Cleveland Sports Forum

Last year Kluber came to spring training following surgery on his right knee. He did it changing his daughter’s diaper.

How did he manage that?

Probably squirming.

civ ollilavad wrote:

Last year Kluber came to spring training following surgery on his right knee. He did it changing his daughter’s diaper.

How did he manage that?

Quiet Corey Kluber began to believe in himself, and it paid off for Cleveland Indians - Terry Pluto

on February 24, 2014 at 7:05 PM, updated February 25, 2014 at 7:30 AM


GOODYEAR, Arizona -- You're Corey Kluber and Tribe fans don't talk about you that much.

Nor does the media, which is in spring training looking for stories.

You are the quiet man behind the beard.

On the mound, you don't smile. You don't scowl.

You stare. You stare real hard.

And you tell yourself not to listen to that whisper, the one that has been the voice of doubt for years.

It's the one that tells you that your fastball averages close to 94 mph. You have lit up the radar gun at 97 mph.

But that voice tells you, "That's not good enough."

Now, you call that voice a liar.

Instead, you listen to what Mickey Callaway told you about your fastball, about the magic of a first-pitch strike.

"You don't have to be perfect," Callaway told you -- over and over.

Don't worry about painting the corners, aim for the middle of the plate, keep the ball low and "trust your stuff."

That's what happened last season, when you were 11-5 with a 3.85 ERA.

The diaper

Last spring, you didn't talk about it much.

The knee. It wasn't right.

You had surgery on November 3, 2012, to repair a torn meniscus.

How did you hurt it?

Bending over to change your eight-month old daughter's diaper. She was on the floor. You reached down, and something happened to your knee.

Big trouble.

At this time a year ago, you were in camp saying everything was OK.

"But it wasn't," said Manager Terry Francona, adding that you never said a word about it.

Later, Francona asked you why you kept silent? You could have opened the season on the Major League disabled list, instead of at Class AAA Columbus.

"I just couldn't do that," said Kluber.

You are a no-excuse, fight-your-way-through-it guy. Francona loves that about you.

The discovery

When you came up to the Tribe on April 17, you were in the bullpen. Brett Myers was in the rotation.

It turned out that Myers' elbow was like a chewed sausage. You were given a shot to start. You had two decent outings, and then were drilled for eight runs by Detroit.

At this point, you were 27. You had a 44-50 record with a 4.42 ERA in the minors. You had been up and down -- mostly down -- between Class AAA and the Tribe for three years.

Francona told you that you must use your fastball inside -- yes, even to Miguel Cabrera.
I know it's harder to stay up here (the Majors) than just get here.

Callaway was preaching the gospel of "use your fastball, throw strikes."

In the words the of the pitching coach, he was trying to "drill that into you."

But you had to ignore that whisper that insisted when you needed a big strike, throw a breaking ball.

Callaway and minor league pitching coach Ruben Niebla had convinced you to switch from throwing a four-seam fastball to throwing it with two seams, creating a pitch still in the middle 90s, only it sunk a bit and slid away from right-handed batters.

And suddenly by doing that, you not only began to win -- you threw strike after strike after strike.

By the end of the season, you were walking only 2.0 batters per nine innings -- and striking out 83.

About 77 percent of your pitches were fastballs or "cutters," that two-seamer that sliced across home plate.

And yes, you were "busting hitters inside," breaking some bats, taking command of the plate.

"You have to get that pitch in there (inside) or they'll hit it 500 feet," said Francona. "But when you do, it opens up so much."

You became the Tribe's stopper. When you took the mound after a Tribe loss, you were 5-1 with a 2.59 ERA.

Figuring it out

Last season, you threw only one wild pitch. You walked two for every nine innings.

But in 2011, you were 7-11 with a 5.56 ERA at Columbus. You heaved 12 wild pitches. You were walking nearly five batters every nine innings.

You were 25 and going nowhere.

Even last spring, no one was writing you into the rotation. Late in 2012, you pitched in 12 games for the Tribe -- and had a 5.14 ERA.

"That's why I take nothing for granted," you say. "I know it's harder to stay up here (the Majors) than just get here."

But you also know something else.

"Hitting is hard," you say. "Some hitters make it look easy, but it's hard to get hits."

That realization gave you the confidence to throw strikes, to use that fastball and cutter.

"We got Corey up to 60 percent on first-pitch strikes," Callaway said. "That's our target. He was at 66 percent on 1-and-1 (counts) being strikes. That's another of our targets. Now, he's out there with poise. He's calm. He knows how he wants to pitch. He knows he can be a guy who can throw a lot of innings and win 15 games."

You are glad to hear that, but you don't want to spend too much time thinking about it. Last season, you overcame the off-season knee injury -- and then came back after missing a month with a finger problem to win your final four starts.

That's why on the mound, you don't smile much. And don't say much.

You stare. You think. And you pitch.

And you do it like man who has matured as a pitcher -- one who might be even better this season than a year ago.

So the secret is out. But he shouldn't have to reach all the way down to the floor; diaper changing tables make that much easier. Never ruined my knee in my diaper changing days, and didn't even have a sports trainer to guide me.

Pride and passion: Indians' bond unquestioned

Standing up for respect, Swisher fuels Tribe's positive vibes heading into '14

Anthony Castrovince By Anthony Castrovince | Archive 3/17/2014 2:07 P.M. ET



For a little insight into the pride and passion of this current Cleveland Indians club, consider a scene from the bowels of Progressive Field in January.

It was there, behind the backdrop of the otherwise peaceful setting of Fan Fest, that the Indians' first baseman of the present confronted their center fielder of the past about some disparaging remarks the latter had made about the Indians' 2013 run. What followed was an intense exchange in which Nick Swisher and Kenny Lofton were, according to one onlooker, almost nose-to-nose at one point, like an umpire and manager arguing a call.

This was a verbal battle, a semantical struggle, all relating to the meaning of the word "playoffs."

On one end, you had Lofton insisting, as he had done in a sitdown with reporters a short time earlier, that the 2013 Indians were not a playoff team, because, in Lofton's eyes, one Wild Card Game dropped at the hands of the Tampa Bay Rays does not a traditional postseason entry make.

"A playoff is a series, not one game," Lofton had said. "It's not the Super Bowl."

And on the other end, you had Swisher, living up to the leadership role he signed up for as a free agent a year earlier in a manner that went beyond anything he contributes on the field.

When word spread of Lofton's remarks, reliever Vinnie Pestano took to Twitter to say there was "no need to cheapen" what the Indians had accomplished, adding the hashtag "SitdownKenny."

Swisher took it a step further. He sought Lofton out at the event, got in the grill of the member of the team Hall of Fame, and told him, in so many words, that the Indians are trying to build something special, and that if Lofton didn't want to be a part of it, he ought to board the first flight back to Los Angeles.

Tellingly, when Lofton arrived to the Tribe's Spring Training camp in Goodyear, Ariz., last month, he was given the cold shoulder by multiple members of the current club. His stay was a particularly short one.

Asked about Lofton's comments now, Swisher was pretty straightforward.

"That was handled," he said. "We handled that."

When asked, via text message, for a response on how his comments were received, Lofton replied that he had said enough on the topic and that "maybe someone else can back me up on how it's not a real playoff series."

"U guys need to put in there on what's the definition of playoffs," Lofton wrote, "and that should answer Swisher's comments."

Lofton and Swisher are both well-versed in October ball, with Lofton having been a part of 11 playoff teams in his 16 full seasons and Swisher having reached the postseason stage in all but two of his nine full years in the bigs. While a World Series ring evaded Lofton, Swisher won one with the Yankees in 2009, a clear career high.

But the zeal with which Swisher discusses the experience of winning the top American League Wild Card spot with the Indians, who won 92 games after winning just 68 a year earlier, is striking, even by Swisher's high-energy standards.

"Hey, regardless of what happened to us in that game, that was something the city of Cleveland hadn't had in a long time," Swisher said. "So to just get that momentum and kind of get over that hump, it gave us a lot of comfort here. We take a lot of pride in that. People know there's a team in Cleveland, Ohio, now, and we're happy to be a part of it. We may not be the best team out there, but there's not a challenge we back down from."

Swisher proved as much when he stood up to Lofton.

And frankly, he had every right to do so.

After all, the Indians themselves did not dictate the direction Major League Baseball took with its playoff format in 2013.

"We would have qualified for the postseason under any format," general manager Chris Antonetti said. "We had the fourth-best record [in the AL]."

After entering the month of September encouraged by the assistance the second Wild Card provided them in their postseason pursuit, they ended the month knowing the expanded format had actually cost them a guaranteed entry into the Division Series round.

Alex Cobb took care of matters from there, and his performance under the pressure of the one-and-done format was particularly impressive given not only his absence of effective secondary stuff that night but also the electricity in the air at Progressive Field, with a vocal, red-clad crowd making its presence known.

To at least one Indians alumnus in the house that night, it was a postseason game, no doubt.

"The structure of the game now is that they're giving two teams a chance," said Jim Thome, a special assistant with the White Sox. "You can look at that in a lot of different ways, but ultimately it's a playoff game. I had never, as a fan, witnessed or experienced that. The vibe [of the 1990s] is still there. When you get into that atmosphere, the vibe never leaves."

There is a vibe of positivity in the current Indians clubhouse that was set in motion when manager Terry Francona arrived and was strengthened by the experience of winning 10 straight down the stretch to secure a playoff appearance. Swisher, who refers to young teammates as "thundercats" and his manager as "the jam" in casual conversation, expresses that positivity better than anybody.

"Having guys like him who have great heart and energy, it rubs off on everybody," Thome said. "It rubs off on the fans, too."

The Indians enter this season with questions, about how they'll replace the innings left behind by Ubaldo Jimenez and Scott Kazmir and reliever Joe Smith, about whether the lineup can get improvement out of Swisher and Michael Bourn (who left Sunday's Cactus League game with a mild hamstring injury) and Asdrubal Cabrera after their subpar 2013 seasons, about whether a Tigers team that beat them 15 times in 19 meetings last year is too tough to be tamed.

All legitimate questions, no doubt.

What is unquestioned, though, is the bond that was formed a season ago. It's one reason why Michael Brantley forked over a free-agent year in his contract extension talks with the Tribe and why staff ace Justin Masterson has expressed a willingness to sign a shorter-term contract than he could likely command in free agency at the end of 2014.

In Spring Training camp, the members of the Tribe -- a club that relies heavily on ego-free lineup arrangements in which the bench is of pivotal import -- have worn T-shirts bearing the phrase "Unfinished Business."

That's business they take seriously.

"This winter, I did extra sets at the gym, extra swings, extra sprints," Brantley said. "Anything I could do to push myself a little more, to get the best out of myself and do my best for the team. We know how hard we worked to get where we got, and we know what we have to do to get even further."

For now, the Indians are like 29 other Major League teams, in that their words have yet to be put to the test of the actual action of the 2014 season.

So we'll see.

But there's a certain spunkiness to this squad that was probably best evidenced by that little basement battle between past Tribe legend and current Tribe leader.

"We're trying to build this organization up," Swisher said.

And the Indians clearly don't take kindly to those putting them down.

Anthony Castrovince is a reporter for MLB.com. Read his columns and follow him on Twitter at @Castrovince. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Just one more reason why Bobby Cox wanted nothing to do with the clubhouse cancer named Kenny Lofton.

I'll take Kenny Lofton in his prime over Swisher any day of the week and three times on Sunday

I wonder how the 90's would have been without Kenny Lofton?!?!? That clubhouse cancer saved games and runs on defense, his speed on the bases resulted in a lot of runs and a lot of wins. Oh, and by the way, that "gap" power was something else.

Say what you might, but two clubhouse "cancers", Kenny Lofton and Albert Belle, were pretty much responsible for half the success we had in the 90's. We had some good players back then, but Lofton and Belle were special.

I think the question is in the symantics. I considered the game vs the Rays as a sudden death "regular season" game. The playoff don't start until the regular season has concluded. That's just my opinion I guess.

The word is semantics. Bottom line is Swisher told him to get his ass out of Cleveland. Swish is the man and Lofton is a pain in the ass.

I attended that game in Cleveland last October. It wasn't on the regular schedule, and they played only because of the record they attained during the regular season, there was a full house in attendance, and people were pretty darn noisy. All of those factors made me think that I was at a playoff game. [My friend bought the ticket, so I cannot personally affirm that we paid playoff game prices, but rumor has it that he did.]

You can argue about whether that Tampa Bay - Cleveland game was a "playoff" game or not, though the usual causal use of the word has always included these elimination-consequence games and series, so to refuse to call it a "playoff" game is highly unconventional.

Perhaps the real question is whether the Indians made it to the "post-season." All you have to do is check http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2013_Major ... all_season for the final standings, where you will see that Texas and Tampa Bay each played 163 games. Their 163rd game was also a playoff game but not a post-season game. Texas did not make it to the post-season. Tampa Bay and Cleveland did--each of them earned a Wild Card post-season position and then they played against each other.

Note that Cleveland only payed 162 regular-season games, while Tampa Bay played 163.

Both teams played in the post-season, including game(s) commonly referred to as "playoffs."

Not sure what Kenny was smoking; maybe he was just trying to light a fire under Indians' butts to encourage them to do even better in 2014.



Whether they were in "the playoffs" might be a semantic issue, but whether they played in the post-season is NOT.

Well, they say talk is cheap. let's hope that Swisher's inspirational outburst can translate at the plate this year.

joez wrote:Well, they say talk is cheap. let's hope that Swisher's inspirational outburst can translate at the plate this year.

Only when you post. Swisher is the mvp leader of this whole team even if you do not understand as usual.

Maybe he can change his name to Ramirez so you could.

From a few days ago, but I don't think it was posted:

GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Indians center fielder Michael Bourn was hoping for some good news on Monday morning. After having his sore left hamstring examined by Cleveland's medical staff, Bourn sounded optimistic about his chances of being recovered and ready in time for Opening Day.

The Spring Training clock is ticking, but Bourn feels there is sufficient time to be back in the leadoff spot for the Tribe for the season opener in Oakland on March 31. The outfielder is expected to miss at least one week of Cactus League game action, but he did not sound overly concerned about the affect that might have on his readiness.

"I think that I'll be ready for Opening Day," Bourn said on Monday. "But I'm going to make sure that I'm healthy. It's a long season."

That last comment sums up the team's stance in this situation.

Manager Terry Francona is quick to refer to Opening Day as an "artificial deadline" for any players dealing with injuries in Spring Training. Cleveland's opener against the A's is the starting line, but there are at least six months of baseball to navigate after that contest. Having Bourn at full strength for the majority of the year outweighs potentially rushing him back to the field.

Francona said the Indians will be conservative with Bourn's latest comeback.

"We don't really know," said Francona, referring to Bourn's timetable for return. "He'll go through a progression of rest, treatment, testing and then, when they turn him loose, we'll be glad to have him back. But I don't want to push the trainers. We'd run into a mistake."

Bourn said the medical staff indicated that the current injury is unrelated to the surgery he underwent on the same hamstring on Oct. 15.

The center fielder ruptured his hamstring on a stolen-base attempt in the ninth inning of Cleveland's American League Wild Card-clinching win over the Twins in the final game of the regular season on Sept. 29. Three days later, Bourn was back in the lineup for the Wild Card loss to Tampa Bay. Once Cleveland was ousted from the postseason, Bourn wasted little time in having Dr. Dan Cooper performed a distal hamstring debridement on him in Dallas.

Bourn said the surgically-repaired part of his hamstring has been fine this spring.

"I felt great doing everything," Bourn said. "I tested it out pretty much doing anything that you can do. Jumping. Running. Squatting. Outfield drills. Whatever you want to go through, I did all that kind of assessment to it, so I'm fine with it. I want to move forward from here."

Bourn said he felt discomfort this time while running from first to third base on a single by Nick Swisher in the first inning of Sunday's split-squad game against the Giants in Scottsdale, Ariz. Bourn initially remained in the game -- he played defense in the bottom of the first and grounded out in the top of the second -- but was replaced in center by prospect Tyler Naquin in the home half of the second inning.

"They want me to take a couple days off from actitivity," Bourn said, "and just do treatment to make sure evertything is OK. But I feel positive about it. It's not really in the same spot as I had surgery on. All that's fine."

Through 10 Cactus League games this spring, the 31-year-old Bourn is hitting just .214 with six singles, no extra-base hits, no RBIs and no stolen bases. The center fielder has used a handful of his plate appearances to work on bunting, making his overall offensive stats a bit deceiving.

Francona was not worried about the early results.

"I don't know what his batting average is. I couldn't care less," the manager said. "He's a guy coming off surgery and he's trying to get ready for a long season. He does a great job. He's about as conscientious a kid that you're ever going to find."

Cleveland signed Bourn to a four-year contract worth $48 million prior to last season, but the center fielder experienced a subpar showing in his first tour with the Tribe. In 130 games, Bourn posted a .263/.316/.360 slash line to go along with six home runs, 21 doubles, six triples, 50 RBIs, 23 stolen bases and 75 runs scored. He missed time between April and May due to a right index finger injury.

It was a disappointing showing for Bourn, who has made it clear all spring that he is determined to return to his prior form this season. In the four seasons prior to 2013, Bourn posted a .280/.348/.378 slash line with an average of 42 extra-base hits, 54 stolen bases and 93 runs scored between tours with Houston and Atlanta.

If the latest setback caused frustration for Bourn, he wasn't admitting it.

"I don't have any frustration. I'm fine," Bourn said. "I would've been frustrated if I would've heard different kind of news. But, since the news I got is pretty upbeat, pretty good, I'm fine with it. I'm ready to move forward and take it day by day."

Cleveland knows it has a built-in contingency plan in outfielder Michael Brantley, who has the ability to shift from left field to center and bat leadoff, if needed. Francona said the Indians are not to the point of needing to discuss alternatives for the start of the regular season, but the club will use the next two weeks to take a look at some other players in center.

Francona notes that bench candidates Elliot Johnson, Matt Carson, Jeff Francoeur and Nyjer Morgan will see time in center field. The manager has also given utility man Mike Aviles a look in center field as well. If Bourn is sidelined longer than expected, Brantley would presumably garner some innings up the middle, too.

"I don't think we need to start looking at options for Opening Day, yet," Francona said. "If we need to get to that point, we could."

Bourn is hoping to help the Indians avoid that step.

"Hopefully, I'll get back in there [this spring]," Bourn said. "But I'll make sure I'm healthy and make sure I'm ready to go, and be ready for Opening Day."

GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Indians manager Terry Francona does not enjoy tough conversations, but he knows that tough decisions are a good thing for a ballclub. The way things have gone in Cleveland's rotation race, Francona will probably have at least one uncomfortable meeting at the end of camp.

There is one vacancy within the Tribe's starting staff, and the competition appears to be down to right-handers Carlos Carrasco, Josh Tomlin and Aaron Harang. All three have performed well this spring while attempting to balance preparation with production.

The Indians wanted a tough decision. It looks like the team will get its wish.

"They're all three doing great and I'm glad," Francona said Tuesday. "Now it's going to make for difficult conversations and nobody looks forward to that. But whoever it is will have deserved to be talked to honestly and, being conscientious, we'll do that."

The Indians still have veteran Shaun Marcum and prospect Trevor Bauer in camp with the big league club, but they appear to be on the outside looking in. Marcum is well behind the rest of the pack in his comeback from July surgery to alleviate thoracic outlet syndrome. Bauer looks like a pitcher in need of some more fine-tuning in the Minor Leagues before being summoned to the big leagues again.

That leaves a three-horse race that includes a unique contractual element for each candidate.

Carrasco is out of options and is expected to make the pitching staff in some capacity (rotation or bullpen). Tomlin has options, so he can be sent to Triple-A to maintain a layer of depth without the risk of being exposed to waivers. Harang is in camp as a non-roster invitee and Cleveland would need to offer him a $100,000 retention bonus (plus the ability to opt out of his contract June 1) if he is not in the Opening Day plans.

When the time comes to make a decision for Francona and general manager Chris Antonetti, such factors are considered as much as statistics.

"We were talking about that today," Francona said. "I'd be lying if I said it didn't come into play. That's part of baseball. It's part of our obligation to not only set the roster, but to take care of the organization. That's more Chris than us, but I'm certainly involved in those conversations. They're a part of decision making. There's no getting around that."

Over the offseason, Antonetti stated matter-of-factly that the 26-year-old Carrasco would be on the Opening Day roster due to his being out of options. On Tuesday afternoon, Indians pitching coach Mickey Callaway said nothing had changed in that regard, especially after Carrasco's stint as a reliever for Cleveland last summer.

Carrasco had a 6.75 ERA in 46 2/3 innings overall for the Indians last season, but he posted a 1.32 ERA out of the bullpen. The right-hander showed the kind of aggressiveness out of the 'pen that the team wants to see from him as a starter. Callaway and Carrasco have worked on some mechanical adjustments, as well as honing that mental approach, this spring.

"The way he threw out of the 'pen last year, you can't ignore that," Callaway said. "If he doesn't make the team as a starter, I think you've got to keep him in the 'pen. You've got a good arm that can do both. I think that's probably the plan right now."

First, Cleveland is giving Carrasco (1.29 ERA through three Cactus League outings) every opportunity to earn the final rotation spot.

"His stuff is off the charts," Francona said. "His stuff is top-of-the-rotation stuff across the board."

Tomlin, 29, is back at full strength after using most of 2013 to come back from Tommy John surgery on his right elbow. This spring, he has sat around 90-93 mph with his fastball, helping him pile up 14 strikeouts against only two walks in his 14 innings. Tomlin said it was "refreshing" to see how hitters have reacted to the extra velocity and improved pitch sequencing.

"Absolutely, I feel stronger," said Tomlin, who threw around 88-91 mph prior to his surgery. "I don't know what the velocity readings are, but it just feels like it has that life in the zone. It has that explosion to the zone. My stuff is crisper in the zone. That, to me, is what makes me an effective pitcher. It's having a little bit of deception and life in the zone."

Tomlin, who is 23-19 with a 4.92 ERA in 60 career games for Cleveland, also knows that having a Minor League option might work against him.

"You definitely think about it," Tomlin said. "I think anybody in their right mind can see that and think that that could be an issue. My job is to go out there and try to compete and try to win games the best I can right now. At the end of the day, whatever happens, happens."

The 35-year-old Harang signed a Minor League deal with the Tribe on Feb. 15 and is hoping his track record over 12 Major League seasons works to his advantage. The right-hander posted a 5.40 ERA in 143 1/3 innings in tours with the Mariners and Mets last year, but he has proven to be durable by logging an average of 179 innings over the past decade.

"I think Aaron's a Major League pitcher," Francona said.

This spring, Harang has been extremely efficient -- he added 30 pitches in the bullpen after a four-inning outing Sunday -- and pleased with how his pitches have worked. He looks around the Cleveland clubhouse and sees plenty of talented arms, but he feels he can offer a veteran voice.

"Watching some of these younger guys throw, they have the stuff to be very successful," Harang said. "That's where, if everything works out and I make the club, a big part of me being here is to kind of help these guys move along and make sure they learn how to figure out a routine and what they need to do to stay strong the whole year."

That attribute adds another layer to an already difficult decision for the Indians.

"That's what we wanted," Callaway said. "They've all done well and I don't think, really, anybody has separated themselves at this point."