Roster Update: Lonnie Chisenhall has returned from the bereavement list and to make room, starting pitcher Cody Anderson has been optioned back to AAA. Replacing him in the rotation will be Mike Clevinger making his MLB debut tomorrow, but another move will need to be made before then to add the right hander to the roster.
Player of the Game
When a team wins a game 13-1, it’s hard to pick just one Player of the Game, but this time that man was Rajai Davis, who reached base in each of his five plate appearances with three singles and two walks. In his first three times up, Davis had at least a man on second and he never disappointed, knocking in three runs. In addition, he scored after each time reaching base placing him right at the center of the Indians offense, accounting for seven of 13 runs scored.
Feathers Up
For the second game in a row, the Indians took advantage of inferior pitching in a way many thought they should have against Minnesota and Houston. This time, it was a four run second that saw the Tribe bat around thanks to five consecutive hitters reaching base after there were two outs. Runs scored on a Rajai Davis single, an Alfredo Simon wild pitch and a Jason Kipnis single. Francisco Lindor did double after the Kipnis hit, but neither runner scored as Mike Napoli flew out to end the inning.
Again with two outs in the third, the Indians kept the rally going. Jose Ramirez and Lonnie Chisenhall had reached early in the inning, but there were two outs again when Davis came up and doubled them both home. These were RBI two and three for Davis and he scored his second run of the game on a Carlos Santana single to left. The same guys were instrumental scoring in the fifth as well as Chisenhall doubled and Davis singled before Santana brought home one with a single and five walks later, the Indians had four more two out runs to push the score to 12-0.
After a long cold spell that essentially lasted the first month and a half of the season, Yan Gomes appears to have finally broken through in the past four games. Tonight, he hit a single in the second that hit high off the wall in left, giving him a four game hitting streak during which he has batted .357 with three home runs. He came into the first of those four games batting .158 on the season and has since raised his season average to .183 while raising his slugging percent over 100 points.
With all that scoring, it would be easy to forget that the Indians spent a short period of time playing defense as well and during that time, the man on the mound was Danny Salazar. After his shaky outing last time around, it was good to see Salazar in control and he was dominant throughout. After allowing two base runners to reach in the second, he didn’t allow another until the seventh, ultimately giving up one run on five hits and one walk, striking out seven in 7.1 innings.
Feathers Down
The Indians received further information about Michael Brantley‘s injury today and the prognosis isn’t great. The diagnosis is a subacromial impingement in his right shoulder and his recovery time is unknown. He got an anti-inflammatory shot today to deal with the swelling and the Indians now have to wait to see how he responds before they can set any plans for his return.
Final Score: Cleveland Indians 13 – Cincinnati Reds 1
On Deck: As mentioned earlier, Indians top pitching prospect Clevinger will be starting tomorrow as the four game set moves South to Cincinnati. The game will start at 7:05 PM and will feature former Royal’s reliever Brandon Finnegan.
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