Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Wrapping Up The Tribe's 2011 Season

this should have been done a few weeks back, but better late than never lol i remember before the season even started, a startling number of people were not sold that the team would do well this year. some predicted we'd even lose as many as 90 games. i on the other hand, knew that that would be next to impossible. i made a list of 8 points about why we would improve from the previous (2) season(s). we ended up finishing 80-82 (i predicted 82-80 btw), which was good enough for 2nd place in our division. but some people are not satisfied with that because 2nd place is the 1st loser. to that i argued we were not even supposed to be in contention this year, and the improvement should provide satisfaction going into 2012. the experience all the young kids gained will prove to be valuable for the 2012 season, just as the kids' experience in the 2010 season helped them improve in this past 2011 season.

it's been said by many all along that 2012 was the year we would emerge as serious competitors. so why did numerous fans believe 2011 was going to be another bad season? how did fans think we would go from losing 90 something games one year (in 2011), to losing 80 or less another year (in 2012)? that's not usually how things go in baseball. i mean, i know it can happen, but i'd never expect that kind of jump with the Tribe. we tend to do things more gradual. which is precisely why i knew we would do better this year. and we should continue to improve next year. i recall writing in a blog on my old CF account that 2011 would be a huge stepping stone towards a big 2012. so far my written words seem prophetic.


now, let's look back on my original pre-season 8 points. and remember, all these were made assuming nobody would be injured.

1. Asdrubal looks back to form and i like the Cabrera-Cabrera part of the infield.

2. Santana is back for a whole season. that alone has to add a few more wins into the equation.

3. Brantley will be here for the whole season and i have to believe the kid is going to produce.

4. we have Choo. i don't need to say anymore than that do i?

5. we're getting Grady back, and even though we may not get him in the same capacity as he was a couple years ago, he should still add some punch to our lineup.

6. Chiz is going to be up here by June, i'm calling that right now. and if his bat can do what it did in spring training, look out.

7. Fausto's lookin like he might be back to his 07 form according to Manny. i think he will be an ace this year. and if the rest of the starters aren't performing well, we've got some excellent talent waiting to be called up from Columbus.

8. Chris Perez is a legit closer. if we've got the lead going into the 9th, he's going to save the game.


okay so let's see how i did.

1. A-Cab had an amazing start to his season. things cooled off for him after the ASG, but he was easily still our MVP for the year and he should use this season as a learning experience to not tire out next year. O-Cab did not stay with us past the trading deadline, but his defense at 2nd was solid before Kip was ready to take his turn in the majors. i'd say #1 panned out pretty good.

2. Santana did last a whole season, and led the team in home runs when all was said and done. people want to complain about his defense, but more experience will help him. Rome wasn't built in a day and i still see big things coming from this kid in the future. i think i'm 2-for-2 so far.

3. Brantley started out HOT, which was no surprise to me lol the thing that hurt him was that damn wrist injury/hamate bone situation. his batting average went down right when it started becoming a problem, and that is why his final #s for the year look worse than they really were. and again, this year in the bigs will only help him for the future. 3 for 3.

4. here's where things get dicey. Choo never played like his Choo self and was pretty much a non-factor for the entire season. and yet we still managed to remain competitive and in contention for our division until September. think about that... let's just hope next year he doesn't drink and drive and nobody plunks his thumb.

5. another fail here. Grady showed a few bright spots for a few weeks, but other than that he was not much of a contributor. if he hadn't totally sucked and gotten injured again and again, i believe his bat would have made a difference (along with a healthy Choo), and we prob could have really given Detroit a run for their money.

6. in ST, everyone wanted Chiz to be on the Opening Day major league roster. well he wasn't. and after a quick start once he finally did get up here, he was not great offensively or defensively. who was? Kipnis, a non-mention in my 8 points. if Kip had not strained his hamstring and did not spend any time on the DL, it's probable we could have squeezed out a few more wins and few less losses.

7. well Fausto was up and down, and down again. when he was on, he was so on. and when he was off, we were down 9 runs and the bullpen was warming up before the 3rd inning was over. BUT, Huff and Gomez were ready and waiting down in C-bus when a gap in our rotation arose, and both did pretty damn good. i'll be happy with either in the 4th or 5th spot next year.

8. Perez had a couple blunders, but for the most part, when we gave him the game to close, he shut the door. didn't do so great in non-save situations, but that's relative to most closers so it's not a concern of mine. can't wait to see lots more Rage in 2012.


now i'm not going to blame anything on injuries, but regarding the points of mine that didn't pan out, if you take injuries out of the equation (minus the Grady situation), there are more things to be positive about for the upcoming 2012 season. i personally would never go into a season assuming somebody is going to be hurt and a non-factor, hence ruining the team's chances in avoiding mediocrity, so i think my points were pretty solid even though some did not end up coming true. and i enjoyed the season, even though the last 2 games i went to were Brantley-less. i went to a record 7 games, got 27 autographs, took 252 videos, and 3,825 pictures. it was a good year for me personally lol

but let's get our 1st base situation figured out, aka find someone to split some time there with Santana, and find a right handed OF, and i don't see how people cannot be excited for next year. i of course am. Go Tribe!