ABJ
Pitiful hitting flusters Indians Frustration can set in when the going's tough. Wedge says Hafner's key
By Sheldon Ocker
Beacon Journal sportswriter
Published on Tuesday, Apr 22, 2008
KANSAS CITY, MO.: There are all sorts of ways to quantify the Indians' problems at the plate. Here are two: average with runners in scoring position and runs per game.
But even though the Tribe ranks low in both categories, the statistics can be deceiving.
With 79 runs through Sunday, Cleveland and Texas are tied for 10th place in the American League. The numbers are skewed, however, because the Indians have scored six or more runs in five of 19 games, somewhat neutralizing the nine games when the offense has scored three or fewer runs, averaging 1.8 runs in those contests.
Same thing with the team's average with runners in scoring position. A .255 average isn't awful, but there is a wide disparity between the top five hitters and the bottom four.
Cont...