Cleveland Indians: Is Corey Kluber Still The Ace?
By Ryan Rosko
2016 Should Not Be A Repeat Of 2015
Nick Dudukovich
Corey Kluber is just two years removed from the A.L. Cy Young Award, and while he dropped off a little last season, it is not entirely his fault.
Remember, prior to the Cleveland Indians promotion of Francisco Lindor, the Tribe’s defense could not catch a cold. But with the ascension of Lindor at shortstop, and Lonnie Chisenhall possessing elite right fielding skills, Cleveland stumbled upon something defensively.
Now defunct website Grantland analyzed the Cleveland Indians’ defensive turnaround, and writer Ben Lindberg called what the Tribe did defensively “the most dramatic midseason makeover we’ve ever seen.”
With Lindor and The Chiz kid in place from day one, in addition to the addition of solid fielding free agents such as Rajai Davis, the Tribe’s defense should not falter, and will help reduce Kluber’s 3.49 ERA.
Additionally, do not forget Kluber was given little run support. SportingCharts.com ranked 78 starting pitchers, and found Kluber was 75th in run support, with the Cleveland Indians offense supplying him 3.3 runs per nine innings. It would not be difficult for the actual Cy Young to win a game with last year’s team.
But Mike Napoli is tearing up the Cactus League with three moonshots and a 1.283 OPS. Center fielder Tyler Naquin is batting over .400 and the center field job is his to lose. Also, Michael Brantley is already playing games and looks fantastic.
Yan Gomes is now healthy and Lindor won’t just be a defensive gem, but his bat can spark the Cleveland Indians from game one. If you are Kluber, you have to be feeling more optimistic about what your offense can do in 2016.
If this info is not enough to convince you, consider Vegas gave Kluber the third best odds to win the award . So the oddsmakers still think he is an ace, and Vegas always knows.
Next: There Is No Doubt Kluber Leads The Pitching Staff