Tag: this is cle

Projecting the Indians ALDS Roster

On By Chris ElliottIn baseballLeave a comment

The regular season is close to wrapping up and while the Indians are still playing to secure home field advantage, it is not too early to start thinking about the playoff roster for the first round.

Majority of the spots I feel are pretty secure. A few guys are injured right now and (knock on wood) hopefully no one else gets hurt at this point. So right now, I am assuming Brantley, Zimmer, and Guyer will be out. I am also assuming Lonnie Chisenhall makes it back.

Saying that, let’s start with the pitching staff. Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, and Trevor Bauer are locked in as the 1, 2 and 3 spots in the rotation. The fourth spot is one of my question marks. In the pen, Andrew Miller, Cody Allen, Bryan Shaw, Mike Clevinger, and Joe Smith are all for sure going to make it. Still leaves 2-3 pen spots open depending on how many arms Tito wants to carry.

Now, the easiest position is catcher. Yan Gomes and Roberto Perez are locks. That position is set. Edwin, and his parrot, at DH is locked as well.

The infield is easier than the outfield so let’s go there. Carlos Santana, Francisco Lindor and Jose Ramirez are all set. Giovanny Urshela will make it at third and I’m going to go with Yandy Diaz making this roster as well.

So heading into the outfield now, we have 16 spots reserved with at least 3 more going to pitchers. Austin Jackson, Jay Bruce, and Lonnie Chisenhall will all make it. I also believe Jason Kipnis gets a spot. Now, how many outfielders do the Indians keep out there is a big question.

With five spots left, this is where it gets tricky. The starting rotation spot is a battle between Danny Salazar and Josh Tomlin. It’s a real toss up here but I think Tito goes with Salazar. Tomlin deserves to be on this roster but I don’t see it in the cards for him unless Salazar has a meltdown in his next start. 21 spots down.

Now to the pen. Keeping Salazar means you need another pen arm with his limited innings. I think Tito picks 8 and that means to me that Dan Otero, Nick Goody and Tyler Olson all make this roster. Ryan Merritt and Zach McAllister are the two arms that get left off for this round. 24 secured leaving us with 1 more position player.

This is really coming down to three players I believe. Erik Gonzalez, Abraham Almonte, and Greg Allen. Gonzalez is a great utility guy and a speedster on the base paths but I think Urshela, Jose and even Kipnis being able to come back to the infield eliminates his need. Which means it’s Almonte or Allen. Allen is the better defender here and for that reason I think the kid makes the roster. There you go. 25 man roster complete.

Here is the quick run down again.

Starting Pitchers:

Corey Kluber

Carlos Carrasco

Trevor Bauer

Danny Salazar

Pen:

Mike Clevinger

Bryan Shaw

Cody Allen

Joe Smith

Andre Miller

Dan Otero

Nick Goody

Tyler Olson

DH:

Edwin Encarnacion

Catchers:

Yan Gomes

Roberto Perez

Infield:

Carlos Santana

Yandy Diaz

Giovanny Urshela

Francisco Lindor

Jose Ramirez

Outfield:

Jay Bruce

Austin Jackson

Jason Kipnis

Lonnie Chisenhall

Greg Allen

Go Tribe!

Getting Saucy

On By Chris ElliottIn Alcohol, Brewery, RestaurantsLeave a comment

Cleveland just keeps them coming. Saucy brew works is just a couple streets over from the main west 25th strip of Ohio city. This large space, including an outdoor patio, is a nice addition to the Hingetown neighborhood. This brewery opened up a little over two months. While the ordering setup was a little confusing, the staff quickly noticed my awkward standing around while I tried to figure it all out and they came over to direct me to the right place. Good customer service is always appreciated.

The beers were pretty good. While the TPS IPA was ok, but nothing extraordinary, the Save Room for Pie vanilla pumpkin porter was a sweet porter that drinks really easily. The Punchline fruit beer was delicious as well and I think I could easily pound 10 of those back like they were a glass of Welch’s fruit punch.

The pizza was very good as well. The large comes out on this huge serving tray. A large pizza indeed. We had the margherita and was very pleased with it. Overall, it is a great new spot with a pretty extensive tap list for a new brewery with quite a few seasonal brews that I will have to try out next time.

Suburban Brew Sprawl

On By Chris ElliottIn Alcohol, Brewery, Restaurants1 Comment

While in recent years across the country, we have seen a retreat from a suburban sprawl. Millennials have moved into the cities and gentrification has happened as soon as the hipsters find a new run down neighborhood to move into. While this has happened we have also seen breweries pop up left and right.

There are  two places new breweries pop up. Go where the foot traffic is and try to stand out among the crowd.  Or pick a new location and pave your own path. Both ways can work and it really comes down to the beer you make, service your provide, and atmosphere you create.

Avon Brewing Company launched a few months ago out in the suburb of Avon, Ohio. This is away from the downtown brewery scene that adds a brewery faster than a teenage girl adds Instgram pics.

While I love a good beer, I also am a giant child and love mac and cheese. Avon Brewing has one of the best mac and cheese dishes around. Great choice with the shells and the perfect amount of cheese. Top 5 mac and cheeses I have had and trust me I have eaten a lot of mac and cheese.

Another great thing about this brewery is that they just don’t serve their beers. It takes a brewer that not only believes in their product but believes in beer as a whole to serve guest beers at their place. Sometimes people want some other variety than the 5 or 6 beers many smaller brewers have and I think having guest beers is a great addition. This brewer realizes their beer can still stand out among others. Some brewers are afraid of the risk that their beer may not get selected every time but if people know they have choices I think they are more likely to return and hang out longer. I commend Avon for that decision. Overall, Avon Brewing is a great experience a little way away from the typical brewery spaces throughout the Cleveland area. Perfect for when you need a break from the downtown environment but still want a good beer.

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