumental flops. Both lost their jobs and confidence. Both are now throwing 95-97 mph, Salazar with a 2-2 record and 2.77 ERA in August.

A year ago, Bauer was where Masterson is today -- so confused, he was pitching the entire game from the stretch. Bauer now looks like a veteran starter with a reconstructed windup and a baseball soul that has found some peace in Cleveland.

The bullpen has been outstanding, the second best in the American League since the All-Star break. Cody Allen is 18-of-20 in saves. Shaw leads the league in appearances. The Indians are 55-3 when they have a lead after six innings (compared to 67-6 last year).

For a young team such as the Tribe, pitching is the great eraser. Pitching is how Tampa Bay and Oakland stayed in contention for years with low payrolls, and it's how the Tribe is doing it now.
Tribe settles for doubleheader split Indians Walkoff homer wins first game; stranded runners cost second game from B1Zach Walters hit six homers in August.Chuck Crow / The Plain Dealer

THE LINEUP

The Indians were 17-9 in August with a team batting average of .251. They were 17-9 averaging only 3.7 runs per game.

Their leading home run hitter in August? That's right, Zach Walters. He has six. He also is batting .175.

Chris Dickerson batted 47 times in August without driving in a run. His average was .147.

Nick Swisher and David Murphy are injured. Michael Bourn came back from his hamstring problems in the middle of August. The Tribe was 10-4 with him in the lineup. He batted only .269 last month, but at least he is an experienced player.

Carrying the team offense have been Yan Gomes (.310, 3 HR, 9 RBI), Jose Ramirez (.304) and Michael Brantley (.290, 3 HR, 18 RBI) in August.

At the end of spring training, who would have guessed that Ramirez would stabilize the shortstop position? Or that Brantley would be the team's top run-producer? Or that some nights, the lineup would contain the names of Tyler Holt, Roberto Perez, Walters and Dickerson?

THE MANAGER

Terry Francona was the American League Manager of the Year in 2013, and he deserved it.

He may be doing even a better job this season.

The veteran manager stands in the dugout, rocking back and forth -- shoving piece after piece of bubblegum in his mouth. It's the only sign of nerves.

Francona's strength is in how he treats people. His players trust him. He works with General Manager Chris Antonetti to shift pitchers between Cleveland and Class AAA Columbus to keep fresh arms in the bullpen.

Some of Antonetti's recent moves have really paid off: Esmil Rodgers for Mike Aviles and Yan Gomes remains a very underrated deal forgotten by many fans.

In his two years here, Francona has never had a public spat with a player. His emphasis on relationships -- with his bosses and his players -- is his strength.

Who knows what will happen in September. Maybe the pitching will fade. If it does, so will the Indians.

Or maybe not.

But this much is certain: It's September. And for the second September in a row, Francona has delivered meaningful baseball to Tribe fans.

A ranking of all shortstops, major leaguers and prospects;



NO. 15. Francisco Lindor, Cleveland Indians (Prospect)


Hitting

11/25

The switch-hitting Francisco Lindor’s offensive skills have steadily improved over the last four years, as he’s developed an outstanding hitting eye and aptitude from both sides. He’s also refined his ability to read pitchers and stay within his zone, which in turn has led to him working deeper counts and chasing fewer pitches out of the zone.


Power

8/25

Lindor never will offer much power, but he has enough strength and bat speed, especially from the left side, to hit 10 to 12 homers at maturity. He’s more likely to be a line-drive machine who accrues roughly 20 to 25 doubles and a handful of triples over a full season in The Show.


Baserunning

12/20

Lindor’s above-average speed fuels his extra-base hit total, as his wheels and base-running instincts help him turn singles into doubles and doubles into triples. Lindor is also an adept base stealer who knows how to pick his spots, while his on-base skills suggest numerous seasons with 15 to 20 stolen bases.


Defense

21/30

Lindor is an absolute wizard with the glove and profiles as an elite defensive shortstop in the major leagues. The 20-year-old’s phenomenal instincts always have him in the right spot to make plays, and that doesn’t take into account his impressive range and quick feet. Meanwhile, his plus arm strength is ideal for the position.


Overall

52/100

Even if Lindor’s bat doesn’t develop as hoped, he still has the potential to enjoy a long, successful career in the major leagues based on his defensive prowess, superb makeup and ability to control the speed of the game. However, even modest offensive production could make Lindor a perennial All-Star.

Jhonny P rated No. 2.

2nd base:

BP is No. 18; AC is No. 15. Despite his stinky year Kipnis tops them both, by a bit



14. Jason Kipnis, Cleveland Indians


14. Jason Kipnis, Cleveland Indians
Tony Dejak/Associated Press




Hitting

15/30

The extremely patient and disciplined approach Kipnis had in 2013 has become less so, and the slight increase in off-speed stuff he’s seen is a case of pitchers attacking a clear weakness. He hasn’t been able to hit off-speed, with both whiffs and ground balls contributing to the problem. And on the whole, he’s really only been dangerous against mistake pitches across the middle. In short: He's very much human.


Power

11/25

The power Kipnis had in 2013 has also dried up, mainly because his opposite-field power has gone back to normal. Whereas he had no problem driving the ball to left in 2013, he hasn’t been able to do it in 2014. The bright side is that Kipnis’ gap power has remained intact, and it still applies to both gaps. But without that awesome power to left field, Kipnis’ power in general can only be so awesome.


Baserunning

17/20

This is where things get more positive. Kipnis will be hard-pressed to make it to 30 steals for a third straight year, but he should at least hit 25 while also establishing a new career best for efficiency. As if that wasn’t enough of a bonus, he’s also blowing away last year’s 36 XBT% with a 56 XBT% this year. So though his hitting has taken a turn for the worse, Kipnis’ baserunning has hit a new level.


Defense

11/25

After not liking Kipnis’ defense in 2013, the defensive metrics really don’t like it in 2014. A perceived lack of range is a factor there. And while that perception is probably overstated, Kipnis really doesn’t explode out of his stance as well as you’d expect a guy with his athleticism to be able to. His first-step quickness is fine, but the burst after the fact isn’t anything special.


Overall

54/100

It’s been a rough season for Kipnis. He’s followed up a season in which he was good at everything by being only good at one thing (running the bases). And as much as you want to believe in his talent, the cracks in his bat and defense look pretty real.

They provide a list of the "top 75 pitchers" and we get only guy on the list, but rather well respected at that:
Only guys rated higher are the fairly predictable Kershaw and Felix Hernandez.


3. Corey Kluber, Cleveland Indians



Control

25/30

That close to 80 percent of Kluber’s pitches are fastballs or cutters makes it easy for him to live in the zone, so it's actually somewhat surprising that he only hits the zone about as often as the average starter. But he doesn’t simply throw his hard stuff up there. He lives consistently on the edge against lefties and rarely strays from the outside corner against righties. But his really hidden talent? Nobody in the American League is better at back-dooring lefties with sliders.


Whiffability

23/25

Kluber was good at missing bats in 2013. He’s become great at it this year. That he sits in the 93-94 range with his heat gives him the velocity to blow batters away, but it’s his cutter and slider that do the heavy lifting. His cutter is arguably the hardest to hit in the game, and his slider is right up there with those of Garrett Richards and Max Scherzer. That’s some arsenal.


Hittability

22/25

Kluber’s only getting better at inducing ground balls, and you would too if you had a sinker, cutter and slider as good at getting grounders as his. He’s also gotten what was an absurdly high line drive rate off his four-seamer under control, and is now inducing more pop-ups than home runs. In so many words, he’s become very, very, very hard to square up.


Workhorse

18/20

Kluber lacks a track record in this department, but what he’s shown this year has been encouraging. He’s averaged roughly seven innings per start, and his efficiency has helped him do so on barely more than 100 pitches. He’s also shown he can kick up his velocity deep in games. So even despite the lack of a track record, it’s not hard to project him as an easy bet for 200 innings going forward.


Overall

88/100

It was clear in 2013 that Kluber was at least underrated. Now he’s one of the elite starters in the game, mixing top-notch control with nasty stuff and an ability to limit good contact. The presence of Felix Hernandez will make it tough for him to win the AL Cy Young this year, but it’s not hard to imagine Kluber emerging as the favorite in 2015.

Nice article on Ramirez---

http://network.yardbarker.com/author/ar ... idget=true

Last I knew some of you were not big fans of Peter Gammons. He wrote a very positive story on the Indians' cheap and terrific starting rotation that is in today's print edition of Baseball America. I cannot find it online but if it appears I'll post it. Written before the overwhelming outings by Kluber and Carrasco the last two night and he credits his former Red Sox friend Francona and Calloway and bullpen catcher Kevin Cash. Our big 4 earn $3,000,000 combined. He omits House but TJ adds very little to that cost total.

Bleacher Report ranks Michael Bourn Baseball's No. 37 Centerfielder
Considering all the minor leagues, independent leagues, colleges, high schools and little leagues out there, No. 37 in the whole world is pretty impressive.



37. Michael Bourn, Cleveland Indians


37. Michael Bourn, Cleveland Indians

Kyle Rivas/Getty Images






Hitting

11/25

There's nothing wrong with Michael Bourn's approach, which still leans toward patience and discipline. It's also a good look that he's back to hitting breaking balls squarely. But with his whiff rate on off-speed stuff skyrocketing, you wonder if he's starting to cheat a little bit. And as long as he continues to struggle so mightily on offerings down and away, I'd expect to see pitchers continue to pound him there.


Power

9/25

Because Bourn still isn't much of a fly-ball hitter, his power production shall continue to have a natural cap on it. But he does pack a bigger wallop than you might think. Balls hit in the air to his pull side tend to be well struck, and he also has some power up the middle of the field and into left-center. Enough to clear the center fielder, anyway, and he can easily turn those balls into doubles and triples.


Baserunning

10/20

Bourn's going to fall short of 20 stolen bases for the first time since 2007, and he's also watched his XBT% fall from 54 to 41 percent. It's true that his leg injuries haven't helped, but that doesn't mean anyone should be optimistic about a rebound. Such injury troubles may not go away with him closing in on 32 years old, and Bourn's not going to be as fast as he once was when he's healthy anyway.


Defense

13/30

The defensive metrics had Bourn rated as roughly an average defender in center last year, and this year they view him as below average. They might be right. Bourn has shown that he can still read fly balls fine, but the closing speed he used to have seems to be extinct. His range is going to suffer without it, and without range, there's not much he can do to be an asset on defense.



Overall

43/100

Bourn is still capable of putting together good at-bats and of delivering some occasional power. But he was at his best when he had elite speed to offer on the basepaths and in center field. Thanks to age and injuries, that elite speed is no longer there.