Two Guys Sports
Bruce BostwickThe Tribe Must Finish Strong
August 25th 2008 15:25
So far, the Indians have been playing some good baseball finally after not doing so for a good portion of the year. 2009 will be on the horizon and expectations are going to have to be lowered big time. If you put them too high, they will surely fail and that's not a good thing. The last thing needed is to see the doom and gloom happen to Cleveland happen again.
The series with the Tigers could be an indication of where this team could go. Right now, they are 12 games out of the division with no realistic chance of catching it but only 1.5 games away from 3rd. Cleveland finally got themselves out of last place and it looks to have some distance at this very moment. That series with the Angels really helped out a lot and has been good to them from this point forward.
Based upon observation, the Indians need a better 3B because Marte is just not going to cut it. He's not been good since getting that spot and hasn't produced on the offense. There is just no way to give him a guaranteed starting spot in the majors. Perhaps spending the early part of the season in the minors would be best to improve on his hitting. While he can be a decent defensive 3B, he does need to work on his offense to help give them a better chance of winning.
The starting pitcher may need another starter picked up in the off-season. I believe there are three spots that will be guaranteed in Lee, Carmona, and Reyes. Carmona looks like he can get it back together and start pitching like the pitcher I know he can be. Reyes has been pretty impressive despite the lack of run support. Lee has been the diamond on this team and has been really good. He should get the AL Cy Young as he leads the AL in wins, ERA, and winning percentage. The last two may be tough to figure out.
I'm probably going to be one of the few to think this but I don't feel that Jake Westbrook should be in the rotation because he seems to have a problem with staying healthy. Maybe he could be one of the long inning and/or emergency starters that could fill in when needed but not on a consistent basis. I feel he's too injury prone and needs to get himself healthy and stay that way instead of always getting injured. I think he's a good pitcher but just isn't worth the risk.
As for the bullpen, maybe fix it and try to minimize it as much as possible. I would like to personally like to see Cleveland pitchers complete more games and not have to depend on it to keep the games from being blown by someone else. If you can start the game, why not finish it? I'm not saying closers are useless but mainly saying that they don't need to be used all the time. Let a pitcher complete a game. If nothing else, it'd make the Indians stand out especially if they pitch really well.
For now, just end strong on the year and next month is going to be fighting their own division so it's going to have to be strong. That means doing better and beating the Twins, White Sox, Tigers, and the Royals to end this horrific season on a positive note.
The series with the Tigers could be an indication of where this team could go. Right now, they are 12 games out of the division with no realistic chance of catching it but only 1.5 games away from 3rd. Cleveland finally got themselves out of last place and it looks to have some distance at this very moment. That series with the Angels really helped out a lot and has been good to them from this point forward.
Based upon observation, the Indians need a better 3B because Marte is just not going to cut it. He's not been good since getting that spot and hasn't produced on the offense. There is just no way to give him a guaranteed starting spot in the majors. Perhaps spending the early part of the season in the minors would be best to improve on his hitting. While he can be a decent defensive 3B, he does need to work on his offense to help give them a better chance of winning.
The starting pitcher may need another starter picked up in the off-season. I believe there are three spots that will be guaranteed in Lee, Carmona, and Reyes. Carmona looks like he can get it back together and start pitching like the pitcher I know he can be. Reyes has been pretty impressive despite the lack of run support. Lee has been the diamond on this team and has been really good. He should get the AL Cy Young as he leads the AL in wins, ERA, and winning percentage. The last two may be tough to figure out.
I'm probably going to be one of the few to think this but I don't feel that Jake Westbrook should be in the rotation because he seems to have a problem with staying healthy. Maybe he could be one of the long inning and/or emergency starters that could fill in when needed but not on a consistent basis. I feel he's too injury prone and needs to get himself healthy and stay that way instead of always getting injured. I think he's a good pitcher but just isn't worth the risk.
As for the bullpen, maybe fix it and try to minimize it as much as possible. I would like to personally like to see Cleveland pitchers complete more games and not have to depend on it to keep the games from being blown by someone else. If you can start the game, why not finish it? I'm not saying closers are useless but mainly saying that they don't need to be used all the time. Let a pitcher complete a game. If nothing else, it'd make the Indians stand out especially if they pitch really well.
For now, just end strong on the year and next month is going to be fighting their own division so it's going to have to be strong. That means doing better and beating the Twins, White Sox, Tigers, and the Royals to end this horrific season on a positive note.
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