For now, the Cleveland Indians are safe because they're sorry. The Tribe has looked so inept during an 0-4 start that the crescent of fandom cutting from eastern Lake Erie to Columbus is up in arms, particularly because the Indians appear to be down in arms. Simply put, their starting pitching has stunk. And the fans are angry about it.

The angst was oozing last night in the home opener against Toronto, which included a rain delay (3:47) that lasted longer than the game. Starting pitcher Scott Lewis, out of Ohio State by way of Washington Court House, provided Cleveland with its best start so far, and still gave up four runs on seven hits in 4 1/3 innings. Needless to say, the Jays won 13-7.

The consensus among Indians fans after four games seems to be: Cy Young winner Cliff Lee was a one-year wonder; Fausto Carmona is a fraud. The bullpen is abysmal. Good. Keep fretting. Keep complaining. The interest means you'll keep coming back, keep tuning in, keep putting money in the pocket of team owner Larry Dolan. He needs the cash because, while he is rich, he is not as rich as his brother James Dolan, he of Cablevision and the New York Knicks.

The Cleveland Dolans -- Paul Dolan is team president -- want you to pay attention, emphasis on the pay. They want you to throw pillows at the TV when Carl Pavano takes the mound with an ERA (81.00) larger than many pitch counts. They want you to debate the "did he or didn't he?" involving Travis Hafner and performance-enhancing drugs.

What they don't want and what they can't have is silence.

So even though the Chicken Littles of Cleveland are premature in their dread -- Lee (12.60 ERA), Carmona (10.80) and Pavano won't be this bad all season (well, maybe Pavano, but not the other two) -- at least the doomsayers are not indifferent. Yet.

It is a tightrope the Indians must walk. Four losses to begin a season won't cost them the playoffs, but it does invite fringe fans to consider their options. Drop out of contention too soon, and risk losing the love of Tribe fans who will jump over to the first-place Cavaliers and the first-love Browns. It's almost draft day, isn't it?

The threat isn't that the Indians' shaky start will automatically kill their season -- 158 more games, people; take a deep breath -- but it says maybe this team is in for a rough go. Is it worth going through the agony with them? Or maybe better to wait until after the NBA playoffs to see where the Tribe stands? Losses play with the mind that way.

What is certain is that every season has a tipping point in which fan enthusiasm either remains high or drops off, which is why it behooves Cleveland to get its act together sooner than later.

The Indians' players, of course, haul out the standard line that pennants are not won in April. Ah, but they can be lost in April. No team that began the season 0-7 has ever made the playoffs. A statistical anomaly? That's what Detroit thought last season when it dropped its first seven and never recovered.

Cleveland manager Eric Wedge took his usual flat-line approach to the April woes, stressing that the pitching staff will be just fine once the players get past their early jitters.

"The last thing we want to do is overreact," Wedge said.

That's the job of fans. As long as they're willing to do it. Many more embarrassments like last night and that willingness will wane.

Rob Oller is a sports reporter for The Dispatch.

roller@dispatch.com