The Cleveland Indians

The Indians made some interesting moves this off season. It was a good move to let Ubaldo Jimenez sign with the Baltimore Orioles and an excellent move to sign David Murphy, a possible lighting in a bottle. The Indians are also going to try catcher Carlos Santana at third base, a very interesting move, but I would much rather use him as a designated hitter.

The lineup for the Indians will look very interesting, well balanced to say the least. A cluster of switch hitters, balanced with power, speed, and high on base percentages. The combinatio
n of Kipnis, Swisher, and Santana will be a great one for the Indians. Here is how the lineup for the 2014 Cleveland Indians may look.

1. L. Michael Bourne CF 93 OPS+
2. L. Jason Kipnis 2B 133 OPS+
3. S. Carlos Santana DH 137 OPS+
4. S. Nick Swisher 1B 117 OPS+
5. S. Asdrubal Cabrera SS 98 OPS+
6. L. David Murphy RF 77 OPS+
7. R. Yan Gomes C 133 OPS+
8. L. Michael Brantley LF 107 OPS+
9. R. Mike Aviles 3B 84 OPS+

Nick Swisher

The pitching rotation will be without Ubaldo Jimenez a very important part to the team toward the end of the 2013 season, but a few players will need to step up in 2014. Trevor Bauer who was acquired in a trade with the Arizona Diamondbacks last year will hopefully come to be the player everyone expects him to be. Justin Masterson and the word extension is being fluttered around, but he is set to hit free agency and make band given the current market for starting pitching. Here is how the rotation may look for the Indians in 2014.

1. R. Justin Masterson 109 ERA+
2. R. Josh Tomlin        61 ERA+ in 2012
3. R. Corey Kluber       98 ERA+
4. R. Zach McAllister   100 ERA+
5. R. Trevor Bauer      
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The bullpen will be without closer Chris Perez, but John Axford will be filling the position. Still part of the Bullpen Mafia is Vinnie Pestano, but Joe Smith signed with the Angels. With a combination of several other relievers the Indians still have a bullpen sufficient to stay in games come the late innings.  

The Cleveland Indians

The Cleveland Indians are going to have some trouble trying to keep up with The Detroit Tigers in the American League Central. Although The Tigers appear to have already locked up the division title The Indians may have a chance of competing.

Just recently we found out that the pitcher Fausto Carmona is three years older than he claims and has a different name. Maybe if the Indians can take his inconsistent pitching and his seven million dollar contract off the team, it will free up room for a better player.

The Indians have a pretty decent pitching staff, above average if you will say. During the 2011 season they traded for Ubaldo Jimenez. Although he wasn't as good as The Indians expected he may have a bounce back season for 2012. Ubaldo will not put up the same numbers he did with the Rockies in 2010, but anything close to that will be a great advantage for The Indians. Lets not forget about the young pitcher Justin Masterson, who also proved he can pitched at the big league level. Masterson is 26 years old and posted a 3.21 ERA for the 2011 season. The Indians also have starting pitchers Josh Tomlin and Derek Lowe. Lowe will be 39 in 2012. Although he can pitch close to 200 innings a year, his ERA has been elevated over the past few seasons. As for Josh Tomlin, he is young and still has something to prove at the age of 26. He posted a 4.25 ERA over 165 innings in 2011.

The Indians have a decent offense that can provide a comfortable amount of runs for the pitcher. When Shin Soo Choo, Grady Sizemore, Travis Hafner, Asdrubal Cabrera, and Carlos Santana are healthy The Indians have a powerful offense. If they can add one more bat to their lineup The Tigers may have something to worry about.