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Tuesdays are always a bit rough since I stay late at work for our weekly staff meetings. If there's a Tribe game on, it usually means that I've missed most, if not all, of it by the time I finally settle in after getting home. Tonight, thanks to the 5:10 PM PST start time, I was able to catch the tail end of the game. The two things that stuck out to me as noteworthy were Bryan Shaw looking like a man on a damn mission (and succeeding) and Francisco Lindor's majestic home run to right field to put the game away. I look forward to more games like this. And now, onto the news!
Indians 7, Royals 3
LGT Recap | Cleveland.com Recap | Box Score
In a satisfying turn of events, the Cleveland Indians flipped the script in last night's game against the Kansas City Royals and nabbed a 7-3 victory of their own. Mike Napoli and Francisco Lindor each added another home run to their season totals, Carlos Santana found the ever elusive bases loaded hit, Danny Salazar pitched 6.2 innings of immaculate baseball, and Bryan Shaw bounced back in the best way possible by ending the eighth inning on just eight pitches and racking up two strikeouts in the process. It was a solid team victory, and Carlos Carrasco looks to help the Tribe get a series victory in today's rubber match.
Indians news
A lot of LGT users have stated that they don't anticipate Michael Brantley making any positive contributions to the 2016 Cleveland Indians, and with yesterday's report of more discomfort in his shoulder, it's looking more and more like Dr. Smooth could be out until 2017. Here's to hoping he can make it back in time for a run in October.
Many Indians fans were worried that Salazar would be the next player bitten by the injury bug as he experienced arm fatigue and some minor shoulder soreness prior to the All-Star Break. The team figured that it would be best if Salazar not throw in the ASG in order to fully rest up and be ready for the second half. If Tuesday night was any indication, Salazar is going to be just fine.
If you had decided to base the Tribe's needs off of one game, and that game happened to be on July 18, you would most likely be screaming for bullpen help. After last night's game (and the news of Michael Brantley's setback), an outfielder may seem more appropriate. Luckily for us, President Chris Antonetti isn't succumbing to recency bias and is weighing many different options when it comes to making before the end of the month.
Around the League
- It apparently wasn't enough for the baseball gods to take down Yan Gomes and Michael Brantley; they've now set their sights on the best pitcher in the universe, Clayton Kershaw. Not cool, baseball gods. Not cool.
- Albert "The Machine" Pujols continues to do one thing well, and that's hit home runs. In last night's contest against the Rangers, Pujols hit two in the Angels victory over Texas (which helped to give the Tribe, once again, the best record in the American League)
- It looks like the Pokemon Go craze can't even escape MLB mascots. To be honest, I'm a little disappointed that Orbit wasn't the one chasing down Pikachu.
- It's been a disappointing season to this point for the team in Detroit. At this point, it's unclear as to what the team will do as the trade deadline approaches. My advice? Go for it! Sell the farm! You guys are still in this thing! *checks on Detroit's farm system* oh...