@JonHeymanCBS: Sources: Jays to name the Indians' Mark Shapiro club president. announcement expected soon. http://t.co/Zr9LFdYoEW

Good for Shapiro. Also interesting to note that Dolan has stepped up efforts to sell minority interest in the team. That my friends is a euphemism for selling the team!

Combine our young, under long term contracts starting pitching with a $125M+ payroll and the Indians really have something brewing.

Dumping Dolan and Shapiro with a year of each other would be too good to be true!!!

In no sport does the manager/coach matter more than in baseball. (see Maddon)

JR - good point but perhaps not so much the deletion of Bourn and Swisher but the addition of the newer, younger energy from their young replacements.

Obviously they have to be the RIGHT replacements too though, not just young. But right now Chisenhall and Almonte are providing what we've been missing all year. Some punch in the outfield.

Add in Lindor and to an extent Urshela.

Oh yeah, and Rip Van Santana too.

Shapiro press conference is on WTAM now. Surprised that it isn't on TV, or if it is, I can't find it.
Found video online here:
http://fox8.com/on-air/live-streaming-wc/

Francona and Antonetti will stay.

Wild Card Standings:

http://scores.espn.go.com/mlb/standings ... /wild-card

Happy Birthday to DON SURBER!

First Wave of Call-Ups Feature 'Familiar' Faces


Floyd, Johnson activated; Armstrong called up

As the clock struck midnight, the time arrived for the Cleveland Indians and the rest of baseball to expand their rosters for the stretch run. Most teams are calculated with their moves, and won’t call-up any more than necessary. The Tribe kept it minimal in wave one as they activated Chris Johnson from the 15-day DL, Gavin Floyd from the 60-day DL, and called up reliever Shawn Armstrong.

Johnson has missed time with a bizarre infection after suffering what he believed was a spider bite at the team’s hotel. His start with the Indians was a good one before missing time, as he’s hitting .429 (9-for-21) with three doubles.



Floyd was originally anticipated to be part of the Indians rotation, but he didn’t even get started before his season came to a sudden halt. After having elbow surgery, Floyd has battled his way back to pitch this season. While not likely to start, his rehab appearances didn’t go so well. But results weren’t the goal, but making sure he was healthy and ready to pitch was.

After Tommy John and two subsequent elbow surgeries, Floyd will finally make his return. After signing a $4 million deal in the offseason, Floyd was forecasted to be the No. 5 starter for the Indians. That spot has been a tumultuous one at times this season, but Floyd isn’t likely to get another chance at it this year, barring a collapse from Josh Tomlin.

Armstrong has pitched very well in Columbus this season, posting a 2.36 ERA in 46 appearances. In 49 2/3 innings, he’s struck out 80 batters for a 14.5 K/9 ratio while saving 16 games for the Clippers. It’ll be interesting to see how Terry Francona utilizes him at the back-end of the bullpen with some of the struggles that Cody Allen has had this season finishing games.

Once the minor league season ends, it’s likely the Indians will make more call-ups.

DETROIT --The Indians dicey hopes of winning a wild-card spot have taken a big hit with the news that ace right-hander Corey Kluber has been scratched from Friday night's start against the Tigers because of a strained right hamstring.

Kluber will miss at least a week and it's not known if he'll pitch again this year. He suffered the injury running in the outfield during the Tribe's three-game series in Toronto.

The right-hander did not accompany the team to Detroit after the Toronto series, but traveled to Cleveland to undergo tests and treatment.

Josh Tomlin, Saturday's scheduled starter, will face the Tigers on Friday night. Danny Salazar, Sunday's scheduled starter, will start Saturday night. The Indians have not announced a Sunday starter.

Kluber, last year's Cy Young winner, is 8-13 with a 3.41 ERA in 28 starts. Kluber leads AL pitchers with 200 1/3 innings pitched. He's ranks third in strikeouts with 219.

In his last two starts, Kluber has allowed three runs in 13 2/3 innings in no decisions against the Cubs and Angels. He struck out 17, walked three and allowed three earned runs in those starts.

Just when we get hot and think we might be able to make a run, Carrasco goes down. And now Kluber. This season has just sucked.

Seems to me that what I am seeing is that while teams like the White Sox and Tigers have pretty much thrown in the towel and are going through the motions, the Indians are not.

Tigers surely have. Either that or they have an incredibly terrible group of pitchers left after recent dispositions of Price, Scherzer, Porcello. Of course they are likely to feel free to spend big for FA pitchers again this winter.

Of course they are likely to feel free to spend big for FA pitchers again this winter.

Don't think so this time civ.

There's a reason Price went away. They don't want to pay him. More importantly, there's a reason Dave Dombrowski followed.

There's a new Ilitch in charge there now, and the free spending ways are going to be history. Hence no need for Dombrowski - he moves on to free spending Boston instead.

wasn't aware of the change of owners' and pocketbooks. in that case the tigers may be bound for the cellar for awhile. their farm system doesn't have much to offer.

young starters like Buck Farmer and Boyd struggle to keep their ERA's in single digits.

So Miggy to the Yanks?