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Each week I select someone as the Cleveland Indians' top player of the previous week. Then, because this is a dictatorship, but not a totalitarian one, I let you all have your say as well. Some weeks it's a no-brainer, while other weeks there are multiple guys with a strong case. (Occasionally there are weeks when no one has a strong case.)
Previous winners:
- April 6-12: Carlos Santana (my choice, and by a single vote, winner of the voting)
- April 13-19: Corey Kluber (my choice and reader vote)
- April 20-26: Brandon Moss (my choice), Michael Brantley (reader vote)
- April 27-May 3: Jason Kipnis (with 91% of the vote)
- May 4-10: Danny Salazar (my choice), Jason Kipnis (reader vote)
- May 11-17: Corey Kluber (my choice, and by a single vote, winner of the voting)
- May 18-24: Corey Kluber (with 72% of the vote)
- May 25-31: Jason Kipnis (with 81% of the vote)
- June 1-7: Brandon Moss (with 73% of the vote)
The Candidates
Yan Gomes
Gomes hit only .227/.217/.545 for the week, giving him a wRC+ of 105, which is only a little better than average. He homered twice against Seattle on Tuesday though, and doubled in what proved to be the game-winning run in Saturday's victory over the Tigers. he also threw a number of runners out on the bases, playing sterling defense that makes him a worthy nominee.
Francisco Lindor
Someone who played not even half of one game probably has no business being listed here, but he did bat .500 for the week, so that's something. In a frustrating week to be a Tribe fan, the debut of Lindor (and of Monstro too) was the brightest point.
Shaun Marcum
One wouldn't expect Marcum to pitch the best game of the week for the Indians, given his company in the starting rotation, but that' what happened, as he pitched 7 shutout innings in Thursday's win against Seattle, striking out 5 and allowing only 2 base runners.
Brandon Moss
For the second week in a row, Moss put up big offensive numbers, hitting .333/.360/.542, for a wRC+ of 157. He hit his team-leading 10th home run of the season and scored a team-high 4 runs for the week. Somewhat emblematic of the entire offense of late though, the timing of Moss' production wasn't great, as his best games were the lopsided ones. I don't really hold that against him, but if his WPA for the week was actually negative.
The Verdict
Lindor is what I'll remember from this week, but Marcum is my choice for this honor. Until this game, he hadn't been great for the Indians, but quietly he's done relatively well since joining the Indians, having allowed more than 3 runs only once in 6 games. His peripherals says his ERA is due to rise, but he's got a little margin for error to play with, in terms of continuing to be a solid #5 starter.