Are the Indians One MLB Team Poised to Have a Letdown in 2020?

While the Cleveland Indians sit and wait out what is going to happen before they can get on the playing field, to start the 2020 season, there are plenty of prognosticators that seem to feel it could be a tough season for the Wahoo’s.

The Indians have taken a step back the last few seasons after their World Series run in 2016 that saw them hold a 3-1 series lead over the Chicago Cubs, only to give it up and lose in game seven in devastating fashion.

Now it’s a few seasons later, and two failed playoff appearances as well as missing the playoffs this past season, the Indians are trying to shift on the fly – rebuild with youth and try and stay competitive.

They have a pitching staff that has afforded them the ability to trade two front line starters in Trevor Bauer and Corey Kluber, and they have lost a few staples on the roster the last few seasons like Michael Brantley and now heading into 2020 Jason Kipnis.

With all that there is no wonder that there are quite a few writers who think that the Indians won’t be at or near the top of the heap in the AL in 2020, and could struggle to even compete to stay in the race.

Two of our own from Sports Illustrated, Matt Martell and Michael Shapiro, are on the bandwagon of believing that the Tribe will be one of the MLB club’s that “Will Disappoint in 2020.”

Let’s start with Martell, who says that the Indians won’t be playoff bound in 2020, and it looks more and more like the team eventually will face the reality of trading away superstar shortstop Francisco Lindor.

“They probably won't make the playoffs for the second consecutive season, and if they fall far enough behind the Twins and White Sox in the AL Central, they could pivot and trade superstar shortstop Francisco Lindor. Nothing's more disappointing for a team than trading away the face of the franchise. Just ask Red Sox fans.”

Martell’s points all seem to be bent on if the team is going to move Lindor or not. If they do, then yes, the season could very much go south quickly.

If Lindor sticks around and the team can stay healthy, there’s no reason to believe that the Tribe can’t be in the mix to get into the postseason via winning the division or taking home one of the AL wild card spots.

On to Shapiro, who is a little more direct in his assessment of the team, stating that the big issue is the outfield, a position that is right now still very much up in the air.

“The Indians' outfield remains a mess, and Mike Clevinger's injury adds another hit to a rotation that is no longer anchored by Trevor Bauer and Corey Kluber. With the White Sox rising and the Twins bolstering their powerful lineup, Cleveland could very well slide from 93 wins to under .500 in 2020. The end of the Francisco Lindor era could arrive sooner than expected.”

One thing that seems a bit overblown is the Clevinger injury, as he’s already working his way back to the point where he was throwing and looking good in doing it before the Coronavirus shut down the league.

Shapiro also is buying into the hype of the White Sox, a team that has yet to prove anything so far, and while they have bolstered the roster with some names, they haven’t won a game with this roster yet, and have a way to go to be a complete unit.

Just like Martell, the prediction about the Tribe taking a step back seems to revolve around the team eventually parting ways with Lindor.

While it’s still anyone’s guess as to how things will play out once baseball does begin again, the Tribe isn’t getting a lot of love right now, not a huge surprise based on the general direction this team has been heading in since losing game seven of the World Series in 2016.

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