The Cleveland Indians are on a nice run. They’ve made the postseason a couple seasons in a row and have one of the most dynamic starting rotations in the Majors. They also saw young players like Francisco Lindor turn into MVP candidates.
After making the World Series in 2016, Cleveland didn’t stand pat and hope to make it again. They added power and bullpen arms to finish the job last season. They failed to make another World Series appearance, but their team was as dangerous as any other team in the Majors.
They come into this season with basically the same team. Can the Indians finally end their championship drought and win it all this season?
Here is the 2018 MLB season preview for the Cleveland Indians.
2017 Win/Loss Record: 102-60
Key Additions: 1B Yonder Alonso, RP Ben Taylor, 2B Rob Refsnyder, 2B Brandon Barnes, RP Matt Belisle, RP Jeff Beliveau, OF Rajai Davis, OF Preston Claiborne, SP Stephen Fife, C Ryan Hanigan, RP Evan Marshall, DH Mike Napoli, RP Alexi Ogando, RP Neil Ramirez, SP Adam Wilk, RP Carlos Torres & OF Melvin Upton Jr.
Key Losses: 1B Carlos Santana, OF Jay Bruce, OF Austin Jackson, RP Bryan Shaw, RP Boone Logan, RP Joe Smith, RP Shawn Armstrong & Craig Breslow
Interleague Schedule: NL Central
Projected Starters: Roberto Perez, Yonder Alonso, Jason Kipnis, Jose Ramirez, Francisco Lindor, Michael Brantley, Bradley Zimmer, Lonnie Chisenhall & Edwin Encarnacion
Projected Starting Rotation: Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, Trevor Bauer, Josh Tomlin & Mike Clevinger
Closer: Cody Allen
Fantasy Sleeper: OF Michael Bradley – Bradley had a breakout season in 2014, but has only play in a total of 101 games the last two seasons. He hits for average and has solid 20/20 power-speed combo (if given 450+ at-bats). The Indians are loaded, so at-bats could be at a premium. He’s a guy you need to keep an eye on. He’s not a one-year wonder as he was the picture of healthy before 2016. He may have been tagged as injury-prone coming into the season, but he had a stretch of four seasons in which he played more than 137 games a season. If he can stay off the DL, his track record shows he can be a very good fantasy player. He could be a guy to select late in mixed league drafts that could pay off in a big way.
Prospect To Keep Your Eye On: C Francisco Mejia – The Indians already have a logjam at catcher with both Yan Gomes and Roberto Perez fighting for playing time. They are solid catchers and most teams would love to have either guy. Mejia is the best prospect in the Indians farm system and is good enough to supplant both Gomes and Perez very soon. He’s a switch hitter that hits for average and power. There is an outside shot he could be moved to third base as he was used there at times in Double-A last season. He should end up get some at-bats in the Majors this season.
Team Analysis: The Indians are an easy team to handicap. They have a starting rotation with swing-and-miss stuff, the best middle reliever in the game (Andrew Miller) and one of the best closers (Cody Allen). Their position players are filled with All-Stars and young talent with upside. They should be good for a long time.
The AL Central is down this season and the Indians really only need to worry about the Twins. Minnesota has a lot of young talent, but they aren’t on Cleveland’s level right now.
Cleveland won over 100 games last season and they could very well do it again this season. They are a sure bet to at least win 90+ games in the lowly AL Central. They are among the best teams in the Majors. The American League playoff battle should be very good as the Astros, Red Sox, Yankees and Indians are all excellent teams.
2018 Wins Over/Under Betting Line: 94.5 (Prediction: OVER)
2018 Projected Win/Loss Record: 96-66 (1st in AL Central)
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About the Author…
Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘America’s White Boy’ and contributor at Project Shanks. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks, Guyspeed, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at @Sweetbob.