Rebuilding pays off as Cleveland Indians are baseball's best

In 2007, the Cleveland Indians were one of the better teams in baseball, having won the talent-laden American League Central. They had a dangerous lineup, built around outfielder Grady Sizemore, designated hitter Travis Hafner, and catcher Victor Martinez, and had two of the best pitchers in baseball, CC Sabathia and young Fausto Carmona. These five were at the top of their game, and though the Minnesota Twins and Detroit Tigers were on their heels ready to seriously content it wasn’t far-fetched to believe these Indians would succeed for years to come.

They, however, did not. Boston Red Sox outfielder J.D. Drew smacked the Game 6 homer that what was immediately dubbed “The $14 million Grand Slam” to help propel Boston into the World Series, ending Cleveland’s tremendous season. This was just the beginning.

The Indians suffered too many injuries to contend in 2008, losing Sizemore and Hafner early. In the coming years, they traded Sabathia, Martinez, and Lee, Carmona regressed, and Hafner and Sizemore remained on the shelf. Cleveland had gone from division champions to a 65-win team in 2009. They had been close to sitting atop the American League. With a flip of the switch, they were in transition, developing young players instead of relying on wily veterans.

What had transpired with the Indians was fitting given the sports history in the city of Cleveland. The Cavaliers had watched LeBron James, one of the NBA’s best players, stick a knife in their already bleeding heart with “The Decision”, which concluded with his choice to take his talents to South Beach. On top of that, the Browns remained among the NFL’s mediocre, with some individual ability but nothing collective to cheer about. The Cavaliers had a trying season in 2010-2011 in the wake of James’ departure, and the Browns finished at 5-11. The city of Cleveland deserved better, and now the Indians have answered the call.

The roster entered the season with an average age of 26, with only one pitcher over 30. As can be imagined given their overall youth, their rotation is fairly inexperienced, with Carmona, 27, the oldest on the staff. This hasn’t stop the Indians from getting off to baseball’s most surprising start. They currently stand at 26-13, with the best record in the majors and no signs of slowing down.

Sizemore isn’t healthy, but the lineup hasn’t lost a beat. It’s hard to find a player who isn’t hitting over .280 in their lineup, nor one with an On Base Percentage under the respectable .350 clip.

Anchoring an offense that ranks third best in baseball, 24-year-old center-fielder Michael Brantley has reached base 38 percent of the time, has scored 20 runs, and has more walks, 17, than strikeouts, 15 as the lineup’s table-setter. Accompanying him in the order is the right mix of youth and veterans. Shin Soo-Choo, Carlos Santana, Matt LaPorta, Lou Marson, Travis Buck, and Asdrubal Cabrera have fresh legs, while Orlando Cabrera, Adam Everett, Jack Hannahan, and Hafner make up the old guard.

Hafner, a lefthander, has been especially successful, batting .345 thus far with a .405 OBP and 22 rbi’s. The team needs power from the right side, as no Indian has more than six homers, but they don’t have any other weaknesses as of yet, as exemplified by one of their more recent wins, a 19-1 romp of the Kansas City Royals during which they scored 10 runs in the fourth inning alone.

As for the pitching, allowing one run as they did against the Royals has not been uncommon. Their rotation has an impressive 3.51 ERA, and is lead by two unlikely pitchers. Josh Tomlin, who collected the victory in that victory, and Justin Masterson, who was acquired in the deal that sent Martinez to Boston, both have five wins, ERA’s under three, 52 2/3 innings, and eight starts.   Their entirely different repertoires and approaches have given offenses fits.

Tomlin wasn’t highly touted entering the Indians system. He had elbow problems throughout his college career and an underwhelming fastball. According to scout, he would have to develop sharp offspeed pitches and consistently locate them to be effective at the major league level. He has allowed eight homers this season, but other than that he’s been superb, spinning curveballs and changeups to befuddle opponents and offset his 89 miles-per-hour fastball well.

Masterson was a tough player for Boston to give up, solely traded because to get a good player in Martinez they had to trade one. He filled a crucial role, as a spot-starter who could also provide solid work out of the bullpen. The Indians thought more of him than that, making him a full-time starter and allowing him to work out of trouble and go deep into games. Throwing 100 pitches on average this season, he has become their ace, living up to the potential he had as a Boston farmhand.

The back end of Cleveland’s rotation has struggled, but the relief core has picked up the slack to the tune of a 3.23 ERA. Rafael Perez and the duo of Tony Sipp and Vinnie Pestano have come out of nowhere to hold their own setting up equally unknown closer Chris Perez, compiling 20 holds with ERA’s under 2.00.

These relievers are inexperienced. The whole team is inexperienced. Who knows if Cleveland will keep playing this well into the heat of summer. But right now, all is well on the shores of Lake Erie. The Cavaliers have the first and fourth picks in the upcoming NBA Draft, and the Indians look down on the rest of baseball.

(AP Photo/Tony Dejak)