The Cleveland Indians are coming off of a successful 2007 campaign which was thwarted by the Red Sox. This season, the Indians will be facing questions regarding their pitching depth and several key position players as well as the improving competition for their division with Detroit's beefed up team.
Last season the Cleveland Indians pitching staff had a great 1-2 in C.C. Sabathia and Fausto Carmona, both candidates for the Cy Young Award in 2007, with Sabathia getting it. Was last season a fluke for Carmona or is he the real thing? Even if he does perform at that level again, as well as Sabathia, you don't have anyone else who is reliable. That may well hinder this Indians team from not only reaching last season's win total, but also from being able to out duel the Tigers for the division crown. They'll need either Paul Byrd, Jake Westbrook or Cliff Lee to pitch above themselves, or young talent Aaron Laffey to surprise in order to seriously contend at reaching the heights of 2007. And I just don't think any of them will. A solid bullpen featuring 2 Rafaels (Perez and Betancourt), newcomer Masahide Kobayashi and Joe Borowski will keep the Indians competitive late in games.
The offense has talent but question marks also. There's Grady Sizemore and Victor Martinez as sure things, but then there are alot of questions. Can Asdrubal Cabrera get the job done at second base? Can Travis Hafner bounce-back as the designated hitter? Can Ryan Garko excel? What about Johnny Peralta's glove? David Dellucci's health? Can Franklin Gutierrez produce in right field?
Face it. This team isn't a sure thing by any stretch, but they definitely have enough talent to compete as they answer some of those questions favorably, some unfavorably. I just have a feeling that they'll take a temporary step back before they return to the top in a year or two. Look for a decent 90-72 finish as the Cleveland Indians search themselves in 2008.
Baseball
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