Cleveland Indians Midseason Awards: Who Takes Home the Hardware?
Well, the first half of the season is officially over (though the 50 percent mark was more than a week ago). The All-Star Break is a good time to reflect on the first 89 games of the season before we look ahead to the trade deadline and the pennant race.
So I decided to hop on the bandwagon.
Without further ado, here are your Cleveland Indians first-half awards, as voted by the one-man democracy of the WBWAA (Wahoo Blues Writers Association of America).
Asdrubal Cabrera is the Indians' first-half MVP.
Most Valuable Player: Asdrubal Cabrera. Like this was even a choice. Among Indians with at least 200 PAs, Cabrera leads in homers (14), runs (55), RBI (51), steals (12), average (.293), slugging (.489), OPS (.836), wRC+ (137), WPA (102), and WAR (3.3). And he’s done it while playing shortstop. No doubt the All-Star starting shortstop has been our best player.
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MLB Trade Rumors: Could Cleveland Indians Deal for David DeJesus?
Well, we’re 86 games into the 2011 season, and the Cleveland Indians are still in first place. With just three weeks left before the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, they’re likely to make an upgrade or two, even if they can’t afford to make a blockbuster deal.
With Shin-Soo Choo out until the end of August—if not longer—a natural place for the Indians to upgrade is right field. And GM Chris Antonetti told Anthony Castrovince that he’s looking for a bat:
“We’re open in any way we can to improve the team, whatever that might be,” Antonetti said. “Especially with Choo suffering the injury that he suffered, we’ll probably focus most of our efforts on improving our offense and getting a little more consistency there.”
Cleveland probably won’t spare the prospects to acquire a premium player or the cash to bring in a big name in a salary dump, but that doesn’t mean they won’t look to upgrade at all. One buy-low option who could be had for an affordable price is Oakland Athletics right fielder David DeJesus. (more…)
Shin-Soo Choo Out Two Months: Indians Need to Call Up Jerad Head
Cleveland fans’ hearts were broken Tuesday when the Indians announced that Shin-Soo Choo would miss eight-to-10 weeks as he recovers from surgery on his left thumb. The time off could do Choo some good, but the void both in right field and Tribe fans’ hearts won’t be easy to fill.
So far, the hole in right field has been filled by Travis Buck (hitting .226/.274/.340), Austin Kearns (.194/.286/.269), and Shelley Duncan (.212/.244/.353)—none of whom really bring much to the table. The trio has combined for -0.4 WAR in 97 games this year, and none of the three has been above replacement level.
Anyone who fills Choo’s shoes will look overmatched by comparison—for the Indians to truly replace Choo’s solid bat and terrific glove, they’d have to make a blockbuster trade—but there is a better way. The solution to the Indians’ right-field problem could be a guy most fans have never heard of. (more…)
The Silver Lining of Shin-Soo Choo’s Injury
When the Indians announced that right fielder Shin-Soo Choo would be out for at least six weeks on Saturday, Cleveland’s collective heart sank.
Despite being in a down year, Choo’s on-field contributions have been immensely valuable (he’s on pace for 3.6 WAR over 162 games), and the last thing a perennially disappointed fanbase needs in the midst of the Tribe’s cold streak is for the franchise’s most beloved player (sorry, Grady) to go down with a gruesome-looking injury
Even putting aside the basic human empathy we ought to feel for someone who gets his thumb fractures by a hard sphere traveling 89 mph, there’s no question that losing Choo is a serious blow to the team.
But that doesn’t mean that no good can come of it. A break like this (pun most definitely not intended) could be just what the doctor ordered for Choo (that one was). (more…)
Which Cleveland Indians Deserve Your All-Star Votes?
Less than two weeks remain before the 2011 MLB All-Star voting closes, and Cleveland fans across the country are sure to be punching their ballots for Tribe players to get as many Indians on the AL team as possible.
Believe it or not, several Indians are already among the voting leaders as of the most recent update. But before we cast our final ballots, it behooves us to ask: what Cleveland players really should appear in the Midsummer Classic.
According to yesterday’s Baseball Prospectus playoff odds update, the Indians have a 15% chance of making the playoffs, meaning they have a roughly 4% chance of reaching the World Series. That’s a real, if small, chance that the outcome of the All-Star Game and its prize of home field advantage in the Fall Classic will matter to the Indians.
With that in mind, blindly punching the ticket for the Tribe’s players might not be in the Indians’ best interest. To help you make your decisions, I’ve categorized the nine Cleveland players on the ballot by how much hometown bias it would take to justify picking them. Happy voting!
Pull the Lever
Asdrubal Cabrera, Shortstop (second, 1,647,802). He leads all AL shortstops in average (.296), slugging percentage (.507), OPS (.850), and wRC+ (142). Alexei Ramirez’ big advantage with the glove probably makes him the better player (he leads Cabrera in WAR, 3.1 to 2.4), but Droobs’ star power, presence on the most surprising team in baseball, and clutch hitting make him a solid choice. And someone’s got to stop Derek Jeter. (more…)
