Tribe visits Cincinnati July1-3; Battle for Ohio (Series Thread)

• like_that

  

  I was hoping to see the sweep, but oh well, I will take a 5-1 record against the Reds. Riders and Trolldo can suck on that.
• BR1986FB

  Not related to today's game but...
  
  ABOUT THE INDIANS . . .
  
  1. The Tribe is giving serious consideration to promoting Jason Kipnis from Class AAA Columbus in the near future -- especially if Cord Phelps continues to struggle defensively at second base. Kipnis has been sensational lately, hitting .368 with three homers and eight RBI in his past 10 games (through Friday) and his defense has been improving.
  
  Jason Kipnis.JPGView full sizePD fileSecond baseman Jason Kipnis.
  
  2. Phelps made five errors in his first 10 games at second. While that's out of character for Phelps -- he had only 20 errors in 240 minor-league games at second since 2009 -- his struggles with the glove have made the Indians consider Kipnis.
  
  3. The 24-year-old Kipnis was hitting .301 (.907 OPS) with 11 homers and 50 RBI heading into Saturday. The Tribe loves that Kipnis seems to hit everyone . . . everywhere. The left-handed batter is hitting .333 against lefties, .286 against righties. He's at .305 (.915 OPS) at the Clippers' hitter-friendly park, compared with .298 (.900 OPS) on the road. He's hitting .329 with runners in scoring position.
  
  4. Kipnis has a .305 average in 21/2 minor-league seasons. He was the Tribe's second-round pick in 2009, and converted from the outfield to second base in 2010. The Indians had a brief discussion about using him in the outfield because of the lack of depth in Cleveland. But they believe he is the second baseman of the future -- and want to keep him at second.
  
  5. Phelps began his pro career in 2008, so he's a year ahead of Kipnis in terms of development. He also was a second baseman at Stanford, and the Indians still believe he can be a significant part of the team in 2012. But Kipnis is playing better in Columbus than Phelps did. Kipnis is second in the International League in total bases and runs scored, third in OPS (.907), third in slugging percentage (.526) and sixth with 50 RBI.
  
  6. Kipnis started 2010 at Class A Kinston and was promoted after 54 games to Class AA Akron. He played 79 games with the Aeros before batting .455 (10-of-22) for Columbus in the playoffs. I have always favored Phelps getting the first shot with Cleveland because he had 521 Class AAA at-bats, and was a better defensive second baseman than Kipnis in the minors. I still think Phelps will hit and settle down in the field.
  
  7. The Indians say they are playing to win now. It's why they promoted Alex White early this season -- not worrying about future free agency and arbitration dates. It's why they turned to Lonnie Chisenhall last week to play third, rather than Jason Donald. And it's why they are talking about Kipnis replacing Phelps.
  
  8. If they don't promote Kipnis, it could be Donald -- hitting .314 in his past 10 games. He's finally healthy after his spring training hand injury, which was followed by a knee injury. With Chisenhall in Cleveland, Donald is playing a lot of third base. He batted .253 (.690 OPS) with four homers and 24 RBI in 296 at- bats as a rookie with the Tribe last season. A right-handed batter, he hit .286 (.833 OPS) against lefties.
  
  9. Some fans have been pushing for Jared Head to be promoted. The outfielder is hitting .298 (.861 OPS) with 11 HRs and 38 RBI. Most of his production is at Columbus' Huntington Park. He's batting .342 (1.053 OPS) at home and .258 (.687 OPS) on the road. He's 28 and considered a so-so prospect.
  
  10. The Tribe rates Ezequiel Carrera higher than Head because he's only 23 and has excellent speed. Carrera is 27-of-31 in stolen bases and considered an above-average center fielder. He is hitting .287 (.726 OPS) this season but has only 13 extra-base hits in 289 at-bats.
  
  11. Nick Johnson's surgically repaired wrist has been giving him some trouble, and he was in Cleveland this week to have it re-examined. The veteran first baseman is expected to be out a few more days, and then try to play again. He is hitting .220 with no power.
  
  12. Luis Valbuena is having a big year at Columbus -- .314 (.892 OPS) with 11 HRs and 51 RBI. He is only 25 and has hit .321, .313 and .314 in parts of the past three seasons at Class AAA. That may persuade a team to deal for him when the Indians try to acquire a veteran outfielder.
  
  http://www.cleveland.com/pluto/blog/index.ssf/2011/07/draft_neglect_digs_holes_in_cl.html
• dazedconfused

  

  any mention of mitch talbot should also be accompanied by a roll of the eyes or a "meh"
• HitsRus

  

  The thing that bothers me about Kipnis/Phelps/Valbuena is that the Tribe may have to make a choice in much the same way they had with Kouzmanoff and Marte a few years back.....and they picked wrong. It's nice to have depth at 2nd base and one of those prospects may help to land a hitter for the stretch....but which one? From the tone of BR's post, it sounds as if "we" wouldn't mind trading Valbuena so much....but I suspect that our trading partner would want one of the others.
• BR1986FB

  HitsRus;820738 wrote:The thing that bothers me about Kipnis/Phelps/Valbuena is that the Tribe may have to make a choice in much the same way they had with Kouzmanoff and Marte a few years back.....and they picked wrong. It's nice to have depth at 2nd base and one of those prospects may help to land a hitter for the stretch....but which one? From the tone of BR's post, it sounds as if "we" wouldn't mind trading Valbuena so much....but I suspect that our trading partner would want one of the others.

  
  It seems like the farm system is stockpiling talent at SS & 2nd base.
• hoops23

  

  There was no right choice between Marte and Kouzmanoff lol
• grodt

  

  Eh Kouzmanoff has been an average/decent player for a few years now. Andy Marte's claim to fame is pitching one scoreless inning. I would have much rather had Kouzmanoff for the last 4 years then the sad cycle of 3rd basemen we trotted out there.
• karen lotz

  

  
• Azubuike24

  

  That play was humerous to a degree, but it's made quite comical by it repeating over and over and over...good stuff.
• HitsRus

  

  The perfect example why the NL needs to get into the 21st century and adopt the DH.
• jordo212000

  

  HitsRus;820832 wrote:The perfect example why the NL needs to get into the 21st century and adopt the DH.

  
  Why? Because your tubby pitcher can't run 90 ft without tripping and falling on his face?
• royal_k

  

  Gomez got the win yesterday for Cbus going 8 innings and giving up 2 runs. He goes to 9-2 with a 2.46 ERA.
  
  If he is chosen to start for Carmona, it would be on 3 days rest.
• KR1245

  

  haha. I love that video of Fausto, he not the most coordinated guy in the world. Kinda glad it happened though, the pen came in and shut them down. I'm happy with the road trip and taking 5 of 6 from the reds
• KR1245

  

  royal_k;820849 wrote:Gomez got the win yesterday for Cbus going 8 innings and giving up 2 runs. He goes to 9-2 with a 2.46 ERA.
  
  If he is chosen to start for Carmona, it would be on 3 days rest.

  
  You think they will bring up McAllister because of that?
• royal_k

  

  KR1245;820853 wrote:You think they will bring up McAllister because of that?

  
  McAllister pitched friday. They may hold him back for thursday's game. It would only be 1 extra days rest.
• HitsRus

  

  ^^^( @ jordo)I would expect that kind of a comment out of an NL guy. There was a recent thread about the DH, and I don't have time today to rehash that again....but feel free to do so if you wish or look up the other thread. I respect the other side of the arguement, and don't need to resort to that kind of childish comment to make my position. Injuries to pitchers batting/running the bases is a legitimate concern, considering the evolution of the game, especially the big money part of it. Owners have a legitimate concern investing millions of dollars into a specialized player, only to have it subjected to needless injury. Other sports routinely change rules to protect specialized players (see football).
• royal_k

  

  They have 4 guys to choose from.
  
  Gomez 9-2 2.46 ERA
  McAllister 8-3 @.97 ERA
  Huff 8-2 3.74 ERA
  Barnes 7-2 3.40 ERA
• dave

  HitsRus;820859 wrote:^^^( @ jordo)I would expect that kind of a comment out of an NL guy. There was a recent thread about the DH, and I don't have time today to rehash that again....but feel free to do so if you wish or look up the other thread. I respect the other side of the arguement, and don't need to resort to that kind of childish comment to make my position. Injuries to pitchers batting/running the bases is a legitimate concern, considering the evolution of the game, especially the big money part of it. Owners have a legitimate concern investing millions of dollars into a specialized player, only to have it subjected to needless injury. Other sports routinely change rules to protect specialized players (see football).

  
  While I agree there are good points to both sides, this is a terrible reason for arguement. The Tribe is paying Hafner something like $13mil just to be a DH. Dunn, Ortiz, Vlad, Posada and several others make huge money too. How many pitchers have been hurt this year while hitting/running? No way the cost of the DH makes up for time pitchers miss due to injury.
• royal_k

  

  dave;820864 wrote:While I agree there are good points to both sides, this is a terrible reason for arguement. The Tribe is paying Hafner something like $13mil just to be a DH. Dunn, Ortiz, Vlad, Posada and several others make huge money too. How many pitchers have been hurt this year while hitting/running? No way the cost of the DH makes up for time pitchers miss due to injury.

  
  It only takes 1 injury to derail a pitching staff....especially if it's an ace.
• BR1986FB

  First time I've seen that with Carmona...smh
• karen lotz

  

  royal_k;820865 wrote:It only takes 1 injury to derail a pitching staff....especially if it's an ace.

  
  
  If one pitcher derails a pitching staff, the staff isn't going to do anything anyway.
• royal_k

  

  karen lotz;820871 wrote:If one pitcher derails a pitching staff, the staff isn't going to do anything anyway.

  
  Take the best pitcher out of a staff at playoff time and see how they do. Their chances go down dramatically.
• BR1986FB

  Oh, as far as the Kouzmanoff/Marte debate I'll take Kouz every day of the week and twice on Sunday's. Everyone remember Kouz's debut? Grand slam in his first AB.
• Azubuike24

  

  I mean at least Kouzmanoff is in the majors...
• Heretic

  

  The only thing the DH accomplishes is that it helps keep aging players with diminished or no fielding ability employed for a few more years. Yes, Carmona got hurt because running in a straight line apparently is too complex for his brain/body to handle (which might explain his average box score from the past couple months). Part of the game. A weird part, but part. Just like Pujois getting hurt defending first base, Tabata from Pittsburgh straining a quad trying to beat out a grounder and any number of other injuries that happen. Trying to say one bizarre injury to a pitcher should make the NL employ the DH is Chicken Little'ing things to a hilarious level.