Chris Antonetti, Indians president of baseball operations, says the Tribe needs consistency in the second half.

Chuck Crow, The Plain Dealer

Tribe's main goal for second half? Consistency

CLEVELAND, Ohio – Terry Francona is back in the dugout and the Indians are seven games over .500 with a 2 ½ game lead in the AL Central. What more could they want as they come out of the All-Star break to face the A’s in Oakland on Friday night?

Consistency, said Chris Antonetti, Indians president of baseball operations.

“I continue to be really optimistic about our team,” said Antonetti on Thursday. “We’ve got a really good group of guys that are capable of being a really good team. We’ve seen stretches of that in the first half where we’ve demonstrated that potential.

“As I’ve said before our challenge is to be consistent and perform to that potential.”

The Indians longest winning streak in the first half was six games. Their longest losing streak was three games. They've never been more than eight games over .500.

Paul Hoynes, cleveland.com

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Fans sign a get well card last week to Indians manager Terry Francona who underwent a heart procedure at Cleveland Clinic. Francona is scheduled to rejoin the Indians on Friday night in Oakland.

Tony Dejak, Associated Press

What does Terry Francona's return mean?

Getting Francona back from last week’s heart procedure at Cleveland Clinic is a step toward the consistency Antonetti is seeking.

“I don’t think there’s any way to overstate the affect Tito has on our team or our culture,” said Antonetti. “Everyone is anxiously looking forward to his return. With that Brad (Mills) and the coaching staff deserve a ton of credit for seamlessly operating the team in Tito’s absence.”

Mills, Francona’s long-time bench coach, managed the team over the last six games before the All-Star break. He and the Indians entire coaching staff – including bullpen catchers Armando Camacaro and Ricky Pacione, who caught the Home Run Derby – went to Miami and steered the American League to a 2-1 victory in the All-Star Game.

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Indians right fielder Lonnie Chisenhall could miss as much as three weeks with a strained right calf. The team will put him on the disabled list on Friday.

Phil Long, Associated Press

Injuries to Chisenhall, Kipnis hurt chances of consistency

Everytime the Indians seem to be nearing the consistency Antonetti talks about, something happens. They went 15-12 in June, only to lose second baseman Jason Kipnis on Saturday to a strained right hamstring and Lonnie Chisenhall on Sunday to a strained right calf. Kipnis was placed on the disabled list Sunday and Chisenhall will be placed on the DL on Friday.

Antonetti expects Kipnis to return before Chisenhall.

“They’re both soft tissue injuries so it has to do with how the person is responding to treatment,” said Antonetti. “Based upon the information we have, and the MRIs, we think that will be the case. So Kip will be a couple of weeks and Lonnie a little longer.”

Kipnis opened the year on the disabled list with a rotator cuff strain in his right shoulder. He’s hitting .232 (59-for-254) with eight homers and 26 RBI. This will be Chisenhall’s third trip to the DL this season. He’s hitting .305 (57-for-187) and leading the Indians with 51 RBI.

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The White Sox traded left-hander Jose Quintana to the Cubs on Thursday.

Ross D. Franklin, Associated Press

Did Indians pursue Jose Quintana?

If the Indians felt Kipnis or Chisenhall would be out for longer than they anticipate, they might seek help at their positions through a trade as the July 31 deadline approaches. Presently they seem confident both players will return in time to help in the second half.

Still, the Indians did talk to the White Sox about left-hander Jose Quintana, who was traded to the Cubs on Thursday. In fact, they’ve talked to the rebuilding White Sox about several of their players. It was made clear to them, however, that if Chicago was going to trade within the division, it was going to cost the Indians more.

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Is Francisco Mejia untouchable this year?

The Indians traded prospects, and were willing to trade a lot more of them, last year when they acquired Andrew Miller from the Yankees and came close to getting catcher Jonathan Lucroy from Milwaukee. Lucroy, exercising his no-trade clause, vetoed the trade to Cleveland and was subsequently dealt to Texas.

Catcher Francisco Mejia was one of four players the Indians were willing to send to the Brewers for Lucroy. Antonetti wouldn’t say if Mejia was untouchable this year, but it certainly sounded like the switch-hitting catcher is held in high regard by himself and the rest of the organization.

“Francisco continues to make great strides,” said Antonetti. “He’s made a lot of progress from this point last year. He’s an improved offensive player and he’s improved defensively.

“His communication has improved. He’s spent time learning English to the point where he can have conversations. He’s had a tremendous year and is on a great development path. We think he has a chance to be a really good major league player.”

Mejia, who played in his second straight All-Star Futures Game on Sunday in Miami, is hitting .339 (77-for-227) with 16 doubles, nine homers, 34 RBI and a .928 OPS for Class AA Akron.

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Talented rookie Erik Gonzalez is the Indians utility man. They might consider making a trade to upgrade that position as they start the second half.

Chuck Crow, The Plain Dealer

Will the Indians make a trade?

The Indians could look to add a bench player with more experience than rookie utility man Erik Gonzalez, but for the most part they like their 25-man roster and the depth behind it.

“We feel we have a group of quality internal alternatives and if we play to our potential we have a chance to be a really good team,” said Antonetti. “We will look for opportunities to upgrade. We really do feel good about group of guys we have.

“When you think about acquiring players, which players would you think about taking off the team? That gets to be challenging when you think about who would you be removing from our team if we acquired somebody else. “

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Catcher Yan Gomes (right) and backup Roberto Perez have struggled offensively this year, but it doesn't sound as if the Indians will try to upgrade their offense at that position.

Chuck Crow, The Plain Dealer

What about an upgrade at catcher?

Catchers Yan Gomes and Roberto Perez have drawn fan criticism for their lack of offense.

Last year the Indians came close to getting Lucroy when Gomes and Perez were both dealing with injuries. This year it does not seem likely that the Indians will try to bring in a new catcher because it would be tough to replace what Gomes and Perez give them from a standpoint of defense and handling the pitching staff despite their limited offense.

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Will Tribe's All-Star succes help in second half?

The Indians performance at the All-Star Game was hard to miss. Jose Ramirez started a third, singled twice and stole a base. Michael Brantley singled and played left field. Francisco Lindor played good defense at short and Miller earned the save with a scoreless 10th inning.

Plus there were Tribe coaches all over the place.

Can it bring some momentum to the second half?

“I hope so,” said Antonetti. “It was really fulfilling to see a Cleveland Indians player or staff member every time the camera panned the field or dugout. It was hopefully a great experience for those individuals. And a proud moment for the organization.”