The Day the Indians Died

The Monday of June 15th, 2009 was an optimistic one for Tribe fans. Their team had just won 6 of 9 games and just witnessed their reigning Cy Young award winner no hit the first place St. Louis Cardinals for 7 innings, pulling to a record of 29-36, the closest to .500 they had been for a long time. The Indians carried a 12-7 leading heading into the 7th inning over a solid Brewer ball club. Then, as after the bullpen had been somewhat solid for a few weeks, the group of all former 2009 Columbus Clippers gave up a collective 8 earned runs over their collective relief duty and retrospectively finished the teams' chances for a comeback season (fittingly it was Major League the movie Monday, were all fans got Rick "Wild Thing" Vaughn bobbleheads). Wedge went to his bullpen five times that night, and these are the folks (in order) who came out and what they did.

Greg Aquino 1 IP 2 H 2 ER 1 BB

Luis Vizcaino 1 1/3 IP 0 H 2 ER 3 BB

Matt Herges 0 IP 1 H 2 ER 1 BB

Rafael Perez 0 IP 3 H 2 ER 1 BB

Joe Smith 1 2/3 IP 0 H 0 ER 0 BB

Smith did a good job, but that was after Prince Fielder hit a line shot Grand Slam and took the air out of the Indians sails. Perez caught the WBC disease in early April and has been a trainwreck ever since. Looking at the first three names, would you really think any team that hoped to contend for a division would be trotting out these losers? I thought so. Why do I bring this game up? Because it started a string of 15 winnable games for the Tribe, and ended today with a loud thud. The Indians are 2-13 over those contests and look like a pathetic, hapless ball club. Their pitching staff is just terrible, and their hitters seem to be going through the motions over their latest 5 game losing streak. For all the Eric Wedge bashers who believe he should be canned, I can't disagree with you totally, but just look at this roster. If you look to the glorious (and looking like last in a long while) AL Central Division Championship season, their rotation was as follows...

2007

Sabathia/Carmona/Westbrook/Byrd/Laffey (with Lee down in Triple A trying to re-find himself)

2009 current

Lee/Pavano/Huff/Sowers/Ohka (with Lewis and Reyes done for the year and Carmona figuring things out in the minors)

Can anyone expect a team to win with that rotation, coupled with the abomination going out in right-center field? The team does struggle early every season and that could be attributed to the coaching staff. The knock of Wedge moving guys around in the field and the lineup is a 50/50 problem. If the team had guys capable of playing everyday and performing consistantly, the manager would not be forced to do that (I will go over the Pros and Cons of Wedge later this month, probably more cons). Injuries cannot be made as an excuse in 2009 because they stunk when they were healthy. Would I fire the Manager? No, because it really doesn't matter right now, they are going nowhere. If he is brought back in 2010, most fans will be up in arms, so I imagine the Indians will be forced to move in a different direction.

Most of the blame should be put on GM Mark Shapiro for feeling like his staff would be able to compete at previous levels. Besides Lee, there were no sure things in the rotation since Fausto struggled in 2008 and the Pavano/Reyes/Lewis/Huff/Sowers/Laffey poo poo platter contained way too many hopes and iffs. The real key to baseball is Starting Pitching, and no rotation guy(besides Lee) on the Indians has an ERA under 5. If the Indians ever want to contend again, Starting Pitching has to be the focus. Bringing in has-beens like Pavano or bright flashes of success like Reyes and Lewis only mask the real inadequacies in your ballclub (no wonder why Hector Rondon was moved so quickly BACK to starting duty). They need as a front office to come up with a plan today to infuse more upper echelon pitching into Double A and above that can be effective in the next 2 seasons.

After reading Paul's article over at the DiaTribe about Cliff Lee, I am now in the camp of moving him this season. Go get some stud pitchers that may develop into something in a few years, because contending next season seems like a pipe dream, even in a winable division. If they do play better, well then that is a bonus because Lee and Martinez will likely walk the following year, so changes would have to be made. Trade Cliff now when he has his highest value. It's not like attendance is going to drop, this City gave up on the Indians back in May.

As for the White Sox series, well it was awful. The Tribe was only really in the first game, but they didn't even score a run until the ninth when they were already trailing 6-0. Sizemore still looks hurt, Martinez is in a slump, the rest of the guys looked disinterested, and the pitching continues to be piss poor. They should use the Rick Vaughn bobblehead as a "JoeBoo" to exercise the demons that are this season. It is going to be a long 3 months out at Progressive field, so let's hope to see some more of the young guys and see if they are worth a look for the future. 2011 isn't that far away, is it?

Walking Wounded

The Indians dropped 3 of 4 to the Yankees this past series, but are competing with a depleted roster. They walked 11 batters today, but only lost 5-2. With Grady Sizemore placed on the DL, the lineup has taken on a new less-than-potent look. The roster has turned over so much that the celebration from Sunday's game (pictured above) almost looks like the guys are meeting each other for the first time instead of an exciting 9th inning win (Jhonny, meet Luis, Kerry meet Tomo.)

The key to Monday's game was with 2 on and nobody out, Kelly Shoppach (has been awful lately) popped up a sac bunt that subsequently doubled off Ryan Garko at second base. After Joba Chamberlins' obnoxious mannerisms over his good play, Jamey Carroll was thrown out attempting to steal. That sealed the deal for any shot of a rally. That was the ballgame right there, as Greg Aquino walked the bases loaded in the top of the 7th that led to a 4 run inning. Aquino pitched out of a bases loaded jam (Sowers walked the bases loaded in the 6th), but was unable to pull the Houdini act again. Jeremy pitched great for 5 innings, but became Jeremy Showers again in the 6th. This guy can just not figure things out on a consistent basis.

I attended Sunday's game which was well played by both teams and featured a walk-off single by Jhonny Peralta. The annoying part of my experience was having to sit in the right field mezzanine surrounded by Yankees fans wearing jersey's with their favorite players' names featured on the back. Do they know that their Bronx Bombers only sport numerals sans any lettering featured above? Apparently not. My wife and I figured that there was at least twice as many pinstipes as there were Tribe supporters out where we were sitting, which is pathetic. She actually turned to the gentleman sitting behind us who was dressed from head to toe in Yankee gear and snapped at him when he wondered why the Indians would bring in their closer in a tie ballgame. She said "he hasn't pitched in 3 games and they already went through 3 relievers last inning," which shut up the front runner and his snot-nosed son right there. Now you know why I married her. It made the victory that much more fun right there, even though it felt like we were cheering for our team in an opposing park.


Friday and Saturday's games were losses, one by a great pitching performance (Pettite) and another by a poor one (Carmona). Cliff Lee battled Friday but could just not get any run support. Fausto was the crappy Fausto as of late, allowing 7 runs (4 earned) in 4 innings. I didn't watch really any of Saturday's game as I was "witnessing" another Cleveland heartbreak. 2 up 2 down for the series over the weekend.

2 up

Victor Martinez fouled a ball violently of his knee Saturday, was back in the lineup Monday and stroked a homerun that my buddy Kyle was one row behind (he ducked for cover, just inexcuseable). The guy is a gamer and the team leader. I know the club shouldn't rush into any long term contracts when they are sattled with Pronk's albatross of a deal, but Victor needs to be in an Indians uniform for the next 5 years.

Carl Pavano has pitched fantastic in May and has helped settle a spot in a rotation that has been decimated by injuries in ineffectiveness. This guy has shown guts and I have to give him credit, he sure proved me wrong.

2 Down

All Kelly Shoppach has done over the past 4 games is go 1-14 with 8 K's. He now has 39 K's in 109 plate appearances (36%). That is just awful. Shapiro should have traded him in the offseason when his value was at the highest of his career. Don't be surprised to see Chris Gimenez a bit over the next week.

Fausto Carmona is completely lost and needs some major revamping of his pitching delivery. Get someone up here to help him figure things out because our ace of the future has become Albie Lopez.

Some good news on the injury front came out today, as Jake Westbrook is scheduled to make a 3 inning appearance for Akron Friday. If he has no setbacks, look for Jake to return to Cleveland sometime at the end of the month. It will be huge addition to the mash unit of a club, as Aaron Laffey is scheduled to return at the end of the month as well. Scott Lewis is making progress so all three could be in the pitching mix by July 1st. With Grady and Betancourt placed on the DL, the Columbus shuttle continues. You tend to forget who is actually on the roster anymore with guys like Tomo Ohka (my dad called him Timo Ocho yesterday) rounding out the 25. The Clippers have been forced to sign guys off of the street just to field a team (who is heck are Blaine Neal and Ken Ray)? The Indians move onto Minnesota Tuesday as David Huff looks to string two solid starts together against Kevin Slowey. Let's just hope they don't lose anyone else to injury.

Transaction Update: Tony Sipp gets recalled from Columbus

Tony Sipp was recalled today, as Rafael Betancourt was placed on the 15 Day DL. Raffy's groin injury will probably shelve him for 2-4 weeks, adding him to the list never-ending long list of disabled Indians. Their 8 man infirmary (Sizemore, Scott Lewis, Laffey, Reyes, Joe Smith, Hafner, Westbrook and Betancourt) is the second most behind Tampa Bay's league leading 9.

Since being in Columbus, the T-Train was 1-0 was a 4.15 ERA in 9 games. He has already pitched 6 1/3 innngs for the Tribe this year with a 4.26 ERA. It will be interesting to see who will be pitching the 8th inning for the Tribe, as Betancourt (although shaky sometimes) was the most reliable pitcher out of the pen. IT will be probably based on match ups with Sipp and Rafael Perez being the lefties, and Matt Herges and Luis Vizcaino being the righties. As long as Sipp doesn't totally implode, he should be on the roster for the remainder of the season.

Feather Farmhand Fodder: Indians AAA and AA Rotations Announced

Two of the four full-season Cleveland Indians starting rotations were announced today without any real surprises. Triple A Columbus will consist of Aaron Laffey, Jeremy Sowers, David Huff, Kirk Saarloos, and Jack Cassell. The beginning trio have all had their issues this camp and will battle to see who is the first option called upon from Cleveland. Saarloos is a solid veteran and a depth option for the bullpen as well The last spot going to Cassell (brother of Chiefs' QB Matt Cassell) is a mild surprise as he was used primarily out of the bullpen in Cactus League action. With the way Scott Lewis has been shelled the past cactus league outings (15 runs in 6 2/3 innings), the three lefties down I 71 should stay ready to be called up soon.

As for Double A Akron, the rotation rounds out with Chuck Lofgren, Hector Rondon (pictured top left), Steven Wright, Josh Tomlin, and Frank Herrmann. Most Tribe fans aren't too familiar with these young hurlers, so let's examine each of them and see what 2009 may bring.

Lofgren is a former big time prospect looking to regain his top status within the organization. A great piece by Tony Lastoria of Indians Prospect Insider can be found here.

Rondon is probably the Tribe's number 1 pitching prospect. The 21 year old out of Venezuela impressed Manager Eric Wedge during his first career Cactus League action as he pitched 3 shut out innings, allowing just 1 hit, 0 walks and 3 K's. His fastball has a real pop to it and he locates his secondary stuff (slider, curve). Some feel Rondon may be ready for the Majors late this summer as his fastball is often clocked in the 94-96 MPH range.

You can add phenom Hector Rondon to the list -- the 21-year-old will open at Class AA Akron. He has a fastball in the 94 mph range with an excellent change-up and really impressed manager Eric Wedge and the coaching staff. He could be ready by midseason. Terry Pluto/PD

More on Rondon to come in a future Down on the Farm Report.

Steven Wright was drafted in the 2nd round out of Hawaii in 2006. Posted a 3.66 ERA between Single A Kinston and Double A Akron in 28 starts. Seems to be a solid rotation option (with a possible bullpen future) down the road and one of the top 20 arms in the system.

Tomlin seems to be an in between starter/reliever guy who has put up some great stats (2.94 career minor league ERA) who can do a little bit of everything. He made a spot start in Buffalo last season (3 ER in 7 innings) which was a huge jump from his regular role a Single A Kinston. The 24 year old seems to have a bright future with the Tribe with his versatility and past success.

Frank Herrmann pitched at both Double A and Triple A for the Indians in 2008 and threw fairly well. Frank went undrafted out of Harvard and has rocketed through the system. He struck out 10 in a spot start for Buffalo in 2008 and will help headline the staff in Akron in 2009. Probably should be up in Columbus right now, but will have to wait his turn as the big league club sorts out their own rotation issues.

The future seems bright for the Columbus and Akron starting rotations respectively. If only the major league clubs' top five looked so promising.

Scott Lewis wins spot in Indians Rotation, Slated to Throw Home Opener

In a mild surprise, left hander Scott Lewis has been named the final spot open in the starting rotation for the Cleveland Indians. His main competition, Aaron Laffey, was knocked around yesterday for four runs in a minor league game and was subsequently sent to Triple A camp. Lewis, out of THE Ohio State University, is expected to actually start the fourth game of the season, the Indians Home Opener against Toronto. Since there are so many off days in April, Anthony Reyes will assume the fifth spot to take a little stress off of his sore elbow injury of 2008. This will definitely not be the last we see of young Laffey, as he know will fill the de facto role of 6th starter, eventual replacement to Hot Carl Pavano and his rising ERA. Much more on the TTO later today about the last two roster spots and how the Tribe looks closing out Cactus League action.

Sowers to the Minors, LaPorta & Brantley Re-Assigned

It seems to be a two man race for the final spot in the rotation, as lefty Jeremy Sowers was optioned to Triple A Columbus. The Vanderbilt grad pitched ok, posting a 4.91 ERA in 14 2/3 innings of work. Sowers will most definitely resurface sometime in 2009. The last remaining spot is down to Scott Lewis and Aaron Laffey. Shapiro had glowing things to say about Lewis yesterday, so don't be surprised to see Scotty in the 5th spot in the rotation to start the season. Laffey has been pitching better of late, and will be the first starter called upon from the minors should an injury happen or to replace the likely implosion of Carl Pavano.
Here is the list of moves...
per The Plain Dealer

Left-hander Jeremy Sowers and catcher Wyatt Toregas were sent to Class AAA Columbus. Right-hander Greg Aquino, infielder Michael Aubrey, right-hander Kirk Saarloos and outfielders Matt LaPorta and Michael Brantley were re-assigned to minor league camp.
There are currently 37 players in big-league camp.

As for the Sabathia tandem (Brantley & LaPorta), both impressed while playing with the big league club. These two will be ever compared to one another as they were both key cogs in the CC Sabathia trade last season.

Michael Brantley was able to show his versatility in the outfield, playing all three spots quite well. His numbers (.313 BA, 4 SB) were solid, and he seemed to already possess a big league demeanor passed down from his father, former big leaguer Mickey Brantley. Still only 21, Brantley will go down to Columbus and work on his game even more to become possibly the Tribe's future leadoff hitter.

Matt LaPorta played great this spring as well (.361 BA, 6 doubles, 1.050 OPS), living up to his top prospect billing. LaPorta still needs to work on his fielding, but this former Gator seems only months, not years, away from helping the Indians.

The other four players (Toregas, Aquino, Aubrey, Saarloos) will compete for spots down in Columbus. It is interesting that no teams have really showed any interest in Aubrey, as he is batting .455 this spring. Although he doesn't have much pop in his bat, Aubrey could be a useful player on a major league team that desires a gloveman at first with little power but a solid average (a la Doug Mientkiewicz/Sean Casey/Mark Grace).

The roster is now down to 37. The late innings of these games will be rough to watch as many of the current players on the bench are career journeyman (Cannizaro, Graffanino, Valdez). Thankfully, only less than 2 weeks remain until opening day!

Heavy Rotation: 2009 Cleveland Indians Starting Staff

With still three weeks to go until the start of the 2009 MLB season, the Cleveland Indians seem to have one glaring weakness heading into the games that count for real; Starting Pitching. Many fans and pundits alike seem to over analyze players each preseason to justify their prognostications. Will Player X bounce back from a rough year? Can Player Y maintain the dominance he showed on the mound? The main questions surrounding the Tribe concern each member of the starting 5 (or 6, or 7 or 8 or 9 even 10!) is consistency. This group has a lot to prove come April, and many fans' hearts and minds to ease as well.

Going into 2008, most Tribe fans would agree that they felt pretty confident with CC Sabathia, Fausto Carmona, Jake Westbrook, and Paul Byrd toeing the rubber four out of every five games . The only question mark surrounded the 5th starters' spot, which turned into a 3 left-armed down between Jeremy Sowers, Cliff Lee and Aaron Laffey in spring training. Injuries to two main offensive weapons (Martinez, Hafner), young players starting off slow (Gutierrez, Cabrera, and Garko) and a bullpen from Hell (insert any 2008 relief pitcher here) and the importance of the guy starting the game with the ball can be quickly negated. Add to that injuries to Carmona and Westbrook and you get a 47-60 record on July 31st and a look forward towards 2009. While 2008 was a season to forget, General Manager Mark Shapiro was able to make some trades to save payroll (traded Byrd to the Red Sox), add minor league depth (traded CC for prospects, and bring in some guys (Reyes) to compete for spots this season. The 2009 version of the rotation will bring many more question marks, but the off season additions to surrounding cast (DeRosa, Wood, Smith) may be able to minimize any struggles the starters may face in the early months of the season. Here are the guys you will see in 2009...

Cliff Lee

Biggest Concern: Can Cliff repeat his dominant Cy Young season of 2008?

While no one expects Lee to win 22 games and post a 2.54 ERA again, he needs to establish early to opposing A.L. teams that he is one of the leagues' best and not a fluke. The key to Cliff's success last season was his ability to minimize walks (only 34 in 223+ innings), get ahead of hitters, and locate his fastball. He was able to do all of this to alarming success and much of it can be attributed to his now-personal catcher Kelly Shoppach. The chemistry between the two resulted in a full-time Lee/Shoppach battery for 2009, a point Manager Eric Wedge has stated numerous times during spring training. While Lee is stilling trying to get some early kinks out of his system, he has never put too much unneeded pressure upon himself in preseason (see 2008). Last season was extraordinary, but don't think that it is the only success Lee has had in the majors as he has amassed a 76-39 career record with a 4.15 ERA. That includes a horrendous 2007 (5-8 6.29 ERA in 20 games) where he was left off of the post season roster. In entering his 6th full season, look for Lee to come down to earth a bit (15-17 wins, ERA in the mid 3's), but be one of the most consistent guys on the mound.

Fausto Carmona

Biggest Concern: Can Fausto regain his 2007 dominance?

Injuries and walks plagued the 2008 season for the young Dominican. Still only 25, the future of the starting staff rests on one Fausto Carmona to be the guy Indians fans unnerved by a swarm of bugs clinging to his face during the 2007 ALDS. After starting the season pretty well (3.10 ERA in 10 starts), Carmona injured his left hip and was never the same. In 22 games, Carmona average walking 5.2 batters per 9 innings, a rate that will get even the best of pitcher into trouble. The main issues he faced was commanding his slider, a pitch that needs to stay down in the zone to be effective. Also, pitching coach Carl Willis found some things in Carmona's delivery that was causing some of the issues. Manager Eric Wedge also has stated that Victor Martinez will be catching the majority of his starts, as Martinez has had much success calling his pitches. Fausto seemed to iron out many of these problems in Winter ball and has pitched quite well in the Spring (2.45 ERA in 11 innings). Look for big number 55 to have some stretches of inconsistency, but overall be more like the pitcher he was during 2007.

Carl Pavano

Biggest Concern: Will the Indians get anything out of this Yankee washout?

General Manager Mark Shapiro and company truly believe that Pavano as healed from all of his ailments and is poised for a bounce back 2009 campaign. I am not so optimistic. He has looked less that average in Spring Training and reports have said that he is topping out at 88-90 MPH on his fastball which does not bode well at all. His 4 season in New York were a complete and utter disaster, and beyond that only had one good year (2004). Pavano's injuries include right rotator cuff tendinitis and pain in humerus, right shoulder tendinitis, right forearm tendinitis, Tommy John surgery, car accident, and dating Alyssa Milano. His whole right arm has seemed to be completely reconstructed. It seems that the Indians are paying this guy actually TOO MUCH in giving him $1.5 million plus incentives for 2009 as he has really proven nothing for 4 seasons: a non-roster invitee if I have ever seen one. Hopefully he can eat some innings and not be a total disaster on the mound at least until the All-Start break when Jake Westbrook is expected to return, but I wouldn't bet on it. The Tribe is probably hoping for mostly 5-6 innings from Pavano, allowing 3-4 runs while staying competitive in the game until they can hand it over to the pen. Look for Pavano to show glimpses of good, but an overall record of bad.

Anthony Reyes

Biggest Concern: Can A-Rey stay healthy enough to maintain the promise of his 2008 performance with the Tribe?

Anthony Reyes jumped into the national spotlight in 2005 where he started game 1 of the World Series in which he went 8 innings, giving up 2 runs and earning a victory. He has been unable to recapture his early glory, as he has amassed a career 4.91 ERA in 59 games. Reyes pitched extremely well in his brief stint with Cleveland, posting a 2-1 record and a 1.83 ERA over six starts. He was eventually shut down in early September with a sore right elbow. The southern California native has pitched well this spring (1 earned run in 7 innings), attributing much of his success to USC pitching coach Tom House. All reports peg the righty as a competitor and fully healed from his prior ailments. Look for Reyes to have a solid 2009 (12-14 wins, ERA low 4's) allowing the Indians to compete in most every game he pitches.

Aaron Laffey

Biggest Concern: Which Laffey will show up in 2009.

This soon-to-be 24 year old pitched pretty well at the end of 2007 (4-2, 4.56 ERA in 9 starts), to gain some confidence heading into 2008. While losing out to Cliff Lee for the 5th starter's spot last year, everyone knew Laffey would be the first guy called upon from Buffalo. When Laffey arrived in Cleveland, he was lights out over his first 6 starts (1.59 ERA) and was named AL Rookie Pitcher of the Month for May where he went 3-2 with a 0.79 ERA in 5 starts. He seemed to have some left arm inflammation and subsequently flamed out the rest of the year posting a 8.37 ERA over his final 5 starts. The Tribe ended up shutting him down for good in September to refocus his attention to 2009. Laffey is a pitcher who relies upon his control and the ability to force batters into hitting ground balls. His spring has been up and down (7.00 ERA in 9 innings) but has looked better as of late and is still displaying confidence in his stuff. Baring a complete meltdown, look for the Maryland native to break camp with the big league club. I look for Aaron Laffey to have a good season in 2009, earning 10-12 wins and solidifying his place in the rotation.

Jeremy Sowers

Biggest Concern: Will he ever pitch like he did in 2006?

This Vanderbilt alum actually was supposed to be a big part of the rotation in 2007, but struggle mightily (6.42 ERA in 13 starts). Sowers is a soft tossing lefty who has never been able to sustain the success he has had in the minors due to his inability to differentiate his fastball from his change-up. Jeremy was a first round pick in 2004 but seems to not be much more than a fifth starter in this organization. Has pitched decently in the Spring (3.00 ERA in 12 innings) and will be a great depth option in Columbus. Sowers is an extremely intelligent ballplayer who still has the potential to be a middle of the rotation guy, but I just don't see it in Cleveland as Willis and company have been unable to help him improve on his flaws. This Ohio native will probably start 10 games for the club and help out the team at some point in 2009.

Scott Lewis

Biggest Concern: Was his 2008 a fluke?

Lewis burst onto the scene in Cleveland last September posting a 2.63 ERA and earning a win in each of his 4 starts. This former Buckeye has had a solid spring and looks to be a pitcher the Indians will count on in the future. The left hander is only 25 years old and will be a top of the rotation guy in Triple A Columbus. Look for Lewis to be called upon sometime in 2009 and be guy looked upon in 2010 as well.

David Huff

Biggest Concern: Will his Minor League success translate into Major League dominance?

The answer to this question will take years to answer, but everything out of camp suggests that Huff is a player to watch in 2009. While technically in contention for the 5th spot in the rotation, the left hander is not currently on the 40 man roster and has only appeared in 4 Cactus league innings, so he will mostly likely start off as a Clipper. Huff was the Minor League pitcher of the year for the Indians Organization in 2008, posting a combined 11-5 record with a 2.52 ERA. He is able to locate his fastball (clocked as high as 94 MPH) and walk few batters. Look for this former UCLA Bruin to make an impact on the big league team after the All-Star break.

Zach Jackson

Biggest Concern: Is this guy a starter or a reliever?
Zach Attack is the longest shot to make the rotation out of spring, but the lefty's versatility will come in handy. Jackson started 9 games in 2008 for the Tribe after being acquired as part of the CC Sabathia deal. His solid spring (4.35 ERA in 10 innings) has earned him an outside chance at making the club as a left handed long reliever right out of spring, so I don't believe he will be starting too many games with the big league club. He does have an option, so Jackson will be up with the big league club at some point in 2009. Look for Zach to be part of the rotation in Columbus and become a solid contributor to the ball club.

Jake Westbrook

Biggest Concern: Will Jake add anything to the Indians in 2009.

Westbrook's 2008 season ended after 5 starts, having to undergo Tommy John surgery and hip surgery in 2008. Jake has been a solid member of the Indians organization for 8 seasons now, posting a 63-62 record with a 4.25 ERA, resulting in a 3 year 30 million dollar contract through 2010. Westbrook recently pitched off of the mound down in Spring Training, leaving the Indians optimistic for his return sometime after the All-Star break. It normally takes a pitcher a full year and a half to recover from the reconstructive surgery, so look for Jake to add a few quality starts in August and September, aiding in a hopeful playoff run.

Seems to be quite a bit more questions than answers circling the Cleveland Indians rotation this season. With a division there for the taking, the Tribe's starting staff will be the biggest key for a potential return to October baseball