Dream Small
by afh4 on Mar 18, 2010 10:44 AM EDT
141 comments
As we all wait for Adam's Early Weekend Six Pack, I thought it might be time to indulge in some small-scale fantasizing. We all want some obviously awesome things to happen this season: Fausto to become some version of his former self, LaPorta to make it obvious that there are no questions left to be asked, the Indians to contend into August (well, except for Jay, who wants these bozos to lose). But, I'm sure we all harbor smaller, more reasonable daydreams. Perhaps the emergence of Lou Marson as something north of Josh Bard wets your whistle. Or maybe you just really want to see a full-season from Lord Kelvin of the Cruzes.
Here's mine and it's an old one: I want Nick Weglarz to arrive in full. He's walked 9 times this spring while only striking out 3 times. He's hit the ball hard a couple of times. None of that means anything but it still fuels my fantasy that this is the year that I see the Wegz of my dreams: a .900+ OPS split between Akron and Columbus and a huge maple-syrup-sweet smile. By the way, if you 'neutralize' his stats last year, you might be led to believe that Weglarz is already here, minus the creepy smile part.
Maybe that's not such a small castle in the air but it's mine. What's yours?
Photo by Chuck Crow via media.cleveland.com
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fausto for sure.
but i want my favorite position player, asdrubal, locked up till, say, 2020.
not for the trade returns only, but i want to see nice years from jhonny, pronk, westbrook and wood. in fact, i wouldn’t lose any sleep if all of the above were 2011 indians. 2012, however…
i want columbus bursting at the seams by the end of the year with guys ‘forcing’ my above statement into obscurity.
I want Jason Donald to have a good year in AAA and then finish the season in Cleveland. I’m not looking for him to be an above average starter somewhere, just a useful player who can play 3 IF positions.
This is one for me. Maybe squeak a couple of David Bell type seasons out of him over the next 5 seasons.
by afh4 on Mar 18, 2010 12:08 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
I don’t know what the mean expectation is on Donald, but I think we might be understating his potential ceiling. His 2007 and 2008 numbers were pretty good for a plus-defense (?) middle infielder.
I just want this for Jason Donald this season. I’m sure I’m understating his potential ceiling for the long term, but my “small” expectation is to have him establish himself at AAA and then show something positive at the big league level.
It’s funny because this year is going to pretty much be a number of “small scale” improvements for a lot of players, especially the guys in the minors who we want to keep up the progress that they are making.
I want Lebron to re-up with the Cavs. Sad, I know.
On the Tribe front, I’d take Laporta playing a full season, healthy and productive.
Il faut d'abord durer.
I’m not a basketball fan, but I’m also not heartless, yet I can’t help but think the Indians don’t stand to draw more fans if the Cavs are without their man.
I would just find it funny that the guy who wore the Yankee hat to a Tribe playoff game, which annoyed CC Sabathia, would end up staying in Cleveland while Sabathia landed in NY. Cruel.
One of our young pitchers (Masterson, Rondon, Carrasco, Huff…) to step up and perform like a front-line pitcher
I’ll go with this and (if I may be greedy) two more to look like they belong in the middle or even back of the 2011 rotation.
If the Indians have 3 legit starting options (even if they’re #2, #4, and #5) for the 2011 rotation, 2010 will be a smashing success.
That, and for The Chiz to do what Carlos Santana did last year in Akron.
by The DiaTriber on Mar 18, 2010 12:24 PM EDT up reply actions
I’d settle for one of our young pitchers to perform like a #3 pitcher. Hell, I’d settle for Fausto to perform like a #3, since it would be an improvement.
"...maybe this year, there's no gorilla" - YoDaddyWags
by woodsmeister on Mar 18, 2010 2:16 PM EDT up reply actions
Fautso performing like a #3 seems to be much more in keeping with the spirit of this thread than the people who are saying they want him to be 2007 Fausto. I don’t think him being one of the best starters in the majors counts as a small dream, but performing like a solid #3 this season sounds great to me.
by VA tribe fan on Mar 18, 2010 3:16 PM EDT up reply actions
I want us to be over .500 at the end of July. Not so far-fetched. That very likely would put us within one torrid August of jumping into the division lead.
I’m not asking for a playoff berth, just a sniff. I want these guys to think that they’re good enough to be a factor even when they’re not supposed to be on paper. And I want for all of us to think it, too. But I don’t care about thinking it now. I don’t think it now and don’t want to. I want to think it on August 1.
by Jay on Mar 18, 2010 11:27 AM EDT reply actions 3 recs
I think hoping for the end result like this, a winning team, is cheating. The Indians likely won’t be above .500 unless several good things happen – like LaPorta doing well and Carmona stabilizing the rotation. Or Huff stepping up and Marson providing solid support from the catcher position. I’m saying your dream is unfair, Jay.
PECOTA has us at 79 wins. I just want three more. There are dozens of ways we could stumble into that.
But I take your point that it might not count as dreaming “small.”
This might sound crazy, but if we’re not making the playoffs, I want us to finish with a record that would give us a top 3 or 5 pick in the 2011 draft. That class looks to be very strong and could be very beneficial to the team when we are more likely to contend.
Maybe I’m just too prospect happy.
This would have the added bonus of getting people to the ballpark in August and September, which would give the FO more $$ to work with in the offseason.
"...maybe this year, there's no gorilla" - YoDaddyWags
by woodsmeister on Mar 18, 2010 2:18 PM EDT up reply actions
Oh, and Aaron Laffey to shove it in Jay’s face. Nothing big. Just 25-32 starts, all healthy, a higher K/9 and a lower BB/9 that shows sustained success is not only possible but likely.
Steel Nick
I’d like to see a return of the Huffstache. Anything over and above that would be gravy for me.
Keeping Expectations low in the twenty ten.
by gte619n on Mar 18, 2010 11:37 AM EDT reply actions 7 recs
Have to rec this, if only because I shaved my beard and passed on the chance of giving myself a decent Huffstache
Progression isn’t quite the right word, is it?
What we need is a season that clearly indicates that his 2009 was an anomaly, minor injuries bugging him, mechanical issue that will never be seen again, etc.
I basically want Huff to become the anti-Sowers. Similar build, but instead of looking like pitching makes him sad, he walks on and off the field with some swagger. And gets twice as many Ks.
I want another beatdown of the Yankees in their billion-dollar testament to hubris. I want the kids to do well so they approach the contending years with some swagger (and so people stop complaining so much about the trades). I want to knock Mariners fans down a notch or two. I want Acta to be Acta. I want to make a lot of bad jokes in game threads about Mexican guitarists. But mostly I want a reason to believe.
And also to be better than the Royals.
by FredOx on Mar 18, 2010 11:38 AM EDT reply actions 3 recs
I want them to be so far ahead of the Royals that Chuck comes back here and does a very public mea culpa for even suggesting that the Royals FO might be better than the Tribe’s.
"...maybe this year, there's no gorilla" - YoDaddyWags
by woodsmeister on Mar 18, 2010 2:21 PM EDT up reply actions
Masterson and Huff to put in 10-13 game winning seasons each. Carmona to be the now cliche “2007 Fausto”.
Hagadone and Putnam to be in the rotation somewhere near the end of 2010 and not thrown to the pen because “team needs”….not saying we don’t need relievers, but I just like both of them as starters.
Masterson and Huff to put in 10-13 game winning seasons each. Carmona to be the now cliche "2007 Fausto".
You jumped from small to large in a hurry here.
by dgcambridge on Mar 18, 2010 11:52 AM EDT up reply actions
A-Rod to retire, CC to opt out in 2 years, Jeter to sign for another 8 seasons, Rivera to become a starter, and Mauer to laugh at the Yankees.
There. Delusional.
by GoTribe028 on Mar 18, 2010 11:54 AM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
Masterson and Huff to put in 10-13 game winning seasons each.
So if they combine to go 24-18 with ERAs around 6.50, that’s okay?
Everybody should get ice cream every day.
I want Alexander Perez to throw his fastball at 93-95 MPH and kick everyone’s ass.
I also want Justin Masterson to show what he’s worth and become the Fausto of 07.
How about for Masterson to find that out pitch for lefties?
"...maybe this year, there's no gorilla" - YoDaddyWags
by woodsmeister on Mar 18, 2010 2:22 PM EDT up reply actions
Hoynes article did a nice job yesterday of describing what Miller has to deal with, I thought. Tendon poking through the skin, unable to grip the ball, constant danger that it will just become unattached again.
by dgcambridge on Mar 18, 2010 12:25 PM EDT up reply actions
Still waiting for someone to explain to me what the downside would have been of just cutting off the finger.
And a worse joke about having to use his left hand in traffic.
by VA tribe fan on Mar 18, 2010 3:55 PM EDT up reply actions
For digital expression, you mean?
by ken from alexandria on Mar 18, 2010 4:11 PM EDT up reply actions
I want to be in good enough shape at the trade deadline where we don’t deal Jake, and wind up locking him up in the offseason.
... Paul Hoynes is a really great guy ...
How big of a hometown discount are you offering? It better be huge.
by dgcambridge on Mar 18, 2010 12:21 PM EDT up reply actions
Mine are easy: I want Marte to get an actual shot, and I want Carlos Santana to not look lost if he gets called up. I’m not expecting him to be a monster right away, I just want him to look good enough to ease some of the pain.
Oh, and I want someone on the team to grow an awesome beard.
by VA tribe fan on Mar 18, 2010 12:41 PM EDT up reply actions
The Marte one is too big. Obviously that’s some gigantic impossibility, or it would have happened two or three times over by now.
by Jay on Mar 18, 2010 12:55 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
the only way it happens is if branyan is hurt and they send brantley down anyway and go with marte at 1st
Yes, clearly there’s no way a 26-year-old right-handed third baseman who put up an OPS of 962 at AAA and once got voted the best third baseman in the international league three years in a row (not the best way to judge, I know, but it fits my rant) will get playing time on a heavily left-handed team with tons of groundball pitchers and questionable infield defense and a third baseman who put up an OPS of 690 last year.
Baseball economics are weird. At this point I’m rooting for Jhonny to have a not suck this year so that Marte gets a shot.
by VA tribe fan on Mar 18, 2010 1:21 PM EDT up reply actions
What can I tell you? They signed Branyan. Could have plugged in Marte as the starter, would have been really easy, but were compelled to find another, more expensive option.
So yes … clearly there’s no way that guy gets playing time. It’s not like it’s Wedge’s fault.
Any other year, I would agree with you, but I’m hoping Acta will be less inclined than Wedge to become obsessed with gritty veterans or late-season callups with cool names and actually try to find Andy regular playing time this year. The idea that Branyan blocks Marte from getting any playing time seems to rely on both Branyan and Hafner both playing every day and both not getting injured. I’ve convinced myself that the Branyan signing was a combination of injury insurance for Hafner and seeing a potentially very undervalued (depending on his long-term health) asset that could be flipped for prospects later if things work out and unceremoniously dropped without costing too much if it turns out his back is a serious issue. I’m hoping that LaPorta is played most days in left and between third and first, Andy at least gets to play whenever Hafner, Peralta, or Branyan get a day off. Then if Peralta or Branyan get traded, Hafner, Peralta, and Branyan get injured, or somebody else sucks and Marte doesn’t, he becomes an everyday player. Of course, when one of them does inevitably get hurt, if LaPorta becomes the starter at first and Brantley gets called up to play left field every day, be expecting an incredibly annoying meltdown from me.
by VA tribe fan on Mar 18, 2010 3:43 PM EDT up reply actions
Late July is too late for the long-awaited “long look.” I said a few years ago that a long look is playing every day for 400 PA, and I’m sticking with that. He’s never gotten it, and odds are he never will. Since Jhonny is untradeable until late July, if ever, 3B is not where it’s happening for Marte this season.
So to a greater extent, this really comes down to Hafner, Branyan and LaPorta’s health, and they’re appetite for keeping Brantey down on the farm. When those three are healthy, I really don’t see more than two or three starts a week for Marte. They’re going to want to play those everyday guys every day.
If there are significant rest days, maybe Marte gets regular playing time, but I’m conditioned to expect stupid things, like Valbuena playing 3B and whatsisface from the Mets at second. However this develops, it very likely won’t be what I would consider “a serious shot.”
If there is a significant injury, I have no great expectation that Brantley will be kept at Columbus so that Marte can get regular AB — with, what, maybe Jordan Brown coming up to ride the bench at that point? So there, too, it doesn’t seem like they will end up giving Marte the serious shot.
I really do feel that they will need Branyan out and possibly two other guys before Marte plays every day.
Btw … Dominican outfielder Wagner Mateo will work out for the Tribe some time soon. He’s 16-years old and was offered over $3M by the Cardinals, but they withdrew it because of concerns about the vision in his right eye.
http://www.cleveland.com/tribe/index.ssf/2010/03/clevelands_failed_pursuit_of_t.html
I want someone—Chris Perez, preferably—to emerge as our consensus candidate for Future Closer, so that we don’t have to hold auditions when Kerry Wood is gone.
by ken from alexandria on Mar 18, 2010 1:44 PM EDT reply actions
I want some bad-asses to emerge so that the Chiz is comfortable when he arrives.
by MickS on Mar 18, 2010 2:38 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs
I think Choo could be pretty badass if he tried. If Carmona has a good year, some badassery seems likely from him. And Branyan, Redmond, and Grudziajijaefpodinejad all seem to have potential to provide some veteran clubhouse badass if they’re on the roster.
by VA tribe fan on Mar 18, 2010 3:52 PM EDT up reply actions
I’d like to see the SS Choo OPS over .900 and see him push a little closer towards a 30/30 season. Maybe start with 25/25.
Welcome back, Sandy! ATALECG...
Masterson, Donald, Carrasco, Wegz, and for all those young potential bullpen arms to put up sexy K/9 and K/BB numbers in the minors (or up here if given the chance).
AND MITCH TALBOT!
by Gradyforpresident on Mar 18, 2010 3:42 PM EDT reply actions
I also want Michael Taylor and Chris Carter but that ain’t happening
by Gradyforpresident on Mar 18, 2010 3:43 PM EDT up reply actions
I almost forgot.
I want Jordan Brown to get atleast 600 AB’s, because he’s probably our best prospect.
Given his poor walk rates, he probably will get 600 AB.
by Jay on Mar 18, 2010 7:05 PM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
My beyond impossible 2010 dream: for Jordan Brown to be the first player to ever have more AB than PA.
... Paul Hoynes is a really great guy ...
I want to not live at the extreme. I just want a season where “the process” results in a fair shake.
That’s a 2010 record somewhere near .500, with only one or two position player questions in 2011 (third base and maybe second base), one or two bullpen questions in 2011 (Closer? Perez/Sipp where they should be), and the need to go find only one or two starting pitchers in 2011 (Masterson and Carmona excel, Laffey/Huff pitch capably, Talbot pulls a Jason Hammel, and Rondon and Carrasco pitch like they should in Cbus).
I would like for Lonnie Chisenhall to be the next big thing. I want him to take apart AA and be our thirdbaseman by September, and I want it to be because he’s a better player than anyone else we have there.
Can’t we get the current big thing (Santana) before we ask for the next big thing?
by APV on Mar 18, 2010 8:33 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
It’s sweet that we could have two big things. Just seams to me that we could transition a thirdbaseman in easier than a catcher. If Lonnie earns it, don’t hinder his development with any obstacles, Jhonny.
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