Wahoo's on First » Roberto Alomar

Judging Mark Shapiro’s GM Tenure: High-Profile Trades

Ed Carroll — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 14:57:39 +0000

Let’s get a this out of the way: I am a fan of the work Mark Shapiro did as general manager of the Cleveland Indians, from when he got the job on November 1, 2001 until he was formally promoted to team president on October 3, 2010. I feel he did a good job putting a competitive team on the field given the financial restrictions of running a small-market team. His tenure was not perfect and a decade of poor drafting has hindered the team in many ways, but I think he deserves merit as one of the better GMs in recent baseball memory.

We’re now more than two full years removed from Shapiro’s promotion to team president and GM Chris Antonetti is firmly entrenched as the Tribe’s decision maker. So I thought now would be as soon as anyone could fairly judge Shapiro’s tenure as GM. There are still some loose ends hanging (Carlos Carrasco, for example, and Matt LaPorta), but the body of his work is complete, and I wanted to put my optimism to the test. (more…)

Are Kipnis and Cabrera the Best Keystone Combo in Baseball?

Steve Kinsella — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 16:49:45 +0000

In the movie City Slickers, three aspiring cowboys are sitting around reflecting on a simpler time of their youth and talking baseball. As soon as the name Willie Mays is mentioned, all three respond in unison with the name of Vic Wertz. That scene personifies what it means to be a baseball fan—they have a way of categorizing just about every individual aspect of the game, including linking players’ achievements together. (more…)

Why Jason Kipnis Will Be a Superstar

Brian Heise — Mon, 11 Jun 2012 15:58:36 +0000

For anyone who hasn’t been paying close enough attention, Jason Kipnis is having a great 2012 season. He’s murdering the baseball and has stuffed the stat sheet in a manner that has made Indians fans and fantasy baseball enthusiasts drool. What makes Kipnis’ 2012 season so impressive is that all of this success has come during his first full year in the major leagues. After an impressive 36-game debut last season, Kipnis gave us a reason to believe the future of second base in Cleveland was in good hands. He hit for power with a decent average, and his defense steadily improved each and every game. (more…)