Hot Starts of Derek Lowe and Jack Hannahan Are Aberrations for Cleveland Indians

The Cleveland Indians are off to a 9-8 start, good enough for a three-way tie with the White Sox and Tigers for first in the AL Central.

Members of the squad have gotten off to hot starts, with the most surprising starts belonging to Derek Lowe and Jack Hannahan.

Neither player will continue to their successes in the long-term and, before you bash me, allow me to explain my reasoning.

The Indians acquired Lowe from the Braves this offseason for a low-level minor leaguer.

Lowe is coming off the worst season of his career as a starter, posting a 9-17 record with a 5.05 ERA. The 17 losses were the most in the league.

The last time Lowe was an effective starter was 2008 as a member of the Dodgers. He posted a record of 14-11 that season with an ERA of 3.24.

Since then, he has posted ERAs of 4.67, 4.00 and 5.05, respectively.

So far this season, Lowe already has three wins and an ERA of 3.00.

That being said, he has been far from dominant.

In 24 innings, he has just eight strike outs. He has also compiled a 1.667 WHIP.

Those numbers don't exactly scream long-term success, so don't be surprised when Lowe begins to regress.

Hannahan's production will most definitely peter out.

His career numbers aren't exactly solid. He owns a line of .235/.321/.363 with 25 home runs and 143 RBI in 1,224 at-bats.

Those numbers include his 2012 statistics, which are much better than his career marks.

Through 48 at-bats thus far, Hannahan has compiled a line of .333/.421/.479 with one home run and 13 RBI.

Hannahan is a defensive-wiz, nothing more. His offense numbers will tail off, and he'll go back to being a player whose bat you deal with so you can reap the benefits of his defense.

Overall, I predict that the Indians will have a very solid season. That being said, the strong pitching of Lowe and the big-time offense of Hannahan will not be the reason.