Cleveland Indians Report Card: Grading the first half of the season

Cleveland Indians Report Card: Grading the first 81 games

The Cleveland Indians reached the halfway mark of the 2021 season with an extra innings loss to the Astros on Sunday, finishing the first 81 games of the season with a record of 42-39. Yes, the Tribe dropped six straight to get here, but the fact the team is was just six games back of the White Sox in the Central and 4.5 games back of a Wild Card is astounding.

The first half of the season for Cleveland was largely defined by late inning heroics, a strong bullpen and of course, a debilitating amount of injuries. Seriously, what did this team do to provoke the baseball gods? It is immensely difficult not to view the season up to this point in a glass-half-empty manner, but the Tribe wouldn’t have been nine games over .500 just a week ago without surprising sources of production and strong team chemistry.

Much of that can easily be attributed to Cleveland skipper Terry Francona who may have an argument at another AL Manager of the Year Award if this team even sniffs the postseason. The rest of the credit belongs to a relatively easy schedule and some fairly hot bats in the month of June, as the Tribe rolled off a 13-11 record while driving in a season-high 128 runs in the month, good for a 4.92 runs per game average.

On the surface those numbers are rather pedestrian, but considering the Indians have been without the likes of Shane Bieber, Aaron Civale, Zach Plesac, Franmil Reyes and Roberto Perez for a significant stretch of these first 81 games their performance is something to be marveled at. Looking back on the first half of this season, how did Cleveland reach 10 games over .500 at any point in 2021?

Let’s break down the Tribe’s position groups and look at which players and positions embraced the next man up mentality. Have Cleveland’s replacement starting pitchers held a candle in the wind to to team’s Big Three? Has the outfield, a position group many have questioned this season, popped or flopped? As we approach the trade deadline and figure out if the team is buying or selling, Cleveland could use a report card. Whether or not they want to put it on the fridge is a different matter entirely.

Starting Pitching

How on Earth is someone supposed to judge Cleveland’s starting pitching the first half of this season? Seriously, I need someone to tell me. On one hand, the 2016 MLB Draft class trio of Shane Bieber, Aaron Civale and Zach Plesac have been as-advertised when healthy, if not exceeding expectations in the case of Civale. On the other hand, the six starters not named Bieber, Civale and Plesac have, well, tried.When Aaron Civale went down with a pitching hand injury in late June he was the MLB leader in wins with 10. The 2016 MLB Draft class trio combined for a 21-9 record in 39 starts this season, with a combined ERA of 3.50, a WHIP of 1.12 and 244 strikeouts over 247 innings. That is winning production and largely what has become expected of Indians pitching in the last decade and more.

Six other Tribe pitchers have notched a start this season if you exclude a Phil Maton lead bullpen day. Those other six starters include early season bullpen hand Cal Quantrill, opening day rotation members Triston McKenzie and Logan Allen, and prospects J.C. Mejia, Sam Hentges and Eli Morgan. Many of these six have shown flashes at one point or another, but haven’t quite put it all together for the Indians in 2021.

These other six pitchers to start this season have amassed a record of 3-18, a combined ERA of 7.70, a WHIP of 1.65 and 153 strikeouts in 41 starts, eating just 153.2 innings pitched. How can I put this as nicely as possible? Well, it’s like comparing apples and avocados. Two more combined starts than Bieber, Civale and Plesac, yet just half of their production has been an incredible strain on the bullpen and is far from sustainable.

In the defense of Morgan, Mejia and Hentges, they are playing on a very accelerated timetable from what should have been reasonably expected in 2021, but this level of performance is harrowing. To even consider grading the starting pitching feels like a sucker punch, but we have to meet somewhere in the middle considering the chasm that exists between the established starters and The Replacements. All things considered, the disparity couldn’t be much worse, so there’s nowhere to go but up, which helps justify giving the group a C-.

James Karinchak #99 of the Cleveland Indians (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images)

The Bullpen

Wait a minute, is that the ghost of Bryan Shaw coming out of the bullpen? The revival of Shaw’s career after three awful seasons between Colorado and Seattle has been fairly characteristic of the Tribe’s bullpen contributions. Though the baseball gods demand a sacrifice for the return of Shaw, as the three batter minimum rule has claimed the career of Oliver Perez early in 2021.

Nick Sandlin has also been a pleasant surprise in his age 24 season to go along with Phil Maton and Nick Wittgren. Those four arms have combined for an ERA of 3.91 and a WHIP of 1.21 in 119 innings, proving to be good enough to give the offense a chance to work its late inning magic. The major concern for the bullpen has been an inflated workload since the injuries to Bieber, Civale and Plesac, while every other starter for the Tribe has eclipsed six innings pitched just once in 41 starts.

Cal Quantrill also proved significantly more useful out of the bullpen before the need to stretch him out into a starter, registering a 1.17 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP in 23.1 innings pitched in relief. Even more recently the Indians have received a boost from journeyman Blake Parker since debuting June 5th, logging a 3.18 ERA across 13 appearances.

Closer deserves to be talked about independently of the rest of the bullpen, and the Tribe have two of them that turn almost every other franchise in baseball green with envy. James Karinchak has continued to embrace the “Wild Thing” persona through 38 appearances in the first half, owning an ERA of 2.49 and his patented ludicrous 15.4 K/9. Karinchak has gone 4-2 this season while adding nine saves to the mix.

Emmanuel Clase, the primary return to Cleveland in the Corey Kluber trade, has stymied opposing bats for much of the season and may find himself towards the top of rookie of the year conversation. He features a Cutter and a 4-Seam Fastball that both average 100MPH, so it’s fairly easy to see how he accumulated an ERA of 1.02 over the first 81 games, reaching the midway point with a 3-3 record and 11 saves as the other half of Cleveland’s closer-by-committee approach.

Things should improve for the bullpen as players (hopefully) return after the All-Star break, either by reinforcing the offense or getting stud starting pitching back. All things considered, the unit has been the most consistent for the 2021 Cleveland Indians in the first half. It’s hardly even debatable. The relief corps earns a very respectable B+ for the first half of the season.

The Infield

Cleveland entered 2021 with serious questions at several spots in the infield. The platoons of Andres Gimenez and Amed Rosario at shortstop and the failed Yu Chang, Jake Bauers experiment at first base. Fortunately, the Tribe had re-signed 2020 Gold Glove winner Cesar Hernandez, Jose Ramirez is still Jose Ramirez and Roberto Perez was still behind the dish.

However, the organization was reminded just how valuable Perez is, having played just 20 games in the first half of the season and unable to work with the young cast of pitchers thrust into the rotation. Austin Hedges, Ryan Lavarnway and Rene Rivera combined for the other 61 games in Perez’s absence, leaving an offensive black hole at the position. Perez did return in game 81, so barring any other injuries some extended time back in the lineup should be fruitful in every phase of the game.

Bobby Bradley made his much anticipated season debut on June 5th and took over every day first baseman duties after the injury to Josh Naylor, slashing .235/.316/.565 in 25 games with eight home runs and 17 runs driven in, doubling the production of Jake Bauers and Yu Chang in half the time. Amed Rosario has also made some noise over the past two months despite a slow April, fitting perfectly into the number two hole in the lineup behind Hernandez, slashing .264/.315/.375 in 74 games.

Jose Ramirez has been more vital to the Tribe’s success than ever, slashing .265/.345/.537 in the first half with 18 home runs, 18 doubles and 50 runs driven in while the team took until June to find a lineup that clicked. Recently selected to his third All-Star game, the 2020 AL MVP runner-up should be even more impactful with the hopeful return of Cleveland’s other stars in the second half.

Personally, I’ve always believed in grading on a curve. It’s entirely possible some college classes in my past would need to be re-taken to avoid a pass/fail (sorry Mom.) In that spirit, what the Indians have figured out since the beginning of June represents a formula for success for the next 81 games, at least in terms of offensive production from the infield, though the team could use some extra defensive drills on off days. The infielders have done enough to establish recency bias, granting a respectable B-.

The Outfield

We’re all acutely aware that the outfield has been a point of serious contention among fans and critics alike since allowing Michael Brantley to walk after the 2017 season. A rotating cast of prospects like Oscar Mercado (2019 excluded) and Bradley Zimmer blended with veterans the team took a flier on like Carlos Gonzalez and Domingo Santana have been less than ideal. Though based on the first 81 games of 2021, this write as one question; why the hell did the Miami Marlins let go of Harold Ramirez?

Cleveland claimed the other Ramirez off waivers in February, making his Indians debut May 3rd and has been an every day player for Terry Francona since, slashing .280/.326/.470 in 52 games. He has been a breath of fresh air for the team, both offensively and defensively, capable of playing any outfield position as needed and hitting both right and left-handed pitching very well (.274 and .284 batting averages respectively.) Ramirez is just 26, under team control until 2026, and seems like he’s carving out a home here with the Indians. You should expect more of the same the next 81 games and beyond.

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Speaking of outfielders that were surprisingly let go, this year’s veteran acquisition on a one-year deal is division foe-turned-friend Eddie Rosario, who victimized Cleveland for six seasons with Minnesota. Rosario has lacked some of the pop in his bat that Cleveland hoped would come with him, slashing .255/.297/.390 through 77 games with just seven home runs, but 46 RBIs. Rosario is a career .288 hitter at Progressive Field, which makes his .209 batting average at home this season, and just two of those seven home runs all the more bizarre compared to hitting .301 on the road.

Although primarily filling Cleveland’s DH spot in the lineup Franmil Reyes falls under the outfielder jurisdiction, playing right field in inter-league contests or worst-case scenarios. Reyes contributes next to nothing defensively, so let’s talk about his .261/.317/.562 slash line in 42 first half games for Cleveland, smacking 12 home runs and driving in 29. Reyes missed much of the first half with an oblique strain, but his pre-injury production should provide a huge boost to the lineup going forward.

The rest of the outfield, with the exception of Josh Naylor who was really turning a corner before a collision with Ernie Clement ended his season, has been abysmal to say the least. Ben Gamel lasted just 11 games, Oscar Mercado hasn’t had enough time to prove he can regain his 2019 form, Jordan Luplow still can’t hit a right-handed pitcher when healthy, and Bradley Zimmer has been exceptionally inept so far. Meanwhile, right down I-71, Tyler Naquin is experiencing a full on career revival with Cincinnati, further complicating public opinion of the front office.

With Naylor out for the rest of 2021, the Tribe have just two legitimate every day outfielders in Harold Ramirez and Eddie Rosario, saying that Rosario will be back from the injured list soon. Just like the infield, a curve is necessary to properly assess the outfield, but in this case the rotating cast outfielders Cleveland has deployed as needed unfortunately brings down the rest of the class, resulting in a C-.