It's Tribe time

On the gorgeous sandbanks of Goodyear, Arizona, the Cleveland Indians are back at it. Pitchers and catchers report today, thus beginning the quest for the 2009 AL Central crown and kicking off a scorching run of Tribe posts on this blog.

Odd-numbered years have been very good to the Indians this decade. 2001 was the last AL Central title for the '90s crew and the first for general manager Mark Shapiro. 2003 sucked, but we won 93 games in 2005 and then won the AL Central in 2007 and came within a whiff of beating both the Yankees and Red Sox in the same postseason to reach the World Series.

Last year was disappointing, but we caught fire in the second half to finish 81-81. C.C. Sabathia's gone, having signed an economy-crippling contract in New York, so here's a quick look at the pitchers and catchers that are going to put us back on top of the division:

Starters:

Cliff Lee - All that is man

Fausto Carmona - Must avoid injuries to return to '07 form

Carl Pavano - Cost-effective experiment at No. 3

Anthony Reyes - ERA is low, injury risk is high

Aaron Laffey - Must prove that '07 stretch run wasn't a fluke


Potential starters:

Jeremy Sowers - Ex-DJMJ whipping boy looked good during second half of '08

Scott Lewis - Red-hot lefty killed it during four September starts

David Huff - Shot up through the minors, MLB debut likely coming soon

Zach Jackson - Provides depth and competition for others


Bullpen:

Kerry Wood - Effective fireball closer probably won't avoid DL entirely

Rafael Perez - Great left-handed reliever needs a bounceback year

Rafael Betancourt - Will we get '07 Righty Raffy or first-half-of-'08 Right Raffy?

Jensen Lewis - Reliable reliever and second option at closer

Joe Smith - If he can pitch well out of the Mets' bullpen, he can do it for anyone

Masa Kobayashi - Inconsistency must stop if he wants another Major League contract

Adam Miller - Top prospect in the organization might finally make his big-league debut

Rich Rundles - Has value as another lefty in the pen


Catchers:

Victor Martinez - Baseball's best offensive catcher needs to stay healthy

Kelly Shoppach - Baseball's best back-up catcher will lighten the load on V-Mart

Carlos Santana - Prize of the Casey Blake trade won't be in Akron for long