Chris Perez Strong Words

Sweet words from formerly embattled Tribe closer Chris Perez

Jonathan Sanchez, Shin Soo-Choo & The Value of the Thumb Guard

Thumb protector worn by Choo 

Last June 24th the Indians were in San Francisco to take on the Giants. Shin Soo-Choo was finally starting to resemble the Shin Soo-Choo of old getting 10 hits in his previous 34 at-bats. Choo came to the plate with the Indians ahead 2-0 with 1-out in the fourth and took a Jonathan Sanchez fastball to his hand resulting in a broken thumb. The injury sidelined Choo until August 12th.

Earlier this season against Chris Sale of the Chicago White Sox Choo once again had a ball hit him right in the thumb this time he credits a protective device for avoiding the injury.

Today Choo will stand in against Sanchez with the magical thumb protector and hope to continue to find his groove at the plate after having his first multi-hit game of the year against the Royals on Friday afternoon.

Tribe Wins & The Shelly Duncan Outfield Shift

Ned Yost employs an outfield shift against Indians left fielder Shelly Duncan

The Indians improved to 2-4 on the season by defeating the Kansas City Royals 8-3. They did their heavy lifting in the first inning scoring 7 times off Royals starter Luke Hochevar who seemed to be rattled by a check swing single on an excuse me swing by Shelly Duncan and a wind blown triple off the bat of Jason Kipnis. Asdrubal Cabrera capped the scoring by hitting a solo home run to straight away center in the 8th inning.

Indians starter Derek Lowe (2-0 1.98 ERA) worked 6.2 innings for the win and surrendered 3R/3ER on 11 hits while striking out 2 and walking 0. The Indians used a trio of relievers (Tony Sipp, Joe Smith, and Vinnie Pestano) to work the final 2.1 innings.

Close Call: Kotchman On/Off The Bag?

Verbal Kint and Ubaldo Jimenez

In the movie The Usual Suspects Kevin Spacey plays the role of a low level street criminal named Verbal Kint. Kint walked with a limp, was feeble, and was in police custody as he began to relay the tale of an arch criminal that was feared by all the underworld named Keyser Soze.

Keyser Soze was a ruthless Hungarian who came home to find his family being held hostage by a rival gang that wanted his drug territory. Rather than acquiesce to the rival gangs wishes he showed these men of will what REAL will really was. He shot two of the hostage takers along with his entire family allowing one member of the rival gang to flee back to his bosses and report what Soze had done. After he buried his family he went on a killing spree wiping out his rivals family and friends and as Verbal said "poof- just like that he was gone."

According to Kint, Keyser Soze becomes a myth - he disappears underground and is never seen again. He becomes a spook story that criminals tell their kids at night - "rat on your pop and Keyser Soze will come and get you."  He says no one really believes in Keyser Soze to which the investigator questioning him asks if he believes in him. Kint says "people say they don't believe in God but they're afraid of him. Well, I believe in God and the only thing that scares me is Keyser Soze."

The movie concludes with the revelation that Keyser Soze and Verbal Kint are one in the same.The Cleveland Indians thought they were trading for Keyser Soze instead they received Verbal Kint.

Ubaldo Jimenez once upon a time was a fearsome pitcher for the Colorado Rockies. He threw a fastball that moved all over the strike zone and topped out at 98 miles an hour. Not long ago he was fearless and menacing on the way to a 15-1 record with an ERA of 2.20. When the calendar flipped from June to July 2010 the transformation of Ubaldo Jimenez to Verbal Kint began. The old Ubaldo went underground and has since been replaced by a pitcher who can't find the fastball he once had and is unable to control what he has left in his arsenal.

The Indians front office felt that they had seen a mechanical flaw, an adjustment in stride that Ubaldo may of made to compensate for the groin injury suffered early in 2011. Unfortunately, that flaw was not able to be repaired after arriving in Cleveland and so far this spring there has been a combination of lack of velocity and lack of command. Neither bode well for a pitcher that the front office is relying on to provide innings and productivity at the top of the rotation.

Both Indian fans and front office executives hope to see the weak Verbal Kint version of Ubaldo Jimenez lose the limp, unclench the hand, and walk with a confidence as he takes the mound against the Toronto Blue Jays. In this version of the story, Verbal Kint goes underground and becomes the player that other General Managers fear acquiring.

Thoughts on Indians Left Field Requirements, Park Factors, and Groundball Staff

The biggest need in the Indians lineup right now is a player with the ability to get on base and the ability to move once there. The Indians need to focus on acquiring these two skills, regardless of the players age, defensive ability, perceived blocking of a player, or whether or not the hitter is a left handed bat or right handed bat. The Indians provide a benefit of a friendly park for left handed hitters and a pitching staff that is constructed to minimize both balls in play and fly balls to left field.

1. A player who is picked up now should not be degraded for what particular skill set they lack.  Anyone brought in today will have scratch and dent written all over them. They will either be a defensive liability, too old, too inexperienced, have a poor track record, etc. The suggestion that the player acquired is not any better than what a team has already should only be applied when compared to the specific skill set an organization is looking to fill.

2. I hate the term blocking as it indicates that the manager and GM have no clue as to what they are doing. The term blocking ranks slightly  ahead of the "organization ruined a player" adage. If guys can hit management will find at bats for them.  Any player added to a roster at this point is going to be acquired based on filling a certain skill set which will add value to the team either by outproducing someone on the field, providing depth and insurance at multiple positions, and putting someone who may of been pushed into an uncomfortable role back into a role where the player has had success. 

In the case of the Cleveland Indians it has become quite obvious that management believes that Shelly Duncan is not suited to be an everyday player but rather a heavily used role player at LF/DH/1b and be utilized as a pinch hitter off the bench. He will still see plenty of action but his skill set doesn't seem to match the Indians need of On-Base Skill (career .313) plus ability to move on the bases (1 career stolen base). 

Around the AL Central: Let the Games Begin

The hits just keep on coming for the Indians and their fans. First Chris Perez has an oblique strain that will put him on the shelf for 4-6 weeks and then its announced that Grady Sizemore has undergone a back surgery that will put him on the disabled list for 8-12 weeks. The good news is that the games have begun in Goodyear and the Indians and Reds battled to a 6-6 tie in the first Cactus League game of the year. The best news to come out of the game, as in any game in spring training, is that nobody was injured.

Indians Notes: 

• Tony Lastoria at IndiansProspectInsider takes a look at the weeks action including the Perez/Sizemore injuries and the left-field competition.
• Terry Pluto reports that Asdrubal Cabrera appears to have come to camp heavier than last year.
• Lewis Pollie and the crew over at Wahoosonfirst have an early spring Wroundtable and look at the possible opening day lineup.
• The Indians will be on-air a total of 12 times this spring. The Indians Spring Training TV schedule for MLB.tv (HERE) and STO (HERE) have been released. 
• Matt Klaassen of Fangraphs looks into the Sizemore Effect and how the Indians should move forward in left field.
• Peter Gammons writes about Grady Sizemore's reckless style as a contributing factor to his injuries the last few seasons.

Tigers Notes: 

• Eight Tigers pitchers combined on a 1-hit 2-0 shutout over the Atlanta Braves . Prince Fielder was on base 3 times with 2 hits and a double. Former Indians Jered Head hit a solo home run fort he Tigers.
• Tiger Manager Jim Leyland tells James Schmel of mlive.com that he supports major league baseball's decision to add a playoff team but doesn't like it.
• Chris Hannum at Motor City Bengals 

Royals Notes: 

• Royals Review asks if former Indians farmhand Kevin Kouzmanoff will make the opening day roster. As of this writing the poll response was 76% against.
• Dick Kaegel at MLB.com looks at reliever Tim Collins as he attempts to gain command of his pitches and improve control.
• Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star takes a look at Luis Mendoza who after 11 minor league seasons  is looking to win a job in the Royals rotation. Will the mechanical adjustments made by minor league pitching coach Doug Henry in 2011which  led to a 2.18 ERA in 144.2 innings of work continue with the Royals in 2012?

White Sox Notes: 

• A.J. Pierzynski tells Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun Times not to worry....playoffs are the White Sox goal.
• Mark Gonzlez of the Chicago Tribune looks at how Robin Ventura leans on his coaching staff and the veteran  players for coaching up the younger players.
• Art Spander at Newsday looks at how Robin Ventura was influenced by his two New York managers: Bobby Valentine and Joe Torre.

Twins Notes:

• TwinkieTown  discusses the Twins Grapefruit League opener victory over the the Tampa Bay Rays 7-3.
• Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune looks at what changes the Twins have made in the front office, how expectations have changed, and what Ron Gardenhire has to do to turn things around.