Things haven't been quite as expected so far this year and multiple players have moved at least ten places from the preseason Power Rankings. In general, comparing this ranking to the preseason predictions we see that the bullpen as a unit has been fantastic as well as two (or three) starting pitchers, while the majority of the offense has fallen behind. The "Above," "Even" and "Below" remarks reference how the individual player has performed during the current month compared to their preseason expectations. This is why Jason Giambi batting is rated at "Even" while Jason Kipnis is rated "Below."  The rankings themselves show each players importance to the team to this point. The +/- number given after the rating tells the difference between the players current rank and their preseason position.

1. Carlos Santana Above (+1)

If you picked one player to lead the league in batting average before the season started, you may have picked Brantley or Bourne or even Kipnis, but the fact is, Carlos Santana leads all of Major League Baseball in batting average at .389. Everyone knew that Santana was going to be an integral part of the middle of this Indians lineup, but with the top of the lineup struggling, Santana has been the shining star.

2. Justin Masterson Above (+2)

Masterson started the season amazing, holding an ERA of under 2.00 until his final start of the month. The Indians took advantage of off-days and rain outs to use their ace as often as possible with him making six starts in April. He started 3-0 with a 0.41 ERA in his first three games, before falling back towards the norm and ending the month with a 3.12 ERA. He still remains the teams ace and the number one pitcher the Indians want on the mound in any situation as he always give the Indians a chance to win.

3. Mark Reynolds Above (+4)

With Bourne and Myers hurt and Swisher flailing, Reynolds has been by far the Indians best offseason pick-up. His 8 home runs are tied for third in the AL and easily lead the Indians. He also leads his team with 22 RBI and 17 runs scored. Even his negatives haven't been as bad as advertised to this point as he hasn't struck out too much and is batting a very respectable .301. Even defensively he has been impressive, especially since he was supposed to be the DH, but has been thrown into the first baseman's role following the Bourne injury.

4. Zach McAllister Above (+10)

McAllister has been the Indians second best starting pitcher, making him the second most important pitcher overall. He has thrown 30 innings this year and allowed just just 11 earned runs, the least of any starter. He gives the Indians a very fair chance to win every time out, which is all a team can ask from their fourth starter.

5. Nick Swisher Even (-2)

Swisher has yet to earn his big paycheck, but still has the majority of four seasons to do so. The fact is that Swisher was vastly overrated coming into the season after signing his large contract and is actually playing at the level he should be expected to. He has only knocked in 9 runs, but this is largely because of the inefficiencies of the players batting ahead of him. Instead, Swisher has been getting on base a lot (leading the team with 15 walks) in front of Reynolds and Santana, leading him to score more often than may have been expected.

6. Corey Kluber Above (New)

Kluber has done something this month that Brett Myers, Scott Kazmir, Carlos Carrasco and Trevor Bauer have been unable to do this season, which is make a quality start. After pitching the final four innings in relief in Kazmir's second start, Kluber started a game of his own and was magnificent. In three appearances he has thrown 12 innings and struck out 11, allowing just three runs. He seems to be the odd man out with Bauer scheduled to rejoin the rotation, but he is definitely not the worst pitcher on the team.

7. Joe Smith Above (+8)

Smith has to be considered the top reliever to this point as he is the only Indians pitcher yet to give up a run. He has only pitched 8 innings, mostly because of his role as the early right handed match-up man in close games. When the Indians have had close games, they have been able to go straight to Pestano and Perez and they don't like to use Smith in blowouts. He has struck out 9 batters and allowed a BAA of just .154 in his limited use.

8. Bryan Shaw Above (+12)

Shaw has probably been the top reliever in the Indians pen, giving up just a single run in more than ten innings with 13 strike outs. As a new member, the Indians didn't know what to expect from Shaw, but he has proven to be one of their greatest assets. He should now be trusted in any situation he is needed in. 

9. Chris Perez Even (+1)

The Indians closer has mostly been held back by a lack of opportunities. He has pitched in 8 games, but only had four chances at saves, one of which he blew. His ERA (1.13) and BAA  (.179) are more than respectable and his one blown save was a one run affair that the Indians ended up winning in extra innings.

10. Cody Allen Above (+6)

Allen has been used in a very different role so far this year, mostly as a long reliever in already decided games rather than as a match-up man. He has been fantastic in this role, and has currently pitched more innings (11) and struck out more batters (15) than any other pure reliever. He has allowed three runs, which leads to a higher ERA (2.38) than most of the bullpen, but chances are the others will come up to meet him at some point.

11. Vinnie Pestano Even (-2)

Pestano has been the Indians top reliever for the past two seasons, so it is surprising to see him this low on the rankings, but the bullpen as a whole has been an incredibly efficient unit and each of the players from 6 through 11 could be in just about any order.

12. Michael Brantley Below (-6)

Brantley was originially slated to bat later in the lineup, after the group of power hitters of Reynolds, Swisher and Santana. In this position he struggled, batting .282 in 11 games with just a single extra basee hit. When Michael Bourn went down, Brantley was moved into the lead-off spot and in the 11 games since he has batted .298 with five extra base hits. Even more impressive, he has knocked in seven runs from the lead-off spot when he only knocked in two from a more RBI friendly position.

13. Mike Aviles Even (+6)

Aviles has been exactly as advertised. He has been very versatile, playing three different infield positions and producing offensively despite not playing regularly. He was especially impressive at short stop while Cabrera missed a few days after falling on his wrist.

14. Nick Hagadone Even (New)

Hagadone was originally slated to be the teams left handed match-up man, but a good Spring by Hill moved him to more of a general role and Kazmir's injury forced him to start the year in Columbus. Since his return, Hagadone has been excellent, facing both righties and lefties, although he has been better against the left handers. He has yet to give up a hit against a left handed batter, although he has walked three.

15. Lonnie Chisenhall Below (-4)

Lonnie is playing his first full season in Cleveland and has been seeing some struggles that he probably should have been allowed to play through two years ago. He has had some positives this season especially on defense, where he has been better than thought in the minors and with his power stroke as he has hit three home runs already this year, placing him third on the Indians in home runs.

16. Drew Stubbs Below (-3)

Stubbs came to the Indians as a lead-off hitter and a centerfielder and was immediately turned into a number nine hitter and a right fielder. Defensively, he took to the change superbly, but offensively he leaves more to be desired. He currently leads the team in strike outs (not a big surprise), but has shown little of the power that comes with it. He has just four extra base hits, compared to Bourn who had seven in less than half as many games. As a bottom of the lineup hitter, there is no real pressure on Stubbs to perform and he will still be an asset to the team as a light hitting valuable defensive player, but with as weak as the Indians lineup has been, they can use help from anyone.

17. Rich Hill Even (+5)

As the second left handed reliever on the team, Hill hasn't thrown very many innings, being used as a one hitter pitcher most of the time. Hill has thrown just 4.2 innings in seven appearances. Hill has done his job as well as could be asked and having a second left hander in the bullpen has made Terry Francona's job easier on multiple occasions.

18. Asdrubal Cabrera Below (-10)

Cabrera has been firing up a little of late, but still has not played up to expectations for this month. In fact, combined with the failures of the next player listed as well, he can be blamed as the number one reason that the Indians have had trouble scoring. Their struggles and Terry Francona's insistance to keep them at the top of the lineup have made it very difficult for the sluggers batting behind them to knock in runs.

19. Jason Kipnis Below (-18)

Kipnis has been, by far, the most disappointing player on the Indians to this point. While his defense has maintained, he has struggled on offense and has been in a very important place in the top of the lineup. Despite batting either second or third in every game this year, he only has scored three times, a product of his .260 OBP. If this continues, the Indians will need to drop him in the lineup, possibly after the return of Bourn.

20. Yan Gomes Even (New)

Gomes has only played a few games for the Tribe this year, filling in whenever Lou Marson gets an owie. Despite playing in just 7 games, he already has hit two home runs and two triples. He also called one of Jimenez's best games this year, showing he can work with even the most difficult pitcher.

21. Ryan Raburn Even (+2)

Much like many other players on the roster, Raburn was thrown into a much increased role with the team after the Bourn injury. Raburn has been the default right fielder when Swisher has stayed at first base. The increase in playing time may have benefited Raburn in recent days as he just had his best game of the month, hitting two home runs and knocking in four of his 8 RBI in one game against the Royals (and 7 of the 8 in the Indians past two games). It seems to be between Raburn and Giambi as far as who will be released when Bourn comes back and Raburn's versatility and recent power streak could make the difference.

22. Matt Albers Below (0)

Albers missed considerable time due to a family emergency and his six games pitched are the least of any reliever. He is also the worst as far as ERA goes, allowing more than four runs per nine innings. He has pitched better in the past, and may return to form with a return to regular appearances out of the bullpen. Even going into the season he was considered the weakest link in the bullpen and remains to be the first man out if the Indians decide to bring up the next Cody Allen (aka Preston Guilmet).

23. Jason Giambi Even (New)

Giambi has done exactly what everyone expected this year. He has pinch hit some and played DH with Bourn out. During that time he has hit two mammoth home runs and popped out 11 times in 28 at bats (he has also struck out six times). He is a perfect pinch hitter as he is capable of hitting a home run at any second and will probably stay around until the Indians want to bring up one of their young sluggers, like Mike McDade or Jesus Aguilar.

24. Scott Kazmir Below (New)

Kazmir was initially supposed to be the Indians fifth starter, but ended up hitting the DL before he made his first start. Since returning, he has made two starts, thrown just over 8 innings and allowed 8 runs. This is easily explained by his 13 hits allowed (and three home runs) more than any other pitcher with less than 20 innings pitched. With Myers on the DL and Jimenez struggling, Kazmir is likely to remain in the rotation until he figures things out.

25.Ubaldo Jimenez Below (-8)

Only misguided optimism allowed me to originally rank Jimenez above the level where he is currently residing as the absolute worst player on the Cleveland Indians. This doesn't cope well with the fact that he remains the Indians number two starter. His last start to end the month was great, but last season he had similar starts surrounded by awful outings.

No Longer With Us
15 Day DL

Michael Bourn Above
Brett Myers Below
Lou Marson Below

AAA Columbus

Carlos Carrasco Below
Omir Santos Even
Trevor Bauer Below
Cord Phelps Even
Fernando Nieve DNP
Scott Barnes Below

Carlos Santana:  Top Player on the Indians and in the AL.

Player of the Game

The little Tiger that could has hit two home runs in each of the past two nights, giving him his second straight Player of the Game award. Ryan Raburn's first shot was a two run home run (the most popular variety on the night) while his second was a solo shot. Added together he has gone 7-8 with four home runs, 7 RBI and five runs scored. A fairly decent haul for a utility infielder playing right field.

Feathers Up

The Indians top two hitters took care of the Phillies top pitcher early as both Carlos Santana and Mark Reynolds each hit two out, two run home runs. Jasons Kipnis and Giambi were nice enough to get on base before the two sluggers.

The two run home run frenzy continued throughout the game and against other pitchers as well. By the end of the game, Michael Brantley, Lonnie Chisenhall and Ryan Raburn in addition to those already mentioned each hit 2 run jacks.

If the two run home runs weren't enough for you (or Zach McAllister) Ryan Raburn and Drew Stubbs each hit solo shots in the seventh inning, giving them seven home runs on the night.

Roy Halladay is just the third former Cy Young award winner to be destroyed by the 2013 Indians offense. After beating each of last year's award winners in the first week of the season, they took out a two time winner. They did lose a game earlier this season to Jake Peavy, making them 3-1 on the year against former Cy Young winners.

Jason Giambi earned a couple hustle points for head first sliding into first to be safe on an infield single in the 8th inning of a 12 run game. For those who don't know, hustle points will decide which player is sent down when Michael Bourn returns.

Feathers Down

Roy Halladay was taken out of the game in the fourth inning. The Indians had already scored 8 runs off him and would have prefered he stayed around a few innings more.

Final Score: Cleveland Indians 14 - Philadelphia Phillies 2

Philadelphia Phillies (12-14) at Cleveland Indians (10-13) 
Series 9, Games 24 and 25
Progressive Field, Cleveland: 1.061, Hitters park

Series Overview
Heading into this season, the Phillies are caught in an in-between state and like the Indians, should rebuild in my opinion. No matter what happened last year, the presence of Hamels, Halladay and Lee makes them a dangerous team. After all, we all know that pitching wins. Much like the Yankees, these are not the typical Phillies that we grew up with. Although most of their star players are still on the 25 man roster, they are older and more prone to injury. Halladay is 35. Lee is 34. Ryan Howard is 33 and had a terrible 2012 season. Jimmy Rollins is 34. Chase Utley is 34, and hasn't played more than 115 games in the last three seasons. Carlos Ruiz is 34. Even new third baseman Michael Young is anything but for a professional athlete, at 36.  None of their offensive players are elite at his position anymore, but the trio of aces should keep them in the race this season.

Tuesday, April 30, 7:05 EDT (STO)
Zach McAllister (1-3, 3.52 ERA)  vs. Roy Halladay (2-2, 5.08 ERA)

Halladay, in his last outing, held the Pirates to just one run on one hit while striking out eight over six innings. According to ESPN Stats and Info, Halladay fell behind most of the batters he faced (only 57 of 95 pitches for strikes), but battled to force the Bucs to either strike out or make bad contact. Despite the strong outing, he did not get the win because the Phillies bullpen and defense blew the lead. After a rough start to the season, Halladay has started to pitch like his normal self. He has put up a 1.71 ERA with a 16:5 K:BB ration over his last three starts. Jason Giambi should DH in this game, as he has enjoyed wonderful success against Halladay; he is hitting .306/.375/.486 with four homeruns in 72 at-bats against the former CY Young award winner.

Player of the Game

In a solid Indians win, two player who are not usually brought up in the Player of the Game discussion took the contest to the wire. Starting pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez had his best start of the year, lasting 7+ innings and allowing just three hits, but he was bested by utility man Ryan Raburn, who was playing right field in tonight's contest. Raburn went 4-4 with two singles and more importantly two home runs, for a total of 4 RBI. Jimenez finished the game with a POG score of 8.18 while Raburn edged hit with a 9.67.

Feathers Up

Asdrubal Cabrera continued his small hot streak tonight, knocking in a run in the third inning with a single that extended his hitting streak to 8 games, the longest streak on the Indians so far this year.

The Indians were able to come up with some clutch hits for the second day in a row. In addition to the Cabrera single already mentioned, Asdrubal had an RBI double in the 5th, which was follow by an RBI single from Mark Reynolds and an RBI double by Carlos Santana, each with two outs. Ryan Raburn put and end to the Royals misery with a three run home run to end the scoring in the fifth.

After three straight disappointing starts, Ubaldo Jimenez threw seven strong innings against the Royals, pitching a one hit shut-out. Even the one hit he allowed was an infield single that Asdrubal Cabrera could have possibly gotten an out on. His success stemmed first from his ability to keep runners off the bases, but even when he did allow his three base runners, he was able to keep his composure and not allow further hits from the stretch. He did allow two hits without retiring a batter in the 8th inning, but this came with a 9 run lead and after he had thrown 100 pitches.

Ubaldo Jimenez has a way of making you eat your words if you say anything positive about him, so I will simply state that his start tonight made his season stats look slightly better. He now holds an ERA of 7.77 and a WHIP of 1.32 through 22 innings.

There may be no stat for what he did tonight, but Nick Hagadone deserves credit for coming in in the 8th inning with two runners on and no outs and preserving the shut out. The Indians lefty struck out two and forced a weak infield ground out for the other out.

Feathers Down

The Royals didn't let Carlos Santana get another walking steal after last night's debacle. Tonight, Santana tried to get a jump as part of a hit and run, but Ryan Raburn swung through the pitch and Santana was out by a distance. Of course, according to the rules of baseball, Raburn hit a single on the next pitch.

Final Score: Cleveland Indians 9 - Kansas City Royals 0

Player of the Game

Mike Aviles set a new career high with 5 RBI and generally lead the offense in their best game since scoring 19 against Houston more than a week ago (4/20). The RBI came mostly from a three run home run, but also during a fielder's choice in the first and a sacrifice fly in the seventh. The award is Aviles' third of the season, each at a different position. With his early season success and the struggles of Jason Kipnis, you may see more of Aviles at second until Kipnis gets back on his feet.

Feathers Up

The Indians had no problem scoring runs early in the night game, making one wonder what has been going on during the past two games. In the fourth inning the Indians had a runner on third with no outs and he actually scored (on a Drew Stubbs sacrifice fly) instead of ending the inning there. They even hit a home run the inning before. These are strange happenings for a team that was unable to score just this afternoon against Jeremie Guthrie. The six runs in four innings match the total runs scored by the Indians in their last four games combined, just showing another example of the Indians spotty offense.

The Indians scored a very unconventional run in the seventh inning on a Ryan Raburn strike out. With runners at the corners, Raburn check swung on a full count pitch. Carlos Santana headed to second, thinking it was a walk and dodged the tag after George Kottaras threw to second to catch him stealing. The return throw from first during the run down blew by the short stop and Mark Reynolds was able to score from third as Santana was safe at second. Santana was credited with a (walking) steal and Chris Getz earned the error for the wild throw.

In general, Corey Kluber looked fantastic tonight, and like Justin Masterson in the early game, made it very easy for the Indians to get through the double header with limited damage to the pitching staff. Most importantly for Kluber, he didn't walk anybody, while his six strike outs should be considered a bonus. His season numbers look just as impressive as he has allowed just three runs in 12 innings while striking out 11.

Yan Gomes hit another triple tonight, his second in as many games, giving him three extra base hits in seven games. For some reason Indians management has stated that Gomes needs to play every day in the minors rather than a few times a week for the Indians, but he is only one year younger than Marson who has been the Indians reserve catcher for four dismal years. The newest Marson injury is great news for the Indians as it means they will actually have a productive reserve catcher for at least two more weeks. It may be even longer if Indians management wakes up at some point.

Feathers Down

Corey Kluber was playing with fire early on, giving up six hits in the first four innings including three doubles. It finally caught up to him in the fourth when he gave up a two run, two out bloop single to Chris Getz.

The Indians won the game and can split the series tomorrow, but it only came after another three game losing streak. Thus far in 2013, the Tribe is yet to lose a single game between wins. It has been at least two, with three losing streaks of three or more.

Final Score: Cleveland Indians 10 - Kansas City Royals 3

Roster Update: With a double header scheduled today, the Indians and Royals were allowed to add a 26th man to the roster. The Indians chose to add left handed reliever Scott Barnes, which should be very useful after they used the entire bullpen in last night's loss. The Indians made another move as well, placing Lou Marson back on the 15 day DL and bringing back Yan Gomes after just two games in Columbus.

Player of the Game

Asdrubal Cabrera takes the Player of the Game for the atrocious game one loss with his 3-4 performance. He was the only player in the lineup with more than two hits and one of two with an extra base hit. His double helped him to a POG score of 1.03. Justin Masterson had his worst game of the year with a score of -4.05.

Feathers Up

Essentially, the Indians have 11 pitchers to throw 18 innings today with a further (expected) stipulation that no pitcher will be allowed to pitch in both games. Justin Masterson helped the Indians make the most of this situation by throwing the first 6.1 innings by himself. While he did allow six runs, he still pitched well and could have won the game with a little offensive support.

One of the Indians struggling top of the lineup hitters seems to be pulling through a little bit as Asdrubal Cabrera was the sole productive member of the Indians offense today, going three for four with a double. The outburst raised his batting average to an impressive .194.

Feathers Down

In the second and fourth innings Justin Masterson got two quick outs before walking Mike Moustakas on four straight pitches. Each time the following two batters each got hits, scoring the Royals first three runs, all of which were knocked in with two outs.

The Indians were unable to do anything today against their former first round draft pick, Jeremy Guthrie. Guthrie threw the Royals first 6.2 innings and allowed just six hits while shutting out the Tribe.

Matt Albers hit a batter and walked in a run (the fifth time the Royals have accomplished this in 2013), when he was brought into the game for Masterson. To this point in the season, Albers has definitely been the weakest part of a fantastic bullpen. It was the third run allowed by Indians pitching somehow related to a walk, something the staff must avoid until the Indians learn how to hit the ball.

Final Score: Cleveland Indians 0 - Kansas City Royals 9

Player of the Game

Michael Brantley had the hot stick tonight, knocking in the Indians only two runs in the ninth inning and giving them their other great scoring opportunity as well. He ended the game two for five with a double and a triple in addition to the two RBI. If there was one player who truly deserved absolutely no blame for tonight's loss, it was Brantley.

Feathers Up

After an off day and a rain out, the Indians are just happy to be playing baseball. The time off allowed a few Indians to fully recover from their individual ailments and the Indians used their entire starting lineup for the first time in four games. It also allowed the bullpen to rest, making sure they will be strong going into the rest of the series. For tomorrow's games the Indians will be allowed to add a 26th player.

Scott Kazmir was much better this time out than his first start this year. He admited he was nervous his last time out after taking more than a year away from Major League Baseball, but those jitters seemed to have gone away. He pitched five solid innings tonight against Kansas City, allowing just two runs on a two run home run by Salvador Perez.

Cody Allen has seen a change in usage under manager Terry Francona. After skyrocketing through the minors last year, he was used primarily as a single inning (or less) pitcher. This year, he has pitched more than one inning in three of his last four games and four of his seven total outings. He has taken to his new role quite well, pitching 6.1 scoreless innings with 11 strike outs.

Milestone Update: Scott Kazmir struck out his 1,000th batter tonight, making him the 461st player to do so. Ubaldo Jimenez is just 7 strike outs away from the same milestone so excuse me for not mentioning it when he does so within his next two starts.

Feathers Down

Despite having the full starting lineup on the field, the Indians were unable to score against the Royals. Of course, much of this could have to do with facing Ervin Santana who, while with the Angels, threw the only no-hitter in the history of Jacob's and Progressive Field.

Bryan Shaw showed the first chink in his armor this season, walking the only two batters he faced in the seventh inning and uncorking a wild pitch. Shaw was brought in to face Alcides Escobar with one on and two out and ended up putting his replacement, Rich Hill in a very precarious positition. Hill walked his batter to give the Royals a three run lead and needed Joe Smith to finally put an end to a very messy inning.

Nick Swisher has had the chances, but he just hasn't been the Matt LaPorta type of hero the Indians have needed. Early in the game Swishalicious grounded into a double play with the bases loaded to end the third. Then, in the 8th inning he came to bat with a runner on third, but was unable to score him when he took a walk.

Final Score: Cleveland Indians 2 - Kansas City Royals 3

Cleveland Indians (8-11) at Kansas City Royals (10-8) 
Series 8, Games 20, 21, 22 and 23
Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City: 0.863, Extreme pitchers park.  

The Cleveland Indians were Francona's third team after leaving the military in 1955. He came to the team in 1959 when he was traded for Larry Doby the second time (the first time was from the Orioles to the White Sox) this time coming from Detroit. While he played his first season in Cleveland in centerfield, he soon moved to left and then to first base. By the end of his career Tito played in more than 100 games at four different positions (LF, RF, CF and 1B). 

From 1959 through 1963 Francona was one of the top offensive performers on the Indians along with catcher Johnny Romano and first baseman Vic Power (in fact, Francona took over first in 1962 when Power left the team). He hit at least 10 home runs each of those seasons as a light hitting outfielder, topping out with 20 in 1959. He also batted .363 that season, his career high. In 1961 he had his most productive season, setting career highs in runs, RBI and triples.

After a subpar 1964 season, Francona was purchased by the St. Louis Cardinals, his first of five more teams before ending his career. In his entire career he hit 125 home runs, 85 of which were with the Indians. His offensive contributions were enough on their own to make him one of the greatest Indians left fielders in team history. His son Terry followed in his father's footsteps in 1988 by joining the Indians himself. The younger Francona came back in 2012 and is the current manager of the Indians.

Roster Update: The did something very dumb today as they brought back Lou Marson from the DL in exchange for Yan Gomes, who went back to Columbus. The Indians claim they sent Gomes back to AAA because they want him to play everyday, but with Carlos Santana and Nick Swisher signed long term, it is unlikely that Gomes would ever be the starting catcher for the Indians and he is already better than Marson both offensively and defensively. There was absolutely no good reason for this move.

Player of the Game

Jason Kipnis wins his first Player of the Game of 2013 with a single, two steals and one of two Indians RBI. He also made a great diving catch early in the game. His final score was 1.99.

Feathers Up

Jason Kipnis came through in the clutch in the sixth inning, knocking Jose Quintana out of the game after he had pitched just under 19 consecutive shut out innings. Kipnis singled after Drew Stubbs and Michael Brantley had already reached base and knocked in Stubbs for the first run of the game. It was just his third RBI of the season and his 9th hit, so, like Asdrubal Cabrera yesterday, it was good to see him do something positive.

In other good Kipnis news, Jason has three stolen bases in the past two games after just one in his first 11 games. A couple of close games against the White Sox have shown the team speed off more than in the first two weeks of the season with Stubbs, Brantley and Kipnis standing out particularly by taking extra bases in both Chicago games.

The bullpen was great again today, but it was a slightly different cast than normal. Rich Hill took over with two outs in the sixth and struck out both batters he faced. Bryan Shaw then took over for Hill in the 7th and also promptly recorded two outs. Shaw did give up two baserunners in the 8th, but Nick Hagadone came in and struck out the only batter he faced, following which, Joe Smith induced an inning ending double play. The Indians currently have six members of the bullpen who have an ERA sub 2.00 with at least 4 innings pitched.

Feathers Down

Lou Marson is back with the team and already cost the Indians a run. In the first inning tonight, Marson almost threw the ball into centerfield, allowing Alejandro De Aza to steal second easily. De Aza later scored on a single that was followed by a double play. A decent throw (like those made by Yan Gomes earlier this week) would have caught De Aza at second and ended the inning after the double play.

Ryan Raburn (batting fifth for some ungodly reason) had two chances to tie the game today, once with the bases loaded in the fourth inning (down 1-0) and later with a runner on third in the sixth (down 3-2). In the first instance he swung at the first pitch and grounded into an easy double play, ending the inning and the scoring threat. Learning from his early mistake, he swung at the first pitch again in the sixth, flying out to left to end the inning. Of course this isn't Raburn's fault, he is a .177 hitter over the past two seasons. He shouldn't be on the roster at all, let alone batting fifth, but there he was, batting ahead of starters Lonnie Chisenhall and Drew Stubbs as well as Mike Aviles.

Final Score: Cleveland Indians 2 - Chicago White Sox 3