Cleveland Indians: Problems continue as September draws near

The Cleveland Indians are showcasing areas of concern as the date draws closer to September and the Voice of the Fan hopes those issues can be resolved ASAP.

The Cleveland Indians look set for the playoffs one day and not so much the next. Their latest foursome in Bean Town started positive and ended up looking bad.

The Tribe played the first two games close and pulled them out but the last two showed more weakness than strength. Their bats went silent and the pitching left us wondering if this team can get past the first series in the playoffs.

Looking at the last two blowouts you must wonder if they may win more than one game in the first playoff series?

All of the fans were hoping that the Francisco Mejia trade with the Padres would be the answer to the bullpen problems. When Cleveland traded for Andrew Miller he turned out to be an answer. However, the Mejia trade so far hasn’t replicated that and become what we had hoped.

Adam Cimber has more or less struggled and Brad Hand has done better but he certainly isn’t Miller by any means. In 13 games, Cimber has yet to record a win or loss in 8 innings. Furthermore, he has a 6.75 ERA, gave up 6 runs, and earns a 2.125 WHIP. Hand has appeared in 13 games where he has pitched 14 1/3 innings. During that time, Hand also does not have a win/loss to add to his record but he has added 5 saves and does have a 1.26 ERA and a 0.977 WHIP.

Cleveland had bad luck with Danny Salazar going down early and then Josh Tomlin not pitching as we as he could. Yet, the front office hoped the latter could turn things around. Trevor Bauer ‘s pitching was so good that the hope was there for the starting pitching. That said, unfortunately, he also went down with an injury and it is unknown when he will be back.

Shane Bieber has picked up some of the slack and Corey Kluber and Carlos Carrasco have been good for a couple of games. That has not lasted though as they then have a time or two where they do not look anything like a Cy Young candidate and a number one or two starters.

Leonys Martin‘s play was looking very promising but then the bacteria bug took him out of the lineup for the season. One must begin to wonder if this franchise is capable of winning a World Series as they keep getting snake bitten. Yes, it is worth pondering even while everyone in the AL Central is rebuilding and the competition is weak.

The so-called September call-ups are upon us. That said, maybe Cleveland can find a gem from the minors. Perhaps they can also find a second baseman who can catch an infield fly ball too. Looking ahead, are the Indians jinxed or do they just have that much bad luck?