Everything You Need To Know About The 2020 Cleveland Indians

Baseball is typically a marathon, not a sprint. But the 2020 season is different due to COVID-19 and social unrest. Off the field, the franchise has acknowledged it needs to reevaluate its team name and held a meeting July 21 with owner Paul Dolan and players to discuss a potential change. On the field, Major League Baseball has reduced the typical 162-game summer grind to a 60-game free-for-all. That means a fast start is imperative when the Cleveland Indians open the season at Progressive Field July 24 if the team wants to clinch its fourth playoff berth in five years. Fortunately, Cleveland has one of the easiest strengths of schedule in baseball, thanks to a top-heavy American League Central Division. “It seems like it should be something that works in their favor, but it’s not necessarily going to go the same as last year,” says MLB.com Indians beat reporter Mandy Bell. “You have a shortened season, and you have the Indians who have the longest drought in major league history of winning a World Series. It seems like a Cleveland thing that would happen that they go all the way this year.” We talked to Bell to find out what else Cleveland fans can expect this upcoming season. 

A Different Fan Experience 
While the Indians haven’t ruled out the possibility of fans attending games at Progressive Field at some point during the season, the ballpark’s green seats will remain empty at least during the first part of the season. However, if you watch games on SportsTime Ohio, don’t be surprised if you hear a roar from the “crowd” when Franmil Reyes smacks a no-doubter into the bleachers. “Crowd noise is required this year,” says Bell. “So all regular season games for all teams will have crowd noise piped in.” Some stadiums are also placing cardboard cutouts in the stands.

Changes At The Top Of The Lineup
The Indians have a new leadoff hitter, but not because they’ve traded Francisco Lindor (yet, anyways). With fan-favorite Jason Kipnis departing to the Chicago Cubs in the offseason, the Indians signed longtime Phillies second baseman Cesar Hernandez to a one-year contract this winter. On July 12, manager Terry Francona announced Hernandez will likely hit leadoff for the team, a move that will hopefully create more run-producing at-bats for Lindor, who will move down to third in the lineup. “I think you want him up to bat as many times as possible with runners on and I think they had the perfect fit for a leadoff hitter,” says Bell. “I think that just adds some depth. I think last year that’s something that they were missing, is offensive depth in their lineup.”

Replacing Corey Kluber and Trevor Bauer
The strength of the Indians in recent years has been the depth of its starting rotation, but the trades of ace pitchers Corey Kluber and Trevor Bauer in the past year have created some uncertainty in the No. 4 and 5 spots. While nothing is set in stone, Bell says look for Aaron Civale, who had a 2.34 ERA in 10 starts as a rookie last season, to be the front-runner for that No. 4 spot. “I don’t know if we can necessarily use the term ‘lock’ just yet, but he’s probably the person whose most suited for that number four spot,” she says. As for the No. 5 spot, Bell says it will likely come down to either Adam Plutko or Zach Plesac.

Jose Ramirez Is Back
The biggest mystery surrounding the Indians last season was what exactly happened to All-Star Jose Ramirez, who finished third in MVP voting in 2018, but went on a nearly year-long slump towards the end of that campaign. From Aug. 15, 2018 to June 12, 2019, Ramirez batted just .186 at the plate, with only six home runs. However, Ramirez went on a tear from that point on last season and still finished with a respectable .255 average with 23 home runs. Bell says the slump was truly a mystery and we can expect the Jose of old in 2020. “At least now, through the first week of summer camp, he’s picked up where he left off. I know all the numbers say that he’s projected for a big year this year and coming back from all the struggles that he had last year, it seems like he has that in the rearview mirror,” Bell says.

Who's Starting In The Outfield?
Oscar Mercado emerged as a breakout stud for the Indians last season in his rookie year, cementing himself as a mainstay in centerfield. However, there is uncertainty in the corner outfield positions, and it isn’t clear just who is going to win those spots just yet. “I think that’s the million-dollar question,” says Bell. “I mean, you have 10 outfielders on the 40-man roster and it’s just so many. And right now it’s hard because there are so many bumps and bruises.” Among the injured are newly acquired Delino DeShields Jr., who recently tested positive for the coronavirus, Jordan Luplow, who has been sidelined recently with a bad back, and Bradley Zimmer, who has dealt with a plethora of injuries since making his Major League debut in 2017. Bell expects either newly signed Domingo Santana or slugger Franmil Reyes to roam left field, with the other likely destined to be the DH, and right now, Tyler Naquin is the frontrunner to be the opening day right fielder, but it’s far from a guarantee. “He’s coming off a torn ACL from last August and didn’t finish the season, so they’re trying to see what he can do,” she says.

Francisco Lindor's Contract Status
The monster waiting in the closet right now for the Indians is the contract status of one of the best players in franchise history, shortstop Francisco Lindor. After he was allegedly dangled in trade talks over the winter involving the Los Angeles Dodgers, Lindor returns to the Indians for his fifth full season with the club. According to Bell, the shortened season likely increases the odds that he also finishes that fifth full season in an Indians uniform. “You have a good idea if you’re completely out of it or not by the end of July in a normal 162-game season, but now you really have to tank to start the year to know that you’re completely out of it,” Bell says. Before you go jumping for joy, Bell still believes that Lindor is dealt before the start of the 2021 season, although again, the coronavirus has thrown a lot up in the air. “I’ve seen stranger things that it wouldn’t completely shock me, as much as it would have a few months ago, if he would still be on the team opening day [in 2021].”

Read More: If you enjoyed this conversation with Mandy Bell, check out this spring training chat from February, when we thought we'd get a full MLB season and spoke to Bell about her love of Barrio tacos, growing up in Pennsylvania and growing up a New York Yankees fan.