Are the Indians Finally Turning the Corner?

Cleveland sports fans have not had much to cheer about. We need not touch on the decision of LeBron James leaving, the burning of jerseys in front of Quicken Loans arena speaks enough. And although the Browns may be turning the corner with Mike Holmgren, they have not won a playoff game since returning to the league in 1999. And then there’s the Indians. A team that was arguably the best in the MLB in the mid-90s, yet failed to win the World Series. Then, a 2007 run, in which they blew a 3-1 ALCS lead to the Boston Red Sox, raised hope that Cleveland was back to the glory days. Instead, the trading of stars Cliff Lee, C.C. Sabathia, Victor Martinez, and others, have lead to 3 straight seasons of the doldrums for the Tribe, with no end in sight.

Until now. The Indians today capped off a 4 game sweep of the Detroit Tigers, a team they lost 18 straight games to until finally defeating them earlier this season. While the Indians currently sit at 38-54, out of the race for the season, there are numerous reasons to believe that the Indians are finally starting to turn the corner.

First, is the development of prospects that were netted in the deals that they have made of their stars. Carlos Santana is going to make the fans forget about Victor Martinez. Santana, since debuting last month, has hit .274, mostly in the 3rd or 4th spot. However, he also has 6 homers and 18 RBIs since coming up on June 11th, as well as being a doubles and walks machine. Santana is going to be in the middle of the lineup for years to come.

Matt LaPorta is going to be joining him. LaPorta was the key to the dealing of Sabathia, and Indians fans were almost ready to give up on him, when nothing developed for the first year and a half of his tenure. LaPorta has now turned it on after being promoted to the starting lineup for good. He raised a .202 batting average up to .250, and has 5 homers now, including a stretch where he hit 4 in a 5 game span. The Indians need LaPorta to produce as the key home run hitter in the lineup, and while his power was never in question, his ability at the major league level did not connect until recently.

The Indians also have other prospects. Jeanmar Gomez, who threw a perfect game in double A last year, got his first major league win today, throwing 7 innings of 5 hit ball, giving up no earned runs and 4 strikeouts against a potent Tigers lineup. They also have Carlos Carrasco, and Jason Knapp, pitchers ready to produce. There are other encouraging signs as well, the team is at .500 at home on the season, showing they have the capability, with more experience to turn a winning record at home, which are games that you must win. They also have had an extra base hit in 40 straight games, which is a season high record for a team this season in MLB.

So, cheer up, Cleveland fans. While the Cavs may be bad for awhile, there is hope for a team that has always consistently rebuilt under Mark Shapiro. Let’s just hope they can win the big one when they do.