The Indians look to improve upon their 2011 record of 80-82
It’s hard to pretend to know exactly what the Indians are going to do this season. It clearly could go either way. So let’s start with the 5 guys that win you a title: the starting pitchers.
Justin Masterson looks to join the ranks of Verlander, Sabathia, Weaver, and other teams' number 1's as an ace in the AL
The Indians have a pretty solid young staff. Justin Masterson and Josh Tomlin both had very impressive 2011 campaigns and are poised to keep improving this season. Masterson will probably end up being everything you look for in a number one guy. He is confident, deceptive, and has some pretty filthy stuff. I see no reason why he doesn’t have a great season. Tomlin isn’t quite on the same level as Masterson, but he is poised to have a very solid season as a middle of the rotation guy. Ubaldo Jimenez, their number 2 pitcher in the rotation, is possibly the biggest question mark of this ball club. If the Indians press for a division title, it will be large in part because Jimenez performs well. He showed us his potential in Colorado, but is decently far removed from that now. Derek Lowe will be a solid pickup for Cleveland, there’s no reason to think otherwise. He’s been decent at worst throughout his long career in both the American League and National League. And while they it’s hard to say if we know who their 5th starting pitcher will be for the majority of the season, that’s a problem that many clubs around the league have. Their rotation should be decent at worst.
While Cleveland’s pitching staff looks poised to be able to compete with the rest of the division, it’s not so easy to say the same about their offense. They’ve got a lot of youngsters: Santana, Hannahan, Kipnis, Brantley, and Duncan. Catcher Carlos Santana is the only one of the bunch that has proven he can be an effective major leaguer, so with half of the lineup left as question marks, it’s hard to say that their hitting will be able to keep up with the likes of Verlander, Liriano, Peavy, and others around the league.
Coming off of a 27-home run season in 2011, Santana looks to improve upon his consistency in the 2012 campaign
I look for the Indians to be very good in spurts this year. Their offense will get hot just like all other lineups do at at least a couple points throughout the year, and it looks like at those times the Indians pitching staff will be able to put them in position to win a good deal of ball games. It’s going to be hard for Cleveland to sustain success with their young squad over 162 games, so I look for a 4th place finish in the AL Central in what might be one of the last years before the Indians return to being an AL powerhouse.