There has been a lot of turnover in the Indians lineup in the recent years. This season will mark the fifth year since the whirlwind of a season that left Indians fans reeling after coming within one game of the World Series.

Looking at the roster the Indians put on the field in 2007, not many of the players are still in Cleveland. Some of the names are recognizable, and even memorable. But for most of the players, if they were with the Tribe beyond 2007, they probably weren’t there much longer.

It many respects, it’s easy to think of the 2007 Cleveland Indians and the 2012 Cleveland Indians as two entirely different teams, with completely unique identities. We have yet to see if the 2012 version has the ability to make a splash and have a magical season like the one of 2007.

Remember David Dellucci? Maybe, but do you know what he’s done since leaving the Tribe in 2009? He’s not the only member of that team who seems to have disappeared from the sport of baseball entirely and the faded from the memories of Indians fans. I doubt many future grandfathers will tell stories of the “great” Ryan Garko, but they will tell stories of that fateful October. It was one to remember, but it seems that many of the players weren’t.  So where are they now? (more…)

I can’t wait till the end, I’m gonna throw down the hammer first: former Cleveland Indians “closer” Joe Borowski endorses former Indians manager Eric Wedge as manager of the Cubs. Well no duh, Wedge was the only one who showed any confidence in Borowski during his tenure as Indians closer. And why shouldn’t Wedgie have shown confidence in Borowski? Closers with ERA’s over 5 and WHIPs of 1.43 make great closers. Wedge was just lucky it never bit him in the ass in the 2007 playoffs.

Tony at Indians Prospect Insider hands out his Tony awards to various players in the Indians minor league system. Good place to start to familiarize yourself with the Indians’ farm system.

Nino over at The Tribe Daily has been handing out the Cleveland chapter of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance awards. Deep Left Field is indeed a member of the BBA, but I kinda forgot to send in my votes. Whoops. Anyway, I agree with Nino’s choices for most of these. Definitely check it out.

The DiaTribe, with a look at Cliff Lee’s postseason performances. Ugh. In the post prior to the Lee one, there’s also a fascinating look at the Indians’ new front office and whether or not it’s going to be any different

Castrovince gives us a little inbox love in this week’s mailbag. Nothing too earth-shattering in this one though, although there’s a look at the batting order, and a mini-discussion on Omar Vizquel.

WFNY, commenting on the ado about nothing that is Shin-Soo Choo wanting a “transfer.” Let me make this clear: Shin-Soo Choo cannot leave the Indians under his own will until 2013. And that’s if the Indians do absolutely nothing. Choo is not going anywhere, anytime soon.