Can the Tribe Make it Happen in '07 - Cleveland Indians 2007 Season Preview

In 2005, the upstart Cleveland Indians were the surprise team of baseball winning 93 games and narrowly missing out on a playoff spot; however, 2006 saw the Tribe regress and finish with only 78 wins. The city of Cleveland and much of baseball saw the Indians as a contender last season, but after a horrible first half, they were far behind the amazing Tigers, the resurgent Twins and the steady Chicago White Sox.

In light of a 2006 that did not live up to expectations, the Indians are a young team on the rise with a great, talented core. This upcoming season, they are looking to make an impact as well as gun for the American League Central crown. All in all, the Indians have nothing but a bright outlook for 2007 and the road beyond.

Much of the team’s core is back, and subtle changes took place in the offseason. In the fold for the Indians are stars Grady Sizemore, big bat Travis Hafner, and imposing ace C.C. Sabathia. During the winter, the team lost Aaron Boone to free agency and Andrew Brown along with Kevin Kouzmanoff to trades. In the offseason, the team acquired second baseman Josh Barfield from the San Diego Padres; pitchers Joe Borowski, Keith Foulke, Aaron Fultz and Roberto Hernandez via free agency, and signed former Red Sox right fielder, Trot Nixon.

The top of the pitching rotation will be led by C.C. Sabathia, the young ace of the staff. He went 12-11 last year with a 3.22 ERA and struggled with an aching knee. His numbers could have been slightly better, but overall he’s been reliable and could move himself into the elite class of pitchers fairly soon. Jake Westbrook will probably be the second starter as he had a solid year in 2006 with a 15-10 record and an ERA of 4.17. Westbrook been a steady, solid pitcher and if he can improve on his 2006, he and Sabathia will be a great pitching tandem for Cleveland.

Cliff Lee should in the middle of the rotation, as he finished with a 14-11 record and with an ERA above 4. He had a down year considering he was 18-5 in 2005, and helped the Indians contended that season. If he can return back to his ’05 form, he’ll help the Indians in a big way. Veteran Paul Byrd will probably be the 4th starter, as he finished 10-9 with an ERA under 5. Over his career, he’s been a solid pitcher, but the Indians will need him to give up fewer runs, as his ERA last season was nearly a run higher than in his previous 2 seasons.

The wild card in the rotation will be Jeremy Sowers. He was 7-4 with a 3.57 ERA last season and the team hopes he can build upon his rookie season. Also possibly factoring in the rotation is Fausto Carmona, though he finished 1-10 and may find himself possibly in the bullpen or the minors in ’07.

The bullpen for Cleveland has been revamped for ‘07 and is stocked with long time veterans. The relief corps has been vastly improved after only after a disastrous 2006 where they could not close out games and often blew game wide open for the opposition. The team added veterans Keith Foulke, Joe Borowski & Roberto Hernandez to compliment Rafael Betancourt, Fernando Cabrera, Aaron Fultz & Jason Davis.

At this point, Borowski may be on deck to be the closer for the Indians in a stacked AL Central. He was 3-3 with an ERA of 3.75 in 2006 (which is a little high for a closer, in my opinion), but he was solid for a young and upstart Marlins team. He’ll be 35 going into the season, and the Indians will rely on him to be as effective as he was in ’06 or better.

The wild cards in the bullpen with are Keith Foulke and Roberto Hernandez. Foulke was 3-1 with an ERA over 4 in Boston last season, and battled back after an injury riddled ’05. In previous years, he has incredible success as closer for both the A’s and Red Sox and the Indians hope he can recapture that magic. If he can bounce back after a subpar ’05, the Indians will have one of the better relief corps in baseball.

Roberto Hernandez is back for another tour of duty in the big leagues, as he’s now 42, but shows no sign of slowing down. After a few so-so years in the National League, he was golden for the Mets in ’05 and ’06 appearing in more than 130 games and compiling an ERA of 3.11 last season, and an ERA of 2.58 in ’05. If he could be as productive as he was in the NL for the Indians, the bullpen will be amazing.

The Indians offense once again, will be fairly young, but they have some big bats easily capable of doing damage. Once again, expect Grady Sizemore, Victor Martinez and Travis Hafner to have big years for the Tribe and rock Jacobs Field. The team now has even a greater infusion of young talent with Josh Barfield and highly touted Andy Marte; however, don’t discount their lack of experience – they have talent, skills and a good all-around game.

Back at the designated hitter position is the deadly Travis Hafner. He hit 42 homers last season to go with 117 RBIs along and a .308 batting average. Blessed with a big bat, he might not get the coverage of “Big Papi”, David Ortiz yet, but he’s one of the premier sluggers in the game and should omce again strike fear in the eyes of opposing pitchers.

The outfield will compromise of Grady Sizemore in center, a combination of David Dellucci/Jason Michaels in left field and Trot Nixon/Casey Blake in right field. Grady Sizemore had a big year in 2006, hitting .290 with 28 homers and 76 RBI, but he’s a poor hitter against lefties and struck out 153 times. Grady could manage to hit lefties better and cut down his strikeout rates; nevertheless, he’s a star on the rise and will be one of the most recognizable names in baseball when all is said and done.

Longtime veteran David Dellucci will probably get the majority of starts in left, and last season hit .292 with 13 homers. He should platoon with Jason Michaels who was solid in 2006 as he hit .267 and drove in 55 runs in 123 games.

Former Red Sox Trot Nixon will patrol left field with Casey Blake and Shin-Soo Choo as his backup. Nixon has seen his numbers dip in the past several seasons, but he should be a solid player for the Tribe. As well, expect to see David Dellucci to see some time in right field. At this point, you can count Nixon as the wild card in the lineup and the Indians hope can recapture some his past glory.

The infield in 2007 will be manned by Casey Blake at first base, Josh Barfield at second base, Jhonny Peralta at shortstop, and Andy Marte at third base.

Casey Blake will get the majority of the starts at first base, as he hit .282 in 109 games, slammed 19 homers and drove in 68 runs. He should maintain his same level of productivity and remain a solid presence in the outfield. Ryan Garko will serve as his backup.

At second base will be Josh Barfield who was a Rookie of the Year candidate in 2006. He hit .280 in his rookie campaign, showed some pop with 13 homers and speed with 21 stolen bases. He will need to improve his on base percentage, but overall, he looks like he’ll be a solid player and the Indians should expect more from him going into his second year.

Jhonny Peralta returns as the everyday shortstop. He batted .257 in 149 games, and although he had a down year from 2005 where he hit 24 homers and 78 RBIs, he should be a candidate to bounce back. Third base will be covered by Andy Marte who struggled in 2006 only hitting .226 in 50 games; however, he’s got a slick glove and should hit for both average and power. The team is ready to see him in full time action, as veteran Aaron Boone signed with the Marlins, so he’ll be slotted to start. Hector Luna and Joe Inglett will be the infield backups.

The Cleveland Indians play in a stacked division with the Tigers, Twins plus the White Sox and if all goes well, will be a four team showdown for the AL Central supremacy in 2007. While the Indians are stacked with young players all across the board, the team has so much talent and promise, the Indians cannot be discounted as a contender in the American League.

In the end, the offense will need to step and move forward, plus the relief corps has to do their jobs. Therefore, if it all comes together, Cleveland might have enough firepower for a playoff spot.