| Patrick Daher. 28th March, 2008 - 6:13 pm
 The Indians will begin their 2008-2009 campaign next week at newly named Progressive Field, formally known as Jacobs Field. Coming off an impressive 96 win season and an ALCS appearance, the Tribe will look to repeat as Central Division Champions and once again prove to be one of the best young teams in baseball.
The offseason was rather a quiet one for GM Mark Shapiro and company. The Indians inked Japanese pitcher Masahide Kobayashi for bullpen help and utility infielder Jamey Carroll. Dialogue was exchanged between Shapiro and C.C. Sabathia’s agent in hopes of keeping the Cy Young Award winner, but those talks were put on hold until the end of the season.
What were the other Central Division foes up to? Well, let’s just say they were ultra-aggressive this offseason. Detroit went on an offseason acquisition binge by landing SS Edgar Renteria, OF Jacque Jones, OF Miguel Cabrera, and LP Dontrelle Willis.
The White Sox netted OF Nick Swisher from the Athletics and SS Orlando Cabrera from the Angels, and the Twins acquired OF Delmon Young from the Rays and INF Brendan Harris.
While the Indians, on paper, remain one of the teams to beat in the American League, many questions surround this year’s ballclub.
Questions that surround the Indians
1. Will Joe Borowski hold up as the Indians' closer for another year?
Although Borowski saved 45 games last year, he was shaky in doing so. He had 4 wins vs. 5 losses and an ERA of 5.07. Borowski is not in the mold of a traditional closer where power rules. He often uses off-speed pitches to fool hitters. If Borowski struggles with some blown saves early on, look for Manager Eric Wedge to go to RP Rafael Betancourt in the closer’s role.
2. How will Pronk rebound from a disappointing 2007 season?
Travis Hafner struggled last season batting .266 with 24 homeruns. While these may look like decent numbers, these are far off from Hafner’s production in ’06 when he hit .308 with 42 dingers and even in ’05 when he batted .305 with 33 HR’s. For the Tribe to have success this year, Hafner must be better than he was a year ago from the No.3 hole in the lineup.
3. Will C.C.’s impending free agency be a distraction?
C.C. is on course for a big payday once the season ends. With the gigantic contract that Johan Santana just signed with the Mets, the Indians may not have enough money to re-sign Sabathia. The large question is if the Indians feel that they are out of the race at midseason, will they try and deal Sabathia in order to get something for him?
4. Can Manager Eric Wedge continue his platoon method in left field?
I have always heard the expression that platooning just means that you do not have one guy good enough to hold down the job. That being said, David Dellucci and Jason Michaels will split time again in LF this season. Michaels will face left-handed pitching and Dellucci right-handed. Both struggled last season and if that turns out to be the case again this year, look for OF Ben Francisco to be called up from Triple A Buffalo to get the majority of the time.
5. Will the sophomore slump apply to Asdrubal Cabrera?
When called up midseason last year, Cabrera shined brightly, batting .283 while playing a stellar 2B. He has earned the starting 2B job over Josh Barfield and will look to build on last year’s success. However, there has been talk of moving him from the No.2 spot in the lineup down to 8 or 9 to protect him and keep him from pressing. If he struggles from the outset, look for a move down to the bottom of the lineup.
6. How will Cliff Lee fair as the No.5 starter in the rotation?
Cliff Lee was unimpressive last year. He was 5-8 with an ERA of 6.29. He was sent down to the minors and stayed there for most of the 2nd half of the season. Lee, a southpaw, has great stuff as evidenced with 18 wins in 2005, but sometimes he lets his emotions get the best of him. If Lee can harness these emotions, look for him to have a solid year in an already deep rotation. If that is not the case, the Indians have plenty of options in left-handed pitchers Aaron Laffey and Jeremy Sowers.
7. Can the corner infield spots supply power production?
The Indians are built differently in that most of their power production comes from up the middle in C Victor Martinez, omnipresent CF Grady Sizemore, and SS Jhonny Peralta rather from the corners. 1B Ryan Garko and 3B Casey Blake can hit for power but do not show the normal production that a 1st baseman or 3rd baseman would have. If both Garko and Blake can hit between 20-25 HR’s then this will greatly enhance their values to the team.
8. Will the Indians pitching beat the Tigers hitting?
The Indians might have the best starting rotation in the AL while the Tigers have the most potent lineup. With these teams squaring off 18 times, Tribe pitching verse Tiger hitting will surely be on display. The wildcard in these matchups might be the bullpen of the Tigers. With Fernando Rodney and Joel Zumaya sidelined with injuries and an aging Todd Jones, the Tigers may struggle to hold leads in the late innings. |
