Here we are, the home stretch. It feels like baseball is right in front of us but still so far away. At this point, fans start to see clips and pictures of their team working out and training together for the coming season. Those will make anyone desperate for real, live baseball get tingles, but it’s not the same. Luckily, for the Indians season ticket holders, there is a small fix just for them. A piece of live, tangible baseball talk from none other than the “Core Four” and the skipper. Jason Kipnis, Corey Kluber, Michael Brantley, Yan Gomes and Terry Francona sat with Matt Underwood of Sports Time Ohio to give hungry fans a peek at what they expect for 2016 and rock some serious doodling skills while playing Indians Illustrated (Pictionary).
Tito kicked it off by taking questions from fans in the audience, leading to conversations about how he sees the Indians pitching staff for next year. Talking up how lucky the team is to breathe a bit easier while watching all these other squads shell out hundreds of millions of dollars to have exactly what Cleveland has had this whole time. When asked if it’s possible to have too much pitching, Tito smirked, “never!” He also made sure to keep names like Josh Tomlin, T.J. House and AAA RHP Michael Clevinger in everyone’s ears, showing that behind our filthy starting rotation are some arms that can cause damage as well.
Another topic was the right-handed power bat. Tito seems very excited about the new additions of Mike Napoli and Rajai Davis, commenting that Napoli, being a solid first base and a great bat, is exactly what the skipper was hoping for. Davis, as we all know, was a pain in the butt for the Indians over the years, and with the rest of us, the skipper hopes that he will work for the Indians just as hard.
Tito spoke fondly of Mike Aviles, now signed with the Detroit Tigers, but came up with two names to fill the shoes of Magic Mike; Michael Martinez, and Jose Ramirez. Both are versatile utility players, playing a number of different positions between the infield and outfield. Ramirez still seems to be finding himself while testing out the outfield with Columbus in 2015. Martinez and his switch bat played well for the Indians last season in sixteen games.
The skipper’s plan for April, “don’t get in a hole we have to dig out of.” Tito was adamant about getting into a good rhythm and flow quicker than previous seasons. “If they come out of the first game with a loss, don’t panic. Fans. Players. Nobody. All games are worth the same, but there will be losses, but once they get into that groove they “do really well.”
It was refreshing to not only hear Tito’s voice again, but to see his confidence in his group of guys and even more in his “Core Four.”
In 2015, these four created a team contract for the clubhouse to sign and live up to as they play for the Indians. Holding them all accountable for their actions, positive and negative, in hopes of bringing the best of themselves out on and off the field. It spoke volumes on how these four; Kipnis, Brantley, Kluber and Gomes, see this team and what they expect from their club. It’s a foundation to build on, with leadership to look up to. Kipnis joked about having a problem with time management, showing up at 9:59 when he’s expected to be ready to play at 10 on the dot, promising while admitting this, that he’s working on getting places on time. A perfect example of what to work on and build on to be a better player and set a good example for those coming up in the future. “This is what we believe, this is who we want to be, what we want to represent…This is going to be our team.”
From there things got a little weird. Questions from “what would you do during a zombie invasion” to “how did Corey Kluber become the team prankster?” led into a throwback story of Kluber’s game interview, being pelted with peanuts, water and baby powder without breaking character. A testament to the Kluber face and why you should never trust the quiet ones.
The audience was treated to a game of Indians Illustrated, aka Pictionary. Team All Star (Kipnis and Brantley) faced off against Team Cy Young (Kluber and Gomes) in a head to head doodle contest. We learned that Brantley has never seen A Christmas Story, his rendering of Slider looks like Big Bird and that Kluber does crack a smile and laugh at things. Luckily, for the fans, their talents on the drawing board have nothing to do with their skills on the field.
This felt different than the Town Hall from 2015, where facts were given and a plan of execution was made, but the players on the stage last year seemed to be missing something. Today, there was a renewed sense of comradery and confidence. The Core Four are ready to step into a leadership role in the clubhouse. After today, I am as optimistic as ever about this squad, and ready for baseball to finally get back in Cleveland.
The Cleveland Indians Town Hall will air on Sports Time Ohio on February 7th at 9pm. I hope it gets you as pumped as I am!
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