The First Half for the Indians - Four Takeaways from the Good and Bad (Part One)

The first half of the Indians season is in the books, with the team sitting at 52-43, and in firm control of the AL Central with a sizeable lead over the rest of the division.

While it has only been a first half, there's been plenty of stories and sidebars to things that have happened to this team, both good and bad.

From the pen from hell to the rise of Trevor Bauer to the history making first half of Jose Ramirez, there's one thing that everyone can agree on from the first half - it's not been boring by any means.

Today we take the first look at a three-part series focusing on the first half, going back and doing four takeaways of some of the both good and bad.

Come back Tuesday for the second part of the three-part series for four more takeaways as we get you set for what's going to be an interesting second half for the Wahoo's.

1. A First Half MVP Outing from JRam

While folks in and out of the Indians organization probably figured that Jose Ramirez would have another solid season in 2018, NO ONE could have expected him to put up the numbers that the Tribe first half MVP has done to this point.

He's hitting .302 with 29 homers and 70 runs batted in, tied with JD Martinez of the Red Sox for the most HR's in baseball, and he's just the 5th player ever with 25 homers and 20 stolen bases at the All-Star Break.

Ramirez, along with All-Star teammate Franicsco Lindor are two players that make the game fun, they hustle 110 percent, they play till the final strike, and they seem to always have fun doing it - and by the way they are both great at it.

If Ramirez even comes close to repeating the numbers in the second half, you can't ignore that he'll be right at the top for the AL MVP Award.

Back to the ASG for the 2nd time in my career. I’m very thankful for everyone who has been supporting me in this journey including my family, friends, teammates, the Dolan Family, the entire Indians organization, and most importantly the Indians fans #RollTribe pic.twitter.com/Xbs1f0dNVi
— Jose Ramirez (@MrLapara) July 16, 2018

2. Running Away with the Central The Indians (unless there's a rather epic collapse) are going to hoist a third straight AL Central come September, as they have a 7.5 game lead over the second-place Twins. Yes the Twins and Tribe will play quite a bit in the second half, but you just don't have a lot of fear that they are going to have enough to overtake the Indians for the division crown. the rest of the division is awful, with the Tigers 41-57), White Sox (33-52) and Royals (27-68) all already looking to sell players and look ahead to 2019 and beyond. A number of people want to be critical of the Indians for beating up the Central yet struggling with the rest of baseball, but it's not that hard to do when you're in a division as bad as the Central is. 3. Tomlin's Downfall While no one probably felt that Josh Tomlin was going to win 15 games as the team's fifth starter, not many saw the complete collapse of one of the veteran leaders, forcing the team to maybe end his Indians career earlier than he wanted it to. Tomlin started six games, and was pulled from the rotation when he simply couldn't get players out. He was shifted to the pen, but ended up in a role where he basically threw in games that either went to extra innings or in blowouts. On the year he sits at 0-5 with an ERA of 6.95, and he's given up a team high 21 homers on the season. He's now on the DL with a 'hamstring' injury, and no one seems to know when he might be back - or if he will be. He'll be a free agent at the end of the season, and with the rise of Adam Plutko and Shane Bieber, the end of Tomlin seems evident with the Tribe. 4. Bauer's All-Star First Half The Indians have always had the belief that Trevor Bauer could be a top MLB pitcher someday, and while they have gone through some growing pains along the way, the last two seasons it's paid off, and this he's been one of the best pitchers in the game, earning his way to being an All-Star. His record is just 8-6, but he's got a stellar 2.24 ERA, and he's struck out 175 batters, this after striking out 196 all of last season. It's hard to argue with him as even the best pitcher on the roster in the first half, even better than fellow All-Star Corey Kluber. His 175 K's are the most by an Indians pitcher before the All-Star break since Sam McDowell struck out 183 batters before the 1970 break. Bauer again will be a huge part of the direction the Indians go to in the second half.

Here are the lowest qualified first-half ERAs by @Indians pitchers since the mound was lowered in 1969:

1.47: Gaylord Perry, 1974
1.73: Gaylord Perry, 1972
2.08: Len Barker, 1981
2.243: Tom Candiotti, 1991
2.244: Trevor Bauer, 2018
— Ryan Milowicki (@RyanMilowicki) July 15, 2018

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