Keys to the game (6/9)

Keys to the game:
1.) Kkkkkkkkkkluber. Corey Kluber takes the mound tonight for the Tribe looking to build on his recent success after his. After a rocky start to the 2017 season and a little stint on the DL, Kluber came out against the Oakland Athletics and pitched 6 shut out innings of baseball, striking out 10. Corey Kluber looked like the Corey Kluber we all know and love. Cory Kluber is the backbone of our starting rotation. We need him to lead this team. Today he faces a Chicago White Sox team that has slipped and slid its way right down to the basement. They are 25-23, and have dropped 7 of their last 10 games. The last time Kluber faced them was on April 21, and he was lights out… literally. He pitched a complete game shutout, holding them to just 3 hits. We need him to come out and dominate them again tonight and give our offense a chance to get something going.
2.) Get the offense going! Chicago sends right-hander Miguel Gonzalez to the mound tonight. He is currently 4-6 with a 4.83 ERA, 40 K’s and 20 walks in 69 innings of work. He started the season off really strong, but has stumbled and struggled since. He has been giving up a lot of runs (24 in his last 29 1/3 innings pitched), and has struggled with giving up the long ball. This is the perfect opportunity for our offense to get back on track. We need production from the top of the line up to the bottom, and for the love of all that is holy, avoid hitting into double plays!
3.) Start winning at home and in the divsion. We are currently one of two teams that have a losing home record. We are currently 12-14 when playing at Progressive Field, and 13-14 when playing within our division. There are no two ways around it…. those two stats need to change, and they need to change soon. Home field advantage is meant to be just that… an advantage. Familiar field, home crowd, the last at bat… start taking advantage!

Keys to the Game (6/6)

Keys to the game-
1.) Come out with some energy! Yesterday we had a much needed day off, and that is good because we face the Colorado Rockies tonight. They have a 36-23 record, and are in 1st place in the NL West. The Rockies are built around talented players that have a 'can do' attitude that makes them believe they can win any game at anytime. If we show up and play like dead slugs... We are going to really struggle against this team. We have got to be confident, pumped up with energy and efficiency. I don't want to hear any 'altitude/thin air' excuses. Eat a Snickers, drink a powered, splash some cold water on your face- do whatever you have to do to amp yourself up. Show up ready to play, ready to compete.
2.) Your pitching in a hitters paradise: Quality=Success. Mike Clevinger (2-2, 3.10 ERA, 32 K's in 29 innings pitched), is coming off of a hard luck loss against the Athletics. He pitched well against Oakland, going 6 2/3 innings giving up 3 runs on 5 hits. He got the loss because of a lack of run support. He takes the mound today looking for a better outcome at Coors Field, where hits are (or at least can) be plentiful. So he is going to need to be sure the he maintains his control and avoids throwing meatballs over the plate. If he can limit their run production, perhaps our offense can repay him with some runs. Speaking of that...
3.) Figure out the fastball. We face Colorado Rockies pitcher Antonio Senzatela tonight, who lives and dies by way of his fastball. He throws his heater, which tops out at 95-97 mph, about 77% of the time. His fastball also has a lot of movement, so he gets alot of swings and misses and jam jobs. He does not get frazzled easily, his opponents are just 8 for 48 against him with risp. Small ball is the name of the game. Figure out how to manufacture runs against Senzatela, and shrink the strike zone.

Keys to the game (6/4)

Keys to the game:

1.) Be cool. Yesterday was one of those games that you wished you could just forget. Unfortunately, that is not the way the game works. While our offense was able to put 5 runs on the board, our pitching and defense crumbled.  Our offense needs to make sure that they do not panic, get frustrated, and regress. They need to keep having meaning full at-bats and put runs on the board. Today we face Eric Skoglund, who is a lefty yet again. This will be just his second start in the Majors. In his debut against Detroit he gave up no runs and just two hits. He pitched very well, but before being called up he was carrying a 4.35 ERA in 8 Triple A starts.  So we need to knock him back down to reality that it is not the easy to pitch in the Majors.

2.) Be calm. Our defense got a bit frazzled yesterday. It was almost  like watching a house of cards… it all went wrong and came crashing down around them. With 3 errors on the day, it is no surprise that we lost the game. One thing is for sure; we don’t want to see those kinds of implosions repeat. But if and when an error happens, they have to be able to calm themselves down, refocus, and not let it snowball into disaster. Let’s come out and get back to playing fundamentally sound defense.

3.) Be collected. Bauer takes the mound today for the Indians, and I will be honest, I am excited. That’s right, for the first time this season; I am excited to see Trevor Bauer take the mound. He is coming off of an amazing start against the Oakland Athletics where he went 7 innings, giving up just 3 runs on 7 hits. While those stats don’t sound all that “exciting”, for anyone that watched that game it was hands down the best we have ever seen Bauer pitch. He was determined. He was precise. He was solid. He was… everything we have been waiting for him to be. Now, we just need him to build off of that start. For whatever reason, we are struggling to play well against KC this season (it is kinda like how we struggled against the Twins last season). But let’s avoid the sweep with a win today and get back on track!

Keys to the game (6/3)

Keys to the game-

1.) Execution is everything. Jason Hammel takes the mound today for KC. He has had a terrible start to the 2017 season, going 1-7 with a 6.18 ERA while walking 23 in 51 innings pitched. He has struggled with his execution, especially when he is working ahead in the count. He has also struggled with walking batters; so showing patience at the plate is going to be a must today. For Jason Hammel, execution is everything. While his stats are pretty pathetic, the one and only win he can hang his hat on this season was achieved against the Indians back on May 5th. He pitched 6 innings, giving up 1 run on 3 hits. At the end of the day, if you don’t score runs (typically multiple runs) you can’t win ballgames. So our boys need to shake off yesterday’s lull and put some runs on the board. EE has had some success against Hammel in the past, hitting 4 home runs in 21 at-bats. So look for the parrot to make an appearance at Kaufman Stadium today.

2.) Command is everything. Carlos Carrasco comes into todays start with a 5-2 record and a 2.89 ERA with 65 K’s in 65 1/3 innings of work. Hot Sauce has a fastball that tops out at 95-96 mph, which is tough to hit on any normal day, but you pair that with the fact that Tomlin pitched yesterday with a fastball that tops out at 86-88 mph and the Royals batters may have trouble readjusting. Carrasco makes his bread and butter by commanding the strike zone. For him, command is everything. He is 0-4 on the road this season, with a 2.18 ERA (which is the 4^th lowest in the American League). Historically he has pitched pretty well against KC, going 7-5 with a 3.40 ERA.

3.) Confidence is everything: avoid slipping into a slump. Yesterday was rough. Hitting into 4 double plays is not only a momentum/rally killer, but it is also one of the quickest ways to frustrate an offense. Our offense has finally seemed to start clicking on all cylinders; we don’t want to take one step forward only to take two steps back. Frustration can do just that if we let it. So making sure that we are not carrying yesterday’s frustration into today’s game is a must. Yesterday is over, finished. There is not a thing we can do now that will change the outcome of yesterday’s game. We can only do better in today’s game. We are going to lose games along the way, that is the nature of the game. But we want to avoid losing two or three… or more in a row, especially against a team like the Royals. We need to win the games we should be winning, starting with today.

Keys to the game (6/2)

Keys to the game-

1.) Third time is a charm! We faced Jason Vargas for the first time this season back on May 6^th in Kansas City, where he pitched 6 innings of scoreless, 4 hit baseball. 6 days ago at Progressive Field we faced Vargas again, and managed to score just 2 runs on 9 hits off of him. We get yet another chance for some redemption tonight as Vargas will take the mound against us again, only this time we will be back at Kaufman Stadium. I know, I know…he is a lefty. I know, I know! So far this season we have struggle against lefties. And make no mistake; Jason Vargas is no subpar portsider. He is 6-3 on the year with a 2.39 ERA, so he has good stuff. But our offense has gotten two good looks at him now. We have to be able to make adjustments and figure out a way to beat him.

2.) When all else fails… work his pitch count up. Now in the Oakland series, one of their main weaknesses was their defense. But that is not the case for KC. In fact it is just the opposite, KC ranks #1 in the Majors when it comes to defense. The weakness that KC has that we can exploit is their bullpen. They rank 25th in the Majors, with a 4.67 combined ERA. . Our offense seems to have found a little bit of a rhythm as of late. That combined with the adjustments they hopefully make will lead to a better outcome against Vargas then what we have experienced in the past. But, if all else fails, we have to exploit their weakness.

3.) Whatever you did the last time… do it again. The last time Josh Tomlin took the mound was 5 days ago against these same Kansas City Royals. He was magnificent. Perhaps the best I have ever seen him pitch. He went a full 9 innings, giving up just 1 run on 6 hits, striking out 3. Tomlin took the mound one other time this season against KC, back on May 6^th. Yep, the same game as mentioned in Key #1. You see, I failed to mention that the Indians won that game one May 6^th in my first key because if you were to look at Jason Vargas’s stats from that game you would probably assume that that was a game we lost. Ah, but we didn’t. Josh Tomlin pitched 7 innings, giving up just 1 run on 3 hits. Once Vargas was out of the game, our offense was able to score 3 runs, and win the game. Tonight, we need Tomlin to do it again.

Keys to the game (6/1)

Keys to the game-

1.) Make the most with the time you have. The news of Corey Kluber’s lower back injury caused a tiny bit of panic through Tribe Nation. For some, it was a full-blown, the sky is falling hysteria… but we will pretend that that never happened, and if it did it was definitely none reading this. It was apparent basically from the beginning of the season that Kluber was not 100% (3-2 with a 5.06 ERA with 41 K’s in 37 1/3 innings pitched), but in his last start on May 2^nd against Detroit, giving up 5 runs on 7 hits in 3 innings pitched, the reality was he needed some time to physically get back to Klubot-like form. So here we are a month later, and Kluber looks to be ready to come out and be Kluber. He is going to be on a short leash, I look for him to be allowed to throw 65-75 pitches today. So it is important that he makes the most of the time he is given. He will need to watch out for Trevor Plouffe (who has a .522 slugging percentage), and Khris Davis (who has been hitting anything and everything yard). Oakland likes to swing- so I expect the return Kkkkkkkkluber to be a good one.

2.) Bullpen be ready! Knowing that Terry is going to handle Kluber with care as to make sure that he is available to pitch well into October… maybe into November… our bullpen will more then likely be handed the ball at some point during today’s game earlier then when we are use to seeing when Kluber is on the mound. Our pen still ranks #1 in the Majors, with a combined 2.16 ERA, followed by the Dodgers who have a 2.67 combined ERA. Despite a few bumps over the past week and a half, we are still the scariest bullpen to face, especially when we have the lead. No matter what state the game is in when the ball is handed over to you, be ready to shut down the Athletic offense till the last out is recorded.

3.) Give Kluber some run support! Our offense was extremely subdued yesterday, just 1 run on 3 hits. Sean Manaea pitched probably the best game of his career. Was it frustrating? Yep. You know what? It happens. The important thing now is to come out today and put some crooked numbers up on the board. Don’t takes two steps back and slump into an offensive lull. We are facing Jharel Cotton today, who is 3-5 with a 5.56 ERA in 43 2/3 innings pitched. He has been using his slider a little more recently, and has been having some success with it- so be on the look out for that pitch! Don’t swing at it! Be disciplined at the plate. He has never faced off against our boys, so we may need to get a good look at him the first time through the line up, but then make the adjustments and do some damage.

Keys to the game (5/31)

Keys to the game-

1.) Capitalize on their frustrations. The Oakland Athletics are averaging 9.12 strike outs a game, which ranks them 27 out of 30 in Major League baseball. They swing and miss… a lot. Over the past two games they have struck out 29 times! Both Carrasco and Bauer were able to capitalize by expanding the strike zone. Mike Clevinger takes the mound for the Tribe tonight. He has earned his way right into a starting rotation spot by putting up solid numbers and consistently making strong starts. He is currently 2-1 with a 2.82 ERA with 25 K’s in 22 1/3 innings pitched. Knowing that the Athletics are undisciplined at the plate, he has the opportunity to capitalize on their offensive frustration, much like Carrasco and Bauer did. He has never started against the A’s, but did make one relief appearance last season against them that did not go so well (3 runs on 4 hits in 1 inning). But Clevinger is not the same pitcher as he was then. If he comes out and works the corners, he will have success.

2.) Keep making adjustments. Last night as we faced Sonny Gray first time through the line up, I will admit, I was nervous. Gray looked good, and it seemed like he may dominate our offense a good portion of the game. But our boys made adjustments, then came out and did damage the second time through the line up. That is a huge step forward from where we were last week (swinging at anything and everything, consistently over-swinging, staying perpetually frustrated). Tonight we face left-hander Sean Manaea, who is 3-3 with a 4.35 ERA in 41 1/3 innings pitched. Overall, he is pretty much your average, run of the mill pitcher- nothing really to write home to mama about. But he is coming off of a great start against New York however, where he gave up 0 runs on 4 hits in 7 innings of work while striking out 8 and only walking 1. He does know how to strike batters out. So we need to continue to make adjustments and figure out how to do damage.

3.) Whatever your role is, do it well. Danny Salazar will be available to work from the bullpen tonight for the first time this season. While nobody will come right out and say it is a demotion, his struggles as a starter warrant a change that will hopefully allow him to work out whatever issues are plaguing him (hey... it worked for Carrasco!). His job now is to put in the time, fix the mechanics, and get back to the All Star caliber pitching we know he is capable of. Right now, his role is that of a relief pitcher. We need him to embrace that role, and do what he can to help win ballgames.