Indians Confidential

What has become of the Cleveland Indians’ power slugging, left-handed, designated hitter? When the Indians attained his services in 2003, via a trade with the Texas Rangers, we as Indians fans knew very little about him, but what we soon learned about him helped make him an instant fan favorite.

With his blue-collared work ethic, his, “strong like bull” approach and his quirky nickname (Pronk) it was only a matter of time before he endeared himself to the fans of Cleveland. Travis was once considered the most feared hitter in the Indian’s line-up. In 2006, he hit 42 home runs, 31 doubles and batted a very respectable .308, while driving in 117 RBI’s.

The even more astounding fact is that Travis accomplished these totals in only 129 games. Last year Travis played in 152 games and hit a mere 24 home runs, 25 doubles, batted .266 and plated 100 RBI’s. This year in 41 games, essentially ¼ of a season’s total games, Travis has hit 4 home runs, 8 doubles, and is currently batting a paltry .221 and all the while only knocking in 20 RBI’s.

Teams are no longer pitching around Travis as they were in 2006. Today it’s quite the contrary and pitchers are pitching around other hitters to face him. Travis use to own his at bats and know he seems to be at a loss at the plate. The speculations for his diminishing production and presence abound, but I’m not sure anyone really has the answer, not even Travis. The only thing that I really know is that this once rising star has now become a Travesty and I’m hoping he can some how turn his misfortune around for his and the team’s sake.