The Cleveland Indians bullpen had many questions surrounding it in Spring Training, now as time has gone on the situation has become more clear.
The departures of Andrew Miller and Cody Allen left the Cleveland Indians bullpen in a bit of disarray. After multiple moves were made to try and alleviate the issue, the Indians bullpen as a whole appears to be better off than many thought it would be at this point in Spring Training.
Tyler Clippard
Tyler Clippard came aboard this offseason and has performed well this Spring Training. In 2.2 innings Clippard has allowed one hit, one walk and struck out three batters. This is the smallest of sample sizes, but the early returns are encouraging. While Clippard did have to leave a game due to a pectoral strain, the prospects of him making the roster appear to be quite good.
Dan Otero
In five innings in Arizona Dan Otero has only allowed one run. To the surprise of most it did not come via a home run. Otero has become more and more homer prone over the last three seasons. The fact of the matter is that Otero is going to give up home runs, if those can be limited to the solo variety and become less frequent, Otero should be fine in 2019.
Adam Cimber
Adam Cimber is a bit of a wild card. This is directly related to his role as a right-handed specialist. His awkward submarine delivery provides problems for right-handed batters and induces a lot of ground balls. Cimber has allowed one run in 5.1 innings of work so far. Cimber expects to be used quite heavily by the Indians this season as long as the situation calls for it.
Brad Hand
The Cleveland Indians closer for 2019 has done exactly what has been expected of him in Arizona. Brad Hand has pitched four innings, allowing two hits, walking one and striking out seven. When Cleveland acquired Hand last season this is exactly what they signed up for. High strikeout rate mixed with low hits and walks surrendered. This type of performance will continue into the regular season.
Alex Wilson
Alex Wilson is another pitcher brought in to compete for a bullpen spot. Wilson is performing quite well in Arizona. In 6.1 innings Wilson has allowed two runs on five hits while walking two. Wilson has also struck out five batters this spring. As long as Wilson can continue this type of production Wilson could make an impact this regular season for the Tribe.
Nick Goody
Nick Goody has a sparking 0.00 ERA this spring, but that is where things end. Batters currently have a .308 batting average against Goody in three innings. Again this is a case of small sample size, but the results have not been good. Goody should make the Major League roster, but his leash should be quite short if performances like this continue into the regular season.
Justin Grimm
Justin Grimm has seen 5.1 innings of work this spring and has pitched fairly well. Grimm has allowed one run on five hits while striking seven. Grimm could very be integral to the Indians as a bullpen arm this season. That is as long as he makes the roster and continues to pitch this well.
