Joe Thomas is more than just another Browns legend: While We’re Waiting
March 20, 2018Getting to know Carlos Hyde with former Ohio State Buckeye Zach Boren
March 20, 2018The Indians of twenty years ago are remembered quite fondly. You would be hard pressed to locate an adult baseball fan in the Northeast Ohio region that cannot recite those 1990’s teams’ batting order, rattle off meaningless statistics, or recount the variations of heartbreak in perfect ‘Only in Cleveland’ form.((Editor’s note: You mean like Albert Belle was the first Indians player to hit 50 doubles and 50 home runs in the same season in 1995?)) Those 1990’s teams, while immensely fun and without noticeable warts, set a standard for the Cleveland baseball fan. The demise set upon those teams quickly, leaving a seemingly insurmountable gap between standard and reality.
As the winning rolled over into the new millennium, with the consecutive sellout streak in tow, the team’s trajectory unfurled into a familiar, yet new, direction. A poor 2002 paved the way for a dismal 2003. The 2004 through 2006 Indians squads hinted at competitiveness but failed to break through that barrier. When the 2007 group made plenty of noise, expectations mounted again, only to fall in spectacular fashion, highlighted by dealing Cy Young winners CC Sabathia and Cliff Lee. The hometown love had dwindled, from sellouts galore to overwhelming distaste, in a quick seven years. The Eric Wedge years had been less than enthralling. The Manny Acta years weren’t much better.
Fast forward to 2013, enter a significant talent infusion, accompanied by widely heralded manager Terry Francona. A 92 win season followed by a wildcard loss to the Tampa Bay Rays. The expectations had not been set, however. There was disappointment, but not frustration. The future looked promising, which is all the “maybe next year” Cleveland fan truly desires. With the Wedge and Acta years firmly in the rearview mirror, these expectations began creeping back up, correlating directly with a successful season and bright future. The next two years checked those expectations a bit more, despite a noticeable uptick in talent. Corey Kluber took hold of the Cy Young award in 2014. Francisco Lindor debuted in impressive fashion in 2015. Though it lacked the final translation to a championship contender, something was noticeably brewing within the Indians organization.
The brewing culminated in an overflow of success in 2016. A division title for the first time in nine years. A banged-up roster churned its way into a Game 7 of the Fall Classic. A new standard was born. That fickle word — expectations — had recaptured the driver’s seat of fan interest.
The weight of these expectations was not lost on last year’s team. Stringing together 22 straight wins en route to a 102 win season, a total unmatched by any other Tribe group since 1954, created substantial buzz as the playoffs surfaced on the horizon. The ensuing early playoff exit, a loss to the unholy New York Yankees in the divisional series, regurgitated a healthy dose of heartbreak. The World Series is a fleeting goal in that it requires a team good enough to win their division (in most cases) and a steady balance of subsequent luck. Playoff variance is not a narrative created to appease the fans of losing teams — it is the byproduct of compressing a high variance sport’s championship hopes into three five to seven game series. That same variance allowed a banged up 2016 Indians team to ascend to the doorstep of a title. Inversely, it allowed the marginally less talented Yankees to show the 2017 Indians team the exits.
Expectations mold our attitudes. Five years ago, picking up a twelve million dollar team option for an oft-injured former MVP candidate would not have been met with the same level of disdain. The disdain is perfectly reasonable, however. In an offseason where Todd Frazier and Neil Walker signed bargain basement deals, a contender that is allegedly strapped for cash has to make the most out of each million. The Brantley decision was a dicey one, as WFNY has rehashed several times, but offered some hope that an entry on that side of the ledger meant the Indians might open the pocketbook. Then Carlos Santana went to Philadelphia, Bryan Shaw went to Colorado, Joe Smith went to Houston, and Jay Bruce went back to New York. A team that was built well enough to win a title had lost four pretty important contributors.
The Indians fan of five years ago wouldn’t have batted an eye at these departures. They were expected in a time where expectations were sunk ships. Now, though, the Indians had a standard to uphold — collective angst over the perception of an inactive offseason was a given and also warranted. Your primary competitors, the Yankees and Houston Astros, each added pieces to make themselves even more formidable. The Indians, quite frankly, stood pat. The post-2018 outlook, one that likely does not include Andrew Miller or Cody Allen, is murkier than the now.
The now is not so bad, though. Despite the free agency losses. Regardless of the caliber of the Yankees and Astros. A quick peek at Fangraphs 2018 World Series odds have Cleveland at 12.2%. Ahead of the Yankees and well behind the Astros. This is by virtue of the weak American League Central. With a little luck on the health side, the Indians pitchers could parse into the Astros market share on those title odds… Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, Andrew Miller, and Cody Allen’s ability to eat a lion’s share of the playoff innings is extremely beneficial.
Checking our mindsets and preconceptions might be the best route, as baseball is still exciting in Cleveland. The footing is not as strong as in the previous year among the World Series contenders but they aren’t getting lapped by anyone, either. It’s easy to become dissatisfied with the lack of a title coupled with the perceived inability to compete with the big boys financially, but it’s also possible to be dissatisfied with the offseason and understand that the team is still a legitimate contender. The latter is not an excuse to appease the former, it is merely fact.