The Cleveland Indians are finally done with spring training and the regular season begins Thursday.
It’s about time.
Exhibition action ended Tuesday with a 3-2 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks in a game that gave fans a glimpse of what the lineup should look like on Opening Day.
Ben Gamel batted leadoff and got the start in center field.
Andres Gimenez rounded out the lineup in the ninth spot.
The only thing that would be different on Opening Day is Shane Bieber starting instead of Aaron Civale.
Civale logged 4.1 innings in a no-decision Tuesday.
José RamÃrez has homered in every single inning of exhibition, non-league play this season.#CLESpring pic.twitter.com/CwfN9xn9Z1
— Cleveland Indians (@Indians) March 30, 2021
Ready for the Regular Season
The Indians ended up going 10-18 during spring training, for whatever that’s worth.
The record was never as much a concern as figuring out key questions all throughout the roster.
Seeing Gamel in center, Josh Naylor in right, and Jake Bauers at first base against Arizona showed the resolution to the earlier questions from the month.
The bullpen was another area in focus and Tuesday provided a partial preview of what is to come.
James Karinchak was the first in relief, followed by Bryan Shaw and Emmanuel Clase.
Vin Diesel would love Emmanuel Clase. pic.twitter.com/qlg6zHobff
— Cleveland Indians (@Indians) March 30, 2021
All three combined to go scoreless in 2.2 innings of work.
Trevor Stephan ended up taking the loss after blowing the lead in the bottom of the eighth inning.
The only one missing from a true regular season preview is Nick Wittgren.
Other positives from the loss include Bauers and Jose Ramirez both going deep.
Both, however, were solo shots.
Regular Season Nearly Here
The beginning of spring training is always a fun time.
Baseball is finally back and winter seems to be reaching its end.
Then comes a month of waiting for the games to count.
We are finally at that point as the regular season gets underway Thursday afternoon in Detroit.
Bieber is on the mound and fans will get to see how this new-look lineup performs without Francisco Lindor as the centerpiece.
Gimenez is going to be one player in focus right away considering he is seen as a potential heir apparent to Lindor.
But Terry Francona will be relying on everyone 1-9 to pick up the slack.
The pitching staff will carry this team to a certain extent.
The problem will be on days like Tuesday when holding the opponent to three runs isn’t enough to win.
Should there be optimism ahead of Thursday?
There is certainly no reason to be totally down on this team.
Projections show a finish above .500 with plenty of room for more if so many young players reach their potential.
Someone like Zach Plesac could emerge as a serious Cy Young contender to compete with Bieber.
Or Naylor could look like an All-Star and change the dynamic of the outfield.
And don’t forget about the addition of Eddie Rosario in left.
The Indians season is nearly here and we could not be more excited.
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