Hail to the Chief

Dave Paisley

Like it or not (and I don't), the grinning visage of Chief Wahoo smirks down on the American League from the lofty heights of a 29-10 record, and the Indians are on a pace to win 120 games. Who believes that if they make it over 110 they'll be hailed as the "Team of the Century (this year)"? Well, they aren't covered by the New York media, so don't hold your breath.

The secret of the Indians' success isn't exactly hard to figure out. Leading the league with a .310 batting average, .389 on-base percentage and .525 slugging percentage (for a .914 OPS), the Indians are just crushing opposition pitching. The nearest offenses performance-wise are Seattle, Toronto and, shockingly, Kansas City, but they aren't really that close -- about 15% fewer runs scored.

Under the hood of the Indians' offense, there are a solid eight cylinders plugging away, generating offense. Leading the pack is the vastly underrated Manny Ramirez. If this guy played for the Yankees or Mets, he'd be a household name. With a .419 OBP and .620 SLG, Ramirez is one of the lynchpins of this team. I can only say "one of" because there are so many this year. Those Juan Gonzalez-like RBI numbers (55 so far) will get him some serious MVP looks this year.

Perhaps the biggest surprise so far is the re-emergence of Robbie Alomar as a genuine superstar. What you have to love is that .451 OBP. Oh, and the .580 SLG doesn't hurt, either. Of course, Alomar is likely to fall back a bit, but anything over a .850 OPS will be spectacular from a second sacker, and I expect he'll manage that handily.

Another power-charged career revival is underway in center field, where Kenny Lofton is managing a .452 OBP/.553 SLG to join the 1.000+ OPS gang.

Throw in 1B Jim Thome (.457/.539) and you have a quartet of doom for opposition pitchers. One thing these four have in common is the ability to walk. Thome leads the team with 33, but the other three have at least 20 walks each.

But wait, there's more. Dave Justice is clubbing the ball again, Wil Cordero seems to have given up wife-battering for pitcher-battering, and Omar Vizquel has an OPS just over .800, fabulous for any shortstop not named Alex, Nomar or Derek.

The only disappointment is Travis Fryman, struggling along with a mere .790 OPS.

Behind the plate, Sandy Alomar is having another good odd year, maintaining the weird up and down pattern he's shown lately. He'll be out for a couple of weeks for arthroscopic surgery, but as long as Einar Diaz can catch the ball, Sandy's missing offense won't be a problem.

The Cleveland pitching staff has been the beneficiary of all this hitting largesse. Once upon a time, a 4.62 team ERA would have been cause for concern. Now, it's good enough for fourth place in the AL. Such is the offensive explosion of the '90s.

Take a look at Bartolo Colon, sporting a horrendous 5.72 ERA, but also with a 6-1 record. He was a happy little 3-0, with a 2.35 ERA until he gave up 23 runs (all earned) over 22.2 innings in his last four starts. What happens? He goes 3-1 for crying out loud, including winning the last one 13-9, even though he gave up all nine runs.

What about Jaret Wright, 4-1 with a 6.13 ERA. His four good starts, he's given up a mere 8 runs (7 earned) in 25.1 innings, with a 3-0 record. In the other four, though, he's given up 25 runs in 21.2 innings, yet escapes with a 1-1 record.

How about journeyman Dave Burba? He goes the more conventional route, losing the only game where he's given up more than four runs (a 6-5 loss to Seattle, of all people) Meanwhile, he's had three no-decisions, two of them where he pitched into the seventh inning and gave up a mere 2 runs.

Then there's erstwhile ace Charles Nagy. At 4-3 with a 4.89 ERA, he's the only pitcher  on the entire roster with more than one loss. When he's been good, he's been very good, and when he's been bad he's hit the showers in the fourth inning.

Finally, there's Doc Gooden, who's doing a better job of reviving a flagging career than say, Darryl Strawberry. Still lacking stamina for the most part, Gooden cranked it up last time out in a 13-0 blowout of division rival Chicago. However, he's become mostly a five- to six-inning pitcher. Of course, that's all the Indians need from a fifth starter. And he does have the second-lowest ERA of the starting troupe.

But perhaps the biggest hidden story in Cleveland is the almost-emergence of once-promising ace-in-the-making Steve Karsay. He's given up only 21 hits and 4 walks in 28.1 innings pitched, spread over 19 appearances. In that time, he's managed to pick up 4 wins against only one loss, with the loss coming in his first appearance. What a bonus he's been for the team, plugging the few holes that have appeared.

Ace closer Mike Jackson is sporting a hefty 6.89 ERA. He's been touched up for 4 homers in a mere 15.1 innings, but he has yet to blow a save. He's been very effective except for two appearances, where he's given up 9 of his 12 earned runs. Five of them came in a May 19th 13-7 romp of the White Sox, where Jackson, just getting in some work prior to a day off, obviously slacked off big-time.

Well, I don't believe the Indians can keep up this torrid pace, but then I thought that about the Yankees last year. The scary part is that the offense could cool off, but the pitching actually could improve. There's certainly enough room for it.

The question is -- can they win in the post-season? We have a four month wait to find out, so we'll just have to be patient.

about the author

Dave Paisley proposes that would replace Wahoo with the Indians' mascot Slider on the team's caps. Explain that such a move would be offensive to mascots at drdjp@strikethree.com.