Cleveland Indians at Minnesota Twins

At the onset of starting this blog I thought it would be good to post after every game. However, I work three jobs, so, you know, c’est impossible. Not sure how I overlooked that one. With that in mind, I’ve decided that posting after each series is the way to go. Sure, I’ll throw some other posts in the mix from time to time, but I will definitely be posting after each series. Now enough set up, let’s get to the first series of the second half  . . .

Overview

Game One Twins 3 Indians 2: The bats came out of the box flat. Michael Bourn had two hits and the only two RBI’s. Outside of that, the Indians could only muster two other hits (one each from Michael Brantley and Lonnie Chisenhall). Scott Kazmir had a great start. Six innings, two runs. He remains the surprise of the season. The only mistake he made was giving up a two run single to Trevor Plouffe. I have no idea who this goofball is, but he is slowly but surely turning into a thrown in the Indians side. The funny thing about baseball is that some guys always seem to perform against certain teams. Terry Steinbach killed the Indians for most of his career in Oakland. Somehow, some way, he always seemed to drive a dagger into their hearts. Anyway, a Joe Mauer single in the eighth off Joe Smith gave the Twins the first win of the series. 

Game Two Twins 3 Indians 2 (not a typo): Another great start wasted. Corey Kluber delivered five solid innings, striking out seven, before leaving with an injury. That’s not good. However, it seems to be a minor injury. He might miss a start, which isn’t that bad considering it might give us another look at pitching prospect Danny Salazaar. A Jason Kipnis home run was the only offense the Indians could muster. Then a Chisenhall error and Rich Hill’s presence doomed the Indians to a second straight loss. Seriously. Why the hell is Rich Hill allowed to pitch? He has a 6.75 ERA and he’s the only lefty reliever we have? No bueno. I know Terry Francona loves him, but apparently the baseball gods hate him. Please, please go get Oliver Perez.

Game Three Indians 7 Twins 1: A win! Thank God. Getting swept by the Twins would have been a nightmare start to the second half. Justin Masterson was brilliant! He had a perfect game through six innings and recorded his eleventh win of the season, equalling his win total from last season. Kipnis had another home run and Brantley delivered a clutch three run triple. If the Indians are going to make a push to the postseason, they will need Masterson and Kipnis to carry them there. Last year they tanked when these two started to slump. While the team is better than it was a year ago, a major league team can only go as far as their best players take them. 

Reasons for Optimism

The starting pitching was brilliant in this series: Now that Zach McCallister is off the DL, we’ll finally get to see the best the Indians have to offer in the second half. If Kluber and Kazmir can pitch like this down the stretch, the Indians will be in the race until the end. Even the great Indians teams in the mid to late 90’s didn’t have consistent pitching from the back of the rotation. Guys like Chad Ogea, Mark Clark, and Dave Burba won a lot of games, but the offense also scored billions of runs. I could have won ten games pitching on those teams. Since the Great Rebuild of 2002, the front office has put much more emphasis on pitching over offense. While there are still so many question marks, I feel a little better going forward if these are the guys who are rounding out the rotation. Still, we’ll see what the second half has in store. 

Jason Kipnis: He struggled mightily down the stretch last year as the Indians plummeted down the standings. A good start to the second half is needed especially given the struggles of some of the other top hitters (what’s the deal Astrubal Cabrera?). Coming off a great at-bat in the All Star Game, Kipnis turned in a solid series. Now that he has an elite table-setter ahead of him in Michael Bourn, I expect great things from Kipnis is the second half. 

The second half schedule: They end the season with 20 games agains the Royals, White Sox, Astros, and Twins. They only have to play seven more games against the Tigers. There is not excuse to fall out of contention this year. Unfortunately, it’s the Indians. The impossible is not only possible, but likely. Alas. Such is life.

Reasons to be Cynical

The law firm of Swisher and Reynolds: I know Mark Reynolds strikes out a lot. I knew he would at the start of the season. I thought he would hit more homers. He started the season off so well, but he looks lost at the plate. Ugh. He is the WORST. At any moment he could either hit a moon shot or strike out on a pitch that Mr. Magoo would know was out of the strike zone. As for Swisher? He must be hurt. It’s too bad. I’m sure the pressure of signing the largest contract in team history is also weighing on him. He has brought some much need swag to the clubhouse, but we need him to be more than the Jean Ralphio of Cleveland. 

Rich Hill: I feel for him. He thought he was coming into to be a lefty specialist, but he’s now the only lefty option out of the pen. Still, he stinks. They need to trade for another reliever and only let Hill pitch when they’re ahead or behind by at least five runs. 

All is quiet on the trade front: I haven’t seen much of the Indians in the rumors lately. Except for Jim Bowden’s insistence that they should trade Cabrera to the Cardinals. Seriously, Jim. Shut up. They are in contention, why would they trade a key player for prospects? Francisco Lindor is at least another year away from the majors. You are the Matt Millen of baseball. If you’re so smart, then why did you get fired as GM from both the Reds and Nationals? And why on is the “Controversy” section of your Wikipedia page so much longer than the “General Manager” section? Oops. Went off on a rant there. It happens. Lost my place. Oh, right, it’s lame that I haven’t heard much about the Indians making trades. That’s all I really wanted to say here.