MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — It’s been a rather even-keel season for the Indianapolis Indians, but the Tribe have just over a month to make a final push toward the playoffs.
It’s no secret that the Indians’ lineup this season has been ravaged both by injuries and call-ups, but the squad still managed an even 44-44 record heading into the All-Star break last week.
There have been positives, and there have been negatives — that’s sports. But let’s take some time to review as the final third of the season comes barreling at us.
POSITIVES
Will Craig
Heading into the break, Craig had 76 hits in 304 at-bats, giving him a .250 batting average. He has also clubbed 17 home runs and has totaled 50 RBIs, which puts him in the Top 15 in the International League in both categories.
Craig is the only player on the Indians’ roster to have hit double-digit home runs this season. To boot, no other player had more than 42 RBIs heading into Sunday’s game. As of Sunday morning, Craig carried a .244/.323/.449 line.
Craig was selected into the MLB Futures All-Star Game.
Pablo Reyes
Reyes has been a welcome addition since joining the team in mid-May. In 36 games with Indy, the utility man has hit seven home runs to go with 21 RBIs. He’s carrying a .258/.303/.516 line as of Sunday.
Ke’Bryan Hayes
Hayes has been solid and consistent all-around this season, even with a short rehab stint for a finger injury. Known for his defense, Hayes has had just two errors all season. He also has a .250 average and is 14th in the league with 21 doubles this season. He’s slapped five home runs and driven in 34 runs this season.
Kevin Kramer
For a second, it almost seemed as if Kramer was going to let a dry spell ruin his 2019 season, but he’s turned it on recently. The former second-round pick carried a .272/.356/.418 line before Sunday’s game, and has recorded at least one hit in seven of his past 10 games. Kramer is fourth in the league with 24 doubles.
Mitch Keller
Though he struggled in Pittsburgh, Keller has been reliable in Indy this season. He carries a 7-3 record with a league-low 3.07 ERA. His 96 strikeouts are good enough for third in the International League, and he’s walked just 31 batters in 57.0 innings this season.
Keller was named to the International League All-Star team this season.
Montana DuRapau
DuRapau has been nothing but solid for the Tribe this season. He’s appeared in 26 games and converted on all seven of his save opportunities. He carries a 2.67 ERA with a 2-1 record out of the bullpen. He’s totaled 32 strikeouts.
DuRapau was named to the International League All-Star team this season.
NEGATIVES
J.T. Brubaker
Set as the opening-day starter, Brubaker’s right forearm strain has been a thorn in the side of a team who has struggled to strut out solid starting pitching much of the season. Brubaker pitched only four games before going on the Injured List. In those four games, though, he was 2-1 with a 2.57 ERA over 21.0 innings. He never gave up more than six hits in a game over that early stretch, and he struck out 20 would-be hitters.
Untimely injuries
Digging deeper than Brubaker’s early exit, injuries to other key members of the team could have stifled the path to some wins in the first two-thirds of the season.
In mid-June, Jake Elmore was placed on the IL with a concussion; Hayes was placed on the IL with a left index finger dislocation; and Reyes was placed on the IL with a strained hamstring. Three key guys in the lineup, out at the same time — this all while pitchers Keller, DuRapau, Alex McRae and Dovydas Neverauskas were going back and forth between Indy and Pittsburgh.
All of the transactions
Pitchers of all varieties have bounced back and forth to Pittsburgh for much of the season. That, obviously, included the top starters and relievers from the Indians. Position players like Kramer, Cole Tucker and Jason Martin also bounced around.
On top of that, add the fact that Gregory Polanco has been to Indy twice on rehab assignments while others have trickled down to get some action in, too.
Add all that together, and you have a tough job at creating enough lineup chemistry to put together wins. It happens everywhere, of course, but it’s not a recipe for success.
TRIBE’S TOP HITTERS
Here’s who I’ve identified as the Indians’ top hitters over the past week. Slim pickins:
Kevin Kramer, INF — 3 for 9 (.333) with two doubles and four RBIs.
Pablo Reyes, UTIL — 5 for 14 (.357) with three home runs and seven RBIs.
Jake Elmore, UTIL — 6 for 16 (.375) with a home run, two doubles and an RBI.
Ke'Bryan Hayes, 3B — 8 for 18 (.444) with two home runs, a double and two RBIs.
TRIBE’S TOP PITCHERS
Top starting performance: Mitch Keller threw 6.0 innings of two-hit ball to pick up his seventh win of the season in the Tribe's first game out of the All-Star break. He struck out eight batters.
Top reliever: Tyler Lyons pitched 2.0 flawless innings to keep Columbus at bay in Sunday's 7-4 victory. Lyons didn't allow single base runner and struck out four would-be hitters in the outing.
THE ROSTER MOVES/INJURIES
7/11: 1B Will Craig reinstated from temporary inactive list.
RHP Yefry Ramirez reinstated from temporary inactive list.
INF Kevin Kramer optioned by Pittsburgh (7/8), active in Indianapolis.
UTIL Eric Wood placed on 7-day injured list (L foot contusion).
7/12: LHP Blake Weiman placed on 7-day injured list (L shoulder strain).
7/13: INF Erik Gonzalez ends MLB rehab assignment with Indianapolis.
RHP Keone Kela begins MLB rehab assignment with Indianapolis.
THE RESULTS/SCHEDULE
The Indians went 3-1 in their series with Columbus out of the break. They outscored their opponent 30-22 with a 17-5 victory in the mix. Next up, Indy hosts Syracuse (four-game series) and Durham (three-game series). The Tribe is 47-45 on the year, good enough for seventh in the International League. Indy is 9.0 games behind Columbus for first place in the West Division.
INDY FUN THING
Give me all of this:W
It's the perfect day for some ice cream in a helmet cup! ? pic.twitter.com/v7E48Xs7SE
— Indianapolis Indians (@indyindians) July 7, 2019
