Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Cowardly Chris Perez needs to own up to his mistakes

Oh Chris Perez...Ugh
Photo from Wikimedia Commons
I know I've said it before, but after last night I think it's worth repeating. I like Chris Perez the baseball player a lot. But Chris Perez the person, not so much.

Usually when I say that, it's about something stupid Perez has said. Strangely enough, today it's the opposite.

It's not that the Indians need to trade him, or now that he's blown another save on August 5 he's the worst closer ever, and I'm certainly not going to go the way of too many Tribe fans on Twitter and suggest that Perez kill himself—a ludicrous notion, to be sure. He's a closer, and even the great, revered Mariano Rivera blows a save sometimes.

My problem with Perez today stems from the fact that he was too much of a coward to own up to his mistakes and left his teammates to speak for him.

True, Perez has not spoken to the media since May, and perhaps that means the closer not speaking after Monday's 4-2 loss to the first-place Tigers shouldn't be a story. But it just seems to me that if ever there was a time to break the silence, it was after a game to begin one of the biggest series' of the season where Perez gave up four runs without recording an out in the 9th.

Maybe I'm being unreasonable about this, but I think that when someone screws the pooch as badly as Perez did last night, he should be the one to speak about it. Michael Bourn shouldn't have to say, "The only thing you can do is go to sleep, wake up and it's a new day... But this one was a tough one. I think it's one of the toughest ones of the year." Jason Kipnis shouldn't have to say, "There's no way to sugar coat it, it sucked. We thought we had this one, and we let it get away in the end."

Why is it so difficult for Perez to just come out and say, "This one's on me. I'm the closer, and I have to get the job done," and have that be the end of it? Isn't that something people teach their children—if they make a mistake, stand up, own it, and apologize for it?

But this is a trend with him. After he and his wife were arrested for marijuana possession in May, Perez never released a statement of his own words—or hell, even someone else's words. Only his attorney released a statement on his and his wife's behalf. And while this does make sense, as a public figure, I'd like to think it's not too much to ask that he apologize for embarrassing the Indians organization, even if he didn't specify exactly what he was apologizing for. People do that kind of thing all the time (ahem, Ryan Bruan), and it would've been appropriate in that instance.

But that's just not who Perez is—at least not anymore. We used to always see him front and center when he blew a big save, which is one of the things I respected about the man. And we have continued to see this type of owning up to one's mistake from other relievers like Joe Smith and the recently demoted Vinnie Pestano.

As the Indians' 28-year-old closer, Perez should be a leader for this team. Running away and making your teammates speak for you is about as far from a leader as one can be.

But who knows, maybe he'll realize his mistake and speak up for himself today.

The way this season's gone, I wouldn't count on it.

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

The Carrasco everybody wants to see

Can Carlos Carrasco continue pitching like
one of the best in the AL? Or was his
start agains the Royals a mirage?
Image from Wikimedia Commons
Perhaps this is too obvious a statement to begin this post, but Carlos Carrasco is somewhat of an enigma.

Any time a starting pitcher can consistently throw his fastball at 95-97, scouts, managers, and GMs are going to think he's got a ton of potential. But of course, a pitcher must be able to locate that fastball, and have at least one or two off-speed pitches to keep hitters at bay.

Organizations covet those type of arms and are loathe to give them up. And if a pitcher like that is let go, some pitching coach somewhere is always going to believe he can fix whatever the problem is.

Perhaps just as important as the pitches is the mentality of the man on the hill. And we all know Carrasco has had plenty of problems with his temperament—especially after giving up home runs.

But for whatever reason, something Manny Acta said in spring training of 2011 has really stuck with me about the now 26-year-old starting pitcher.

"He has the stuff to be one of the best guys in the American League, period."

First of all, I can barely believe I found where I read that quote (sometimes it's a great thing nothing ever truly leaves the internet). Second of all, it's taken a couple years, but after last night it's starting to look like Carrasco could prove Acta right.

It's worth nothing, though, that last night's game, which ended in a 2-1 Indians loss, wasn't actually Carrasco's first dominant start. If you recall, he went 4-2 with a 1.90 ERA in six starts in June 2011, striking out 28 while walking just seven. One of those wins came against the Twins, where Carrasco went 8.1 innings, surrendered three hits, and walked one in the 1-0 victory.

Then in July...well, he blew out his arm, had to have Tommy John surgery, and hasn't won a game since.

But I'll say this—I don't know what manager Terry Francona and pitching coach Mickey Calloway told Carrasco after his disastrous previous start against the Tigers, but whatever it was it worked. Carrasco was absolutely electric agains the Royals, moving his fastball in and out to hitters with a devastating slider as an out pitch. He only threw 90 pitches in 7.1 innings—58 of which were strikes. He threw first-pitch strikes to 12 of the 27 batters he faced, not including those who made contact. And he left a game with a man on second and a one-run lead for what has been a shaky—at best—bullpen.

He also had a no-hitter going through the first 4.1 innings of the game. Maybe it's an odd thing to think, but during that fifth inning I started to worry that Carrasco would unravel once he gave up a hit, mainly because it's the type of thing he's done in the past.

But then he gave up a hit, and worked out of it. Then he worked out of another jam in the sixth, and shook off a two-out double in the seventh. This was a pitcher that looked fine, polished, but most of all mature. And make no mistake, maturity has been Carrasco's main problem when he's pitched before at the highest level.

Should the Indians have won that game? Absolutely, especially when you consider how many men were left on base. And as I've said before, the bullpen is just a hot mess right now. But if you aren't encouraged by the way Carrasco pitched, then you should probably have your head examined.

Does this mean Carrasco has turn the proverbial corner? No, but it's certainly a step in the right direction for a team that is only going to go as far as its starting pitching will take it. If Carrasco can keep the proper mentality out on the mound as he did last night, I think he'll be in great shape to put a string of good starts together.

When the Indians traded Cliff Lee in 2009, the man that pitched last night is the one the organization expected to get out of the deal. Who knows if he'll ever be that dominant of a pitcher on a consistent basis, but at least for one night, Carrasco certainly pitched like he was one of the best pitchers in the AL, period.

Sunday, June 9, 2013

Here we go again? Let's hope not

Well, this is not what you want.

Will the real Indians please stand up? Could you let us know now the team we're going to watch through the rest of the regular season, because that's going to inform a lot about how the fans feel about watching these games. Is it the team that went 18-4 for a stretch, or the one that's started a road trip 0-6, with a real chance of going 0-9?

Yes, the real team probably lies somewhere between those two extremes, but as I wrote last week, right now the Indians are just too streaky.

Does a sweep at the hands of Detroit completed on June 9 end the entire season? No, of course not. But losing seven games in a row—along with 14 of the last 18—certainly doesn't inspire much confidence.

This is not the way things were supposed to be, especially not after the Dolans shelled out over $100 million in free agency to completely revamp the roster. Consider the fact that Jason Kipnis, Carlos Santana, Asdrubal Cabrera, and Michael Brantley are the only remaining position players from the 2012 roster. Not to mention the hiring of Terry Francona to manage the ball club.

And yet, the feeling right now is eerily similar to that of the past two seasons.

The solution is easy—start winning again. Unfortunately the remedy may not be so simple.

Really, everything is the problem right now—pitching, offense, defense. Pitching has been a problem, as the team's ERA ranks 13th in the league at 4.46 (Baltimore and Houston are worse). The starters were great during that 18-4 run, but overall are 11th in the league with a 4.56 ERA. The bullpen has been horrendous, ranking 14th in the AL with its 4.28 ERA. Because so many games have been feast or famine for the Tribe, they also by far rank dead last in the league with nine, and in MLB only Miami has fewer with seven.

Nick Swisher may have broken out of his 0-26 skid today, but he, Mark Reynolds, and Carlos Santana have got to find a way to become more consistent at the plate in order to drive the offense. Right now, Swisher isn't doing much to earn that $14 million salary.

Add the buffoonery of Chris Perez and a potential season-changing suspension for him, and it's easy to see why fans are starting to get turned off by this team.

Coming into the season, I didn't really think the Indians would be able to compete for the division title. But with all the changes, I also didn't see them taking another nose dive.

We keep hearing players like Jason Kipnis and Ubaldo Jimenez talk about how "different" everything is this year.

Well I'm sick of hearing it. If things are different, prove it on the field. Enough with the losing, let's have fun again.

Monday, June 3, 2013

When it comes to the Tribe, proceed with caution

One year ago today, I wrote a post with the headline, "Time to hit the panic button?" It detailed how the Indians pitching staff had been giving up huge run totals, and if the team had a poor stretch in Detroit and St. Louis, then many of those first place dreams would start to get snuffed out. 

I say all this because it's interesting that the Indians face a somewhat similar situation yet again this year as they head to New York, Detroit, and Texas. The team is 30-26—the exact record it had through 56 games in 2012—and the Yankees, Tigers, and Rangers will certainly provide a barometer for how legitimate the Indians are as a contending team. 

A screenshot of my preseason predictions from Twitter,
so you know it's real.
Now I know I didn't put this on the record here, but I said on Twitter just before the season started that I thought the Indians would finish third in the AL Central. I wasn't convinced the starting pitching would hold up at all, and I wasn't sure that the team would jell properly with all of its new faces in time for the team to contend. 

I suppose you could say that so far, they've proven me wrong. And yes, this team is certainly different than last year's iteration, and that starts with having Terry Francona as manager—not to mention the slew of new faces all around the diamond (I didn't realize this until Terry Pluto pointed it out in a recent article, but Carlos Santana, Jason Kipnis, Michael Brantley, and Asdrubal Cabrera are the only everyday players held over form last year). 

Still, even with all the differences, I'm sticking with "cautious optimism" when it comes to the Indians' legitimacy. Why? Well it comes down to three reasons. 

1. They're incredibly streaky
The Indians started out slow, got white hot, and are now in a rut again. Albeit we'll never know how Friday's game against Tampa Bay should have really worked because of the ludicrous rain delays, but I thought the team just looked flat on Sunday afternoon. They're now 4-9 in their last 13 games after winning 18 of 22. A big part of this rests on the recent struggles of the Tribe bullpen, but in general the team has got to find a way to be more consistent. 

This streakiness extends to individual players as well. Mark Reynolds and Carlos Santana, for example, got off to tremendous starts in April, but significantly cooled off in May. It would've been foolish to not expect both guys to drop off a bit, but Reynolds batted nearly .100 points lower in the season's second month and struck out 34 times. Santana had it even worse, hitting .200 in May versus .368 in April, and struck out 28 times—doubling his total from April. Those guys have got to level off in performance for the Indians to be consistently good. 

2. They need a starter...or two
This is probably better material for closer to the trading deadline, but the Indians aren't going to go anywhere with their current rotation. Justin Masterson has looked more like the pitcher he was in 2011, which is good because the Indians so badly needed an ace. Zach McAllister has been the team's second-best pitcher, and Ubaldo Jimenez looks like he's really made some progress—especially after his last start against the Rays. 

But honestly? McAllister would be a No. 3 starter on most contending teams, and with all the problems Jimenez has had since coming to Cleveland, he'd be a No. 4. I'm sorry but I have no confidence that Corey Kluber and Scott Kazmir will hold up for the rest of the season. And don't even bring up the possibly $7 million mistake named Brett Myers. 

I'd like to see Carlos Carrasco called up soon since he's dominating AAA, but his foolishness against the Yankees makes that more complicated than it should be. Trevor Bauer could also help the rotation, provided he cuts down on the walks. But the Indians will definitely have to scan the league for trade opportunities for a starter.

3. The bullpen is a mess
It's an obvious statement, but my goodness is it true. Right now, Francona has about two arms he can go to that have been consistent and reliable—Joe Smith and Cody Allen. Vinnie Pestano looked better in his last outing, getting his fastball up to 91-93 as opposed to the 87 he threw in Boston, but I even have concerns about him when he goes out there. All the rest of the scrubs—Matt Albers, Brian Shaw, Rich Hill, Nick Hagadone, Scott Barnes—have not been consistent enough fo the Indians to reliably stay in contention. 

I'm hopeful that this is just a rough stretch, and once Chris Perez returns from his DL stint that the 'pen will stabilize. But it's hard enough to get two years in a row of a strong bullpen, asking for three just might be a bit too much. 

As a programming note, now that I'm out of school for the summer, I should be able to update this here blog more consistently, so stay tuned. 

~MAS

Friday, January 18, 2013

Non-GMs and assembling a quality coaching staff

With the Browns making plenty of moves to their front office and coaching staff, I think it's time to make a few comments that can't be expressed in the 140 character-limited Twitter.

1. Hiring Mike Lombardi
Yes, yes, the big Browns story of the day is that Lombardi is the new General Manager VP Player Personnel. I'm sure I don't have to tell you about how he trashed the Browns drafting Brandon Weeden and Josh Gordon, Lombardi's own poor drafting record, and the fact that he's been a TV analyst for five years.

I saw 92.3 The Fan's Anthony Lima Tweet this earlier, but really the last person to come out of broadcasting to get back into the NFL was Matt Millen with the Detroit Lions in 2001. Sure that's a small sample size, and it's not a particularly apt comparison because Millen had no prior player-evaluating experience—something Lombardi does have, even if it isn't strong—but it still is a red flag.

The thing is—and I Tweeted this earlier today—there really wasn't a GM name out there that was going to knock my socks off for the Browns GM/Player Personnel position. I mean, the rumored front runner had been Kansas City's Ray Farmer. We all know the Chiefs have pretty much been as bad as the Browns the last couple of years. So I guess one of the reasons I'm not that upset about this hire is who else was there to pick?

Perhaps I'm reading too much into it, but Lombardi eat some crow today in saying that Gordon has "nothing to worry about." But when asked about Weeden, Lombardi said that he has to evaluate. Between the lines, that can't be great news for the 29-year old quarterback.

But irrespective of all this, Lombardi is now officially a member of the Browns organization and that means I'd like nothing more than for him to succeed.

2. Bringing in Ray Horton
If there's anything a first-time head coach in the NFL needs, it's quality coordinators. And it's hard to argue against the two Rob Chudzinski landed—Norv Turner (who we'll get to in a bit) and Ray Horton.

Horton comes to the Browns from Arizona, where he held the same position. It's been reported that the 52-year old was none too pleased about being passed over for the Cardinals HC job in favor of Bruce Arians, but Arizona's loss is Cleveland's gain.

Incredibly, the Horton-coached Arizona defense was ranked 12th overall in 2012—fifth against the pass but 28th against the run. The unit came in 17th in terms of points, but when you think about how dreadful the Arizona offense was—32nd overall and rushing, 28th passing—that's a pretty remarkable feat.

Before going to the Cardinals, Horton spent 2004-2010 with the Pittsburgh Steelers as the defensive backs coach. That's just one more advantage in my mind, because it means Horton knows the AFC North.

Of course, coming from the Steelers menas Horton is trained in Dick LeBeau's famed 3-4. However, Adam Kaplan Tweeted that Horton can coach both the 3-4 and the 4-3. I would very much like to see that "hybrid" look on the Browns, but either way I think Horton will be great.

Per this Tweet by Kyndra de St. Aubin, Horton will be paid $8 million over four years. That's big money for a defensive coordinator, so it's obvious the Browns were impressed in their interview with him for head coach.

There really isn't much—if anything—to dislike about this hire.

3. The Norv factor
I don't think I'm saying anything anyone else hasn't said when I say Norv Turner has been a failure as a head coach, but is a slam dunk hire for the Browns at offensive coordinator.

This might be an absurd comparison given how long ago it was, but Turner did coordinate the Dallas Cowboys offense from 1991-1993. In that time, the Cowboys ranked in the top-10 in total offense, passing, and rushing yards in all three years (okay, with the exception of 1991, when Dallas ranked 13th in rushing.) Those Dallas teams had three key players on offense—quarterback Troy Aikman, running back Emmitt Smith, and wide receiver Michael Irvin. Who do the Browns have now? Brandon Weeden, Trent Richardson, and Josh Gordon.

Admittedly, Weeden doesn't seem to have nearly the same potential as Aikman. And with Lombardi at the helm of Player Personnel, it's also looking more likely that Weeden won't be the guy. But you have to think that Richardson and Gordon could be cornerstones to a great new offensive era for Turner and the Browns.

Of course, in today's NFL, a team is only as good as it's quarterback, so finding that right guy must be the priority. Still, just as I think with Horton, there really isn't anything to dislike about this hire as well.

Say what you want about the Browns hiring Lombardi, but by bringing in Turner and Horton, the Browns have set up Chudzinski much better than Mike Holmgren and Tom Heckert set up Pat Shurmur two years ago.

Thursday, January 10, 2013

Welcome back, Chud

Rob Chudzinski—the new head coach of the Cleveland Browns.

You want to talk about something I just didn't think would happen, this is it. Hiring Chudzinski definitely doesn't make the big "splash" pretty much everyone thought owner Jimmy Haslam and CEO Joe Banner would go for. But here we are, and this is what we've got.

And the more I think about it, the more I think I like it.

If you don't remember, Chudzinski has ben in Cleveland with the Browns twice before—under Butch Davis in 2004 as the tight ends coach, and then under Romeo Crenel from 2007-2008 as the offensive coordinator.

Chudzinski's spent the past couple of years as the Carolina Panthers offensive coordinator, guiding Cam Newton to a then rookie-record 4,051 passing yards in 2011, along with 706 rushing yards. Obviously, having an elite talent like Newton helps you as a coach, but Chudzinski's offenses ranked seventh and 12th in 2011 and 2012, respectively. The guy also likes to run the ball, as they ranked third in 2011 and ninth in 2012 in that category. Good news for Trent Richardson, no?

I know I've seen some people on Twitter comparing this hire to that of Pat Shurmur, and I really don't see it that way. At least Chudzinski has been at the helm of top-10 offenses in his career—multiple times. Mike Holmgren hired Shurmur after two seasons of being offensive coordinator in St. Louis, where the offenses ranked 29th and 26th. So seriously, let's stop the Chudzinski-Shurmur comparisons.

Let's think about it—that offense in 2007 was excellent. The Browns ranked eighth in total offense—12th in passing and 10th in rushing. They also ranked eighth in points. Derek freaking Anderson made the Pro Bowl that year, throwing 29 touchdowns. Sixteen of those went to Braylon freaking Edwards. Kellen Winslow also set a franchise record for tight end receiving yards.  

So what else do we know about Chudzinski? Well, he's 44 years old, so that means he has plenty of time to grow as a coach. He also grew up in Toledo and was apparently a Browns fan. And the fact that he's already been in Berea two other times is certainly a plus.

Now additionally, reports are that Norv Turner is likely to be a part of Chudzinski's staff—presumably as the offensive coordinator. Chudzinski worked under Turner in San Diego, and apparently Turner's son, Scott Turner, was one of Chud's right-hand men in Carolina. The younger Turner is also likely to join the Browns staff.

I don't think anyone is a fan of Turner as a head coach, but as a coordinator Turner has been largely successful. He's had five top-15 offenses in seven years as coach, and has had four in the top-10. I really think bringing in Turner(s) would be a good thing.

What I'm a little more nervous about is the defense. If all the reports on Twitter are true and the Browns do, in fact, switch to a 3-4, then the defense is going to be significantly behind the offense. Let's face it—the Browns have pretty much one viable linebacker and his name is D'Qwell Jackson. James-Michael Johnson has some potential, but the fact is the Browns have a solid core of defensive linemen...for a 4-3. Though I do inherently prefer a 3-4, it's going to take maybe 2-3 years to adjust personnel.

I may be in the minority, but as I said, the more I think about it, the more I like this hire. Banner's hired a little-known coach before, and his name was Andy Reid. Ever heard of him?

Yes, the Browns have gone through so many different changes since 1999, and I don't want to just say "this time is different," but...yeah, I just won't say that.

I'll put it like this instead—the fact that Banner has put together a successful franchise before, and the fact that Haslam has run a successful business venture like Pilot, makes me feel pretty good about Chudzinski. Let's at least give him a chance, Browns fans.

No matter what, he can't be worse than Shurmur.

...right?

~MAS

Sunday, January 6, 2013

"So this is what rejection feels like." — No Chip Kelly, and a plea for Bruce Arians

Looks like Chip Kelly's talents will be
staying in Oregon or heading to Philly.
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
After Friday night's news that Chip Kelly was "very close" to becoming the next head coach of the Cleveland Browns came down, I got a post ready for when his hiring was officially announced.

Of course, the best laid plans are the ones that go awry, right?

Well, I'd bet that's probably what the Browns decision makers are thinking at this point.

As I'm sure you all know by now, Browns owner Jimmy Haslam and CEO Joe Banner are moving on from their pursuit of Oregon's Kelly. Mary Kay Cabot of the Plain Dealer cites "league sources" saying the Browns weren't sure if Kelly was 100% into the idea of leaving Oregon to coach in Cleveland, and that is the primary reason Haslam and Banner are moving on in their search. They want the coach they hire to be "all in" for coaching the Browns.

Okay, I do realize that this could be some kind of smoke screen from the Browns so that they look a little less foolish when they later say, "We wanted this guy all along," but at the same time you can't say that Kelly's process had nothing to do with it. In a lot of ways, the guy seems like the little boy who cried "wolf." You can't be surprised if he ends up going back to Oregon. And if he does, then he obviously was not 100% into the idea of coaching the Browns.

Don't get me wrong—I'm not saying that to validate the smoke screen. But whether it was Kelly or the Browns backing away, the fact is that it just wasn't going to work.

And now the Browns are left to "reboot" their coaching search...whatever that means.

One of the issues is that nobody knows who in the world the Browns might want to interview next. We know—not from the Browns themselves, mind you—that Haslam and Banner have interviewed former Arizona Cardinals head coach Ken Wisenhunt, and Cardinals defensive coordinator Ray Horton. But Doug Marrone was supposedly the next guy up for the Browns, and he agreed to coach the Buffalo Bills this morning.

If you're keeping the speculative score, that means the Browns have been shafted by their first (Nick Saban), second (Kelly), and third (Marrone) choices. You could probably throw Bill O'Brien into that mix somewhere as well, since the Browns did interview him before he decided to remain at Penn State.

Four coaches, four swings and misses.

Obviously, at some point in the next few weeks, the Browns are going to hire a coach. And I sincerely hope that this "reboot" begins and ends with one man—Bruce Arians.

Sure, there are other names out there like Wisenhunt and Lovie Smith, but I just really feel Arians is the perfect fit. He was Butch Davis' offensive coordinator the only time the Browns made it to the playoffs since 1999—meaning he coached (my favorite "modern era" Brown) Kelly Holcomb to that (incredible) 429 yard, three-touchdown performance against the Steelers. And he also coached Andrew Luck to a rookie record for passing yards this season. That's in addition to him taking over for Chuck Pagano after he was diagnosed with cancer, meaning he does, in fact, have some type of head coaching experience.

Furthermore, after Davis fired him, Arians spent the next eight seasons with the Steelers, meaning he knows the division. In the AFC North—almost always one of the toughest divisions in the NFL—that kind of knowledge is invaluable. Who knows, maybe Arians' offense could be exactly what Brandon Weeden needs to be effective?

So hopefully Arians' bout with the flu that landed him in the hospital instead of on the sideline for the Colts' playoff game in Baltimore is not serious so that the Browns can set up an interview with him as soon as possible. Mike Carins of WEWS tweeted that Arians really did want the job in Cleveland, and now that it's up for grabs again, this job should fall right into his lap.

The Cleveland Browns: Never a dull moment.

~MAS