Cleveland Indians

Welcome to Tribe Talk, where Bleacher Report's Tribe fans weigh in on the ups and downs of the Indians each week throughout the season and here in our annual season preview.
 

When the Cleveland Indians traded for Chris Perez last year, they envisioned him as the closer of the future. Well, for the next six to eight weeks, the Indians are going to get a glimpse of what their future at the closer position is going to look like.

When I posted my updated shortstop rankings last week after the news on Jose Reyes, (click here to view) there was a lot of talk about Asdrubal Cabrera and his omission.  Honestly, I just don’t see what all the hype is about. 

Where is the potential upside? 

What is driving all this excitement?

Before we answer those questions, let’s look at his stats from 2009:

523 At Bats

This year, I set out on a goal to better learn the minor leagues. I am a Phillies fan but I realized that other than the Phillies, I didn't really know anyone else's system too well. I thought it would be a good idea to start ranking teams' top 10 prospects.

The Cleveland Indians are looking to bounce back from an awful 2009 season in which they went 65-97 and finished dead last in the AL Central. The worst season led by Eric Wedge since he took over the team back in 2003 when they were 68-94. The poor 2009 performance led to Wedge being fired during the offseason. He was replaced by Manny Acta.

Forget "Who's On First?".

The big question entering the 2010 season for the Indians is: "Who's Going To Lead This Team?".

Sure, we all feel better about the leadership coming from the dugout with the effervescent Manny Acta at the helm instead of the flat-lining Eric Wedge. But the team still needs a leader on the field.

Who is up to the task? Ladies and gentlemen, your candidates...

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Outfielder Jordan Brown will need arthroscopic surgery to repair a tear in his meniscus in his right knee. Jordan will likely miss four to eight weeks, and any shot that he had of making the Indians has gone right out the window.

Today we are going to take a look at the lefty portion of our All-Aught relief crew, and the first part of 'Dos Rafael' to enter our team of the decade. The All-Aught Relief Pitcher No. 5 is Rafael Perez.

Now Perez doesn't enter this club without some questions, but before we look at those, we have to take at why he made this team.

These aren't the Cleveland Indians from a few years ago.  This team has been gutted by trades, from Cy Young winners C.C. Sabathia and Cliff Lee to dealing Victor Martinez to the Boston Red Sox.  The 2010 edition of the Cleveland Indians will be very young and not very deep.

Pitching

If you're anything like me, you were kicking yourself last year for drafting Grady Sizemore in the first round of your fantasy draft.

The three-time All-Star was coming off of a 30-30 season in which he drove in 90 runs and scored over 100 times.

The sky was the limit—or so we thought.

Enter 2009. 

Sizemore suffered through injuries throughout the summer, eventually being shut down in September.