2011 Cleveland Indians Predictions
The Cleveland Indians haven’t been close to contending since capturing the AL Central crown with 96 victories in 2007. They were respectable in 2008 with 81 wins, but they have won 69 or fewer the last two seasons, finishing fourth both years. These struggles have resulted in terrible attendance numbers. In fact, Cleveland finished last in attendance in 2010. That, above all else, should serve as a wake-up call to management, considering the Indians once sold out 455 consecutive games at Progressive Field. Unfortunately, it takes money to make it, and the Indians have been in the red each of the last two seasons. In other words, no big name free agents have been brought in to make an immediate impact. Baseball odds makers have listed the Indians at +10000 to win the 2011 World Series.
Pitching: The current rotation doesn’t even come close to resembling the one that boasted CC Sabathia and Cliff Lee at the top. Fausto Carmona is the best the Indians currently have. He went 13-14 with a 3.77 ERA in 2011. He pitched well enough to push for 20 wins had he been on a good team.
Justin Masterson, Mitch Talbot and Carlos Carrasco are all front runners to land rotation spots. Masterson led the team in strikeouts (140) but must become a whole lot more consistent. Talbot went 10-13 with an ERA of 4.41. All in all it was a very solid season for him. The Indians are hopeful Carrasco will pick up where he left off last September when he went 2-2 with a 3.83 ERA in seven starts.
The fifth rotation spot is still up for grabs. David Huff, Josh Tomlin and Jeanmar Gomez should all be in the mix.
Chris Perez stepped up after the Kerry Wood trade and saved 23 games for the Tribe while posting a 1.71 ERA. It will certainly be interesting to see if he can be as solid over the course of an entire season.
Lineup: Right fielder Shin-Soo Choo has been one of the few bright spots for the Cleveland offense. He has a chance to make it three straight seasons with at least 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases. He hit .300 with 22 round trippers and added 22 steals in 2010.
Michael Brantley and Grady Sizemore join Choo in the outfield. The Indians desperately need Sizemore to stay healthy. He missed most of last season after undergoing microfracture surgery on his left knee.
Catcher Carlos Santana has huge expectations, being billed as the best bat to put on an Indians uniform since Manny Ramirez.
Shortstop Asdrúbal Cabrera, first baseman Matt LaPorta, second baseman Jason Donald and third baseman Jason Nix are the projected infield starters. LaPorta has the potential to be a key run producer in the middle of the lineup. The Indians are hopeful that he will realize that potential this season.
DH Travis Hafner is getting a fat $13 million pay check this year and next. That’s a whole lot of cheese for a guy who hit just 13 home runs and drove in a total of 50 in 2010. It is worth noting that he posted those numbers in 118 games. Still, it’s clear he doesn’t have the power he used to.
Prediction – 5th Place AL Central: The Indians won two more games than Kansas City last year, but I don’t think they will be able to hold off the Royals for fourth place this time around. The pitching staff exceeded expectations in 2010, and the Tribe still only won 69 games. It looks like another tough year lies ahead for Cleveland. The Indians are listed at +2500 to win the AL Central.
