2011 Cleveland Indians

• HitsRus

  

  He hasn't played a single inning of AAA.

  Really talented players can bypass AAA ball, which is more of a holding area for prospects. My feeling is that if Chisenhall is clearly the better player, then fast track him to the big league club. That would be the 'baseball' thing to do.....but we all know that $$$ and 'roster management' is paramount for Dolan/Shapiro/Antonetti
• Laley23

  

  Im with Hits, I think the best players skip AAA or play there sparingly. It seems as though AAA players are the ones who are there for a month before being brought up or are there because they are the AAAA player that just cant get over the hump.
  
  Of course, that is a baseball perspective. We have an owner who is purely financial so he wont be up till the date passes that starts Arbitration.
• Wooball

  

  I don't understand why the Tribe continues to do this with their young players? These guys are Cleveland Indians property for a minimum of 6 years once they hit the bigs. If they perform well early in their career we could probably lock them up for a 7th or 8th year like we used to do with our young players by signing them to 5 or 6 year deals with only a year or 2 of MLB service time. Instead, we delay our young guys getting to the bigs, so the fans get to watch guys like Jason Donald and Jayson Nix play 3rd base. Alex White probably should be up this year, but who knows if that will happen. Drew Pomeranz has been filthy according to all reports, but we will be lucky to see him by middle of next year. I'm not proposing rushing guys that aren't ready, but guys that put up the numbers in the minors and destroy the Cactus league shouldn't be held back because we want an extra year on the cheap. Bring the young guys up, if they can play you can sign them to affordable contracts to get the extra year or 2 that you want. If we would have a good young nucleus locked in for 5 years or more that the fanbase could identify they may actually show up to the ballpark.
• Laley23

  

  Santana to play First Base Wednesday, per Twitter.
• royal_k

  

  Nice post Wooball...I agree 100%.
• royal_k

  

  Carmona threw 4 innings of shutout ball, giving up 1 hit with 5 strikeouts yesterday.
• Wooball

  

  Heard today on WKNR that the Tribe has sent Chisenhall to minor league camp.
• Commander of Awesome

  

  Wooball;711940 wrote:Heard today on WKNR that the Tribe has sent Chisenhall to minor league camp.

  
  Saw that, dont understand this move other than cheap ass dolans trying to delay his clock.
• HitsRus

  

  Chisenhall had the highest total bases, and second highest batting average this spring. He had 2 home runs.
  
  Remember: It's not whether you win or lose, but how you manage the roster.
  
  
  Ireally don't know what is going thru the head of Antonetti and Shapiro, but it apparently has little to do with trying to win on the field.
• Commander of Awesome

  

  They dont want to start the clock on Chisenhall, thats what it comes down to. Cheap ass dolans.
• jordo212000

  

  I continue to shake my head at the Indians front office. Why exactly is Chisenhall back in the minors? Oh yeah, so they could save money. What a joke. You cant run a team like that.
• Mulva

  

  Has the starting rotation been announced yet?
• Commander of Awesome

  

  Carmona named opening day starter, all I've heard thus far.
• grodt

  

  Masterson, Talbot and Carrasco have also been named starters, just not sure on the order yet. The 5th spot sounds like it's down to David Huff and Josh Tomlin with Tomlin having the slight edge.
• Mulva

  

  grodt;713654 wrote:Masterson, Talbot and Carrasco have also been named starters, just not sure on the order yet. The 5th spot sounds like it's down to David Huff and Josh Tomlin with Tomlin having the slight edge.

  
  That's interesting to me. I haven't really been following the spring training games, but just looking at the stats Tomlin is the only one of the potential starters that hasn't completely blown this spring. I would have guessed he would have been one of the guys to lock a spot up. Figured at least 2 were up for grabs.
• grodt

  

  Coming into spring they said that Masterson and Talbot had earned spots in the rotation based on how they performed last season. Lucky for Talbot because he hasn't pitched well at all. They also said that Carrasco would pretty much have to shit all over himself to not get a spot. He's been solid so far this spring and earned his spot.
• royal_k

  

  Talbot threw well yesterday....5 innings giving up 1 run.
• Writerbuckeye

  

  I haven't followed baseball for several years now but I picked up one of the baseball mags at the grocery store today and looked at the summary for the Indians. It basically said Cleveland's ownership wasn't going to spend money now or in the future, and if the baseball commissioner were still talking about contraction, the Indians would be at the top of the list.
  
  That's quite a fall for a franchise that held a record for most consecutive sold out games not that long ago.
• HitsRus

  

  The Tribe could have been poised for a huge resurgence in attendance and interest, with the looming NFL strike and the Cavs rebuilding after the departure of LeBron.
  
  Not going to happen. Not enough real major leagurers...too many prospects. They are trying to catch lightning in a bottle, but are too cheap to buy the bottle.
• HitsRus

  

  Grady returns today....the teams initial plans are to play him every other day, but he won't be ready for the season opener.
  
  Jason Donald will also be out of the opener and beyond with a finger injury.
• Tigerfan00

  

  The Plain Dealer said that Jack Hannahan will most likely be the starter at 3rd. He is a career .224 hitter and is 31 and didnt even play in the Major League last season. You are going to seriously tell me theyd rather have Hannahan start then break in Chisenall now. The Indians most likely wont be making any noise this season so why not give Chisenall a chance now with all the other young players that have gotten a chance to play and are playing.
• royal_k

  

  Hannahan is actually having a really good spring, hitting over .400. But, Chisenhall is hitting .500 and is the future.
• HitsRus

  

  It's hard to believe Opening Day is just 11 days away. I have never been so pessimistic about an Indians team since the late 80's. I guess that's good because I don't have any expectations.
• HitsRus

  

  The Tribe began final maneuvers on it's opening day roster. Jensen Lewis was exposed to waivers, but cleared and was outrighted to AAA Columbus. Joe Smith will probably get put on the 15 DL with an abdominal strain. This will open up to roster spots for non roster invitees....probably thirdbaseman du jour Jack Hanahan.....and reserve outfielder Travis Buck.
• royal_k

  

  Buck might have been a really good pickup. He's driving in runs and hitting consistantly, and has done this his whole career. His problem has always been staying healthy.