A Quest Called Tribe

On August 15th, the Twins placed Delmon Young on waivers.  He was quickly claimed by the Tigers and we have all heard the anecdotes about Delmon taking the Twins bus to Comerica Park and his new Detroit teammates struggling to comprehend his presence in their locker room.  From seemingly every babbling voice in the peanut gallery, I heard such cries as "Why didn't the Indians claim him?" or "Couldn't the Indians have at least blocked Detroit?"  At the time, I noted Young to be a "non-factor" as he had posted a .662 OPS and just 32 RBI for Minnesota.  I further explained that the Tribe would get a similar boost when Shelley Duncan came back from an overnight in AAA forced by a numbers crunch.

Well, I suppose that I mildly underestimated Young, who has put up 26 RBI in 37 games for the Tigers.  Recognize, though, that his OPS since the trade is still a lowly .693.  For means of comparison, think Matt LaPorta (.710).  Duncan has matched Delmon every step of the way.  Young's numbers (.258/.280/.413, 6 HR) are actually worse than Shelley's (.298/.374/.606, 7 HR, 23 RBI) and the fact that the latter has 50 fewer PA's allows for the staggering difference in OPS.  Oh, did I forget to mention?  Duncan's OPS (do the math) is .980.  So, for all of y'all that are whining about how the Tigers' addition of Delmon Young caused the Tribe's downfall, perhaps it's time to stop playing WoW and regain some understanding of reality.

Speaking of reality, here's some harsh for ya.  The Indians have exactly 2 players (Asdrubal Cabrera, Carlos Santana) with more than 114 games played and just five in triple digits period.  If you were to organize the team's season line-up by most games at each position, the second base (Orlando Cabrera) would digging his own grave on the left coast and the center fielder (Grady Sizemore) would have appeared in fewer than half (71) of the games played.  Additionally, only one starter (Justin Masterson) has pitched every fifth day for the length of the season.  If you're wondering what derailed the dream... yeah, one word: injuries.

Hey, I'm not so pissed at Tony Sipp (though his propensity to serve up the gopher ball is troubling).  Instead, I plan to pour my bubbling cauldron of rage all over Fausto Carmona.  You see, the game should have never gone to extras and it would not have, had Carmona had the ability to shut down a bunch of scrubs.  Seriously, despite fielding their most respectable line-up of the entire series, the Twins featured just three honest-to-goodness major leaguers.  Could Fausto, he of the 15 losses and 5.25 ERA, limit Minnesota to three runs or fewer?  Hell, no!  $7mil for 2012.  Should the Tribe pick up the option?  HELL!  FREAKIN!  NO!

The boys need to take one of three from Detroit to finish .500 and two of three for the tantalizing 82-win plateau.

Then there's this...




Here's to making the Tigers squeal like pigs.

Cheers.

Pretty Girl Update! - Stacy Keibler

Damn you, Clooney.

Pretty Girl 09.25.11 - Natalie Gulbis

Welcome to hot female athlete week!  We'll begin with the obvious... golf?

Pretty Girl 09.24.11 - Michelle McCunn

Damn dog, don't say that I don't pay attention.  You're like a morman in a whoorehouse.  And she did graduate Cum Loudly.

A Quest Called Tribe (Storybook Edition Part 2)

No words tonight. Just enjoy it.

Cheers.

A Quest Called Tribe (Storybook Edition)

I have never seen players shake hands at the plate.  High five, bump the rock, bash brothers, even the butt slap, but never the respect that Shelly & Kip gave to Thome.

All Pretty Maids In A Row

How come I never go to weddings with bridesmaids like this? (I am assuming that they put out, jackass.) ;-j

Pretty Girl 09.23.11 - Noelia Marzol

Can there really be a "leaked private photos" scandal when the chick has already posed in the nude?

A Quest Called Tribe

Wow, I am in a much better mood tonight.  I guess that the complete thrashing of a division rival will do that. 

Let's talk 40-man roster.  As of today, two men (Josh Tomlin, Shin-Soo Choo) are on the 15-day disabled list. Of the remaining 38 players eligible for work in the bigs, 34 of them are active with the Indians right now.  That number will go to 35 of 39 by Saturday when Mitch Talbot is activated to make the start against Minnesota.  Most likely, the Tribe will transfer Tomlin to the 60-day DL to open the spot, as the young right-hander has been shut down for the season. 

In the 11-2 victory that brought the boys back to within a game of .500 (I am still fervently hoping for 82-80, which would require a 5-2 finish), we were treated to players thirty two, three and four on the depth chart.  #34 is, of course, Zach Putnam (8.31 ERA, 1.62 WHIP).  For a lengthy rant on Putnam, see yesterday's post. 

#33 would be Cord Phelps.  Phelps, who came in to pinch run for Travis Hafner after Pronk knocked his 1000th career hit, went 0-for-1 to drop his season average to .138.  Cord was considered "more major league ready" than Jason Kipnis when the former was promoted in early June.  Oh, how the tables have turned.  Phelps has not cracked a hit in almost three months, a span of 24 at-bats.  He has been allowed just 2 AB's since September 3rd.  Kipnis, on the other hand, launched his 7th homer tonight and has produced a staggering .917 OPS during his debut season.  Phelps' OPS is about half of that.

#32 belongs to Corey Kluber.  The low ranking has much more to do with his season numbers at AAA (7-11, 5.56), than the two appearances that he has made for the Indians.  Despite putting five men on his 2.1 innings, Kluber has pitched his way out of trouble.  Corey has not surrendered a run, while fanning three.  He will get a look for the fifth rotation spot, or even the long man role, next spring.

Speaking of which, it's so early, but I cannot resist.  Who will be the Tribe's starting five in 2012?  Three guys are in for sure.  Justin Masterson, Ubaldo Jimenez and Josh Tomlin will form the top 3.  Who's out?  Well, Carlos Carrasco is lost for the season after Tommy John surgery.  Although he started quickly and drew rave reviews from many (including me), David Huff is 0-4 with a 7.11 (.306 OBA, .912 OOPS) in September.  Manny Acta has obviously lost confidence in the lefty and Huff (4-17 over the past two seasons) would have to dazzle in Goodyear, if he even makes it that far.  So three are in, two are out and everyone else is in play.  Jeanmar Gomez looks to have cracked the code of MLB pitching (5-0, 1.80, 0 HR since his last recall) and should have the inside track on the #4 spot, although that is far from a sure thing.  Zach McAllister (especially if he can add another quality start this season), the aforementioned Kluber and Mitch Talbot will all be in the mix.  What's that huge elephant over there?  Oh, yeah.  Him.  In my opinion, the organization should thank him for 2007 and cut ties with Fausto Carmona.  This will probably not happen, so Fausto (34-58, 5.05 ERA, 1.50 WHIP excluding '07) will be in contention as well.  We shall look at this more as the off-season progresses, but do not place any money on Carmona making the 2012 opening day roster.

Here's to seeing #31 (Luis Valbuena) tomorrow.

Cheers.

Clowns To the Left Of Me, Jokers To the Right...

Stuck in the middle, tattoos...