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Clevelinks: Cleveland Indians Defense; House, Santana, and Kipnis Notes

By Andrew Schmid

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T.J. House is still a factor for the Tribe; Carlos Santana is expected to return today; potential solutions for the Cleveland Indians’ defense are examined.

The defensive struggles of the Cleveland Indians were well-documented last season, and they seem to be back this year. FanGraphs’ defensive stat and DRS rank the Tribe’s defense as the third and fifth worst in baseball, respectively. Lonnie Chisenhall, Jason Kipnis, and Brandon Moss are the only players with positive defensive runs saved, and none of them are particularly well known for their defense.

With this in mind, Brian Heise solved the defensive problem. Since Francisco Lindor will be on the major league roster soon, and Yan Gomes is back, some of the problems will go away. Michael Bourn, however, does not look to be getting better any time soon. Brian lists several potential replacements – some of whom are internal; others, external.

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From defense to pitching, T.J. House is back from the disabled list and pitching for Triple-A Columbus, and Katrina Putnam thinks that he can still be a factor for the Cleveland Indians. House served as an effective arm last season, something clearly evidenced by his 3.35 ERA and 3.10 xFIP, but he struggled mightily this season. Lots of his problems can be traced to his decrease in throwing strikes

In other news, Carlos Santana expects to rejoin the Cleveland Indians today. Santana has been out for a few days to be with his wife, Brittany, as they welcome a new daughter into their family. The switch-hitter has batted well this season, posting a 22 wRC+ despite a .221 batting average. His return to the lineup will be greatly welcomed by a team that has lost a few close games recently.

Finally, the month of May is coming to a close, and Jason Kipnis has raked. In the month of May, the left-handed hitter has slashed .445/.531/.727 after an ugly start to the season. As of the writing of this post, Kipnis leads the American League in fWAR, and is in the top three of batting average, on base percentage, and WPA.

More from around the AL Central:

Soling the Cleveland Indians Defensive Dilemma – Wahoo’s on First

T.J. House Can Still Be a Factor for the Cleveland Indians – Wahoo’s on First

Santana Plans to Rejoin Indians on Sunday – Indians.com

‘Shaun Marcum’s solid outing help Indians to 4-3 win’ – Wahoo’s on First

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Next: Solving the Cleveland Indians Defensive Dilemma

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