2010 Indians Preview: Outfielders

MLB: JUN 18 Phillies v Indians
Welcome to the second installment of a six-part series of articles previewing the 2010 Indians. The articles in this series will cover: infielders, outfielders, catchers/DHs, starting pitchers, left-handed relievers, and right-handed relievers. We'll take a look at the players who comprise each of these groups and assess what's good, what's bad, what's ugly, and what's unknown about each of the above sections of the roster. Today in the second of six articles we'll take a look at the 2010 Tribe outfield.***Leading Off: For all those who are getting rather tired of lamenting all that is wrong with the Tribe, prepare yourself for a temporary respite. Today is your lucky day, because we're previewing the outfield, the one are where the Tribe is far from hurting for talent. It's early to say for certain, but the Indians could even be looking at an embarrassment of riches in this area. With two established starters in Shin-Soo Choo and Grady Sizemore, and two young talents with huge potential in Michael Brantley and Matt LaPorta, the Tribe could wind up with what essentially amounts to four starters to fill three positions. Roster Members: Michael Brantley, Jordan Brown, Shin-Soo Choo, Trevor Crowe, Matt LaPorta, Grady Sizemore, Nick Weglarz.The Good: Sizemore, Choo, and Brantley have all earned the right to start the season in this category. Choo was the best player on the roster when the season ended last September and is one of the most underrated players in the game as a whole. He finished the season hitting an even .300, exceeded the 20/20 mark in HRs and SBs, knocked 38 doubles, and played in all but six games of the season. Then there's Sizemore.  He struggled mightily last season due to two injuries, but Grady was a standout before that and he will be again. Off-season reports out of Arizona indicated that Sizemore had fully recovered and completed his post-surgical rehab with no problems, giving us every reason to think that Grady will return to his 2008 form when he went 30/30/30. Youngster Michael Brantley has also earned the right to be a part of this category. While Brantley is still green and logged just 28 games in the majors last season, he posted a .313 average over 112 at -bats. He evokes a vision of the early days of Grady Sizemore, with similar speed and defensive capability, perhaps with less power potential but greater ability to hit for average.His similarities to Sizemore are almost uncanny - on top of possessing a very similar skill set, he is also left-handed, measures up the same as Sizemore at 6'2, 200 lbs, and even, like Sizemore hails from Washington state. For now that's good news - who wouldn't want another Sizemore in the fold? - but could be bad news down the line. For a budget conscious team in rebuilding, a player like this looks on paper like a younger, cheaper version of Sizemore, which may ultimately make the front office view Grady as expendable.The Bad:Other than Jhonny Peralta, there is no one on this team who provokes my ire as much as Trevor Crowe. Crowe is the outfield's version of Andy Marte - given too many chances without ever showing any sign of potential when playing in the majors. Add the lackadaisical attitude in the field to that, and you have a horrible hybrid of the skill set of Marte and the apathy of Peralta. While Crowe is less experienced than either of those two players and could yet improve, he probably won't get the chance. The Indians have at least five outfielders on the roster superior to Crowe (Choo, Sizemore, Brantley, LaPorta, and Jordan Brown), and no roster needs a sixth outfielder, especially one who hit .235. Also, Crowe is 26, not 21, making him most likely too old to be considered a player who could still break out. The Ugly: Other than Crowe and the dead patch of grass in the outfield that stubbornly has refused to go away for more than 10 years, the only ugly thing about this outfield will be the position battle that could take place for the third outfield spot. With Sizemore in center and Choo in right, that leaves only left field open for both Brantley and LaPorta. At the moment, Brantley is far and away the front runner for the job, but if LaPorta's supposed power materializes this season, he'll be able to battle Brantley for the spot based purely on run-producing potential. There is of course the possibility of putting LaPorta at first, but based on what we saw of him there last year, that probably isn't a good idea defensively, and even if his power matures, he likely won't have enough of it, at least this season, to hold down the first base spot. The Unknown: LaPorta still remains an unknown of sorts, but the biggest question mark of all is Jordan Brown. Will he ever make it over the hump from the minors to the majors, or will he remain labeled as a Quad-A player? Further, with so much depth in the outfield, will he even make the team? He isn't out of options yet, but four outfield spots on the roster are already taken, and veterans Austin Kearns and Shelley Duncan, signed to minor league contracts this winter, could easily swoop in and snag the remaining ones. Heading Home:It will be a few months before we'll know for sure, but having four outfield starters, so to speak, on the roster is a very real possibility. Of course, this is excellent news for Tribe fans, as with this group of outfielders, there will be one component of the team that appears to have the kind of solid, consistent talent required to win ball games. Sizemore, Choo, Brantley, and LaPorta likely give us four outfielders with the talent to start. Too much talent is, of course a lovely problem to have, but it also means we need to prepare ourselves for the inevitable: someone may be traded. Which of the four is most likely to be moved is tough to say. I would peg LaPorta as the least likely to be moved, followed possibly by Choo. Sizemore, unfortunately, might make the most sense, but the Indians cannot afford another PR nightmare like the one that resulted from trading Victor Martinez, at least for this season. And while he might be the most expensive of the four, Sizemore is still very moderately priced considering his ability, only midway through his career and with the exception of only last year, extremely durable. And don't panic just yet - While Sizemore will almost certainly be moved in 2011 or 2012 (unless the team appears ready to contend), it is highly unlikely he goes anywhere this year. What do you think, Tribe fans? Which of the four top outfielders on our roster is most likely to be moved? Which one would YOU move? Who gets the starting job - and keeps it - in left field? What will become of Jordan Brown? And will Nick Weglarz get his chance this season? Share your thoughts in the comments below!On Deck: Part Three of the 2010 Indians Preview Series: Catchers/DH.

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