Author Archives: James Mastrucci

About James Mastrucci

James Mastrucci covers the Browns, Cavaliers, Guardians, Monsters, Hornets, Packers, Bengals, Steelers, and Ravens. Find written work at This Is Believeland, Away Back Gone, Lombardi Ave, Swarm and Sting, and Full Press Coverage.

Indians unlikely to deal Kluber

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Reports have surfaced that the Cleveland Indians are unlikely to deal their two-time Cy Young Award winning pitcher Corey Kluber

Jon Morosi reported that although teams are inquiring about Corey Kluber the Cleveland Indians are unlikely to deal him. Morosi noted that the Los Angeles Dodgers and Milwaukee Brewers have attempted to acquire the two-time Cy Young Award winner. The San Diego Padres also attempted to acquire Kluber but are no longer in the running for his services.

As each day passes a trade of Kluber appears less and less likely. This is the feeling now and it was previously. Kluber’s agent actually stated just that as the trade rumors were in full force. Barring an unforeseen change from the quality of offers or the Indians front office experiencing a change of heart, Corey Kluber looks to remain a member of the Cleveland Indians this season.

A trade of Corey Kluber is no longer a foregone conclusion

Although many speculated a trade of Corey Kluber was inevitable, that does not appear to be the case. After the Indians shedded a ton of salary and did not rush to sign free agents, most feared the worst. That the Cleveland Indians were entering tear down mode and were about to trade away one of the best pitchers in baseball for a handful of prospects or expiring contracts. This could not be further from the truth.

Hanging on to Corey Kluber appears to be the right move for Cleveland currently. While trading him now could net some prospects, the fact of the matter is most, if not all of the players received may not make an impact for a few years. That does not align with the current level of competitiveness of the team or the window to win.

If Cleveland was no longer a realistic competitor in the American League trading Kluber would make sense. Utilizing a trade of a premier player to acquire players to jumpstart a rebuild makes sense for teams that have had their windows clearly shut. This does not describe the Cleveland Indians currently. The only way a team in Cleveland’s situation would trade a player like Kluber is if they are absolutely blown away with a trade offer. So far that has not been the case and it appears Kluber will remain in Cleveland for this season if not longer.

Baker Mayfield: If you’re not with us you’re against us

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“No, it wasn’t anything like that, you know. If you’re not with us in Cleveland, you’re against us, and you know and we have division rivals and that’s how I feel about it. If you don’t like that then you probably don’t realize what type of game football is, so that’s ok.”  (Baker Mayfield on Undisputed with Skip and Shannon)

Baker Mayfield appeared on FS1’s Undisputed with Skip and Shannon Wednesday. When questioned about the interactions with former Cleveland Browns head coach Hue Jackson that is what Mayfield had to say. There is some truth in that statement. The NFL is a results based league and at the end of the day the only thing players should care about is who is in their corner.

Having people in your corner as an athlete can make a huge difference in a player’s performance no matter the sport. Whether it is football, baseball, basketball or soccer. Player’s need to have the coaching staff behind them and ready to support them along the way.

It was quite obvious from the start that Jackson was not in Mayfield’s corner. While Jackson attempted to throw Mayfield under the bus (shocker), the fact of the matter is Mayfield improved once Jackson was sent packing. Jackson did claim that Mayfield was not progressing in a way that he desired. The reality is that Jackson does not know how put together a winning game plan.

Freddie Kitchens backs Baker Mayfield

Newly promoted head coach Freddie Kitchens is in Baker Mayfield’s corner. This is drastically different than the previous regime. Kitchens does everything in his power to put Mayfield and the Browns in position to win. Jackson did not. Jackson was more concerned with how he looked after his inevitable termination. This was quite apparent dating back to last season when he threw player after player under the bus. This is not the case with Kitchens. Kitchens wants to get the best out of his players. This can be filed as being “with us” rather than “against us”. This type of camaraderie can only help the Cleveland Browns and Baker Mayfield as they look to build upon a successful second half of 2018.

Jordan Luplow has productive minor league history

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Newly acquired Cleveland Indians outfielder Jordan Luplow has shown he can hit while in the minors but is yet to show it at the Major League level

The acquisition of Jordan Luplow from the Pirates did not necessarily move the needle in the eyes of Indians fans. Cleveland’s outfield needed an upgrade and a replacement for the now departed Michael Brantley. Besides Luplow, Cleveland features the likes of Tyler Naquin, Greg Allen and Leonys Martin. Cleveland’s reliance on Naquin was covered previously, but more needs to be said about Luplow.

Jordan Luplow produced at the Minor League level

This can be said about most Major League players, but Jordan Luplow has displayed his ability to swing a bat quite well in the minors. Luplow spent the 2017 season at AA and AAA in the Pittsburgh Pirates Minor League system.

117 games .301/.381/.527/.907 23 HR, 22 doubles, 56 RBI, 74 runs

Luplow drove the ball well, hitting an almost equal number of home runs and doubles. Additionally Luplow was able to put together an impressive batting average and reached base at a fairly good clip. Looking at the amount of times Luplow scored, he is more than just someone who drove in runs. Luplow scored in 63 percent of the games he appeared in.

During 2018 Luplow still was productive, but he regressed just a little bit in AAA.

88 games .287/.367/.462/.829 8 HR, 25 doubles, 49 RBI, 41 runs

A drop in just about every number except doubles, however there are some encouraging signs. Luplow eclipsed his doubles number in 29 less games. The percentage of games which Luplow drove in a run increased from 47.8 percent to 55.6 percent.

Even with Minor League success, Jordan Luplow has not been able to translate it to the Major League level

This is sort of the elephant in the room. Luplow has struggled in 64 games over two seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

64 games .194/.274/.371/.644 6 HR, 4 doubles, 18 RBI, 22 runs

A sub-200 batting average is not great. Neither is the sub-300 on-base percentage. The good news is that Luplow is only 25 years old and has plenty of time to improve those numbers with the Cleveland Indians this season. A mixture of regular playing time and more experience should allow Luplow to produce at a rate more similar to his Minor League production than what he has shown in an extremely small sample size in the Majors.

Browns have franchise back in Nick Chubb

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The Cleveland Browns have their franchise quarterback in Baker Mayfield and it appears they have their franchise running back in Nick Chubb

When a team can pair a franchise running back with their franchise quarterback good things happen. When both are brought onto the team as rookies it can create an offensive tandem for years to come. That is just what the Cleveland Browns have done with Baker Mayfield and Nick Chubb. Mayfield is their franchise quarterback while Chubb is their franchise running back. Chubb nearly hit the 1,000 yard mark carrying the ball, falling just four yards short. There are several things to consider when evaluating Chubb’s rookie campaign.

Nick Chubb did not start until Week 7

Nick Chubb was buried on the depth chart under Carlos Hyde and Duke Johnson Jr. After the Browns sent Hyde to Jacksonville, Chubb got his chance to start, rushing for 80 yards and one touchdown on 18 carries in a loss to Tampa Bay.

Before Week 7 Chubb has 16 carries on the season. In just one game Chubb carried the ball more than the previous six games combined. It became very apparent that Chubb should have been given his fair chance from the onset rather than John Dorsey trading away Carlos Hyde to force the coaching staff’s hand.

Nick Chubb topped 100 yards rushing four times

Yes, one of these occurrences came during Nick Chubb’s three carry 105 yards and two touchdown performance against Oakland. That alone should have been a sign that the Browns should have given him more playing time, but that is besides the point. Chubb was able to crack the 100-yard mark three more times over the course of the season. All three occurrences of Chubb breaking the 100-yard barrier all coincided with Cleveland Browns victories.

Averaging over 5 yards per carry as a rookie is quite impressive

Nick Chubb averaged 5.2 yards per carry as rookie. Chubb rushed for five yards per carry or more in four of his nine starts. In a similar manner to the 100-yard mark, these four instances also resulted in Browns wins. Chubb’s 5.2 yards per carry rank fifth among all NFL running backs and third among rookies. Only Phillip Lindsay and Kerryon Johnson (5.4 yards per carry) averaged more than Chubb.

Pro Football Focus believes in Nick Chubb

Pro Football Focus is a respected resource when grading the performances of NFL players. PFF ranks Cleveland Browns running back Nick Chubb as the NFL’s number one running back in 2018. Chubb already passed the eye test and now he passes the analytical test. It is safe to say that the Cleveland Browns nailed this draft pick and have an integral building block for the future.

The pairing of their franchise quarterback Baker Mayfield with their franchise running back Nick Chubb should signal that good things are ahead for the Cleveland Browns.

Tyler Naquin needs to step up in 2019

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The Cleveland Indians will be counting on Tyler Naquin to produce in 2019

The opinion of Tyler Naquin depends on who is asked. There are some who remember the spark he provided for the Indians in 2016. Others remember the error in the World Series and the subsequent disappointing 2017 campaign. Like it or not Naquin is expected to see significant playing time this season and the team needs him to step up.

The 2016 version of Tyler Naquin was exactly what the Tribe needed. Slashing .296/.372/.514 with a .886 OPS, Naquin hit 14 home runs, 18 doubles and three triples. Naquin also drove in 43 runs and scored 52 times. This inaugural campaign was good enough to finish third in Rookie of the Year voting.

2017 was not as kind to Naquin. Struggles early on led to his demotion to AAA Columbus. In 19 games Naquin struggled and put together the sub-par slash line of .216/.250/.270 with an OPS of .520. Recency bias forces most to remember this version rather than the productive 2016 version.

2018 was an up and down year, Naquin struggled from the start but caught fire about two weeks into the season. Before suffering an injury Naquin sported a slash line of .333/.367/.453 with a 820 OPS in 26 games with an official at-bat. While these numbers may have been a bit unsustainable, they were encouraging as it showed Naquin resembling a productive hitter, a far cry from 2017. Upon his return from injury Naquin was not quite right as his slash line dropped to .212/.240/.283 with an OPS of .523. This was before suffering a season-ending injury.

Tyler Naquin can bounce back

It seems like the name of the game for Tyler Naquin is health. Naquin produced well in 2018 before his initial injury, but struggled afterwards. Cleveland needs Naquin to at least fall somewhere between the performances of this 2016 and 2018 campaigns. Naquin is still only 27 years old and has not entered the prime of his career. While his prime may not include an elite ceiling, it should at least provide league average production from an outfielder.

The question mark that remains for the time being is if Naquin can stay healthy. 2017 and 2018 were injury riddled campaigns that ultimately limited the production of Naquin. As long as Naquin stays healthy he can potentially be a productive player in the Cleveland Indians lineup and help alleviate the concern about the state of the outfield.

Kevin Love nearing return for Cavaliers?

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The injured Cavaliers power forward may be nearing a return sooner rather than later

It has been a rough season for the Cleveland Cavaliers and Kevin Love. Love was expected to be the centerpiece of the roster and keep the team from ending up as the cellar dweller they currently are. However there is encouraging news. Love is increasing his participation in practice and it appears his return is coming soon.

Tom Withers of The Associated Press tweeted a video of Love practicing Monday.

Withers’ caption says it all. The fact that Love is moving well is encouraging not only for Love, but the Cleveland Cavaliers. Additionally Withers tweeted that Cavaliers head coach Larry Drew stated that he does not anticipate Love returning this week. While Love’s return is slightly delayed it is a good sign that questions about his return date are actually relevant. The fact that this particular question was asked signals that his return is not that far off.

Love only appeared in four games this season. Scoring 19 points per game on 32.3 percent shooting, a career-worst. Also Love’s 29.2 three-point field goal percentage is also a career-low. While Love’s efficiency was not great by any means, the 13.5 rebounds per game were his highest since the 2012-13 season. In fact this is his third-highest average of his career and his highest since joining the Cavaliers.

Love’s absence has put extra pressure on others to carry the scoring load. Other players who are not capable of scoring at a high rate at this time. Add in the fact that other injuries occurred that further hampered the teams abilities the team has struggled mightily. The fact that Kevin Love may be returning sooner than later can only help the Cavaliers potentially win a couple of games. Anything to help the morale of the team at this point is a positive.

Browns are in unfamiliar territory

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Baker Mayfield woke up feeling dangerous and from that moment the fortunes of the Cleveland Browns changed

The now infamous quote from Baker Mayfield came after the Cleveland Browns first win after firing Hue Jackson. A 28-16 victory over the Atlanta Falcons at home. After that game the overall vibe of the Cleveland Browns changed. The team played confident and with attitude. Most importantly the team finally found their franchise quarterback.

The improved play of Mayfield under then offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens sprouted optimism about the future of the team. Now the head coach, Kitchens will look to build upon the success from last season and foster the growth of the team. It will important for Kitchens and Mayfield to work together and ensure the development of the Browns offense continues.

This offseason is different for the Browns

Normally once the offseason hits there are discussions about who Cleveland should take at the top of the draft. Debates over taking a quarterback first or second overall were commonplace the past three seasons. Additionally discussions about which coaching candidate would be the best fit for the team.

This is not the case this offseason.

The team performed well down the stretch and finished with a record of 7-8-1. This record means that the Browns do not have a top-two pick for the first time since 2015. While it has only been four years, it seems like an eternity due to the fact of how bad the team looked previously.

In years past the team would attempt to find the perfect pair to lead the team into the future. Hiring a new head coach and drafting a quarterback. Now that the team has their franchise quarterback in Baker Mayfield and their head coach in Freddie Kitchens, assets can be used to address other areas of need.

Since the Browns are on the rise, free agency will no longer be such a struggle. Convincing players to sign in Cleveland is a much easier task than before. There is a solid foundation to build upon and days of the massive overpay for marginal players appear to be behind them.

Having a franchise quarterback and a coaching staff that believes in the team can go a long way. There is confidence about the future of the Cleveland Browns. Many expect the team to compete as early as next season. Time will tell if this turns out to be true, but it does appear that the team is on the cusp of something they have not experienced in a very long time. Actual success.

Cavaliers avoid season sweep against Bulls

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The Cleveland Cavaliers avoided losing all four games in their season series against the Chicago Bulls with a 104-101 win Sunday

The Cleveland Cavaliers were led by dual 18 point efforts from Alec Burks and Jordan Clarkson to defeat the Chicago Bulls Sunday afternoon. Burks went 6-13 from the field with eight rebounds and two assists while Clarkson put together an efficient 8-11 outing adding seven rebounds and six assists in the process.

Cedi Osman scored a fairly inefficient 17 points. Osman was 6-17 overall including 2-8 from deep. This was a bit of a come down to earth game for Osman. Osman made 19 of 31 shots in this past two games scoring 54 points overall. Inconsistency has been the story for Osman this season and it appears this trend will continue for the foreseeable future.

Other notable scoring efforts came from Matthew Dellavedova and Rodney Hood, chipping in 16 and 14 points respectively. Ante Zizic grabbed 14 rebounds but was a disappointment shooting the ball. Zizic only managed to make four of 11 attempts for eight points. Zizic is not great shooting the ball and Chicago’s Robin Lopez defended him well throughout the contest.

Collin Sexton continued to struggle against the Bulls. The Cavaliers rookie went 3-10 from the field and made one of his two three-point attempts. Sexton is prone to taking mid-range shots and missed all three attempts at or around the free throw line. Shooting close to the basket was not that much better as Sexton missed three layups. Sexton needs to start converting more frequently and in time he should.

Cavaliers notes

Tristan Thompson remains sidelined for at least two more weeks. There is speculation that his time away from the court may extend until the All-Star break is over.

Kevin Love is participating in practice and taking shots before games. The unfortunate news is that there is not a concrete timetable for his return. Although with developments such as practicing and shooting before games his return seems to be fast approaching.

David Nwaba is still out and has not appeared in a game since December 23rd. Similar to his teammates he does not have a timeline for his return. At this point it is best to allow Nwaba to heal and let others play to get experience.

The Cavaliers next game is at home hosting the Washington Wizards at 7 P.M.

Cavaliers won’t sign Payne for rest of season

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The Cleveland Cavaliers have informed point guard Cameron Payne that they do not intend to sign him for the remainder of the season

It appears that Cameron Payne’s time in a Cleveland Cavaliers uniform will soon come to an end. The Athletic’s Joe Vardon reported that the team informed Payne they would not sign him for the rest of the season.

This news is hardly a surprise. Payne was signed to his initial 10-day deal after Cleveland waived Patrick McCaw due to lack of depth at the point guard position. At the time rookie Collin Sexton was the only healthy point guard on the roster. Matthew Dellavedova was injured and the team desperately needed a backup. Hence the decision to waive McCaw and sign Payne.

Apparently Payne did just enough to warrant a second 10-day contract. Cleveland and Payne agreed to terms on a second 10-day deal even with a healthy Dellavedova on the roster. Payne did see his fair share of playing time in Cleveland, but did not appear in Friday’s loss to Miami. Payne averaged 19.6 minutes and 8.2 points per game in his nine appearances for Cleveland this season. Mostly seeing time in blowout losses, Payne initially played fairly well. That changed as Payne struggled over his last three games.

The Cavaliers decision to move on from Payne can be attributed that his second tryout period did not go as well as the initial one. There is also the possibility that the team is discussing trades and could potentially acquire another point guard. There is also the option of signing another player to a 10-day deal in another tryout scenario. Whatever the reason is it appears that the Cavaliers would prefer to see what else is out there instead of signing Cameron Payne for the rest of the year.

Best from Osman not enough for Cavaliers

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Cedi Osman’s career-high 29 points was not enough as the Cleveland Cavliers fell to the Miami Heat at home by a score of 100-94

Even with a player achieving a career-high in points scored the Cleveland Cavaliers are unable to come away with a win. Cedi Osman went 11-20 from the floor in the loss to Miami Friday night. Osman made three of eight attempts from deep and four of five from the free throw line. In addition to his career-best scoring effort, Osman was able to add four assists, four rebounds and two steals.

Four other Cavaliers scored in double-digits Friday. Ante Zizic, Collin Sexton, Rodney Hood and Alec Burks all scored 10 points or more in the contest. While Zizic started quick in the first half, the Cleveland center was limited to just one point in the second half. Miami tightened up defensively and essentially erased Zizic from the game when it mattered most.

Sexton endured another rough shooting night. The rookie went 4-13 from the field, including 3-6 from deep. The fact Sexton only converted one of seven two-point attempts is quite concerning. Speaking of rough shooting nights, Jordan Clarkson also struggled coming off the bench. Clarkson was only able to convert three of 11 attempts, this includes missing all three attempts from three-point range. Clarkson has been Cleveland’s leading bench scorer this season. If Clarkson struggles, typically the whole bench unit struggles as well.

A predictable 3rd quarter collapse did the Cavaliers in yet again. Cleveland led 53-48 at halftime but was outscored 32-17 in the 3rd quarter. While Cleveland was able to close the gap just a bit in the 4th, the disastrous 3rd quarter was the difference in the game. The Cavaliers need to figure out a way to avoid the bad second half. This is a trend that has been going on all season and figures to continue for the duration of the season.