Indians-Rangers preview
ARLINGTON, Texas -- The Cleveland Indians might be in first place in the American League Central, but that doesn't mean their clicking on all cylinders. The offense has seen to that. Friday's 12-1 win snapped a four-game stretch for the Indians in which they scored either one or zero runs in all four games. It was the first time that's happened since 2011. Despite the ugly numbers, there's no panic for the Indians as they showed Friday night in scoring their most runs in two weeks. And they have a chance to get things going Saturday too when they face a struggling Texas starter in right-hander A.J. Griffin (5-3). The Indians are confident in an offense that still ranks second in the AL in runs scored and is fifth in the majors in total runs and runs per game. "You keep working," said Cleveland second baseman Jason Kipnis, who went 2-for-5 with an RBI double in the third inning Friday. "It's a tough time of year because you don't want to overwork. You want to save whatever energy you have for the game, so you find a nice little balance between the two. I wouldn't be surprised if we come out of it (the slump) here soon. We're going to get back to the basics of good lines and putting it in play." The Indians' offensive slide coincided with strong play from Detroit and Kansas City in the Central, but the Indians still lead the division by 4 1/2 games over the Tigers. That should make for a tight September, and the Indians welcome that. "It's going to be a fun month of September," Kipnis said. "That's what we want it to be. We want to have some important games, and we're going to get that. We've got the lead right now. We've had some stretches where we haven't played that well, and they still haven't caught us. These are all big games now." Saturday's game could be a big one for Griffin too. Over his last eight starts, the right-hander has a 6.69 ERA and will be charged with trying to keep the Indians in their offensive malaise. If he can't do that, his rotation days could be numbered. Rehabbing starter Colby Lewis is eyeing a return to the rotation in early September. With Yu Darvish, Cole Hamels, Derek Holland and Martin Perez entrenched in the rotation, that could leave Griffin the odd man out when Lewis returns. Griffin isn't thinking about that though. He's looking to build off a start against Tampa Bay in which he allowed three runs in 5 2/3 innings in an 8-2 loss. He's doing so while feeling good about where he's at physically. "I've kind of hit my stride a little bit more and the body is bouncing back, and I'm able to go out there and throw the ball the way I want for my allotted pitches," Griffin said. "I feel pretty good. Just keeping my body the way I want it to be and go out there with a positive attitude." |