2000s

Posting will continue to be light for the next week or two. I’m graduating in mid-May, so I have a lot things to take care of in real life. Until then, I’ll try to drop by twice or thrice a week, which isn’t as often as I’d like, but circumstances mandate it.

The past three games have featured crushing losses, although of different variaties. At least the team has chosen multiple ways to lose, right? Thursday night’s loss to the Angels rates as the most bizarre of the three (Alex Cora playing left field?), although the formula of losing close games has remained the same. Most of the blame has to be laid at the feet of the offense. The lineup let Jarrod Washburn off the hook, and kept the Angels in the game. While Bob Wickman deserves some of the ire due to putting the leadoff batter on in the 9th, the game should not have been that tight to begin with. When an offense isn’t productive, little mistakes can mean the difference between victory and defeat. So far, the Indians have had to win the hard way, and that’s not an easy way to accumulate victories.

Profiles of Jason Cooper and Kevin Kouzmanoff should be up on Sunday.

George Steinbrenner is apparently angry at his teams’ 4-8 start:

Steinbrenner issued a statement after the game saying, “Enough is enough. I am bitterly disappointed as I’m sure all Yankee fans are by the lack of performance by our team. It is unbelievable to me that the highest-paid team in baseball would start the season in such a deep funk. They are not playing like true Yankees. They have the talent to win and they are not winning. I expect Joe Torre, his complete coaching staff and the team to turn this around.”

After the Yankees sweep the Devil Rays, this will die down. But it’s a bit amusing to hear the Big Stein complaining after only 12 games.

Reinstated LHSP CC Sabathia from the 15-day Disabled List

From the looks of his performance, Sabathia appears to be over his oblique strain. CC was consistently reaching the mid-90s with his fastball, and his control was excellent; he walked only one batter. Thus far, pitching doesn’t seem to be the weak link in the Indians’ chain. With the return of Sabathia, Jason Davis moves into the “6th starter” role, where he’ll relieve a starter who left early, or pitch multiple inning stretches during blowouts. This leaves one of the existing bullpen members out in the cold, and the winner is…..

Optioned RHP Matt Miller to Buffalo (AAA)

Unfortunately for Miller, he had an option remaining, so he gets sent to Buffalo. The ROOGY hasn’t been used too much in the first two weeks of the season, and although he’s sporting an ERA of 0.00, he’ll join folks like Fernando Cabrera, Andrew Brown, and Jake Robbins in the Bisons’ pen. Rafael Betancourt was the other possible demotee, but he’s been even better than Miller, not allowing a hit in his 7.2 IP thus far. I think he’s in a role where he can thrive as long as he’s not overused; he can give you 2 inning stretches once or twice a week. Of course, now that Jason Davis is now a part of the bullpen, he might only be asked to go an inning at a time, but the use caveat still should apply.

Time for a break from the major-leaguers, at least until they start playing like major-leaguers.

These two pitchers are both part of the Lake County rotation, although that’s where the similarities end.

18. LHP Dan Cevette
How Acquired: 2002 Draft (3rd Round)
High School: Elkland HS, Pennsylvania
ETA: 2008

Until this year, the Indians have kept Dan in mostly short-season leagues, waiting patiently for his frame to fill out and for him to learn how to pitch. Last year in Mahoning Valley, Cevette finally was able to control his pitches, and his stuff did the rest. Towards the end of the year he was promoted to Lake County, where he held his own. Cevette throws in the low 90s, but his best pitch is his curveball. The Indians are conservative with young arms, but I can realistically see Dan in Kinston by July if all goes well. There’s a lot of upside here.

17. RHP Justin Hoyman
How Acquired: 2004 Draft (2nd Round)
College: Florida
ETA: 2007

Hoyman is a polished pitcher, and I think the Indians probably slotted him too low by starting him in Lake County. Hoyman had an interesting journey to professional baseball; his community college shut down after the 9/11 attacks (because tourism revenue dried up), and he got a scholarship at the University of Florida. Before his junior season, he put on 30 pounds, which increased his velocity by about 5 mph. He pitched well in a tough conference, and was rated by The Hardball Times as the third best pitcher in the college baseball. He’s 23, so he has to move quickly. Not much upside, but he can be a decent starter in the majors. Hoyman’s calling card is a heavy sinker, so think of him as Jake Westbrook Lite.

Tonight’s lineup:

CF Coco Crisp
2B Ronnie Belliard
3B Jose Hernandez
C Victor Martinez
RF Casey Blake
1B Ben Broussard
DH Ryan Ludwick
SS Jhonny Peralta
CF Grady Sizemore

One of the main reasons Hafner is sitting is his history vs. Santana: 0-7, 5 K.

Regardless, this might get ugly given the Indians’ hitting woes and who’s on the mound.

Another data point for the Indians to refer to in their negotiations with CC Sabathia:

The Milwaukee Brewers have signed pitching ace Ben Sheets to a new four-year contract extension worth $38.5 million.

Sheets, 26, had signed a $6 million deal for 2005 in February, but left open the option of tearing it up and negotiating a new four-year deal or merely adding a three-year extension. The two sides agreed to tear up the old deal and sign a new extension through 2008

Like Sabathia, Sheets was under team control through 2006, so this deal is very relevant. Johan Santana’s deal was also made under similar circumstances; he’s receiving $40M over the next four seasons. As it is now, it’ll probably take about $9M a year to get Sabathia locked up through 2008. Is that a good investment? Well, $9M is a very large chunk of the current team payroll, and there’s the injury factors. But in today’s market, you’re going to pay at least $7-8M for decent starters, not to mention the price tag for top-of-the-rotation guys.

I say if you can lock up CC through 2008 for $34M or less, you do it. As you approach Sheets or Santana money…well, I’m glad I don’t have to make those types of decisions.

Let’s start out with Milton Bradley. A recent Los Angeles Times article sheds some light on what happened behind the scenes during Milton’s turbulent 2004. There’s some interesting tidbits in the article, including Bradley’s relationship with CC Sabathia:

Former Cleveland teammate and close friend C.C. Sabathia had a candid discussion with Bradley on Super Bowl Sunday, saying he was still angry because Bradley’s behavior prompted the trade to the Dodgers before last season.

The final incident in Bradley’s tumultuous 2 1/2 years in Cleveland came at the end of spring training when Manager Eric Wedge thought Bradley did not run out a pop-up.

“C.C. is like my brother and when he said, ‘You left me and I’m still upset,’ that was real,” Bradley said. “We wanted to turn Cleveland into a powerhouse, and I see now that my actions were wrong and hurt people.”

When the Dodgers traveled from Vero Beach, Fla., to Winter Haven to play the Indians in spring training, Bradley made sure he was one of the few regulars to make the two-hour bus ride.

“By trading me they made a big statement about the direction the organization was going,” he said. “I understand they had to do it. I needed to go to Winter Haven to talk to some people. I needed to go for closure.”

This obviously is a markedly different outlook than the one he had immediately after the trade. I guess it’s easy to be cynical with Bradley, considering all the other times he’s appeared contrite. But I still hope that Bradley can finally put aside his emotional issues and have a stellar career in baseball.

Next is Albert Belle. Justice B. Hill’s piece on Albert is right on the money; for all his well-documented flaws, Belle was the best player of the mid-90s Indians, and it’s not even close. Belle was one of the most feared hitters in baseball during the peak of his career; unfortunately, his ability as a player was often overshadowed by his persona. It never helps your image when you don’t talk to the media, and undoubtedly a lot of baseball writers took shots at Albert because he didn’t to them talk after games. Belle wouldn’t defend himself, so the only view of Belle the fans saw was the intense player on the field, and broken thermostats and rebuffed Trick or Treaters away from the diamond. Obviously there were players who were liked more, but Belle was simply the best player on those teams. Hill sums up his article thusly:

Hate him for his surliness; that would be just. But realize, too, that no player out of that class of talent in the 1990s produced as much when it mattered as Belle did.

I have no doubts that whenever Belle is up for the Hall of Fame, a lot of writers won’t vote for him because of who Albert Belle was; an intense, surly, sometimes confrontational superstar. I still remember him as a phenominal baseball player, whether I was watching him in Canton or in Cleveland. Unfortunately, separating the persona from the athlete isn’t something sportswriters do well.

Hey, let’s talk on-the-field issues!

• The Indians beat the White Sox 8-6 last night, no thanks to Ben Broussard and a kid sitting in the left field corner. Broussard frittered away a run because he didn’t step on the bag, while the kid interefered with Grady Sizemore’s fifth inning double. Aaron Boone would have scored from first if the ball wasn’t touched. Fortunately, neither run made a difference in the game, as the bullpen once again slammed the door shut, preserving a victory. Credit also has to go to Alex Cora, who made several exceptional plays in the field, as well as “bunting” a base hit through the left side, setting the stage for a three run sixth. Thus far, both Cora and Hernandez has been as advertised.
• Both Travis Hafner and Victor Martinez look to be back on track, but Aaron Boone still looks lost at the plate. Ryan Ludwick has gone 0-for-the-season so far, which is huge since Casey Blake is still out with a hamstring tweak. Well, there’s Juan Gonzalez and his hammy as well, but I guess there no point in mentioning him considering that Juan’s hamstring injuries are usually of the season-ending variety.
• Walking Willie Harris (lifetime .305 OBP) and Timo Perez (lifetime .306 OBP) to get to Paul Konerko is just asking for trouble, and that’s what Scott Elarton got.
• Grady Sizemore’s opposite-field double in the fifth illustrates his potential. I think he just needs more playing time.
• I really have no idea who gets sent down when Sabathia is activated for Sunday’s game. Neither Betancourt and Miller deserve a demotion, and I’d like to see Jason Davis to remain on the roster to provide some length to the bullpen. Maybe Scott Sauerbeck gets some tendinitis between now and then. I guess you’d rather have these decisions to make then the pitching moves the Indians had to make last year at this time.

Signed 1B Travis Hafner to a three year, $7M contract with an option for 2008

The contract essentially buys out his arbitration years; the contract is timed so that Hafner will be able to file for free agency after the 2008 season.

First of all, let me say that I like Hafner; he’s a tremendous talent. That being said, I think this a mistake. Not a huge mistake, given the dollars involved, but a mistake nonetheless. Hafner is as about as close as you can get to a full-time DH, and if Michael Aubrey progresses as planned, that’s where Pronk will stay. Designated hitters are fairly easy to come by, and although Hafner’s 2004 was an MVP-caliber season, his value to the team wasn’t as much as Victor Martinez’s was. Martinez plays a position where any offense is a bonus; locking him up is a great idea. Locking up Pronk is more questionable. I’ll have more on this in the coming week.

Placed 2B Danny Garcia on the Disabled List (AAA – shoulder); Recalled IF Jake Thrower from Extended Spring

It looks like it’s bad karma to be the Bisons’ starting second baseman. Warren Morris injured a finger in Spring Training, and now Garcia is out with a shoulder problem. Thrower is a AAA veteren, though this is his first time in the International League.

Placed OF Ben Francisco on the Disabled List (AA – thumb); Promoted OF JJ Sherrill to Akron (AA) from Kinston (A+)

Promoted OF Ricardo Rojas to Kinston (A+) from Lake County (A-)

I’ve been hammered with projects and papers recently, but the end is in sight! Well, at least I can see a speck of light in the tunnel I’m currently in.

• Even with the six runs off Jeremy Bonderman in the first inning today, the Indians’ bats have really been quiet. The team is ranked near the bottom in several offensive categories, including batting average (13th), OBP (13th), Slugging percentage (14th), and hits (14th). The defense has been even worse than the offense; the team is ranked last in fielding percentage.

  So how did the Indians go 3-3 on the road trip? This may come as a shock to most of you, but it’s mainly because of the bullpen. The bullpen’s ERA the first week of the season was 2.63, good for 3rd in the league. Tribe relievers are holding opposing batters to a .516 OPS, and they sport a very good K/BB ratio of 4.00.

  Of course all of these numbers are subject to the sample size rule, and things can (and probably will) change drastically in the next couple of weeks. Bob Wickman bounced back from his horrendous outing against the White Sox to save two games this weekend. Jake Westbrook will probably bounce back after laying an egg this past Saturday. Jhonny Peralta will settle down in the field. Making too much of one week’s worth of games is a very easy trap to fall into, especially since that one week is the only piece of evidence you can relate to. Terry Pluto, as usual, is the voice of reason, commenting on Peralta’s early defensive struggles.

• Sheldon Ocker is out with a Dolan is Cheap!^TM column, calling out ownership for possibly letting CC Sabathia walk two years from now. These two paragraphs taken together are quite humorous:
  

  With insurers limiting coverage of players’ contracts to no more than three years, and pitchers being more vulnerable to serious injury than position players, the wisest course might be to limit a proposed contract for Sabathia to three seasons, maybe with a fourth-year club option.

  But Sabathia is 24. He would be only 29 after the option season ended, and Shapiro would have to start all over again — and next time he would be forced to offer stratospheric money.

  So which is it? Should they only give him a short-term deal because of health concerns, or should they try to lock him up for longer? The rest of the article goes back and forth in the same fashion. Here’s my take: now is the time to get an extension in place, probably an extra two years would be the best they could do. Use the recenet extensions of Freddy Garcia and Johan Santana as templates. If he wants to test the free agent market, then there isn’t much you can do; if he wants to pitch in the Bay Area, there isn’t much you can do. I do think it’s very possible to get an extension done through 2008; the team is heading in the right direction, several similar deals have been signed, and the team and Sabathia has gotten along well. Beyond that, you just have to see how things work out. Cleveland isn’t a market where you can pay many players top dollar; that’s just part of the current financial status of baseball.

• There’s good news and bad news from Extended Spring Training. Jody Gerut has been cleared for game situations, but 2004 draft pick Scott Lewis is on the shelf with shoulder soreness. Lewis, who underwent shoulder surgery while at Ohio State, is on a “non-throwing” program, so hopefully simple rest will be enough.

Well, Shingo Takatsu decided to do his best Bob Wickman imitation yesterday, serving up three home runs in the 9th inning. While Casey Blake is a decent power threat, the fact that he gave up taters to both Coco Crisp and Ronnie Belliard suggests that Takatsu was just throwing “hit me” fastballs.

Cliff Lee was horrible in his first start of the season. As usual, his problems stemmed from his lack of control. Yes, he only walked one batter, but he also fell behind almost every hitter he faced, and when that happens, even the best get hit hard. Lee’s great stuff make outings like these so frustrating; you know he’s *this* close to being a very good starting pitcher, but a simple lack of control is keeping him from making a giant leap forward.

Of course the good news is that after Lee left the game, the White Sox didn’t score again. Betancourt looked outstanding, striking out four in his 2.2 innings, as did Riske, Howry, Rhodes, and Miller. The only two that didn’t pitch in the game were Bob Wickman and Scott Sauerbeck, who may have some arm issues. The best stat (at least by my tastes) is this: after Lee left the game, Indians pitchers did not walk a single batter. Making hitters earn their way on base is a key to successful bullpen, and the five pitchers today followed it.

The Indians did benefit from some of White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen’s moves earlier in the game. He used three relievers in the seventh inning, which left him short after the Indians sent the game to extra innings. Luis Vizcaino was the last arm available by the 10th, and after the Indians had scored 6 runs in the 11th, backup catcher Chris Widger was warming up.