Betancourt: Case Closed?

The Angels are in the market for pitching, and according to the LA Times Tribe set-up man Rafael Betancourt is on their list of targets. While they probably will be reserving their biggest trade chips for a top starter, a mid-range pitcher would not be out of the question. The problem is that the Angels have one of the thinnest farm systems in the league (ranked 25th by Baseball America), after a few seasons of trades and signing Type A and B free agents. They lack any consensus top-50 prospects (not that Betancourt would command such a return).

The Chubby Indian's short list:

1) Jordan Walden. Mid 90s throwing righty with a decent slider. He's currently having control problems at the AA level, with 28 BB to 57 Ks in 60 IP, and needs to work on a third pitch to be an effective starter. That might, however, be something that the Tribe could avoid: he can hit 100 throwing from the pen.

2) Sean O'Sullivan. Righty starter. He's shown great promise this season, getting fast-tracked to the MLB level and putting up a 3.80 ERA in 4 appearances. He doesn't have great stuff, but he has good command over his low 90s fastball, as well as an average curve and change. He throws strikes, and uses all of his pitches.

3) Tyler Chatwood. Another Righty starter. The Angels second round pick last season is only 19, hits the mid 90s with his heat, and has a great curve. His 5.9 BB/9 at the A level shows that he still needs plenty of work, but he has all the tools you could want in a kid who is only a year removed from High School.

Tribe Aquires Chris Perez!

The Indians have traded Mark Derosa for Chris Perez.

Perez is one of the top set-up men in the league.

More analysis tomorrow.

Crunch Time

Pay close attention to the next two games, Tribe fans.

In our opinion, the next two starts (each) by David Huff and Jeremy Sowers will be the major determining factor in Shapiro's decision to buy pitching, or sell for prospects. If these two can continue improving, as they have in their last few starts, the Tribe will have 4 quality starters in their rotation, as well as Westbrook, Laffey, and Scott Lewis all set to return around the end of the month. If they are only able to give 5 4-5 innings per start, the pressure on the bullpen will likely be too much, and the Tribe will find themselves in sell mode as they approach the break.

Both Huff and Sowers have made major strides in the pasat month. In his first two starts, Huff's pitches (particularly his fastball) showed little life or deception, and he had trouble getting them past the batter for strikes. In his four starts since, he has added a couple MPH to his fastball, and more movement to his breaking pitches. Sowers, for the last two seasons, has had a chronic problem getting through the opposing lineup the second time around. This season, he's made great strides in that area, and has finally been able to keep his heat in the low 90s with control.

The key to their success is going to be their efficiency.

Sowers has given up only 5 runs in his last 4 appearances (counting a may 25th appearance when he pitches 5 innings of relief, after Carmona lasted only 1 inning). The flipside is that he only lasted an average of 5.1 innings in those appearances, and had to pitch an average of 83.25 pitches to get that far (if you remove his may 25th appearance, when he was pulled after 57 pitches, it looks a lot worse).

Similarly, Huff has given up only 10 runs in his last four outings, and though he did go 7.1 innings in his last start, it took him 112 pitches to get that far, and he looked pretty shaky at the end.

If these two young starters can pitch consistently, then the Tribe will likely be 3 relief arms away from a solid staff (even before last night's debacle, it should have been obvious to most that Herges, Aquino, and Vizcaino are not playoff-caliber arms). That's not even taking into account the inevitable return of Betancourt. Sowers can possibly fill one of those spots, and Rich Rundles, Vinnie Chulk, and Tony Sipp are waiting in the wings at Huntington Park. The bullpen is fixable. If Huff and Sowers fail to improve, however, there will be simply too many holes for a middle-market team like the Tribe to fill, without mortgaging a large part of their future away.

Keep your eyes on the ball.

A Sad Day for Cleveland

Former Tribe owner Dick Jacobs has passed away today, at age 84. Jacobs owned the team from 1986-2001, ended nearly 40 years of bad teams and ushered in the "Era of Champions".

Jacobs goes down as one of the greatest Cleveland sports franchise owners in the city's history.

Time to pick up the phone?

Leadoff man and short stop Asdrubal Cabrera was helped off the field in tonight's game with a shoulder injury. While it's too early to assume anything, he wasn't moving his arm, which is not a good sign.

If Asdrubal hits the DL, it's very hard to imagine the team contending, which means it is time to start fielding calls for players.

The Cardinals are very interested in Mark DeRosa, by all accounts. How about a trade of DeRosa for hard-throwing righty reliever Chris Perez?

The hits keep coming...

...to the roster, that is.

Those keeping track at home can add Raphael Betancourt, possibly the Tribe's most consistent reliever this year, to the 15-day DL. He sustained a groin strain in Saturday's game.

Tony Sipp has been recalled from Columbus to take his place.

Nail in the Coffin?

The nagging elbow injury that has kept Grady Sizemore out of center field has finally landed him on the DL. He had been playing through the pain for the last couple of weeks, mostly in a DH role, but the pain had finally become too much for Grady.

Couple this with Travis Hafner's shoulder soreness lingering, Anthony Reyes and Scott Lewis both out for extended periods of time, and Aaron Laffey on the DL, and you are not looking at a team prepared to make a big pre-break turnaround.

Chris Giminez, a versatile infielder who is primarily a catcher, will take Sizemore's spot on the roster.