We've talked about magic, being special, being good, among other things. But now, you can say it with me if you need to. The Cleveland Indians are a playoff team. At least, a playoff contending team. If the postseason started today, on August the 2nd, your Tribe would be the second wild card and in the American League postseason.

If that isn't exciting to think about, then you need to go home and wallow in the sorrow of your misery with the Browns. That may have been a really harsh thing to say, but if that is the case, you probably deserve it.

This team is proving that it is for real. Unfortunately the Tigers and Royals are winning just as much as they are. The good news, they're winning regardless. With the Sox dispatched, the Indians get a nice three game series against the Florida Miami Marlins before the "Showdown for First Place" gets underway next week.

The way both teams are playing, that will probably be a showdown and first place will probably be in the balance, because neither team is losing to other teams right now.

WHITE SOX - 1 | INDIANS - 6

W: Justin Masterson (13-7)

L: Chris Sale (6-11)

[BOXSCORE]

As hard as you could try, the big story that has to be jumping out at you on this one is Ryan Raburn, who is really known around these parts as simply Rakin' Raburn. 

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Cole Ryan is a guest writer from BangTheBook.com, follow him daily sports news, picks and tips on Twitter at @coleryan9

Cleveland sports at BangTheBook

There's that word again. It's being thrown around a lot on Twitter and everywhere else even. It's a cool word, especially when you are talking about a baseball team. But it scares the bajesus out of me.

I'm afraid though, I'm going to have to agree with the masses. Not that I don't believe in these Indians, I most certainly do. But, I really don't like using the word "special."

However, it is becoming increasingly difficult to not use it in regards to this team because of what they're doing. They're not just winning, they're showing some unbelievable grit and determination in the way they're winning. They probably could have or should have lost at least one of these past three games against Chicago 

But they didn't. They won, all three of them and have a chance to pull off a sweep. And things really are starting to look really special.

WHITE SOX - 5 | INDIANS - 6

W: Chris Perez (4-1)

L: Dylan Axelrod (3-7)

[BOXSCORE]

I now take you to a paragraph I composed in the ninth inning after Corey Kluber was just removed from the ball game..

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You’ll have to forgive me if this week’s edition of Lazy Sunday is both short and a little discombobulated. I started writing it earlier in the week, and then got a bit sidetracked when I was forced to spend all day Friday and most of Saturday in the hospital. Long story short, I woke up at 3am with horrible stomach pain and finally went to the ER at around 7am Friday morning. A quick ultrasound later, I come to find out that I have gall stones and my gall bladder has to come out, immediately. Immediately is a relative term in a hospital of course, but I suppose that it’s a miracle of modern medicine that about 12 hrs after arriving at the hospital, I was lying in a recovery bed sans gall bladder. So much of this week’s article will be written under the influence of perchocet as I lie in bed on the road to recovery. Please forgive both the brevity of the piece as well as any misspellings, but with the trade deadline fast-approaching, I wanted to get some thoughts out there for you all. So with that said, let’s kick off the first ever Lazy Sunday under the influence of drugs…

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With Wednesday’s trade deadline rapidly approaching, the Indians have not been brought up a whole lot in the media coverage. There are clearly needs on the ballclub that can be filled without using a Francisco Lindor or Danny Salazar to do it. Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff have done an excellent job keeping their cards close to the vest since the media certainly dig as hard as they can to find any rumor to get hits, which is commendable, and partially frustrating. Without a doubt, they have explored every possible way to improve the ballclub, but as Wednesday’s trade deadline moves closer and closer, we aren’t exactly sure what the Indians are going to do, if they do anything at all.

Not only does the trade deadline serve as a way to improve the talent level on the team, but it can also serve as a real morale boost. Teams caught in between buying and selling can get a vote of confidence from their GM or acquiring a premium player can really give a team a spark. Unfortunately for the Indians, who are clearly buyers sitting just three games back in the AL Central race, there will not be a premium player coming to provide a major impact. Those players just don’t exist on the market right now. A lot of what’s available is supplementary, specialized, and not going to dramatically change the face of any team.

But, that may be exactly what the Indians need. They are a team that has fought to achieve some level of consistency this season, both from the pitching staff and the offense. I don’t believe they need some sort of overhaul or high-priced trade acquisition. They need to plug holes in a boat that’s otherwise sufficient. Every time the Indians have taken on water, they have bounced back and sailed into calmer waters.

Fans and media can point to several places where the Indians could use upgrades. My list would include designated hitter, right field, and the bullpen as a whole. Others would include third base and the starting rotation. Ultimately, every GM has to work with what is available on the market and what makes sense for their situation. The Indians will not be trading Francisco Lindor to get an impact starting pitcher or a big bat for the middle of the lineup. Financially, that makes no sense, to give up a budding superstar controlled until around 2020 for a two-month or 14-month rental. Logically, it makes no sense because Lindor is a top ten prospect at a position of need.

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