Factory Lines: Indians Rookie Hazing, Carlos Santana Twitter, Cleveland Browns, Justin Gilbert, Donte Whitner, Kyrie Irving

Sep 11, 2014; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Indians left fielder Michael Brantley (left) celebrates his RBI single with first base coach Sandy Alomar Jr. (15) in the third inning against the Minnesota Twins at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

The drama that is the final month of the baseball season continues, as the Indians are still hanging round the postseason chase.

After taking two of three and sweeping yesterday’s doubleheader, The Wahoo’s are 4.0 games behind the Royals in the Central, and 3 1/2 games out of the final Wild Card spot. And really, the Indians are three outs away from finishing a suspended game against Kansas City, so the Central lead is really 3 1/2 games.

The Indians begin a three-game series against the Tigers in Detroit tonight. The Motor City Kitties are in front of the Tribe in both the division and Wild Card standings. A series win, or even better, a SWEEP, would do wonders moving forward.

• Good to see the Tribe isn’t letting the pressure of chasing the postseason get in the way of  some rookie hazing on the way to Detroit, via Jason Kipnis:  Kipnis posted the photo to Instagram with the caption, “Some just have no sense of style. #rookies”  

• Carlos Santana is still embracing the newness of Twitter, with whatever this is…

• The Tigers series will come down to pitching, and the Indians will rely on Carlos Carrasco, Danny Salzar and Trevor Bauer over the next three days, while Detroit hurls David Price, Kyle Lobstein and Justin Verlander at the Indians.

• The Josh Gordon suspension saga could end today, but it probably won’t, as this story has more life than Lazurus.

Johnson Bademosi, who is the Browns union rep, may have inadvertently given us some info regarding Gordon, and the vote,  which is expected today, via Dawg Pound Nation.

Writer Shawn Starr analyzes:

"“Bademosi went on how to say that he ‘certainly hopes so,’ when asked if the new policy will bring Gordon back.Bademosi’s comments are of particular interest, because at this point he’s read the new policy proposal. He’s also been kept informed on the latest when it comes to the negotiations. The player reps like Bademosi are responsible for keeping their teammates informed on the policy. Essentially, he’s one of 32 players in the NFL who would know best way the deal would include.”"

• Tight end Jordan Cameron is still questionable for Sunday, but one thing is clear regarding the USC product’s future: He’ll play out his rookie deal in an attempt to hit free agency, meaning his contract extension talks with the Browns are donezo. Two words: Franchise Tag.

• Hard to believe, the Browns DO  have a chance at home against the Saints this weekend. New Orleans doesn’t play well on the road, and is 6-11 when playing the role of visitor since 2012. Of course, coach Sean Payton was suspended in 2012. On the flip side, the Saints boast the best road record of 24-17 (shared with New England), going back to 2009, via ESPN.

• Justin Gilbert had a rough debut game last Sunday, and the rookie cornerback is getting some tough love from his teammates, via ESPN Cleveland’s Tony Grossi.

Former first-round pick Donte Whitner talked about the pressure of coming into the NFL with mile-high expectations:

"“Playing corner is one of the toughest positions you can play in the National Football League. Whenever you’re a top 10 pick – I went through this my rookie year, being the No. 8 pick – the expectations are so high.Really, to have one or two balls caught on you is really unexpected. To give up almost 100 (yards), we don’t think it’s acceptable. He understands that. He has to work on getting better. We’re going to help him as much as we can. Joe, myself, our DB coach, we have to help him. It’s our job.”"

• Former Browns CEO Joe Banner is on Twitter, and is worth the follow. WFNY’s Ryan Jones did a great post summarizing some of Banner’s more intriguing 140-character thoughts.

Cleveland Cavaliers

• FOS writer Michael Cousins did an excellent post on Kyrie Irving‘s development as a point guard. Cousins points out that critics claim Irving isn’t thought of as a “true point guard” because he’s often looking to shoot first, but when surrounded by decent talent, that changes:

"“…Irving has been arguably the most consistent guard on the roster, averaging 9.3 points on 52% shooting, 50% from 3, and 3.4 assists and has only committed 10 turnovers throughout the entire tournament. He has, for the most part, kept the ball moving and eliminated majority of those ‘selfish plays.'”"