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| The
Full Take: |
What 5 areas can the Indians improve on to make themselves better next season? Click to read takes from Mark and Fletch.
The Gospel according to Fletch:
So I've been asked to list five things the Tribe needs to do to improve for next season, which is what Mark Shapiro continues to say is the goal, at this juncture.
Well for one, trading away a pitcher the caliber of Paul Byrd for cash wasn't a good start, and right now, the way Matt La Porta is playing in the Olympic games isn't positive either.
Toss in the fact that one of its candidates for reliever next year has blown critical saves for the Olympic squad, you've got some serious issues.
First off, the Tribe needs to figure out what it is going to do about its bullpen, which went from being one of the best to a dud in just a year. Right now, Joe Borowski would look good wearing the Wahoo.
The ideal situation would be to go the free agent route, but the question here is will the Dolan's spend the money, which thus far is a BIG NO... Shapiro has been trying to figure it out with pitchers from the organization, but as of late, closer by committee hasn't cut it.
This is where the team needs to start. If they have an outsider in mind, they better ante up, because good closers, which this team hasn't had since Jose Mesa, are a pricey commodity.
Next, the team needs to figure out what it is going to do about third base.
Bringing back Casey Blake would be a start, but while Andy Marte continues to show promise with his defense, his not being able to hit the Mendoza line is a problem. The answer here lies in Akron, a guy named Wes Hodge. Question now, is will they bring him up in September.
As a matter of fact, let all the youngsters get a shot as soon as the roster is expanded. Buffalo is not in a pennant race, so any talent there, bring up and get them experience. A lesson to be learned though, is you can't rely on inexperience to win games. It takes time, as we have seen by the hitting of late.
The team also needs to find a veteran starting pitcher, perhaps someone near the end of his line to help with the youth movement there,as Jake Westbrook is injury prone, but more importantly, what to do with Victor Martinez when he comes back. Kelly Shoppach has proven he can be an everyday man behind the plate, so perhaps an alternation between first and catcher.
And then there is Pronk. If he can't regain the form of a power hitter that needs to be addressed immediately in the off season.
Finally, maybe Michael Phelps is available. Afterall, anything is better than what the Indians have now...
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Mark's take:
What are 5 areas the Indians need to improve on to be better next season? This question requires time to think, because 5 areas may not be enough. However, given the task, here are my top five areas the Indians need to improve on.
Number One: Learn how to make a deal and sign a player worth having on the team.
I blame Mark Shapiro for the problems this club has this year. Look back into the off-season. What roster moves were made to improve this team. If you can’t think of any, it’s because there were absolutely no moves made! Nothing. Zilch. Nada.
Ok maybe we did sign Masa Kobayashi, but he has not performed with the expectations handed to him at the start of the season. First off, he’s 34 years old. You don’t sign someone that old unless they are playing like Randy Johnson. Now lets look at his stats. Kobayashi has pitched in 51 games, has an ERA of 4.26, and opponents are hitting .265 off of him. That’s not cutting it and definitely does not justify 3 million dollars a year.
I guess I don’t understand Shapiro’s thinking. We didn’t win anything last year, so what was going on in his head? How could he have thought the team would improve with no improvements made to the roster?
Here’s another question about making deals. Why didn’t we sign CC Sabathia? The guy has been lights out since leaving Cleveland and has pitched like a Cy Young winner should. We only got to hear one offer the Tribe made to keep CC and that offer was rejected. Why weren’t there any counter offers ever made or discussed? I was a huge CC fan and know he was a crowd favorite. I just would like to have seen how hard the Indians tried to make Sabathia an Indian for years to come.
Moving on.
Number Two: The bullpen called and wants their numbers back from last year, please.
Let’s face it; the Indians bullpen has been the cancer to this teams success this year. The Indians cannot win if they are continually giving up multiple run innings late in the game. I don’t know how many times I watched the Indians have a lead going into the 7th, 8th, or 9th inning and watched the bullpen completely implode and give up the game. Which leads me to the next step of improving.
Number Three: Are there any pitchers out there who can close a game?
Joe “Blow” Borowski obviously was not cutting it as a closer, and in this league, we need a closer. It’s not rocket science. We just need a rocket arm that can set batters down 1…2…3. If they don’t get a closer this off-season, next year may have a similar look to this year.
Number Four: Can we please get a leadoff hitter so Grady can move to the middle of the order?
I would love it if Grady Sizemore didn’t have to lead off the game. I know he likes the position, but we’ve seen this year that he has got the skills to produce great offensive numbers and those numbers would be better if he was towards the middle part of the order. So we need a guy with speed, the ability to put the bat on the ball and preferably a switch hitter, but I think we’ll take what we can get.
Number Five: Let’s get some juice back in the lineup.
No, I’m not endorsing the use of steroids. I’m glad they are not in the game. What I’m looking for is a guy that has pop in his bat that can produce 40+ homers and 100+ RBI’s. And again, I don’t want someone on the roid’s. I realize that some of our heavy hitters were hurt nearly all season, but we need a big bat in the lineup. I’m not sure if I’m satisfied with Travis Hafner being that big bat. He’s really streaky and when he was playing, he was in what seemed like a never-ending slump. Even if he comes back and is amazing, I’d still like to find one more batter that can come to the plate and produce when runners are in scoring position.
So, those are my five. Make a deal, bulk up the bullpen, find a closer, move Grady up in the line up and get a new leadoff hitter, and lets get an RBI machine.
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