:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/29288575/474656821.0.jpg)
Two games of actually baseball have been played, and the Indians already look like nothing more than a .500 team. Here are some links about these bums, and other bums around the league:
Indians news
Masterson optimistic that an extension can still happen - The big news of the day, other than Carlos Carrasco'sdominant performance yesterday, is that Justin Masterson has apparently kept the door open for an extension with the Tribe. After his scoreless inning in Thursday's game, Masterson said "I figure somehow, someway I'll end up still being here for a few more years." Hoynes has his take on the situation, noting that it's a bit of a balancing act between Masterson's desire to play for Terry Francona and the knowledge of his value on the open market post-Homer Bailey extension. Zack Meisel chimes in in his post-game notes, guessing that the Tribe "probably wouldn't" commit to a Bailey-esque contract.
Both Hoynes and Bastian quote Masterson mentioning that any extension would likely have to happen before the season, so here's hoping the Tribe FO can get something worked out in the next month.
Swisher slows it down for Spring Training 2014 - Hoynes writes Nick Swisher has worked out a deal with Terry Francona to start the spring out slowly, likely missing the first several games in an attempt to ease into the season. Swisher is focused on being 100% for the season opener. But while Swisher may be easing into on-field activities, he's going full throttle on the enthiusiasm. Bastian notes Nick is feeling a lot less pressure this year, and is really ready to let loose and have fun in 2014:
"Bro, we're leaps and bounds above last year where we were team-wise already," he said. "[The front office is] giving us an opportunity and they're giving the city something to wrap their arms around."
Lots of other great Swish quotes in both articles.
Carrasco impresses in spring debut - Spring training caveats accounted for, Terry Pluto notes Carlos Carrasco was as good as anyone could have hoped on Thursday. Did The Tribe Win Last Night runs with the story, examining Carrasco's chances of winning and excelling in the 5th starter spot.
Cabrera's low 2013 BABIP not a result of poor plate discipline - Indians Baseball Insider examines the correlation between Asdrubal Cabrera's BABIP and plate discipline, and shows that the two are not necessarily correlated. While we could reasonably expect an increase in BABIP for 2014, it may not be because of improved plate discipline.
Around the league
Aside from the boring results of the actual games played by other boring teams not named the Indians, there's not a whole lot going on in the MLB:
Zack Greinke left his first spring training game with a calf strain, which fortunately doesn't look too serious.
Miguel Cabrera is becoming an even bigger predator.
Justin Chamberlain gets whimsical with his Tommy John surgery scar.
Grady Sizemore is still as sexy as ever, according to David Ortiz.