Cleveland Indians Offense through May

Hello, all! It's time now, once again, for your Indians' offense update for the month.  After April, the tribe
were playing well and there were a lot of players who were posting career-high rates.  Have they kept it up? The Indians are losers of eight of their last 11, but let's take a closer look into some of the more advanced statistics. If you need a reference to last month's post, you can check it out here.

The Indians are currently 30-27, but sit only one game behind the AL-central leading Detroit Tigers. Let's go position-by-position and assess the team through two months.

Carlos Santana: According to the Runs Created advanced statistic, Santana has been the most valuable offensive player in the Tribe lineup for the first two months of the season. Santana, however, has seen his batting average fall nearly 100-points since he was leading the AL about one month ago. Santana is still very valuable though, reaching base in nearly 40% of his plate appearances.

Runs Created: 35.5

Nick Swisher: Swisher has pretty much performed as he has been expected to. Creating over 29 runs (which ranks third on the team).  Swisher also has good plate discipline and has posted a respectable BB-rate that ranks second on the team behind Santana.
Runs Created: 29.9

Jason Kipnis: Kipnis has had a roller-coaster ride of a season thus far. He started out on fire in the beginning of May, but has since cooled off as his cumulative batting average on the year rests at .242. Kipnis has still been valuable though, creating 26.7 runs and slugging 8 home runs. Kipnis' low contact-rate and career-high strikeout rate have held him back. Kipnis must become more patient at the plate and stop watching strike three go by if he wants to be effective in the top of the lineup for the tribe.

Runs Created: 26.7

Mike Aviles: Aviles is about to be thrust into the everyday role as starting shortstop in light of Asdrubal Cabrera heading to the DL. Aviles has already played in 39 of the teams' 57 games, so we have an idea of what to expect from the veteran. Aviles has the lowest rate of striking out on the team, but he also has the lowest walk rate. Aviles is great at putting the ball in play and has had a decent share of luck, contributing to a .283 batting average. Aviles has created 14.5 runs, but if you extrapolate that to make him an everyday ballplayer, he would be outperforming Drew Stubbs and Lonnie Chisenhall at the dish.

Runs Created: 14.5

Asdrubal Cabrera: Cabrera just recently went down with a quad injury that has been bothering him all season. Up until that point he was starting to get back into mid-season form. Although Cabrera is striking out at a nearly career-high rate, he has still been able to contribute to the Indians' top ten offense. Cabrera's .254 average leaves much to be desired, but Cleveland fans are just hoping Cabby will be back soon.

Runs Created: 26.8

Michael Brantley: Brantley leads the Indians in batting average and has been flirting with the .300 mark for most of the season. Brantley doesn't get a lot of extra-base hits and he does not walk or strikeout very often and his advanced stats are similar to Mike Aviles in a lot of ways. Brantley has still been consistent as Francona has moved him all over the lineup, Brantley ranks sixth on the team in runs created.

Runs Created: 26.5

Michael Bourn: It's more difficult to decipher Bourn's stats because he missed a large chunk of time due to injury. Extrapolate his numbers and he has been the second-most valuable player on the team offensively. Bourn has struck out a little more this season than he typically has in past years (23% of plate appearances this year), but his speed and contact-hitting ability has been very valuable to Cleveland.

Runs Created: 20.5

Drew Stubbs: Stubbs has been having some issues seeing the ball at the plate lately. Notorious already for his high strikeout rates each season, Stubbs has fallen deep into a slump and cumulatively has been one of the  least valuable offensive players on the squad. Stubbs leads the team and is among the league leaders in strikeout percentage (31%) and is hitting a mere .225, but he'll probably turn it around and in the nine-hole the Indians like his speed and defensive abilities.

Runs Created: 18.2

Jason Giambi: The great Giambino has been on quite a hot streak lately. Just when fans and writers were
beginning to think that Giambi's time as a major-leaguer was over, Giambi really amped up his power numbers and helped the Tribe with a couple of big homers in the last week. Giambi has actually led the team in home-run rate, launching a bomb in 6.3% of his plate appearances. 64% of Giambi's hits this year have been of the extra-base variety (easily best on the team) and if Giambi could keep up this pace playing everyday he'd be among the Tribe's nine best batters. Check out this take on why Giambi matters by Jake Mowery. Oh, Jake, he's also hitting bombs again, so that's nice too.

Runs Created: 9.4

Yan Gomes: Gomes' numbers at the plate have likely been an anomaly, but Indians' fans have to be excited with what they have seen from the young player.  Gomes has knocked a walk-off home run and has hit home runs in 6% of his plate appearances, good for second best on the team. I won't even begin to mention how good Gomes has been defensively behind the dish. Gomes has played at a pace that ranks him as a top-five hitter on the team.

Runs Created: 14.2

Mark Reynolds: Reynolds is known for leading the league in strikeouts most seasons. This year he was off to a mega-hot start though, hitting .300 at one point earlier in the season. Reynolds has regressed back to the mean though as of late, with his strikeout rate rising back up to 27.4%. If Reynolds can come out of his funk, it will truly help the tribe get back to their winning ways. When Reynolds was slugging the ball earlier, it helped them have a lot of success, winning 18 of 22 at one point. Reynolds' home-run rate has fallen as well (to 5.9%) as he has gone through a power drought lately, but still, one must credit him for his cumulative numbers, ranking as the Tribe's second-best hitter on the team so far this year. Please check out this article to take a look at Reynolds' numbers from a historical perspective.

Runs Created: 30.4


Overall team rankings per 162 games:

Player	RC/162
Carlos Santana	110.76
Michael Bourn	97.76
Yan Gomes	95.83
Nick Swisher	95.07
Jason Kipnis	90.16
Ryan Raburn	89.82
Mark Reynolds	89.6
Asdrubal Cabrera	81.98
Michael Brantley	78.04
Jason Giambi	72.73
Mike Aviles	60.08
Drew Stubbs	52.63
Lonnie Chisenhall	48.75

Asdrubal Cabrera Injured

(AP Photo/KathyWillens)

Cleveland All-Star shortstop, Asdrubal Cabrera was injured in last night's 7-4 loss to the New York Yankees. Cabrera was injured during the 5th inning while attempting to run out a ground ball, and had to be carried off the field. He will return to Cleveland on Tuesday
for an MRI on a strained quadriceps muscle, which Terry Francona believes will land him on the disabled list.

Mike Aviles started the game at second base to give Jason Kipnis a night off, but was moved to short to replace Cabrera. If Cabrera does go on the disabled list, Aviles will take over starting shortstop duties. Aviles is hitting .283 on the season with 3 homeruns and 18 RBI in 39 games for the Tribe this season. Cord Phelps would most likely be called up to help out on the bench, having played three different infield positions when needed (2B: 28 games, SS: 1 game, 3B: 1 game).

Cleveland Indians @ New York Yankees Series Preview (June 3rd-5th)

(30-26) Cleveland Indians @ (31-24) New York Yankees

 

Probable Starters:
Game 1 (June 3^rd) : 7:00 PM | Justin Masterson (8-3); 3.07 ERA vs Andy Pettitte (4-3); 3.83 ERA
Game 2 (June 4^th) : 7:05 PM | Scott Kazmir (3-2); 5.13 ERA vs David Phelps (3-3); 4.65 ERA
Game 3 (June 5^th) : 1:05 PM | Corey Kluber (3-3); 4.36 ERA vs CC Sabathia (5-4) 3.71 ERA

How they got here:

The Tribe are continuing their woes after taking only 1 out of 3 with Tampa Bay. They have lost 7 of their last 10, and look to get back on track this series against the Bronx Bombers. This will be the second meeting for the two teams, with New York owning a 3-1 record against Cleveland this season. They are currently a half a game behind Detroit in the AL-Central. 

The Yankees come into this series with almost the same struggles as Cleveland. They have also lost 7 of their last 10, including being swept in 4 games by their cross-town rival Mets, and dropping 2 out of 3 to the arch-nemesis Boston Redsox. The Bombers will attempt to right their ship in this three game series before hitting the road for a 10 game West Coast trip. New York is currently 3 games behind Boston in the AL-East.

Season rankings: (ML-ranking)

Runs Scored: 

Cleveland .271 (4^th)

New York .223 (18^th)

Batting Average:

Cleveland .260 (9^th)

New York .246 (20^th)

On-Base Percentage:

Cleveland .328 (10^th)

New York .307 (21^st)

Slugging Percentage:

Cleveland .441 (3^rd)

New York .400 (17^th)

Fun fact: For the season, Cleveland has scored 124 two-out runs, which is good for the most in the big leagues

Impact players for the series:

Justin Masterson takes on Andy Pettitte Monday

Cleveland: Justin Masterson/Nick Swisher

It’s tough to justify a player who will only make one appearance during the series as the impact player, so I’m going to choose two! The last time Masterson met the Yankees, he threw a complete game 4-hit shutout. It will be interesting to see how he comes back in this game after such a masterful performance. Swisher on the other hand, is making his first appearance back to his former home of New York since becoming a member of the Tribe. His career slash line in Yankee Stadium is .269/.372/.460 with 46 home runs and 160 RBIs. Look for him to want to show Bombers why it was a mistake to let him go.

Honorable mention: Michael Bourn

New York's All-Star second baseman Robinson Cano

New York: Robinson Cano
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Cano currently holds a season slash line of .290/.349/.529, with 14 home runs and 36 RBIs. It was the first series against Cleveland where Cano really got things going when he went 7-for-10 with 3 home runs and 7 RBIs in two games. Look for him to continue to be the biggest offensive threat as the Yankees are without Granderson, Teixeira, and Youkilis.

Keys for the series:

Jason Kipnis pumping up the crowd after a walk-off hit

1. Get back to the winning ways: This is the same key used for the last series, but the Tribe really need to get back to their winning ways! They still only trail Detroit by a half a game, who begins a three game home series against Tampa Bay on Tuesday. Cleveland is only 4 games above .500, so it would be nice to get a bit of a lead on Detroit going into the All-Star break. They can start that with a strong showing against New York in this series.

2. Solid starting pitching: For the most part, Cleveland starters have been solid to this point in the season. Masterson and McAllister have had some shaky starts, but more times than none they keep the team in the game. Kluber has enjoyed a hot streak as well, and his matchup with CC will be a big test for him. Ubaldo Jimenez has enjoyed sporadic moments of dominant pitching mixed with a few awful shellings. Scott Kazmir has pitch almost identical to Ubaldo with a smaller sample size. With the bullpen’s recent struggles, it is important for this rotation to stay together.

3. Hit the Yankees while they are down: with the cast of misfits that New York has put on the field this season, it is very hard to believe they are playing as well as they have to this point. Cleveland needs to take advantage that they are playing against the names of: Nix, Overbay, Brignac, Stewart, Hafner, and Suzuki.

Staff Predictions: 

Jimmy: Tribe takes two of three. 

Danny: Wouldn't count a sweep out for us.  Yankees have brought back Texiera and Youkillis, and they have been struggling, as Lyle Overbay was playing much better.  Kluber pitched extremely well before the rain decided to shut him down, he had 4 K's in 2 innings.  Honestly, if we don't take two out of three against Papa Pettite and other no name Yankee starting pitchers, I'll be extremely surprised.

Jake: Tribe takes two out of three. Masterson and Kazmir are able to limit damage, but Kluber can't pitch up to his competition.

Cody:

Next series: @ Detroit Tigers, Fri-Sun

June 3, Tribe drop two of three to the Rays

Ubadlo Jimenez provided the only Tribe victory
over the weekend against Tampa Bay.

In a series which saw record rain delays, the Tribe unfortunately couldn't win the series, as it dropped 2 of 3 to the Rays, but still remains only a half game out of first in the AL Central.

Tampa Bays Rays vs. Cleveland Indians, May 31

Rays, 9              Indians, 2

After a delay that set the game back till past midnight, the Tribe could not bring Corey Kluber back out to finish the game, as he threw two innings before the rain delay started.  Scott Barnes came on, and proceeded to give up five runs, with the support of two home runs.  That's all the Rays would need, as they routed the Tribe, 9-2.

Tampa Bay Rays vs. Cleveland Indians, June 1

Indians, 5                Rays, 0

Ubaldo Jimenez looked outstanding, tossing 8 shutout innings over the Rays.  Jason Giambi provided the power and experience and he went 2-4, with a big two run homer and an RBI single. Vinnie Pestano looked like the Vinnie of old as he pitched a scoreless ninth in a non save situation.
Tampa Bay Rays vs. Cleveland Indians, June 2

Rays, 11                Indians, 3

The Tribe had 11 hits, but squandered multiple opportunities, as well as Zach McAllister turning in his worst start of the season, giving up five runs in 4 and a third innings, snapping a string of 12 straight starts giving up 3 or less runs.  The Tribe brought it to within 2 runs in the fifth, but the bullpen couldn't hold down the fort as the Tribe gave up six more runs allowing the Rays a series win and a dominant Sunday victory.

The Tribe heads to New York tonight for a tough three game stretch.  Justin Masterson looks to steer the tribe into first place against seasoned veteran Andy Pettite.

1,000th View!

The Teepee Talk staff would just like to take a second to thank all of our followers who helped us achieve our 1,000^th view in our first month! The more we know people are viewing our stories, the more we will want to write them for you! We will continue to attempt to improve the website while bringing you news and stories about your favorite team. 

Again, thank you for all your support

Roll Tribe!

May 31 - June 2, Rays @ Indians Series Preview

(29-24) Tampa Bay Rays @ Cleveland Indians (29-24)

Probable Starters:

Game 1: 7:05 PM | Matt Moore (8-0); 2.21 ERA vs Corey Kluber (3-3); 4.57 ERA

Game 2: 1:05 PM | Chris Archer (0-0); 0.00 ERA vs Ubaldo Jimenez (3-3); 5.57 ERA

Game 3: 1:05 PM | Jeremy Hellickson (2-2); 5.61 ERA vs Zach McAlister (4-4) 3.08 ERA

How they got here:

Manager, Terry Francona leads the Indians
against the Rays for a three-game set.

The Tribe have hit a bit of a skid in the road, losing seven of their last ten.  The Tribe, however, have won the last two in a home sweep of the Cincinnati Reds. Before that stretch, they had a time where they had won 18 of 22 and looked like one of the hottest teams in baseball. The offensive production has still been leading the team and the starting pitching has been surprisingly good.  The weak spot is the bullpen in the last 10 days and that can be attributed to injuries.  Can the Tribe continue the winning streak? We'll see!

The Rays come into this series with the same record that the Tribe have, but they haven't been as hailed in the national media because they are currently in third place in the stacked AL-East. Tampa Bay has a very potent offense and with the emergence of young starting pitcher Matt Moore, they've had a lot of luck playing some winning baseball. The team is currently on a five-game winning streak, although you must remember that four of the five games were against the awful Miami Marlins. The Rays have won nine of their last 13 and hope to continue their winning ways against the Tribe.

Season rankings: (ML-ranking)

Runs Scored: 

Cleveland 264 (4th) 

TB 262 (5th)

Runs Allowed:

Cleveland 236 (19th) 

TB 242 (26th)

Batting Average:

Cleveland .263 (8th)

TB .260 (11th)

Fun stat: This series' fun stat isn't so much fun. The Indians face eight series out of their next 11 against teams who have a record above .500.  In the second half after the all star break? They face only eight of 27 teams with above .500 records. Let's see if they can hang around up to the all-star break!

Impact players for the series:

Cleveland:Asdrubal Cabrera-

Cabby is finally coming around this year. He has raised his batting average of .260 and seems to be on a tear as of late. Hitting .333 over his past seven days. Cabrera 0-for-11 against Tampa Bay the first time around, but don't expect this veteran to continue to slump against the Rays. He has been a better hitter the last couple weeks after having a very slow start to the season.

Honorable mention: Yan Gomes

Tampa Bay: Matt Moore-

Moore has been unbelievable this season and has not taken a losing decision yet. He is 8-0 with an ERA under three. The Rays offense is certainly going to play a factor too, but if Moore can do what he has been doing and limit the Tribe, the Rays can take game 1 and carry some much needed momentum into the rest of the series.

Keys for the series:

1. Get back to the winning ways: The Indians have won two straight over a very good Reds team, but can the offense keep it going? The Tribe are only behind Detroit by a half game and if they put together a good weekend series, they have a very good chance to get back into first place by the end of the weekend. The Tigers are taking on Chris Davis and a very very good Baltimore team over the weekend, this is a chance to make up some more ground.

Ubaldo Jimenez starts game 2 of the series

2. Don't abuse the bullpen : Over the past couple seasons, the bullpen has been able to make up for weak starting pitching. Right now, the starting rotation is going to have to pick up the bullpen and give 6-7 solid innings from each of these guys. The Tribe's most durable arm, Justin Masterson will not be throwing in the series, but between a recently hot Kluber, McAlister and Jimenez, the Indians need low pitch counts and some quality outings.

3. Enjoy that home cooking: The Indians have seemed to channel a little magic at home this season. The Tribe have gone 17-10 at home while tallying a 12-14 mark on the road.  The Rays are a tough opponent, but the Indians have really been scoring well at home lately, notching 41 runs in their last eight home games (just above 5 runs per game).  If the Indians keep up this Progressive Field magic, then two out of three in this series is possible.

Next series: @ New York Yankees, Mon-Fri.

Here are some links for the day! Don't forget to check out these other stories:

Check out what our writers' opinions are on the state of the team and chime in as well with our Friday Roundtable.

Game reviews for the past two victories over Cincinnati are here and here.

Jason Giambi has been heating it up lately, hitting two home runs in his past two games, check out why Why Giambi Matters   in a great opinion article by Jacob Mowery.

Also, be ready for new opinion articles this week.  We also have the AL Central round up, injury reports and much much more here on your favorite site for Cleveland Indians news and analysis!

Staff predictions:

Jimmy F.  Tribe takes two of three.

Danny W.  Two of three. Shell Moore tonight and then get stymied by the rookie.

Jacob M. :  I think the Tribe will take two out of three. We most likely won't stop Moore tonight, but The Big U will beat the rookie Chris Archer, and McAllister will be his consistant-self and out-duel Jeremy Hellickson.

Cody W.