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Why Tiger fans are perhaps underestimating the Indians
The numbers don't look good for the Cleveland Indians. They started the season 30-15 and held a 7-game lead in the American League Central on May 23. The common thought at the time is the Indians would fade.
And they have, posting a 26-41 record since, which leaves the Tribe 56-56 and four games behind the Tigers in the standings. Yeah. The Tigers made up 11 games on the Indians in that relatively short period of time.
But like the Tigers, the worst of the schedule is over for the Indians. Ten of their last 13 games were against the Angels, Red Sox and Rangers - the last seven at Boston and Texas.
Much has been made about the Tigers playing only three games against above .500 teams the remainder of the season - Tampa Bay. The Indians are in essentially the same spot. Other than their 12 remaining meetings with the Tigers, their only games against clubs currently above .500 will be on a trip to Texas in September.
And the Indians, like the Tigers, have improved their talent level. Second baseman Jason Kipnis and third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall were not rushed to the major leagues and are very talented rookies. Their play has been spotty since being called up, but the conditions for them to perform improve greatly. And the Indians did add at the trade deadline, front line starting pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez.
The Tigers have a better team than the Indians in just about every category except one: Bullpen. The Indians have very good bullpen depth.
At the beginning of the year, I made the colossal statement, "The Indians stink." I've been proven wrong. They've actually hung in there pretty well.
Do I think the Tigers will win the division? Yes. But don't be surprised if the Indians make them earn it. Or if the Tigers' falter down the stretch, the Tribe steal it.
That may sound ridiculous, but the landscape of this pennant race are going to change dramatically from this point forward because of the schedule.
Replay of livestream chat Monday with sports editor Jeff Kuehn. We do this every Monday at 12:30 - a live chat is setup to join in the conversation. We got into the Dombrowski, Leyland contract extensions, Tigers pennant race and Lions injuries:
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Video streaming by Ustream
And they have, posting a 26-41 record since, which leaves the Tribe 56-56 and four games behind the Tigers in the standings. Yeah. The Tigers made up 11 games on the Indians in that relatively short period of time.
But like the Tigers, the worst of the schedule is over for the Indians. Ten of their last 13 games were against the Angels, Red Sox and Rangers - the last seven at Boston and Texas.
Much has been made about the Tigers playing only three games against above .500 teams the remainder of the season - Tampa Bay. The Indians are in essentially the same spot. Other than their 12 remaining meetings with the Tigers, their only games against clubs currently above .500 will be on a trip to Texas in September.
And the Indians, like the Tigers, have improved their talent level. Second baseman Jason Kipnis and third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall were not rushed to the major leagues and are very talented rookies. Their play has been spotty since being called up, but the conditions for them to perform improve greatly. And the Indians did add at the trade deadline, front line starting pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez.
The Tigers have a better team than the Indians in just about every category except one: Bullpen. The Indians have very good bullpen depth.
At the beginning of the year, I made the colossal statement, "The Indians stink." I've been proven wrong. They've actually hung in there pretty well.
Do I think the Tigers will win the division? Yes. But don't be surprised if the Indians make them earn it. Or if the Tigers' falter down the stretch, the Tribe steal it.
That may sound ridiculous, but the landscape of this pennant race are going to change dramatically from this point forward because of the schedule.
Replay of livestream chat Monday with sports editor Jeff Kuehn. We do this every Monday at 12:30 - a live chat is setup to join in the conversation. We got into the Dombrowski, Leyland contract extensions, Tigers pennant race and Lions injuries:
<
Video streaming by Ustream
Labels: Tigers Indians MLB
posted by Pat Caputo at
9:56 AM
3 Comments:
Book,
Good point about the schedules being so similarily weak - it stands clearly to reason that this season - all things else remaining constant - that these remaining 12 games against the tribe will in themselves determine the division outcome.
I don't see how you can say the Tigers are better in every way except the bullpen. The Indians rotation 1-5 is much better. Masterson's numbers are comparable to Verlander other than wins, but that is a product of run support. Ubaldo is better than Scherzer and Tomlin, Carmona, and Carrsco surpass Porcello, Fister, and Penny. The Tigers are where they are in the standings because of the slew of injuries the Indians have had. Trips to the DL for Choo, Sizemore 2x, Hafner, LaPorta, Carmona, Carrasco, Talbot, White is a lot for any team to overcome.
Like Tigers chances to keep Indians at a distance, particularly with Verlander pitching 2 of next 6 games between the teams. He dominated them back in mid June.
Bullpen woes led to a 3 game sweep for Indians back in April. That problem could resurface, but they've found a way to win the close ones recently. They have some positive momentum in that regard.
Jimenez was an interesting pickup...however, shouldn't underestimate the difficulty some pitchers have adjusting to a new league. He has yet to rediscover last year's performance level.
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