The Cleveland Indians placed Corey Kluber on the 10-day disabled list today, citing a lower back strain as the culprit. Kluber pitched only three innings before Terry Francona pulled him from Tuesday night’s game. When asked about the injury afterwards, Kluber remained as stoic as ever.
.@Indians ace Corey Kluber's back was bothering him enough he had to leave last night's start early
— SportsTime Ohio (@SportsTimeOhio) May 3, 2017
Here he is after the game pic.twitter.com/YV09J75Nxh
Reports surfaced that Kluber’s felt pain in his lower back since the start of the season. While the ten-day stint on the DL should alleviate his own injury, it may also assuage the anxiety of fans. Many have pointed to Kluber’s rockier-than-usual start this season and wondered whether he’d begun to lose his effectiveness. The news that the Indians Ace hasn’t been 100% all year gives a firm answer as to why he isn’t his usual, dominant self.
Replacing Corey Kluber on the 25-man roster is Joe Colon. Last season Colon some innings for the Indians, though not enough and not in situations from which any definitive conclusions can be drawn. He’s looked impressive during his time at the AAA level; in 49.2 innings, Colon owns a WHIP of 1.087 and an ERA of 1.63. While he strikes out 9.6 per 9 innings, he also walks 3.3.
The reason the Indians reached for another bullpen arm is that the Indians will not need a starter to fill Kluber’s spot until Sunday. Unless something drastic happens between now and then, expect Mike Clevinger to make his first start of 2017 for the Indians.
Colon gives 'pen a fresh arm for next few days. Do not need a starter until Sunday. Mike Clevinger the likely candidate for that one.
— Jordan Bastian (@MLBastian) May 3, 2017
When considered along with the high-usage of the Indians bullpen during the first two games of the Tigers-Indians series, it becomes the natural choice.
Francona will speak more about Kluber’s injury before tonight’s game. For now, his comment is as follows:
Francona says it looks like Kluber will be put on DL "we think letting him miss a little bit of time is best thing for everybody" #Indians
— MLB Network Radio (@MLBNetworkRadio) May 3, 2017
As little time as possible. Please. Send him to the shop, tighten the bolts, polish the ports, defrag the drive and get him a rehab start for debugging, stat.