Cleveland Indians fans were almost treated to a great minor league matchup today between Mike Clevinger and top Pittsburgh Pirates pitching prospect Tyler Glasgow, but they may be getting something better instead.
Even the official MLB Pipeline account seemed to think Clevinger was getting the start today (as late as 11:00 a.m.) with a now-deleted tweet hyping the matchup, but when it came time for first pitch at 11:25 a.m., Clevinger's flowing hair was nowhere to be found. My first thought was "oh my god he cut his hair, noooo," but then I realized Clevinger is No. 39, not 41. Ross Detwiler got the start today for Columbus.
The best case scenario for this late scratch is that Clevinger is getting the call-up to the majors. If that is the case, Clevinger probably would be sitting for a few days and make his debut on Saturday against the Boston Red Sox, which would have been Cody Anderson's next start. Alternatively, he could start today against Alfredo Simon and Cincinnati Reds and bump everyone else back a day, but that seems unlikely.
In seven starts for the Columbus Clippers this season, Clevinger has a 3.03 ERA and a 3.30 FIP. He has walked over four batters per nine innings, but he has also struck out over nine per nine innings.
There is also the possibility that an injury showed up in his morning workouts, but let's hope not.