Indians' Bauer sharp in return to mound Leonys Martin Trevor Bauer Drew Smyly Edwin Encarnacion Evan Scribner Michael Martinez Ryan Merritt

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1 Indians' Bauer sharp in return to mound By Jordan Bastian / MLB.com March 1st, 2017 GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Leonys Martin churned out three hits Wednesday afternoon, helping to lead the Mariners to a 7-4 Cactus League victory over the Indians at Goodyear Ballpark. Martin's outburst included a pair of doubles, including one within a five-run sixth inning for Seattle. The flurry of late scoring by the Mariners overshadowed the uneventful spring debuts for Indians starter Trevor Bauer and Seattle lefty Drew Smyly. "We did some good things offensively," said Mariners manager Scott Servais, whose club improved to 4-1 this spring. "It was nice to see Leonys Martin kind of break out today with some really good at-bats." Bauer worked three innings in his first outing of Spring Training, holding Seattle off the board despite allowing four hits. Martin's first hit of the game was a leadoff single in the first off Bauer, who sidestepped damage with the help of a double play. In all, Bauer induced six outs via grounders, while ending with one strikeout and no walks. "I don't think he walked anybody," Indians manager Terry Francona said of Bauer. "He had to climb back into a bunch of counts, so because he was pitching behind, there was some hard contact. But, I thought the ball came out of his hand good. It's his first outing. He went three and he got through them. He threw some good splits, which I know he wanted to." Smyly, who was acquired from the Rays on Jan. 11, worked two shutout innings his his first Cactus League start. The lefty struck out two hitters, including new Indians slugger Edwin Encarnacion in the second inning, and ended with one walk and no hits allowed. Following Smyly's exit, Mariners reliever Evan Scribner took over and allowed a two-out, solo home run to Michael Martinez in the third inning. Martinez added a two-run single in the seventh inning. "He always comes ready," Francona said of Martinez. "You don't want to penalize somebody for being ready. He's gotten pitches in the zone and he's really had really good at-bats. And he's reliable defensively. He's an easy guy to pull for -- we all know that. He's such a good teammate. Even with not a ton of experience, he makes guys better on the bench." Seattle's five-run outpouring in the sixth inning came mostly against Indians lefty Ryan Merritt. Martin, whose three-hit day ended an 0-for-5 mini-slump to start the spring, delivered an RBI double in the inning. Zach Shank contributed a two-run single and Tyler O'Neill (Seattle's No.2-ranked prospect, per MLBPipeline.com) drove in another run with the first of his two late-inning doubles. Mariners Up Next: Ariel Miranda makes his second Cactus League start in Thursday's 12:10 p.m. PT game against the Brewers at Peoria Stadium. The lefty threw two scoreless innings in Seattle's spring opener against the Padres. Newcomer Shae Simmons and switchpitcher Pat Venditte are among the relievers scheduled to throw. Indians Up Next: Right-hander Danny Salazar is slated for his second start of the spring when he takes the mound against the Dodgers in a 3:05 p.m. ET Cactus League tilt at Camelback Ranch. Reliever Dan Otero is also penciled in to pitch for the Tribe. Ace Clayton Kershaw is scheduled to start for Los Angeles. Homeland pride fueling Perez's development By Jordan Bastian / March 1st, 2017 GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Roberto Perez does not take the assignment lightly. To be asked to play for Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic as a catcher carries a lot of weight. The island has gained quite a reputation for churning out backstops, from the Molina brothers to newly elected Hall of Famer Ivan Rodriguez. Now, Perez will get the chance to represent his homeland alongside Cardinals catcheryadier Molina. In the past several years, Molina has gone from idol to mentor for Perez, who spent this winter training with the St. Louis catcher. Joining him on Puerto Rico's Classic roster is a dream come true for Perez. "It's an honor," Perez said. "I call it a blessing also, because to be elected as a Puerto Rican catcher, we have so many good catchers. I'll be behind Yadi, but to be there with him, it's an honor, man. I can't wait to represent my country, put that uniform on and whenever I get the chance to play, I'll just go out and have fun." Perez said he headed into the winter with his confidence at an all-time high, following his stint as Cleveland's starting catcher throughout the team's run to the World Series. Perez launched a pair of home runs in Game 1 of the Fall Classic against the Cubs, and found himself in the national spotlight for his defensive abilities, including his work with framing pitches. When Molina told Perez he "was awesome" in the playoffs, it meant the world to the Tribe catcher. "He said, 'I told you,'" Perez recalled with a smile. "He said, 'You have a chance to be one of the best catchers also. You have the ability to do it.' For me, for this year, I'm going to have that confidence from last year, and I'll be carrying it to this year. I'm just going to keep doing what I'm doing, man." Two winters ago, Perez worked out with Molina's trainer in Puerto Rico. This past offseason, Perez traveled to Florida, where he teamed with the same trainer and Molina for about six weeks of workouts. The Indians catcher said his main priority was picking Molina's brain about the mental side of the game and his daily routine and preparation. "It was an awesome experience," Perez said. "I was trying to pick up a lot of things from him. I wanted to get better mentally. Why not, when he's probably the best catcher in baseball?" Indians manager Terry Francona agreed. "I know he really looks up to Yadi," Francona said. "And, if you're going to look up to somebody, that's pretty good. Besides the obvious skills you see, from what I understand, his work ethic is really good. I think he pushes Roberto in the winter, so that's a good thing." Molina can push Perez some more in the World Baseball Classic, too. "There's so much pride there," Francona said. "'Berto's come so far that it's just fun to brag about him. I remember three springs ago, kind of getting after him, because I thought he was not going full speed. You look up three years later, and he's catching the staff in the World Series, and nobody seems to be worried about it. He's come a long way. And it's through a lot of hard work."

2 Indians taking advantage of Giambi's expertise By Jordan Bastian / MLB.com March 1st, 2017 GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Indians manager Terry Francona's cell phone would buzz with a message from Jason Giambi every so often throughout the postseason last fall. Jason Kipnis also would return to his locker to find a message from his former teammate from time to time. Giambi has not been a part of Cleveland's clubhouse for the past two years, but the retired slugger has kept a close eye on the team that marked the final stop in his 20-year Major League career. This week, Giambi is back in a Tribe uniform as a guest instructor, giving him the chance to be back around a team that he has enjoyed watching blossom into a World Series contender. "The greatest thing that I see from these guys is there's no World Series hangover," Giambi said Wednesday morning. "These guys are hungry. They want to get back. There's no, 'Oh well, we had our chance, and it didn't happen.' They know this team can be great for the next few years." Giambi has been helping hitters in the batting cage, assisting the coaching staff during on-field drills and spending time with Francona. "He's such a special person," Francona said. "Every day he spends here is a bonus for everybody -- myself included. He just has that way about him. I watched him [on Tuesday]. It's not just us. He went over to Oakland, and everybody was hugging him. The grounds crew guy and everybody. That's just the way 'G' is. We're fortunate that he has our uniform on." Giambi was a part of the 2013 Indians team that captured an American League Wild Card spot, but that young, upstart Tribe squad had a quick exit from the October stage. Giambi was the veteran voice for that Cleveland team, but he has since watched players Kipnis, Corey Kluber and Michael Brantley develop into leaders on and off the field. That is why Giambi is confidence that leadership will not be an issue for the '17 Tribe. "It's like when I played for the Yankees," Giambi said. "You had myself, [Derek] Jeter, Bernie [Williams]. You have a lot of guys. One guy doesn't have to shoulder that here, which is great. And these guys have grown enough. They know what it takes to get there now." Giambi etched his name into Indians lore on Sept. 24 during that 2013 season with a walk-off home run against the White Sox. The shot came within the Indians' season-ending, 10-game winning streak, which secured the top Wild Card spot. A mural of Francona's postgame embrace with Giambi still hangs on the wall outside the manager's office at Progressive Field. Rajai Davis' game-tying homer in Game 7 of the World Series against the Cubs pushed Giambi's blast down a notch on the list of all-time great home runs in Indians history. That was fine by Giambi, who called Game 7 one of the best games he has ever watched. "I loved it. I played with Raj with the A's," Giambi said. "I was super excited for these guys to have that feeling.... Once you do it once, you want to keep going." Back in camp with the Indians, Giambi sees a team capable of doing just that. "The greatest gift that this team has now," Giambi said, "is they know they can win." Jordan Bastian has cove Indians adjusting with league to defensive shifts, don t mind if opposing batters try to lay down bunts By Ryan Lewis One of the more interesting games within the game to emerge in baseball in the past decade or so has been the defensive shift, how teams employ it and how hitters can beat it. More data on how teams shift and its positive or negative effects have begun to be calculated, and teams have a better idea of when and how to use them. Typically, power hitters who pull a higher-than-average percentage of ground balls are shifted against the most. At times, the shift works like a charm, and a hard-hit grounder off the bat of, say, David Ortiz ends up as a quiet groundout instead of a single. At other times, it doesn t, as the Indians saw last year in the World Series when Kyle Schwarber repeatedly beat the shift to the right side, even with less real estate with which to work. Per Eno Sarris of FanGraphs.com, teams across the league employed a traditional shift 28,072 times in That s up from 17,737 in In 2013, teams shifted only 6,881 times. The Indians in particular shifted 1,011 times, which ranked 20th in baseball. It was less than half of the Houston Astros total of 2,052 shifts and not too far from doubling the Chicago Cubs total of 603, which helps to showcase the differences in opinion across the league about how often teams want to shift and against whom. Having three infielders on one side of the infield which forces one player to defend the opposing field leaves open the possibility a hitter might try to bunt or poke a ball down the opposing line in order to, effectively, steal a single instead of trying to pound a ball through or over the shift. The Indians, like the other 29 teams in baseball, are still adjusting how they want to employ the shift and against which hitters. But, in general, if the Indians are using a traditional defensive shift, they re OK with a dangerous opposing hitter trying to poke a ball down the opposing line. Guys that can hit the ball out of the ballpark with that frequency, if they lay down a bunt or they try to hit a single to left, you re happy they re trying to do that, Indians manager Terry Francona told reporters in Goodyear, Ariz. The only time you really have to balance that is if that runner on second can beat you. A lot of times, you ll see a guy shorten up to bunt and we don t make an adjustment. If he wants to bunt, good. That means the ball didn t leave the ballpark. That reasoning could play into why Carlos Santana, the Indians most shifted-against player in recent years by a long shot, hasn t often tried to beat the shift, even though there s a wide gap on the left side of the infield. Santana in 2016 totaled 275 plate appearances facing a shift, which was the 17th most in baseball. Only Jason Kipnis (111) and Mike Napoli (103) among Indians hitters also had more than 100 plate appearances against a shift. But Santana will have company in Edwin Encarnacion last year ranked 23rd in baseball with 254 plate appearances against a shift. Still, the Indians aren t likely to start playing games with their at-bats. It s all in how teams and individual hitters look to continue to beat the shift without sacrificing their own attributes.

3 That doesn t mean Santana and Encarnacion will never try to get creative to get on base. But the Indians like seeing opposing power hitters trying to do something they re not used to doing, so it likely won t start happening with their own hitters at the plate. The Indians aren t likely to try some radical adjustment to essentially take the bat out of their own hitters hands to try to beat the shift, as Santana has done at times. But using the whole field, in general, will always have its benefits especially when it doesn t require a power hitter to lay down a bunt. I do think with Carlos, the more he uses the whole field, the better hitter he is, as everybody is, Francona said. He goes through periods where he does, and he goes through periods where he wants to pull. Just the facts are that if you use that segment of the field, you re not going to hit for as high an average because they re going to take a lot of hits away from you. Akron Beacon Journal LOADED: Trevor Bauer for three: Six things we learned from Cleveland Indians' 7-4 loss to Seattle By Paul Hoynes, cleveland.com CLEVELAND, Ohio - Six things we learned Wednesday from the Indians' 7-4 loss to Seattle at Goodyear Ballpark in Goodyear, Ariz. 1. Ready for the regular season? Right-hander Trevor Bauer, in his first spring appearance, became the first Indians starter to go three innings. He didn't allow a run on four hits. Bauer struck out one and didn't walk a batter. Bauer traditionally comes to camp in great shape. After the Indians lost the World Series last year, Bauer told reporters he took one week off and before starting his off-season training program. Meanwhile, Corey Kluber and Josh Tomlin are still being eased into the Cactus League schedule because of the extra postseason innings last year. Kluber, who has been pitching simulated games, could make his first Cactus League start on Monday. Manager Terry Francona said Kluber will be ready to go three innings when he does make that start. 2. One man show The Indians didn't do much offensively Wednesday, but they did have Michael Martinez. The switch-hitter gave the Indians a 1-0 lead with a two-out homer in the third. The Tribe's pitching made the lead stand until the sixth. Martinez, competing for the utility man's job with Erik Gonzalez and Ronny Rodriguez, added a two-run, two-out single in the seventh. He's hitting.400 (4-for-10) this spring. 3. Always take the sure out In the sixth, with the score tied, 1-1, left-hander Ryan Merritt had one out with a runner on second. Seattle's Tyler Smith sent a grounder to Gold Glove shortstop Francisco Lindor. Instead of going to first, Lindor tried to get Tyler O'Neill at third, but missed on a close play. Boog Powell followed with a bunt single down the first-base line to score O'Neill for a 2-1 lead. The Mariners went on to score five runs for a 5-1 lead. Merritt allowed five runs on four hits in 1 1/3 innings in his second Cactus League appearance. He has allowed seven runs on eight hits in 3 1/3 innings overall. 4. Throw it over the plate The Indians pitched well in the first four games of the Cactus League season, but the Mariners knocked them around Wednesday. They scored seven runs on 14 hits, but the Tribe did have some good moments from the mound starting with Bauer's three scoreless innings. Nick Goody pitched around two walks to turn in a scoreless fourth. Tyler Olson and Hoby Milner pitched a scoreless inning each in the eighth and ninth innings, respectively. Milner, the Rule 5 pick from Philadelphia, struck out two. 5. Youth shall be served First-base prospect Nellie Rodriguez replaced Edwin Encarnacion and went 2-for-2 with a run. He also made an error. Last season Rodriguez hit.250 (123-for-492) with 26 homers and 85 RBI at Class AA Akron. Outfielder Yandy Diaz, hitting.286 this spring, went 1-for-3 with a double. Shortstop Yu-Cheng Chang made a nice play in the hole to force Joe DeCarlo at second in the eighth. Encarnacion, by the way, singled in two at-bats. He's 3-for-5 (.600) in three games in the Arizona desert. 6. Trainer's room update Francona said outfielder Brandon Guyer could play in his first game this weekend. He's recovering from a right hamstring injury that has limited him in the first couple of weeks of spring training. Tribe President Chris Antonetti told WTAM's Tom Hamilton during Wednesday's game that second baseman Jason Kipnis (right shoulder) will resume swinging the bat in the next couple of days. He received a cortisone shot for an inflamed rotator cuff on Saturday. Antonetti said Kipnis could be ready for games in a week to 10 days. Michael Brantley, recovering from right shoulder surgery, took batting practice on the field Wednesday for the second time. Antonetti said Brantley looked fine swinging the bat, but added that the team won't know for sure about the state of his shoulder until he starts playing games. Next: Danny Salazar will make his second start of the spring Thursday when the Indians play the Dodgers in Glendale, Ariz. Clayton Kershaw will start for the Dodgers.

4 Danny Salazar, Carlos Carrasco take first spring-training steps for Cleveland Indians By Paul Hoynes, cleveland.com CLEVELAND, Ohio - Two innings down and about 28 to go. So far, so good for Danny Salazar and Carlos Carrasco in spring training. Would the Indians have won the World Series with a healthy Salazar and Carrasco last year? Opinions vary. They failed to convert a 3-1 lead against the Cubs, losing three straight while being forced to start Josh Tomlin and Corey Kluber on short rest in Game 6 and Game 7. But they still extended the series to the 10th inning of Game 7 before losing, 8-7. The debate will likely continue until the Indians finally win it all. Just when that will be is another unknown. On April 3 they begin their 69th season without a World Series title, just in case you weren't keeping count. Pitching coach Mickey Callaway told SportsTime Ohio recently that Carrasco and Salazar will probably be the Tribe's busiest starters this spring in terms of innings pitched. If all goes well, he'd like to see them both pitch around 30 innings. While Kluber and Tomlin will be brought along slowly because of their work in the postseason, Carrasco and Salazar are playing catch-up. Carrasco's season ended on Sept. 17 when he suffered a broken right hand when he was hit by an Ian Kinsler line drive. Salazar's season all but stopped on Sept. 9 when he walked off the mound at Target Field against the Twins with a strained right flexor muscle in his forearm. Carrasco pitched 146 1/3 innings last season. Salazar, who returned to make two relief appearances in the World Series, pitched 137 1/3 innings. Salazar made his first Cactus League start Sunday, pitching two innings against the Cubs. He struck out three, allowed one hit and did not allow a run. It was Carrasco's turn Monday against Texas. He allowed two runs on three hits in two innings in a 3-2 win. He struck out two and allowed a two-run homer by Nomar Mazara that may or may not have been foul down the right field line at Goodyear Ballpark. "Mazara hit that a mile," manager Terry Francona told reporters on Tuesday. "It might have been fair, it might have been foul. Four months from now, nobody will care about it. "I thought it was good to see Carlos out there. For the most part, he stayed in his delivery well. It's a good first step. Anytime you see your starters go out there, look healthy and use their fastball, that's the goal this early in spring training." The fact that Carrasco suffered a broken hand as opposed to injuring his pitching elbow or shoulder means his return to rotation should be uneventful. "Once his hand healed he was fine," Francona. "He's actually probably going to get more innings than anybody this spring because he hasn't pitched in a while and Mickey wants him to pitch a little more." Carrasco went 11-8 with a 3.32 ERA last season despite two significant injuries - a left hamstring strain in April and the broken hand in September. In 2015, Carrasco struck out 216 batters in 183 2/3 innings. He made 30 starts, going with a 3.63 ERA. Terry Francona evaluates Danny Salazar's performance If that version of Carrasco takes the mound in 2017, the Indians would be pleased. "You don't have a crystal ball, but he's built to log innings," said Francona. "He's big, strong and has a good delivery. He's good enough to stay out there - and that's really important. Somehow or another, you've got to account for a thousand innings from your starters (during the regular season). When you have a guy you think is built to log his 200, it really does help." Salazar went 10-3 with a 2.75 ERA in 17 starts in the first half last year. It earned him a trip to the All-Star Game, but he did not pitch because of a sore right elbow. The elbow bothered him the entire second half as he went 1-3 with a 7.44 ERA in eight starts. Salazar told reporters after his start against the Cubs on Saturday that he's been working on his training routine between starts. "I think having a great routine every day and keeping yourself healthy is really important," said Salazar. "By doing that, you're going to help the team." Callaway, interviewed during Sunday game, told STO, "That's probably the best I've ever seen Danny at this point (of spring training). His change up was great and he really did a good job with his fastball after that first hitter." Salazar opened the game with a walk. On Thursday, Salazar will face Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers. Carrasco will start Friday's game against the Jeff Hoffman and the Rockies. Cleveland Indians outfield prospect Greg Allen attempting to race past his spring competition By Zack Meisel, cleveland.com GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Once he earned a promotion to Double-A, the thought crossed Greg Allen's mind. He's closing in on a big-league chance. "You try your best to just be in the moment and take it one day at a time," he said, "but you're definitely aware of those things." Allen spent the last six weeks of the 2016 season with Double-A Akron following an impressive showing at High-A Lynchburg. Now, he's in bigleague camp for the first time and though he's a long shot to make the Indians' Opening Day roster, that doesn't mean he can't turn heads with his spring performance.

5 "It's been fun so far," Allen said, "just to be able to be around and see them on a daily basis, just to hear the dialogue, the way they talk to each other, the things they talk about, the way they go about their business. It's been fun. I try to take advantage of the opportunity and learn as much as I can." The center fielder emerged victorious in the team's annual position player endurance test, though that shouldn't come as much of a surprise. The 23-year-old stole 45 bases last season. "It can't hurt [my case]," he said. "I'm just trying to take it one day at a time and make the most of the opportunity. Allen has one hit and one stolen base in three spring games. What to know about Greg Allen: * He totaled nearly as many walks (77) as strikeouts (78) last season, which explains his gaudy.416 on-base percentage. That number, paired with his stolen-base ability, make the switch-hitter an ideal leadoff hitter. * His batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage have increased each season. * He's no slouch in center field. Allen earned a Minor League Gold Glove Award last season. * He has Brandon Guyer syndrome; he's been plunked 63 times in 312 career minor-league games. * The Indians selected him in the sixth round of the 2014 amateur draft out of San Diego State University. * MLB.com ranks Allen as the organization's ninth-best prospect. * He was included in the framework of the trade for Jonathan Lucroy that fell through. Allen said he followed the news online and communicated with his parents as it unfolded. He lost a lot of sleep that night. "That was a very unique experience, going through the trade deadline and possibly being traded and then not," he said. "There were a lot of emotions that went into that, but when the dust settled and everything calmed down, I'm still happy to be here." * Tribe manager Terry Francona indicated that the likely scenario will involve Allen, Yandy Diaz and Bradley Zimmer all starting the season in the minors. But Allen watched Tyler Naquin attain an Opening Day roster spot last spring. "I was tracking him last year and his rise was inspiring," Allen said. "It really was. It gives you hope that there are opportunities out there and it's just a matter of taking advantage of them." Cleveland Indians have Terry Talkin' Yan Gomes, fun prospects, spring training By Terry Pluto, The Plain Dealer CLEVELAND, Ohio -- There is so much more to the Cleveland Indians' spring training than what seems like the daily reports about Michael Brantley. Brantley obviously is important to the Tribe, but his progress will be slow this spring as he recovers from shoulder issues. Yan Gomes is a very important player. In 2014, he hit 21 homers, drove in 74 runs and proved to be an excellent defensive catcher. But in the last two seasons, it's been injury after injury. Brad Zimmer belted a homer in his first spring game. I love to talk prospects this time of year. Spring in Arizona is usually a good time to feel upbeat about the Tribe, and that's especially true this season. Let's talk about it. Bauer Sharp By The Associated Press Trevor Bauer pitched three scoreless innings and gave up four hits for the Indians in a 7-4 loss to the visiting Mariners in Cactus League play on March 1. Indians manager Terry Francona told MLB.com Bauer did well. He had to climb back into a bunch of counts, so because he was pitching behind, there was some hard contact, Francona said. But, I thought the ball came out of his hand good. It s his first outing. Michael Martinez homered, had three hits and drove in three runs. Outfielder Daniel Robertson had the Tribe s other RBI. Nellie Rodriguez had two hits and a run scored. Ryan Merritt had a tough outing in relief. He gave up five runs, all earned, in 1 1/3 innings. Mariners starter Drew Smyly struck out two in two shutout innings. Leonys Martin had two doubles among his three hits. The Indians are 2-2 in spring training games.

6 Tribe notes: Sloppy Indians fall to Mariners at Goodyear Ballpark ByChris Assenheimer The Chronicle-Telegram GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- After watching his team play sloppily in the field Wednesday during a 7-4 loss to the Mariners at Goodyear Ballpark, manager Terry Francona was thankful it didn t count. That was one of those games where you re glad it s spring training, so you can sleep, said Francona, whose team committed two errors on the day and managed just a run through six innings. We missed cutoff men, we didn t execute a run down, throw to the wrong base. It was just one of those days that... we ll talk to the guys (today) and it ll give us something to teach. It gives us a reason to talk to them. Right-hander Trevor Bauer started for the Indians (2-2-1), tossing three scoreless innings -- four hits, one strikeout -- in his exhibition debut. I don t think he walked anybody and he had to climb back into a bunch of counts, so because he was pitching behind, there was some hard contact, Francona said. But I thought the ball came out of his hand good... it was his first outing. He went three and he got through them. He threw some good splits, which I know he wanted to. The Indians got a surprising offensive lift from Michael Martinez, who is likely to open the season as the utility infielder after making the final out of last year s World Series. Martinez, 34, had two hits, including a solo home run, and three RBIs. He has four hits in 10 at-bats this spring. He always comes ready. You don t want to penalize someone for being ready, Francona said. He s gotten pitches in the zone and he s had really good at-bats, and he s reliable defensively. He s an easy guy to pull for. We all know that. He s such a good teammate and even with not a ton of experience, he makes guys better on the bench. Learning curve Left-hander Ryan Merritt made his major league debut last year, logging 11 innings (four games/one start) before his well-documented ALCS Game 5 outing that helped the Indians clinch the AL title. That little experience could go a long way for Merritt this season, according to Francona. When you see guys come up and get a little bit of experience the year before, generally they show up the next spring and they look stronger, Francona said. Sometimes they get stronger, but some of it too is just they feel like they belong a little more. They know where they re going, they ve kind of been there and done it, even if it s in small samples. For him, I think that s... OK, he made a start in Kansas City where he kind of clutched up, then he goes into Toronto and kind of makes a start out of the blue that kind of blows everybody away. Now he goes home, he does get stronger, but it just looks more than that. Even though, it was however many innings of experience, that can really go a long way. Merritt, 25, went 11-8 with a 3.70 ERA in 24 starts last year for Triple-A Columbus, where he is expected to open the season and provide starting depth for the big league team. He pitched 1 1/3 innings Wednesday, allowing five runs and the Mariners to take the lead in the sixth inning. Boone bit The Indians paid substantial money (one-year, $6.5 million) to acquire relief pitcher Boone Logan and are expecting big things from the lefthanded match-up specialist. I think Boone s definitely going to make us better, bullpen mate Andrew Miller said. He s a veteran. He s been around as long as just about anybody who s pitched in our bullpen these days. He s going to bring experience. He s going to bring reliability to us. I think there s no way he doesn t make us better. Logan, a 10-year veteran, has been highly effective against left-handed hitters throughout his career, limiting them to a.233 batting average. While pitching for the Rockies last year appearances at hitter-friendly Coors Field -- Logan held lefties to a.222 average over 66 games. Quote of the day A clubhouse is a pretty special place, Francona said. I actually think the real world could learn a lot coming into a clubhouse. You see people of every color, nationality and, if you have the same uniform, everybody s equal. Roundin third Michael Brantley (right shoulder) was scheduled to take batting practice on the field for the second time Wednesday. There is still no target date for Brantley s exhibition debut.... Today, 3:05 p.m. vs. Dodgers at Glendale s Camelback Ranch. Salazar (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. Clayton Kershaw (0-0, 0.00 ERA). No television or radio coverage. Contact Chris Assenheimer at or ctsports@chroniclet.com. Like him on Facebook and follow on Twitter. Indians right-hander Josh Tomlin has been beating the odds his entire career ByChris Assenheimer The Chronicle-Telegram GOODYEAR, Ariz. Josh Tomlin s major league story is a true tale of perseverance. A 19th-round draft pick who attended a community college in Lufkin, Texas, for two years, Tomlin was far from heralded when he began his professional career. The right-hander doesn t possess an overpowering fastball mph or a knee-buckling breaking ball. He has also endured two major injuries Tommy John surgery in 2012 and right shoulder surgery in 2015 over a six-year career. The odds have been against Tomlin at every turn since he broke into the big leagues in 2010 and yet he s overcome them all with grit and guts that were on display again last year. Yanked from the rotation after a series of poor outings, Tomlin caught his breath and returned to provide the Indians with a quality starting pitcher when they needed it most. I think he deserves a ton of credit because, one, he didn t hang his head or pout, which we know that s never going to happen, manager Terry Francona said. He looked at some things himself. He dug deep into kinda who he needs to be and he came up with a lot of conclusions that were really helpful. And then when he got back in (the rotation), man, it was like he hadn t missed a beat. And that was huge, because as we saw going forward, we were losing pitchers and then he s coming back to being that pitcher. That really helped us.

7 Not only did Tomlin find his groove in time to fill a void left by injuries to starters Carlos Carrasco and Danny Salazar, he took it into the postseason, where he performed admirably under the bright lights of October, winning his first two outings in the ALDS and ALCS and starting twice in the World Series. For me, personally, I think it was just trying to realize that you re still playing a game, said Tomlin, who went 13-9 with a 4.40 ERA in 30 regular-season games (29 starts). There is added pressure, but to me, pressure is privilege. You earn the right to have that kind of pressure. I don t feel like any of us really let the moment get too big or too small. It was just go out there and play the game you ve been playing your entire life. Tomlin s late-season comeback had more adversity attached. He was forced to leave the team in August after his father, Jerry, suffered a lifethreatening medical scare. Like nearly everything he s encountered during his career, Tomlin overcame it, pitching with his father in attendance for Game 3 of the World Series at Wrigley Field and in Game 6 at Progressive Field. He handles everything. He s as good a teammate as I ve ever seen, Francona said. We all knew he had a lot going on. You don t find a better teammate than him. But you do find better pitchers ones who have more talent and stuff, but have enjoyed less success than the soft-tossing righty. Command is what leaps out first, Francona said. When he s going good, he can command his fastball, he commands all his pitches. He pitches in effectively, throws his cutter off of that fastball, flips that breaking ball in it s a real quality mix. Last year when he started maybe to fatigue a little bit or tire, he started throwing that cutter more and more and more and he was yanking it across the plate and he was missing. That s when he runs into trouble, but when he s crisp and going good, it s command, and I don t think the radar gun matters. When you look at him and every pitch looks crisp, that s when he s ready to go. Tomlin got it going at the right moment for the Indians, but he didn t have much time to reflect on his accomplishment. For me it was just getting back to Texas and getting back to work as soon as I could, Tomlin said. Obviously, taking the time off to kind of let the mental side of your brain kind of recuperate from what just happened, and the physical aspect of playing into November was different than the past. So for me it was take a month off and get back to the grind of working out. I think it was just a little bit later timeframe to start things, but you really don t do anything different. Contact Chris Assenheimer at or ctsports@chroniclet.com. Like him on Facebook and follow on Twitter.