Daily Archives: January 20, 2020

Cavaliers lose fifth straight game

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Returning home from a six game road trip did not help the Cleveland Cavaliers all that much as they fell to the visiting New York Knicks 106-86.

What is it about the 3rd quarter and the Cleveland Cavaliers? The Cavs have been outscored 176-106 in the 3rd quarter during their five game losing streak. Cleveland’s opponents just seem to have the upper hand when it comes to starting the second half. This has without a doubt contributed to their struggles as of late.

Like many of their recent games, the game was close as the second half started. Unfortunately it did not last as the Knicks outscored the Cavaliers 57-36 in the final two quarters. The only bright spots are that Cleveland only committed 10 turnovers and won the rebounding battle 53-49. Everyone else was pretty much a disaster.

Rough shooting night for Darius Garland and Collin Sexton

Rough is right. Darius Garland and Collin Sexton combined to go 10-40 from the field and only made two of 10 three-point attempts. When Garland and Sexton are taking nearly half the shots and missing 75% of them that is a problem. Sexton led all Cavaliers scorers with 17 points. This just shows how poorly this game went for everyone involved.

Kevin Love and Cedi Osman also struggled

Things were not that much better for Kevin Love and Cedi Osman. Kevin Love made four of his 10 three-pointers, but missed his four two-pointers. Cedi Osman also made four threes on six attempts, but went 1-7 on his other field goal attempts. Kevin Love at least grabbed nine rebounds to give the illusion of a respectable performance.

Tristan Thompson grabs 20 rebounds

Part of the reason Cleveland won the rebounding battle was Tristan Thompson being an absolute animal on the boards. Thompson finished with 22 rebounds, including 10 offensive rebounds. Thompson’s 22 rebounds, 10 offensive, and 12 defensive were game-highs, this includes players on the Knicks as well.

Larry Nance Jr. with a double-double off the bench

Larry Nance Jr. was the only other player in the game to finish with double-digit rebounds (10). Nance also scored 12 points on 5-9 from the field (1-4 3PT) and made only one of four free throw attempts. Nance was only one of three bench players to get considerable playing time. Part of that is due to the team letting Alfonzo McKinnie’s contract expire. McKinnie was playing a considerable amount of minutes for the Cavaliers prior to today.

The Cavaliers have two days off to regroup before hosting the Washington Wizards Thursday.

Browns expected to hire Bill Callahan

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The Cleveland Browns are expected to hire Bill Callahan as their next offensive line coach after moving on from James Campen.

The Cleveland Browns appear to have their next offensive line coach. Bill Callahan will replace the recently dismissed James Campen. Campen is regarded as an excellent line coach, but not a fit for Kevin Stefanski’s offense. Callahan should be a better match in Cleveland.

Bill Callahan has been an offensive line coach since returning to the NFL in 2008. Making stops with the Jets, Cowboys, and Redskins. Callahan was promoted to associate head coach in addition to his duties as line coach in Washington. Eventually taking over as interim head coach after Jay Gruden was fired. Callahan was not retained in Washington after the Redskins hired Ron Rivera. 

Bill Callahan is highly regarded as an offensive line coach. Callahan has coached some of the NFL’s best offensive line units. Callahan will work with Cleveland running backs coach Stump Mitchell to get the most out of the Browns rushing attack.

Cleveland‘s decision to hire someone as experienced as Callahan is a wise one. Kevin Stefanski will have to lean on some of his experienced assistants when things get tough next season. Having someone who has been there before will go a long way for Stefanski and the Browns. 

Browns to retain Stump Mitchell

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The Cleveland Browns have decided to retain the services of Stump Mitchell and have him as the running backs coach under head coach Kevin Stefanski.

The man with the epic beard is back. Kevin Stefanski has decided to keep Stump Mitchell as the running backs coach of the Cleveland Browns.

Nick Chubb nearly captured the NFL’s rushing title last season with Mitchell as his position coach. That success is a reason why Stefanksi wants to keep him in the building. This is vastly different than the decision to let receivers coach Adam Henry leave and hire Chad O’Shea as his replacement. It is clear that Stefanski likes what Mitchell was able to do with Chubb and to a lesser extent Kareem Hunt. Hunt did have some successful plays, but was less integral to the overall game plan. Hunt may be involved in the Browns offensive plans for next season, but his restricted free agent status may change things just a bit. Kareem Hunt could very well leave to join another team putting Cleveland in a position to acquire another running back. Either way, Stump Mitchell should be able to make things work.

Stump Mitchell has been a running backs coach for five different NFL teams (Seahawks, Redskins, Cardinals, Jets, and Browns). Mitchell spent the most amount of time in Seattle (1999-2007). Stump Mitchell has coached under Mike Holmgren, Jim Zorn, Bruce Arians, Todd Bowles, and Freddie Kitchens. Mitchell followed Bowles to New York in 2017 before coming to Cleveland in 2019 under Freddie Kitchens.

Cavaliers sign Cook, McKinnie’s contract expires

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The Cleveland Cavaliers are re-signing Tyler Cook prior to Monday’s game against the New York Knicks while Alfonzo McKinnie’s contract will expire.

There is a little bit of a roster shakeup prior to Monday’s game against the New York Knicks. The Cleveland Cavaliers will be signing Tyler Cook to a second 10-day contract.

Cleveland signed Tyler Cook and Alfonzo McKinnie to 10-day contracts on January 9th. The Cavaliers previously waived both players before signing them to 10-day deals.

Speaking of Alfonzo McKinnie, his contract expires Monday and it does not appear that a new one will be signed at this time.

The reason that McKinnie will not return at this time is not known. It is possible that Cleveland wants to look at other options at McKinnie’s position. It is also possible that McKinnie wants a chance to play elsewhere.

McKinnie has seen a considerable amount of playing time over the past eight games. Averaging 6.5 points, 4.9 rebounds, and one steal in 22.1 minutes per game. While McKinnie’s three-point shooting is uninspiring (0.63%,), he was making 46.9% of his field goal attempts overall. McKinnie made 23 out of his 33 two-point field goal attempts during his increased time on the court. Alfonzo McKinnie can obviously score inside the three-point line, just not outside of it.

It seems more than likely that the Cavaliers will continue to sign players to short-term deals while they evaluate their roster.

Nathan Gerbe is finding success in Columbus

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The former team captain of the Cleveland Monsters Nathan Gerbe is finding success while he is with the NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets.

The first you notice about Nathan Gerbe is his size. No, he is not a large player, he is the complete opposite. Gerbe stands at 5’4″, but plays much larger than that. The effort and play of Gerbe led to the Monsters naming him their team captain prior to the 2018-19 season. Gerbe was called up to the Blue Jackets after Columbus experienced a series of injuries. That same effort level and ability has been on display with the Blue Jackets and is part of the reason why he is still in Columbus.

While some others are returning to Cleveland, Nathan Gerbe will remain in Columbus. Part of this is due to the fact that Gerbe is out of minor league options and would require to pass through waivers first. The other part is that Gerbe is contributing during his time in Columbus. Gerbe has eight points (three goals, five assists) in 14 games. Gerbe’s last longterm stint in the NHL was during the 2015-16 season with the Carolina Hurricanes. Nathan Gerbe has more points in 14 games this season than the 47 games he spent in Carolina four seasons ago (seven points on three goals and four assists). Nathan Gerbe is experiencing more success this time around when compared to his last extended look in the NHL.

Before getting called up to Columbus, Nathan Gerbe was productive in Cleveland. Totaling 25 points in 30 games this season (eight goals, 17 assists). Gerbe averaged .83 points per game while with the Monsters. This is tied with Adam Clendening for the team lead.

As mentioned above, the waiver process may keep Gerbe in Columbus for the time being. Gerbe being able to show that he can contribute in the NHL may keep him from passing through waivers resulting in a longer stay with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Aaron Bracho among Top 10 second base prospects

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Cleveland Indians second base prospect Aaron Bracho is among the Top 10 players at the position according to MLB Pipeline.

Bobby Bradley is not the only Indians prospect getting love from MLB Pipline. Aaron Bracho ranks number seven on their Top 10 second base prospects list for 2020. Bracho is classified as the highest riser according to their list.

The soon to be 19-year old second baseman missed all of 2018 due to injury. That did not stop Bracho from coming back in 2019 and performing quite well. Bracho slashed .281/.402/.570 with an OPS of .973 in 38 games. Bracho compiled 11 doubles, eight home runs, two triples, and 33 runs driven while spending eight games with the Mahoning Valley Scrappers and 30 with Indians Blue.

MLB Pipeline has Aaron Bracho’s ETA slotted at 2022. Bracho will be almost 21 years old at that time at the beginning at that season. Of course it is very possible that Bracho’s debut comes later in the season and not at the start. If Aaron Bracho does progress at that rate it will provide Cleveland with an option at second base. Cleveland has several options at shortstop in the minors including Tyler Freeman and Brayan Rocchio. Like Bracho, their debuts appears to be a bit off in the distance and not the immediate future. Cleveland will have their options when evaluating who they want to manning the middle of their infield after entering a different phase of their competitive cycle.

Browns to continue talking to George Paton

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The Cleveland Browns plan to have Minnesota Vikings assistant general manager George Paton back after their initial interview Saturday.

Whether or not George Paton was going to interview with the Cleveland Browns seemed to be a bit of a toss up. Paton has turned down the Browns before and appeared to be on the same track again. Initial thoughts were that Paton was only entertaining the idea due to the hiring of Vikings offense coordinator Kevin Stefanski as their next head coach. Apparently there appears to be genuine interest in the position. Paton was in Cleveland Saturday and will come back to Berea to continue their discussion.

George Paton is just one of the candidates to be their next general manager. Andrew Berry and Monti Ossenfort are also in the mix. The Browns are on their quest towards alignment. That means trying to find the best fit possible to work together with Kevin Stefanski and Paul DePodesta. Berry was in the building previously before departing to Philadelphia prior to this season. Ossenfort has a lot of experience, but no real connection with the front office or coaching staff. While he may provide some objectivity to what the Browns vision is, he may not be on board with everything they want to do.

Cleveland does not appear to be in a rush to hire their next general manager. The Browns took their time when it came to hiring their next head coach. With no decision being made after their first round of interviews this past weekend, it appears that this process could also take a fair amount of time. Cleveland needs to find the best match for their franchise. That could be George Paton, it could also be someone else entirely. The fact he is returning to continue their discussion is a sign that he may be their leading candidate.

UPDATE

George Paton will be in Cleveland today for his second interview.

This could lead to George Paton potentially becoming the next general manager of the Cleveland Browns. It could also lead to Paton deciding to pass on the job leaving Cleveland to explore other options.

Kevin Stenlund returns to Monsters

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Kevin Stenlund is reassigned to the Cleveland Monsters after spending 17 games in the NHL with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Someone was going to be the odd man out with Oliver Bjorkstrand returning to the Columbus Blue Jackets. That person was Kevin Stenlund. Stenlund was reassigned Sunday and will return to the Cleveland Monsters.

Kevin Stenlund scored four goals and assisted on two others during his time with the Blue Jackets. One of Stenlund’s goals is counted as a game winner, coming against the Kings in Los Angeles back on January 6th. Stenlund was part of a group that some referred to as the Columbus Monsters. This was due to multiple players from Cleveland playing in Columbus. These call ups were a necessity, the Blue Jackets were dealing with a lot of injuries and needed bodies.

Stenlund has appeared in 27 games for the Monsters this season. Compiling 16 points (six goals, 10 assists). One of his goals with Cleveland is classified as a game winner. This goal came in his second to last game with Cleveland before heading up to Columbus. Stenlund’s 10 assists this season ties his total from all of last season. Stenlund did score 15 goals in 2018–19 season, so there is a little ways to go in that department.

Kevin Stenlund will be returning to a team that is currently in second to last place in the AHL’s North Divison.

Unsettled outfield provides chance for Daniel Johnson

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The Cleveland Indians outfield is relatively usnettled and that provides a clear opportunity for prospect Daniel Johnson.

Looking at the Cleveland Indians outfield there are only two guarantees. Oscar Mercado in center and Jordan Luplow in a platoon against left handed pitching. Outside of that it is a giant toss up. This is where Daniel Johnson comes in. This is an opportunity for him to make an impact on the big league roster. 

There are plenty of question marks in the Cleveland outfield. Bradley Zimmer, Jake Bauers, Greg Allen, Delino DeShields, and Tyler Naquin. Bauers has upside, but besides that this group is uninspiring. Allen and DeShields are essentially the same type of player (fourth outfielder). Zimmer has a new batting stance, but questions about his health will always be present. What contributions that Cleveland will get from Naquin are currently a mystery. Franmil Reyes is technically an outfielder, but figures to be the a DH and not a regular outfielder. Daniel Johnson has a chance to take the next step in his career considering the competition he is up against. 

Daniel Johnson has nothing left to prove at the the minor league level, slashing .306/.371/.496 with an OPS of .868 in 84 games at AAA Columbus last season.  Johnson finished with 27 doubles, nine homers, five triples, and 44 runs driven in. It’s all really going to come down to how he performs in Arizona. If Johnson shows flashes of what he did in Columbus during Spring Training it is going to Cleveland another option in the outfield. Perhaps a superior option to their current Major League outfielders not named Mercado or Luplow.