Mark Leonard

Baron to Clips is good news

2008-07-02T13:01:30Z

The report that Golden State guard Baron Davis has "agreed in principle" with the LA Clippers comes as great news to this commentator. I did not want him for the Cleveland Cavaliers. It is especially encouraging because it might help steer the player I think would be ideal toward the North Coast---though this is hardly a haven for free agents who ply their trades during the winter months. I propose that Danny Ferry and Dan Gilbert focus on securing the services of Corey Maggette. I have...(read more)

Trying again to help Wedge

2008-06-29T17:42:20Z

What has been happening has not produced success. Any fool can see that, which is to say even the Indians' manager has to have noticed. Nonetheless, particularly since Eric Wedge today divulged that the upcoming road trip through Chicago, Minnesota and Det---three of the divisional teams Cleveland now trails---will decide conclusively whether the ballclub is a buyer or a seller during the run-up to the July 31 non-waiver deadline, it is felt nothing can be left to chance where the club's...(read more)

Garko back to catcher?

2008-06-27T18:18:47Z

Not long ago, this site opined that it was too early to throw in the towel on the Cleveland Indians' 2008 baseball season. Recent performances, however, call into question such perspectives. As things now stand, this is---as if anyone needs to be told---shaping up as a dreadfully boring, uninspiring, waste of an otherwise respectable spring and summer. Far more than injuries are holding this club back, not the least of which is its overmatched manager, the guy who made some ludicrous remarks...(read more)

Peralta now has 30 RBI!

2008-06-23T13:13:14Z

With the SS now coming off a productive offensive weekend in LA, it might be a good time to put his run-producing numbers into some perspective, particularly for those clinging to the idea that this is a core piece worth building around. Jhonny's 30 rbi have required 268 AB and have been somewhat aided by his 11 home runs, a sum second on the club to Grady Sizemore's 17. Grady is also the only Indian with more AB (290). Impaired DH Travis Hafner now trails JP by eight, though he's also...(read more)

Tribe: Refrain from towel-tossing.

2008-06-20T21:01:07Z

This writer has been as down on and disappointed in the 2008 Cleveland Indians as any fan or follower. As many lines of personnel adjustments have emanated from these keys as have been generated anywhere. That this did not feel like a season for which to be complacent is evidenced in pieces dated as long ago as Feb. 17 and March 23. See for yourself if you doubt me. The first is about dealing CC to the Dodgers and the other is about the roster being too full of marginals. Recent commentators of far...(read more)

No positional depth in tribe organization

2008-06-12T18:48:42Z

There is no question that the Cleveland Indians have been hit with some serious misfortune relative to their 2008 MLB season. Some of the complications that have materialized could hardly have been foreseen, as GM Mark Shapiro intimated during his extended visit with the media Wednesday. DH Travis Hafner's continued struggles, the injuries to rotational regulars Fausto Carmona and Jake Westbrook, catcher Victor Martinez' various ailments which robbed him of his extra-base potency, reliever...(read more)

Wishing Bentley well

2008-06-09T11:30:01Z

Since this is the day Cleveland Browns' OL LeCharles Bentley is to take his pre-mini-camp physical, possibly clearing the way at last for him to resume what had been a seriously stellar NFL career, it is with sincere best wishes he is considered. He is, after all, a hometown kid who prepped at St. Ignatius, starred collegiately at the Ohio State University and wanted nothing more, when his shot at free agency arrived, to play for his favorite childhood professional outfit, displayed conspicuously...(read more)

Tribe tidbits

2008-06-06T17:11:19Z

Questions about CC Sabathia's relative tough-mindedness gained some steam last evening in Texas, though he successfully worked his way out of a few jams prior to his departure. Foremost among the ammunition was his again yielding two-out runs. Coming off just such an unfortunate outing in KC, CC surrendered four of his five runs yesterday in two-out situations. What is more, the innings resulting in two-out Ranger runs featured the bottom of the Texas order. Three walks did not aid Sabathia's...(read more)

Wedgie out of order

2008-06-03T12:30:16Z

The Cleveland Indians' website offers a story today about hoped-for consistencies from the everyday lineup. Manager Eric Wedge should be identified as an individual heavily responsible for its struggles. While he "got away with it" last night in Texas, what Wedge put out there in the opener of the Rangers' series defies logic. What could have been the rationalization for the order he created and employed? Delivering the skipper from his own blunder was MLB's top-rated hitter...(read more)

Catcher in Tribe's near future?

2008-06-02T14:14:16Z

No, this is not an article about the MLB draft, scheduled to begin Thursday. It is also not an over-reaction to what was confirmed in today's Cleveland Plain Dealer, relative to Victor Martinez' nagging hamstring probably affecting his shortage of extra-base power (39 of his 49 base hits have been singles; none has been a home run). As much had been speculated on this site weeks ago. What it is about, however, is that the Cleveland Indians' front office may have decided that the best...(read more)

How about these Tribe deals?

2008-05-29T23:07:37Z

With things as dismal as they are, many fans of the Cleveland Indians seek escape into fantasizing about remedies. Or so it would seem based upon tv and radio sports-talk shows. Everyone is trotting out plausible explanations for what has gone wrong. Firings are being called for by those apparently interested in scapegoating. We're being told the offensive slumping will abate soon, if track records dictate. No team has ever had as many key elements flunk so disastrously simultaneously. For it...(read more)

In case you missed it, Tucker's D philosophy described

2008-05-25T14:14:06Z

A quite vivid description of new Cleveland Browns' D-Coor Mel Tucker defensive philosophies came across in a recent Plain Dealer piece by Tony Grossi. In it, a few phrases repeated themselves and serve to indicate what Tucker considers fundamental to the anticipated 2008 approach: collapsing the pocket so QBs can't set their feet and bump coverage that disrupts and re-routes so as to upset timing. The former ingredient figures to hinge heavily on the performances of newcomer DL Shaun Rogers...(read more)

Simplified solution for Tribe's need

2008-05-24T15:09:13Z

A recent entry proposed a series of trades for the Cleveland Indians to consider as a means to address their nearly-desperate need for offensive enhancements. This writing is to simplify the prescription, though it may not necessarily read that way. Seemingly, the most available veteran bat of significance belongs to Colorado Rockies' RH 3b Garrett Atkins, a 28 year old with two more seasons before free agency. He is an established meat-of-the-order run-producer, hitting for both power and average...(read more)

Can't blame Julio for anger or frustration

2008-05-23T12:28:24Z

It seems the reason for RHP Jorge Julio's anger the other day in Chicago may have had to do with LF David Dellucci's inability to catch Joe Crede's liner that became a double. The hit stayed in the park and banged off the wall just above the warning track. In other words, even someone slightly height-challenged---as Dellucci might be described---should have been able to snag that drive. After all, it was a late inning with a power arm facing a power bat. Any contact conceivably could...(read more)

Random notes, principally Cavs'

2008-05-21T15:39:04Z

Was I the only one to miss both Eric Snow and Drew Gooden from this year's Cavalier playoff run? Though both were certainly limited (Aren't we all?) in their contributions, what they subtraced with their unavailability was significant. Gooden, for his part, brought a lot of second-chance points with his relentless offensive rebounding. Snow was that heady steadying influence who characteristically got the offense into a set and a play when things most threatened to unravel. One has to think...(read more)