Cleveland Indians: The ideal starting lineup in 2018

4. Edwin Encarnacion – DH

This one requires no explanation. When we think about cleanup hitters, we think about Edwin Encarnacion. Since 2012, he hasn’t hit fewer than 34 home runs, and has only missed the 100-RBI mark one time (98 in 2014, in 128 games).

Even if his numbers regress with age, we are still looking at 25-30 homers and 85 RBIs.

5. Michael Brantley – LF

The five-hole is where we really start to notice the losses of Carlos Santana and Jay Bruce. The power numbers take a sizable dive, and the Indians are without two big bats to protect Encarnacion in the middle of the order.

Enter Michael Brantley, who offers a much different style of protection.

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Much like his teammate Ramirez, Brantley is a patient hitter who doesn’t give away at-bats. He can drive the ball to all fields, and has no problem sending a pitcher’s pitch through the infield for a base hit.

Last season, teams could afford to shy away from Encarnacion (evidenced by his team-leading 104 walks) knowing that there were two strikeout candidates due up next in Santana and Bruce. Such will not be the case with Brantley, who rarely strikes out.

If opposing pitchers want to play it safe with Encarnacion, more power to them. Brantley will do just fine making them pay for it.

He won’t launch many home runs, but he won’t have to. He’ll have plenty of RBI opportunities with the stars in front of him on base.

The only thing that has held Brantley back of late has been his health. He will return to form in 2018 and reclaim his role as a middle-of-the-order bat.

6. Yonder Alonso – 1B

As the newest member of the Indians’ infield, Alonso finds himself in the unenviable position of trying to replace Santana in the hearts and minds of Tribe fans. If he brings his 2017 power numbers with him to Progressive Field, it would do wonders to assuage the loss of a long-time fan favorite.

Thanks to what appears to have been an adjustment in his swing, Alonso put up career numbers in home runs and OPS last season. An unfortunate side effect was that he also set a career high in strikeouts. Moreover, he is a downright liability against left-handed pitching, posting a sub-.200 average against southpaws in 2017.

Still, even with the strikeouts and inefficiency against lefties, he managed a .340 on-base percentage thanks to 68 walks (again, a career high).

Overall, he profiles well as a middle-of-the-order hitter, which is exactly why the Indians nabbed him off the bargain shelf. Temper expectations, but if last year is any indication, Cleveland could do worse than batting Alonso sixth.