clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Jason Kipnis still awesome, but is the only Cleveland Indian hitting right now

The offense was terrible last week, but it wasn't Kipnis' fault.

By Jason Lukehart
Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports


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 20-26: Brandon Moss (my choice), Michael Brantley (reader 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)
  • June 1-7: Brandon Moss (with 73% of the vote)
  • June 8-14: Shaun Marcum (first PotW to be designated for assignment during their reign)
The Offense was awful last week, with the notable exception of Kipnis, who continued his tremendous first half. Meanwhile, there was some very good pitching, included one of the best MLB pitching debut's Tribe fans have seen.


The Candidates

Cody Allen

Allen appeared in three games last week, pitching a total of 3.1 innings while striking out 6, issuing 0 walks, and allowing 0 runs. In Thursday's game against the Cubs, Allen was called on in a situation you practically never see a closer used in: Chicago had loaded the bases with two outs in a tied game when rain hit. After the delay, Allen entered and got out of the jam. The unusual part? It was the 5th inning. Allen then pitched a scoreless 6th as well, and the Tribe went on to win.

Cody Anderson

Anderson had one of the best MLB debuts by an Indians pitcher in a long time. He went 7.2 innings without allowing any runs, giving up 6 hits and just 1 walk. Starting pitching has not been the Tribe's problem, but you can never have too many good pitchers, and while one good start does not a good pitcher make, it was great to see Anderson's career get off to such a fantastic beginning.

Trevor Bauer

Bauer pitched Tuesday night's game in Chicago, and pitched it well. He went 7 shutout innings, and only once was he in any real danger of allowing a run. He struck out 7 on the night, retired the final nine batters he faced, and picked up his first Major League hit. He might even get extra credit for doing it all while I was in attendance.

Jason Kipnis

Only two players on the Indians hit better than .250 last week. One of them was Bauer, whose 1 for 3 night was a career best at the plate. The other was Kipnis, who posted a line of .474/.583/.579 in 24 plate appearances, good for a wRC+ of 232. He had at least 1 hit in all six games, and a total of 9 of them, giving him a league-leading 92 on the season. He lead the team with 5 walks as well, scored 5 of the Tribe's 13 runs, and also stole 2 bases.

The Verdict

It's tempting to give Anderson extra credit for it having been his MLB debut, and for him delivering a great performance at a time when the offense was providing no help. One might also feel like it was just another week for Kipnis, with numbers we've seen from him a number of time already in the last couple months. I'm going to resist those impulses though, because even though we've seen it before, there was nothing routine about Kip's production.

Congratulations again, Jason!

More From Covering the Corner