The Sports Xchange

MLB Team Report – Cleveland Indians – INSIDE PITCH

The Indians will attempt to do something in 2012 that is not impossible but also is not very easy. They hope to be a contender with two of their starting infielders in their first full season in the major leagues.

Second baseman Jason Kipnis and third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall were called up from the minor leagues in the middle of the 2011 season, and at times both showed why they were considered two of the top prospects in the team’s organization.

However, Kipnis and Chisenhall also had their moments in which they looked and performed like rookies. Nevertheless, Indians officials saw enough out of both players to go into the offseason with the feeling that Kipnis and Chisenhall can be counted on as starters in 2012.

Kipnis, 24, was recalled from Class AAA Columbus on July 21 and, except for a three-week stay on the disabled list with a strained hamstring, was the club’s starting second baseman for the rest of the season. In 136 at-bats, he hit .272 with seven home runs and 19 RBI. Four of his home runs came in four consecutive games, tying a club record set by Al Rosen in 1950.

A converted outfielder, Kipnis is still learning the second base position, but he appears to be athletic enough to handle it, especially if he can produce offensively the way Indians officials think he will over a full season. Certainly Kipnis’ defense is not as much of a concern as Chisenhall’s.

Chisenhall, 23, also underwent a position switch in the minor leagues. He was drafted as a shortstop but was moved to third base. He has experienced some growing pains at his new position, and the Indians had to endure some on-the-job training for him last season. Although he played in just 66 games, Chisenhall was third on the team with 10 errors.

Chisenhall’s shaky glove at third is one reason why the Indians have kept defensive specialist Jack Hannahan on the roster. Hannahan was the Indians’ starting third baseman for the first half of the 2011 season, but Chisenhall’s superior bat eventually forced the Indians to make the switch.

Until Chisenhall becomes a more polished defender, Hannahan will continue to be an option for manager Manny Acta as a late-inning defensive replacement.

Kipnis and Chisenhall both made it to the big leagues on the strength of their hitting. With the Indians thus far in the offseason unable to add an impact hitter, it will be even more important for the two youngsters to make major contributions offensively in 2012 in order to help bolster what in 2011 was a well below average offense.

———————————————–

MLB Team Report – Cleveland Indians – NOTES, QUOTES

–INF Andy LaRoche signed a minor league contract and was invited to Cleveland’s major league training camp. LaRoche, who gives the Indians added depth at all four infield positions, was the Pirates’ regular third baseman in 2009 and hit .258 with 12 home runs and 64 RBI. LaRoche spent most of 2011 with Oakland’s Class AAA Sacramento affiliate, hitting .254 with four home runs and 27 RBI in 224 at-bats.

–RHP Josh Judy, one of a handful of Indians minor league relievers knocking on the big-league door, was claimed on waivers by the Reds on Dec. 23. Judy was 6-2 with a 3.12 ERA and 28 saves in 50 appearances at Class AAA Columbus in 2011. He was designated for assignment on Dec. 16 when OF Aaron Cunningham was added to Cleveland’s roster.

–RHP Fausto Carmona, coming off another disappointing season, was scheduled to make a few starts in the Dominican winter league as he tries to tinker with his mechanics in hopes of bouncing back from his dismal 2011 season. Carmona, the Indians’ Opening Day starter, was 7-15 with a 5.25 ERA in 32 starts. Manager Manny Acta said Carmona’s numbers were a little deceiving, pointing out that Carmona had the third-lowest run support of any starter in the league.

–OF Shin-Soo Choo will be one of the keys to the Indians’ 2012 season. After consecutive outstanding seasons in 2009 and 2010 when he hit exactly .300 with 20-plus homers and 20-plus stolen bases both years, Choo slumped in 2011. He was arrested on suspicion of drunk driving early in the season, and he battled injuries, including a broken thumb, for most of the rest of the year. In 313 at-bats, he hit just .259 with eight home runs and 36 RBI. “He struggled to get off to a good start and was playing his best when he broke his thumb,” GM Chris Antonetti said.

–RHP Josh Tomlin will bear watching early in the 2012 season. Tomlin was one of the Indians’ most dependable starters in 2011, going 12-7 with a 4.25 ERA in 26 starts. He also led all major league pitchers by averaging just 1.1 walks per nine innings. However, Tomlin missed the last month of the season with right elbow inflammation. He did not have surgery, and Indians officials are hopeful that the elbow won’t be an issue in 2012.

BY THE NUMBERS: 37 — Consecutive starts made by RHP Josh Tomlin from the start of his career in which he pitched at least five innings. That’s the longest streak by any major league pitcher since 1919.

Right-handed pitcher Chen-Chang Lee and infielder Jason Kipnis have won the top minor league awards in the Cleveland Indians farm system.

Lee has been named the 2011 Bob Feller Award recipient as the top pitcher in the Indians’ minor leagues.

Lee, 25, played at Class AA Akron and Class AAA Columbus in 2011, going a combined 6-1 with a save and 2.40 earned run average in 44 relief appearances. He averaged 12.5 strikeouts per nine innings pitched and limited minor league hitters to a .210 average against.

On the season, right-handed batters hit .197 off him with just four extra base hits. After beginning the season in Akron, where he had a 2.50 ERA in 23 games, he was promoted to Columbus on June 22 and went 4-0 with a 2.27 ERA in 21 games.

Lee hails from Taiwan and was signed as an amateur by the Indians in September 2008. He owns a three-year minor league career record of 15-11 with a 3.01 ERA in 133 relief appearances.

Kipnis won the Lou Boudreau Award as the team’s top minor league player of the year for the second straight time, joining Victor Martinez as the only Indian position player to win the award in consecutive seasons.

Kipnis spent the first three and one-half months of the 2011 season at Class AAA Columbus, hitting .280 with 16 doubles, nine triples and 55 RBI in 92 games. At the time of his July 22 promotion to Cleveland, he was leading the International League in triples, was second in runs (65) and tied for 12th in hits (92) and RBI.

A 2009 second-round pick out of Arizona State University, Kipnis hit .272 with Cleveland over the final two months of the season with nine doubles, a triple, seven home runs and 19 RBI in 36 games.

Here are the Bob Feller and Lou Boudreau winners in Indians team history:

FELLER: 1990 Charles Nagy; 1991 Mike Soper; 1992 Chad Ogea; 1993 John Carter; 1994 Steve Kline; 1995 Danny Graves; 1996 Danny Graves; 1997 Marc Deschenes; 1998 David Riske; 1999 Robert Pugmire; 2000 Jason Stanford 2001 Mike Bacsik; 2002 Billy Traber; 2003 Fausto Carmona; 2004 Adam Miller; 2005 Jeremy Sowers; 2006 Adam Miller; 2007 Aaron Laffey; 2008 David Huff; 2009 Hector Rondon; 2010 Alex White; 2011 Chen-Chang Lee.

BOUDREAU: 1990 Jim Thome; 1991 Manny Ramirez; 1992 Ken Ramos; 1993 Jim Thome; 1994 David Bell; 1995 Richie Sexson; 1996 Russ Branyan 1997 Sean Casey; 1998 Alex Ramirez 1999 Scott Morgan; 2000 Billy Munoz; 2001 Victor Martinez; 2002 Victor Martinez; 2003 Grady Sizemore; 2004 Ryan Garko; 2005 Ryan Mulhern; 2006 Kevin Kouzmanoff; 2007 Asdrubal Cabrera; 2008 Beau Mills; 2009 Carlos Santana; 2010 Jason Kipnis; 2011 Kipnis.

In an effort to improve the team, the Cleveland Indians acquired veteran pitcher Derek Lowe(notes) via trade from the Atlanta Braves and have re-signed free agent outfielder Grady Sizemore(notes) to an incentive laden deal.

The starting rotation is virtually set with Justin Masterson(notes), Ubaldo Jimenez(notes), Josh Tomlin(notes), Fausto Carmona(notes), and Lowe. Pitchers such as Jeanmar Gomez(notes) will likely start the season in Triple-A Columbus and be recalled as needed for injury coverage and/or spot starts.

With the signing of Sizemore, the familiar outfield of Shin-Soo Choo(notes) in right, Sizemore in center, and Michael Brantley(notes) in left leaves Indians’ fans confident, especially if the trio can remain healthy.

Additional depth is still needed in the outfield, but Shelley Duncan(notes) who began to break out late in the season with increased at bats can assume that role. Surely the team will continue to explore the best options available, but even as it stands, I am confident with the group that is already there.

Sizemore’s health remains a major concern for the club and fans alike. He appeared in only 71 games last season and battled injuries the year before. He was hardly worth the $9 million option for 2012 on a team that is always strapped for cash.

He will have a base salary of $5 million in 2012 with the opportunity to make an additional $4 million based upon at bats. He can make and additional $500,000 if he is awarded comeback player of the year.

The only remaining issue for the Indians now is the infield. Asdrubal Cabrera(notes) and Jason Kipnis(notes) are locks at shortstop and second base respectively. At third base Jack Hannahan(notes) has been consistent but the future rests in the hands of Lonnie Chisenhall(notes).

In 66 games last season, Chisenhall batted .255 with seven homeruns and 22 RBIs. Hardly the production both fans and the front office were hoping for after a stellar minor league career. On the bright side he is still very young and will continue to develop. Hannahan is best suited as a utility infielder potentially sharing those duties with Jason Donald(notes).

The big issue remaining is what to do at first base and with Matt LaPorta(notes)?

More Cleveland Indians Commentary from this Contributor:

MLB gears up for major changes in 2013: A fan’s take

Cleveland Indians’ potential OF free-agent Targets: A fan’s look

Carlos Pena is not the Indians’ answer at 1B: A fan’s take

Jim Thome bolts Indians for Phillies, again: Fan reaction

Michael Cuddyer could be the Indians’ best free agent option: A fan’s look

Sources:

All data provided by MLB.com

Paul Rados is an avid Cleveland Indians fan and a Featured Contributor for the Yahoo! Contributor Network. Follow him on Twitter @PSRados or leave him a message on Facebook. For a complete look at his freelance work please visit his Blog.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

The 41-year-old Thome hit .256 with 15 home runs and 50 RBI in a combined 93 games with the Minnesota Twins and Cleveland Indians last season. He batted .350 with runners in scoring position and .424 over his final 11 games of the season.

“Every player sees the way the Phillies have done things,” Thome said. “They’ve set the bar very, very high.”

Thome played for Philadelphia from 2003-05 and has remained close with Phillies manager Charlie Manuel, his hitting coach for several years in Cleveland.

“Everyone knows my relationship with Jimmy,” Manuel said. “But he’s not here because of that. He’s here to contribute to our team in a positive way, both on and off the field.”

Thome hit .260 with 96 home runs and 266 RBIs in his first stint with the Phillies.

“I think the Phillies have set the bar very high in baseball,” Thome said. “This is as good a place in baseball right now to be in.”

Thome has a .277 career average with 604 homers and 1,674 RBIs. He is one of just eight players to hit more than 600 homers.

Thome was once considered the Phillies’ franchise player when he signed as a free agent in the winter of 2002.

With his down-home charm and mammoth homers, Thome was an instant hit in Philadelphia. He led the NL in homers in 2003 with 47 and hit 42 the next season. In the final game at Veterans Stadium in 2003, Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt raised Thome’s hand at home plate in a symbolic passing of the torch.

On June 14, 2004, Thome hit career homer No. 400 in Philadelphia.

Back and elbow injuries limited him to 59 games in 2005, when he slumped to .207 with seven homers and 30 RBIs in 193 at-bats. Ryan Howard’s emergence made it easier to consider moving Thome.

Howard is recovering from surgery on his left Achilles. Thome, expected to add some left-handed pop off the bench, could be called on to play first base. Thome said he’ll be preparing this offseason. Aside from a symbolic appearance at third base for the Indians in his finale at Progressive Field this season, Thome has not played defensively since 2007.

Thome had been taking his career year by year. When Amaro and the Phillies called early in the free agency period, Thome jumped at the reunion.

“When a team like the Phillies called, that’s a great opportunity to be in,” he said. “There was history here. I think to me, it was a good decision.”

Thome went to the World Series in 1995 and 1997 but the Indians came up short both times. He left after the 2002 season and signed a six-year, $85 million deal with the Phillies. Thome helped usher in the Phillies’ move to Citizens Bank Park in 2004 and their rise to NL East contenders.

He was traded before the Phillies started their current run of five straight NL East titles. The Phillies won the World Series in 2008 and were eliminated this season by eventual champion St. Louis in the NL division series.

Winning a World Series is the lone void over Thome’s stellar career. He believes a return to the perennial NL power can help win him a ring.

“When they win, they create a lot of very good things,” Thome said.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.