|
 |   |
EVENTS AD PARTNERS
|  |
Indians are preparing for October
Posted: Monday March 13, 2000 06:00 PM
As part of our continuing series of Spring Training updates from SI's baseball writers, CNNSI.com caught up with Stephen Cannella in Winter Haven, Fla., where he's covering the Cleveland Indians. CNNSI.com: Last year the Indians ran away with the division once again, but crashed dramatically in the playoffs, losing three straight to the Red Sox in the Divison Series. How has that affected the mood in camp? Stephen Cannella: Well, they weren't talking about the losses to Boston specifically, but it's obviously on everyone's mind because it cost Mike Hargrove his job. So I think it might have been a wakeup call for the Indians. They now realize that just getting to the playoffs and winning the division is not enough anymore. CNNSI.com: Are they over some of the injuries that plagued them in that playoff series? How is Kenny Lofton's recovery coming along?
Cannella: According to John Hart, everyone is healthy. Travis Fryman told me he feels as good as ever. He was taking ground balls at third, and I watched him hit. He looks good. Steve Karsay had his elbow scoped this winter, and he's throwing and feeling fine. Even Kenny Lofton, who had that horrific shoulder injury against the Red Sox, is ahead of schedule. He's doing everything now but throwing -- running and even some light hitting. The Indians think Lofton might be back by the end of May. CNNSI.com: Let's go back to the manager situation. Charlie Manuel replaced Hargrove and now that he's out for several weeks as a result of surgery. Has that disrupted the flow in camp? Cannella: Manuel's not a brand-new face; he's been their hitting coach for the last several years. All the players know him. But above all they love him. He's one of the guys constantly joking around with them, wrestling in the clubhouse, horsing around in the field before his surgery. Last week Manuel was shagging flies and pitching batting practice. And since his surgery is not real serious, and they don't expect many problems, I don't think it has affected camp all that much. Since he had about a week with the team before he went into the hospital, Manuel had a chance to set the tone. He set the schedule, and got things running the way he wanted them to run. Even with him gone, everyone's been on auto pilot in the system he put in place. And he's keeping tabs on them from the hospital. He's already set the lineups for a few games. His presence is missed, but his absence hasn't caused much of a stir in camp. Because he's so universally liked up and down the roster, I think these guys are going to play hard for him. You can make the argument that at times this team quit on Hargrove last year. CNNSI.com: Pitching is still a question mark for this team. They brought in a number of new arms. How do those guys -- Chuck Finley, Scott Kamieniecki, Bobby Witt, to name a few -- appear to be fitting in? Cannella: Great, especially Finley. He wants to be there, on a team almost assured of a postseason spot. One of his good friends, Mark Langston (who is not assured of a roster spot), is in camp. Kamieniecki they're hoping he could used in long relief or as a setup guy. But he can also start. So they've definitely upgraded their pitching. The rotation of Bartolo Colon, Charles Nagy, Finley and Dave Burba stacks up on paper well against any other top four besides the Yankees. And in his first outing against major league hitters, Cuban defector Danys Baez looked pretty good. But he'll probably start the year in Triple A. CNNSI.com: Are any younger players likely to crack this veteran lineup? Cannella: Jacob Cruz really bulked up over the winter. He's one of the guys who will be filling in until Lofton comes back. But Cruz did a lot of lifting and came into camp looking bigger. He said he put on an extra 10 or 15 pounds, and it's all muscle. Cruz hit a shot in batting practice the other day to straightaway center field, well over 400 feet. But there aren't a whole lot of guys running around trying to impress people because there aren't many spots open. I visited Royals camp a few days ago. I watched them go through bunt defense
drills and everyone in that camp was going full-tilt, fighting for jobs. It's
much different here with a veteran club like
Cleveland.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
