Balanced attack backs Bauer in win over Texas By Jordan Bastian and William Kosileski / MLB.com | 1:12 AM ET + 22 COMMENTS CLEVELAND -- The Indians' offensive roller coaster began to climb again on Wednesday night. One game after being quieted by the Rangers, Cleveland had contributions up and down its order to back a strong outing by Trevor Bauer, netting a 5-3 win at Progressive Field.

Michael Brantley delivered a pair of RBI singles for the Central-leading Tribe, which also received -scoring hits from Francisco Lindor, Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Ramirez in the team's second win in this four-game set with Texas. The Indians have a chance to win the series on Thursday. Full Game Coverage "It's a good way to play when you're getting contributions [up and down the lineup]," Indians manager said. "You've got guys on base. You're not going to cash in all the time like we didn't [at times]. But we kept putting pressure and fortunately got a couple tack-on runs to make the ninth not quite as nerve-wracking as it could have been." Rangers ace Yu Darvish took the loss after allowing three runs (two earned) over six , in which he struck out six and walked one. The unearned run came in the first inning, when an error by left fielder Nomar Mazara helped the Tribe get its lineup going. Brantley and Ramirez each came through with RBI singles off Darvish in the third. "I think he was [struggling] to find a rhythm with his off-speed stuff," Rangers manager Jeff Banister said of Darvish. "It wasn't as dynamic as we've seen in the past. But really, the four-seam fastball and the sinker were probably the best we've seen all year. He didn't break out the cutter until late. I thought he did a fine job with those three pitches." Bauer picked up the win behind 6 1/3 solid innings of work. The right-hander did not relinquish a until the fourth inning, and his lone setback was a solo homer from Robinson Chirinos in the fifth. Chirinos, who has 12 shots on the season, has homered in four consecutive games and has seven long balls in his past 10 games. Bauer struck out three and walked one. Armed with a four-run lead, the Indians handed the ball to Cody Allen in the ninth, marking his third straight night of work. Elvis Andrus sent Allen's second pitch over the center-field wall for a solo to cut Cleveland's lead to 5-2, and later added an RBI single. Allen dodged any more harm to seal the win. MOMENTS THAT MATTERED Yes way, Jose: Adrian Beltre played the hero Tuesday night with a game-deciding home run, and the veteran came inches away from a critical hit on Wednesday. With one out and runners on first and second, Beltre pulled a sharp grounder up the third-base line. Ramirez reacted with a quick dive to his right to snare the ball, and then fired to first from foul ground for an electrifying out. The runners each moved up a base, but Bauer followed with a groundout off the bat of Mazara to escape any damage. "The play that Jose made kind of saved that inning," Bauer said. "If that ball rattles around in the corner, it's at least one run, maybe two. It's probably a double, guys on second and third and one out. And the inning kind of spirals from there. I got a lot of help from the defense." Mazara's misplay: Jason Kipnis lofted Darvish's fifth pitch of the night high and deep to left field for what looked to be a routine out. Mazara drifted under the ball -- one that came with a 96-percent catch probability, per Statcast™ -- but did not finish the play. The ball nicked the end of the left fielder's glove, falling to the warning track and allowing Kipnis to sprint to second. Lindor then capitalized on the error by delivering an RBI single that got the Indians offense going. "I haven't talked to [Mazara] about that one," Banister said. "It looked like he got turned around, and by the time he picked the ball up again, it went off his glove." QUOTABLE "Huge play, that Ramirez play. That ball down the line off Adrian's bat, I think we had runners on first and second, [Ramirez] was able to record the out there across the diamond, and we were unable to capitalize on anything else." -- Banister, on Ramirez's diving stop in the sixth "Four runs, we usually do. I wanted him to have a bit of wiggle room. I'd rather him be down tomorrow for a noon game, because we've got a lot of baseball this weekend [in Detroit]. If we're going to give him a [break], I wanted it to be tomorrow." -- Francona, on going with Allen in the ninth inning FOUR STARS FOR ZIMMER On Statcast™'s recently unveiled sprint speed leaderboard, Indians rookie checked in as baseball's third-fastest player with an average rate of 29.8 feet per second. In the fourth inning, Zimmer flashed his speed on a highlight-reel catch in center field. Shin-Soo Choo pulled a pitch from Bauer into the right-center gap, but Zimmer closed in fast and made a sliding grab to rob the Rangers outfielder of an extra- base hit. Per Statcast™, the play had a 46-percent catch probability, making that a four-star play for Zimmer. "That was a really nice play," Francona said. "We've talked about it several times, he's done a really good job in center field. What's nice is, normally with younger guys, as long as they stay healthy, they're going to get better as you get to know the league and things like that, which is really exciting." WHAT'S NEXT Rangers: The Rangers will activate right-hander Andrew Cashner (3-6, 3.50 ERA) from the disabled list (oblique strain) to start Thursday's 11:10 a.m. CT series finale against the Indians at Progressive FIeld. Cashner will make his first start since June 14 against the Astros, where he allowed four runs on 10 hits in four innings. Indians: Ace Corey Kluber (6-2, 3.24 ERA) is scheduled to take the mound for the Tribe in Thursday's finale against the Rangers at 12:10 p.m. ET. Kluber is riding a streak of 21 consecutive scoreless innings, has racked up at least 10 in three straight starts and has a 1.29 ERA and 52 strikeouts in 35 innings in June.

Francona makes cheerful return to Tribe bench By Jordan Bastian / MLB.com | @MLBastian | June 28th, 2017 + 3 COMMENTS CLEVELAND -- Indians manager Terry Francona was back at Progressive Field on Wednesday, wearing a heart-rate monitor and armed with jokes. He blamed his recent health scare on a possible allergy to bench coach Brad Mills and quipped that a reporter's ugly tie may have set off the light-headedness and increased heart rate.

Francona was able to revert to his typical self-deprecating ways because Monday night's episode was not the result of any major health issues. And the manager felt fortunate to be back around his team and in his comfort zone, following a second incident this month that forced him to exit Cleveland's dugout and head to the Cleveland Clinic. Full Game Coverage "It's nice to have your uniform on and be back, because what I love is the day-to-day stuff. I love it," Francona said prior to Wednesday's game against the Rangers. "This is the most comfortable place in my life, where I am. And I miss that when I'm gone. So I'll just try to continue to keep track of what's going on, and the doctors are so good and conscientious that we'll figure it out. It just might take a little while to get a handle on exactly what's been going on." Monday's situation did, however, provide Francona with a different perspective on the game he has been around for more than three decades. When Francona left the stadium during Cleveland's game against the Rangers two nights ago, the Indians were trailing, 9-3. Over the remainder of the night, the Tribe's offense chipped away, mounting one of the more memorable comebacks in the team's recent history, ending with a 15-9 victory. A few miles away from his seat in the dugout, Francona got to see the reaction of Indians fans at the hospital. "One of our doctors drove me to the hospital," Francona said. "So he had it on his phone. And it was what, 9-3. We park, 9-4. Got in, it was 9-5. They're setting me up in there and Lonnie [Chisenhall] got a base hit and it was 10-9. We couldn't get it on the TV, but we're in the emergency room and you can hear nurses yelling. It was really cool. "I had it on my phone, and you could hear people I couldn't see reacting, which I thought was really cool. That gave me a huge lift, just hearing people react to the game of baseball, our baseball. It made me feel good." Francona, who also left the Indians' game on June 13 against the Dodgers with similar symptoms, said he will be monitored over the next several weeks in an effort to get to the root of the issue. "I've been tested like crazy," Francona said. "And they've ruled out some really serious things, which makes you feel better. I've had some bouts of getting light-headed to the point where it feels like the lights are going to go out, which is not a good feeling. ... There's no common denominator when it happens. So the one good thing is there's so many good medical people that care about doing a really good job. That's a good feeling." The manager added that he has no plans to pull out as the manager of the American League in the All-Star Game presented by Mastercard. "That's a big honor, and I look forward to that," Francona said.

Reliance on fastball, curve working for Bauer By Jordan Bastian / MLB.com | @MLBastian | 12:25 AM ET + 0 COMMENTS CLEVELAND -- Trevor Bauer had no intention of budging. With a pair of runners in scoring position and two outs in the sixth inning on Wednesday night, Rangers left fielder Nomar Mazara was going to have to beat his best weapon. Bauer fired his over and over until Mazara finally pounded the sixth one into the ground for an out.

"That's my best pitch, and he traditionally performs poorly on it," Bauer said after Cleveland's 5-3 win at Progressive Field. "Also, in that situation, if I walk him, I'm not concerned about it." Full Game Coverage There are a few takeaways from those comments by the Indians starter. First and foremost, Bauer's confidence -- seemingly growing by the start of late -- was on full display. It also showed that Bauer is continuing to merge pitching to a scouting report with sticking with his own strengths. Over the past month, Bauer has narrowed his arsenal to a pair of primary pitches -- four-seamer and curve -- and the results have been more than encouraging. That trend continued against Texas, which saw 44 four-seam fastballs and 31 curves from the righty, accounting for 73 percent of his 103 offerings on the night. The result was one run allowed over 6 1/3 innings for Bauer. Indians manager Terry Francona has enjoyed Bauer's evolving approach this season, especially the improved effectiveness of the four-seamer. "I'm glad," Francona said. "Because, with the arm he has, when he uses his fastball to different parts of the plate, it makes him a much better pitcher. Like I said, he may give a different way of explaining it, but that is such an effective weapon for him." The curve usage is what has really jumped out, though. Roughly a month ago, Bauer and the rest of Cleveland's starters met with pitching coach Mickey Callaway to go over the group's struggles out of the gate this year. They went through each pitcher and discussed what could be done to improve their production. Both ace Corey Kluber and Bauer began leaning heavily on their curves. Per Statcast™, here is a breakdown of Bauer's pitch use this season: Before May 30 Four-seam: 35.4 percent Curveball: 22.7 percent Two-seam: 20.5 percent Cutter: 12.7 percent Changeup: 8.6 percent Since May 30 Four-seam: 41.2 percent Curveball: 35.3 percent Two-seam: 10.1 percent Cutter: 7.5 percent Changeup: 5.8 percent "There are a lot of things that kind of led to it," Bauer said. "I've always felt like I was most effective when I throw like 40-50 percent fastballs and use more off-speed stuff. But when I was doing that early in the year -- my cutter and my changeup are hard, so they're just kind of like slightly slower fastballs -- I didn't really have an off-speed pitch besides my curveball. So, all those things combined." Indians catcher Roberto Perez has been behind the plate for each of Bauer's starts this season, and he played a role in convincing the pitcher to increase his use of the four-seamer and curve. Back on May 30, they put the practice into play and Bauer struck out 14 A's hitters that night. Including that outing, Bauer has a 3.82 ERA in his last seven turns, compared to a 6.30 ERA in his first nine outings. "That's probably his best pitch after his fastball," Perez said. "I kind of talked to him, because it's huge for him. If he throws it early for strikes, then guys are going to chase with two strikes. We've been talking a lot, trying to get on the same page every time. I mean, we've been using it a lot. They don't do a lot of damage on his curveball. It's been working. It's good for him."

Francona bravely battles through health scares By Anthony Castrovince / MLB.com | @castrovince | June 28th, 2017 + 2 COMMENTS CLEVELAND -- Terry Francona went back to work Wednesday, and, 48 hours after a medical scare that required an overnight stay at the Cleveland Clinic, he was right back to the wise-cracking, gum-munching Tito we know and love.

He repeated a joke about his health issues possibly being related to an allergy to bench coach Brad Mills, made a crack about a reporter's tie being so ugly that it was what caused the light-headedness that forced an early exit from Monday's incredible comeback against the Rangers and was relieved when the pregame topics turned to baseball and away from the heart monitor newly strapped to his chest. "The problem is my blood pressure has been going down," Francona explained, "and that makes my heart rate go too fast." If that sounds serious, it's because it is. Francona's position is stressful enough without having these occasional episodes in which he feels like "the lights are going to go out," and so there is obviously concern in the Indians' organization about his condition, especially with a demanding All-Star schedule approaching. After traveling to Miami to head up the American League squad, Francona will have to travel across the country for a road trip in Oakland and San Francisco. Thankfully, the 58-year-old Francona has undergone a battery of tests that have ruled out, in his words, "some really serious things," and he only missed Tuesday's loss upon an order from team president Chris Antonetti to stay home and rest. The Tribe beat Texas, 5-3, in Tito's return to duty. Despite an overall struggle to find consistency, they are in first place in the AL Central in a win-now year, and there is little question that, in a two-time-World-Series-winning, possibly Cooperstown-bound skipper who last October guided them to the doorstep of the franchise's first title since 1948, they've got the right man in the dugout. But Francona's many medical maladies do create questions about his future. Earlier this year, this is what Francona, who is under contract with the Tribe through 2020, told MLB.com's Bill Ladson: "When there comes a day when [health] gets in the way, I'm going to have to pull back, and it's not because I don't love managing. You have to have a certain amount of energy to do this job right." Francona has had to prematurely vacate the dugout twice this month. This, in addition to leaving a game in Washington last August because of chest pains. "We're always so worried about him," catcher Yan Gomes said. "People hurt themselves and things happen. But man, this is his heart. He's actually got some different issues going on that we've got to pray about. You figure we've got all these other things to deal with and not our manager's health. I know they're taking care of it, and you hope the best for him." When the Indians take batting practice, it is often Mills, Francona's former University of Arizona teammate and roommate and longtime dugout right-hand man, overseeing the action. Francona, after various knee and hip surgeries and other medical concerns, unorthodoxly but wisely uses that time to stay off his feet. The Indians are fortunate to have Mills, who didn't get a fair shake in his first and only managerial opportunity in Houston earlier this decade. He and Francona are so closely aligned in thought and experience that they've even begun to resemble each other, like a dog and his owner. "You look over and it's like, 'Oh, that bald head is Millsy's," second baseman Jason Kipnis joked. "It's like we have two managers. One can step right in for the other… As much as we love having Tito around, we'd rather have him alive and kicking than at BP. We want him around for the long haul." The season itself is a long haul, and Francona, with his daily swim sessions to energize his ailing body, has learned over the years how to prepare himself for that grind. But these recent episodes are something else entirely, because, as he said, "For me to leave a game, it's got to be pretty intense." Such intensity has arrived twice this month. Francona has been frustrated by the process, embarrassed by the attention. He certainly hasn't lost his sense of humor, but he's lost time with a team and a job he loves and is in absolutely no rush to leave. "This is the most comfortable place in my life, where I am. And I miss that when I'm gone," he said. "So, I'll just try to continue to keep track of what's going on, and the doctors are so good and conscientious that we'll figure it out. It just might take a little while to get a handle on exactly what's been going on."

Castro stays hot for Lynchburg • Indians' No. 12 prospect Willi Castro stayed hot for Class A Advanced Lynchburg as he extended his hitting streak to six games with a 3-for-5 effort at the plate. The 20-year-old shortstop ultimately fell a single short of hitting for the cycle after recording a double, a triple and a home run in each of his first three at-bats. He finished the game with a season-high four RBIs.

Kluber takes scoreless-innings streak into finale By William Kosileski / MLB.com | 1:17 AM ET + 3 COMMENTS Rangers starter Andrew Cashner will be tasked with a tough assignment Thursday in his first start off the disabled list, as he will face the reigning American League Player of the Week, Indians ace Corey Kluber, in the series finale at Progressive Field.

Kluber has been one of the most dominant pitchers in the Majors this month. Since coming off the DL June 1 following a back injury, Kluber has gone 3-0 with a 1.29 ERA and 52 strikeouts in five starts (35 innings). Additionally, opponents are batting only .157 off Kluber during that stretch, and the right-hander has not allowed an in 21 consecutive innings. After throwing a three-hit shutout against the Orioles on June 19, with 11 K's, Kluber fired seven innings and allowed two unearned runs and struck out a season-high 13 in a no-decision Saturday against the Twins. "I couldn't honestly care less about striking out 13 guys," Kluber said after the start. "I would have rather not let those guys score in the first inning." The Rangers will face Kluber for the second time this season; they roughed him up on Opening Day in Arlington. In that outing, Kluber took a no-decision after giving up five runs on six hits -- three homers -- and three walks in six innings. In his career against the Rangers, Kluber is 2-1 with a 4.36 ERA in five starts. Cashner, meanwhile, will be activated from the 10-day disabled list after being sidelined for more than two weeks due to an oblique strain. In his latest outing June 14 against the Astros, the righty allowed four runs on 10 hits in four innings and was handed the loss. Cashner has allowed two runs or fewer in eight of his 12 starts this season. "The biggest thing for me is getting first-pitch strikes," Cashner said Tuesday. "If I don't get the first one in there, I'll get the second one in there with my sinker. I think I've expanded when I need to expand, and I've been able to get the double-play ball when I've needed it." Three things to know • Rangers third baseman Adrian Beltre has had success against Kluber in his illustrious career. In 12 plate appearances, Beltre has a solo homer, three singles, two walks and a 1.2000 OPS. Second baseman Rougned Odor has also hit well against Kluber, going 3-for-6 with two homers and four RBIs. • Cashner will make just his second career start against the Tribe. His first one came on Sept. 2, 2016, as a member of the Marlins at Progressive Field. In that outing, the right-hander took the loss after allowing six runs on six hits in five innings. • Kluber has thrown his curveball about 31 percent of the time since coming off the DL, compared with 19 percent previously. The pitch has been nearly unhittable all season, producing an MLB-best .080 expected batting average, according to Statcast, based on the strikeouts and weak contact against it.

Tribe signs six Draft picks, including Freeman By Jordan Bastian / MLB.com | @MLBastian | June 28th, 2017 + 0 COMMENTS CLEVELAND -- The Indians continued chipping away at their newest Draft class on Wednesday, getting six more players to sign on the dotted line.

Highlighting the latest round of signees was prep shortstop Tyler Freeman, who received a bonus of $816,500, according to MLB.com's Jim Callis. Cleveland selected Freeman during the MLB Draft's Competitive Balance B round (pick No. 71 overall) earlier this month. "We felt like he still has upside left at shortstop," Brad Grant, the Indians' senior director of amateur scouting, said after selecting Freeman. "And [we think] that we can continue to get him better there and continue to advance him there. I think the thing that stands out, though, is the bat. That's the top thing that stands out." During his senior season with Etiwanda (Calif.) High School, the 18-year-old Freeman led all California prep players with a .526 (51-for-97) batting average. In 30 games, he compiled four homers, eight doubles, four triples, 36 RBIs and 35 runs scored. The right-handed-hitting Freeman is known for being a high-contact, line-drive hitter, but the Indians believe more power will develop over time. • Indians 2017 Draft Tracker "An unbelievable offensive-oriented player," Grant said. "He brings a lot of offensive tools to the game. He's going to be able to hit, and power should come in the future. We're going to start him off at shortstop and let him play there, and we look forward to getting him out and into our system." Other signees Wednesday included: Outfielder Austen Wade (fifth round), lefty Kyle Nelson (15th round), infielder Dillon Persinger (18th round), right-hander Josh Nashed (19th round) and lefty Michael Hendrickson (28th round). Overall, Cleveland has signed 27 of its 40 selections, including eight players taken within the first 10 rounds.

Front office lifer LaRue passes away Veteran secretary worked for Senators, Rangers, Indians and Mariners By Tracy Ringolsby / MLB.com | @TracyRingolsby | June 28th, 2017 + 0 COMMENTS When the original Washington Senators decided to move to Minneapolis for the 1961 season, American League owners quickly added an expansion team to the nation's capital. The franchise kept the Senators moniker but had to hire a new staff, which included Ethel LaRue to work as a secretary in the scouting department.

"I was just a kid back then," she used to say about that time with the Senators. She grew up in a hurry, creating a career in baseball that saw her spend more than 50 years working in the front offices for the Senators, moving to Texas when the franchise relocated to Arlington, as well as the Seattle Mariners and . She had plenty of stories to tell. And she had many that she took with her when she died late Tuesday night after a lengthy illness, nearly 58 years after taking that first job with the Senators. The folks she met in baseball became her family. "She signed my first pro contract," said longtime baseball executive Joe Klein, who signed with the Senators as a first baseman in 1962 at the age of 20, and has been in the game ever since, currently serving as Commissioner of the independent Atlantic League. "Ethel was invaluable. She knew the rules. She knew the players. And in the later years she knew the agents. People like Ethel are the heart and soul of a franchise." Her love of the game was apparent by her staying power. With the Senators, Rangers and Mariners she was never associated with a team that went to the postseason and were probably better known for the financial troubles of the ownership groups she worked for. And while she was with the Indians during the resurgence of the franchise that began in the mid 1990s, she first went to Cleveland when the team was in the estate of the late Steve O'Neill, but Klein was the general manager, and she trusted working for him. It was those old ties that took her to Seattle as well, leaving the Rangers to join the Mariners when Dan O'Brien went from being the general manager in Texas to assuming the same position in Seattle. LaRue would laugh at many of her experiences, like the winter in Texas when a woman showed up with a baby in arms, explaining it was the son of a Rangers player whom LaRue declined to identify, and laid the baby on LaRue's desk as she walked out of the office. Former Rockies general manager Dan O'Dowd was one of several executives from Baltimore who were hired by the Indians in 1988 to revitalize that franchise after Richard Jacobs purchased the team. He was initially the team's director of player development, and he is quick to credit LaRue with providing strong guidance. "It wasn't just baseball," said O'Dowd, now a commentator with MLB Network. "She helped me grow as a person. She challenged me to be better in every phase of my life." Of course she did. It was, after all, the least she could do for a member of her baseball family.

June 28: Tito’s pregame minutiae by Jordan Bastian Indians manager Terry Francona returned to the team on Wednesday and was his usual self-deprecating self after a health scare on Monday night. With his return also comes the return of Tito’s pregame minutiae. Here are the highlights from his media session with reporters.

On how he’s feeling: “I don’t know what he said, but I told Chris [Antonetti] that one of the things that they were checking, was for like reactions to Millsy, or maybe being a stress reaction, but being allergic to Millsy and some of his ways. I’ve had test after test after test. I mean, the only thing that’s conclusive is that they think maybe there was a stress reaction to [Andre Knott’s] tie that night. It was so bad I think it threw me in a tizzy.”

Kidding aside… “I’ve been tested like crazy, and they’ve ruled out some really serious things, which makes you feel better. I’ve had some bouts of getting light- headed to the point where it feels like the lights are going to go out, which is not a good feeling. So I’ve got a monitor on that they’re keeping an eye on me௘²௘just kind of keep track of it. There’s no common denominator when it happens. So, the one good thing is there’s so many good medical people that care about doing a really good job, so that’s a good feeling. I don’t know, it may happen again. For all of you that bet on the under, you’re going to lose, because I’m not going to die. It’s just irritating, kind of embarrassing.”

Same symptoms as on June 13 during the Dodgers game?

“Yeah. And I’ve had them on and off for a while. When they get to be a little bit too much, because for me to leave a game, it’s got to be pretty intense, because I don’t like to do that.”

Asked if he was able to follow Monday’s comeback win from afar: “Unbelievable. I don’t know if I felt good or bad. When I left, things all of a sudden took a turn for the good. You can kind of take that a few different ways. But Jason Genin, one of our doctors, drove me to the hospital. So he had it on his phone. And it was what, 9–3. Park, 9–4. Got in, it was 9–5. They’re setting me up in there and Lonnie got a base hit and it was 10–9. We couldn’t get it on the TV. But we’re in the emergency room and you can hear nurses yelling. It was really cool. I had it on my phone and you could hear people I couldn’t see reacting, which I thought was really cool. That gave me a huge lift, just hearing people react to the game of baseball, our baseball, it made me feel good.”

Asked if it could be the result of stress: “That’s one thing that they’ve certainly talked about. I’ve tried to even think like if it could be. I honestly love what I do. I’ve never once ever thought, ‘Oh boy, I got to go to the ballpark.’ I feel like I’ve been in much worse places worrying-wise, stuff like that. So the doctors kind of explained to me that … your body can react differently to things. I think they want to eliminate other things first, because I’ve been through so much. I’ve been on medications for the past 15 years and just want to make sure that nothing has changed or altered because of that. So they’re really good, conscientious people. We’ll figure it out. It’s not a lot of fun at times, but that’s really what it is.”

On Antonetti telling Francona to stay home on Tuesday: “He wouldn’t let me [manage]. How about that? And if I could handle watching it on TV௘²௘it’s way worse. Because not that you can do anything in the dugout, but at home, you’re stuck. And you’re watching the guys that you live and die with every day and you’re not there, it’s not a good feeling. Other than that, I don’t know what to really say. It just has happened a few times and sometimes they’re more severe than others. There have been a lot of times where I’d just take a deep breath, reel it in, and I’m OK. But there have been a few times where I haven’t been able to.”

Were you able to get some rest?

“I guess. Anybody that’s been to a hospital knows that’s not exactly the place where you [can relax].”

On wearing the heart-rate monitor: “I do. I do now. If I have another episode, they want to be able to know. Like, I have a button I push and it marks the time, just to see how it’s affecting me. Because when it happens, my heart rate really picks up fast, so they just want to be able to monitor it.”

On the reaction from people when he returned:

“When people start to be kind, that makes you nervous. Like, shoot, I’m dying. No, if it was anything else, I would get nervous. It’s nice to have your uniform on and be back, because what I love is the day to day stuff. I love it. This is the most comfortable place in my life, where I am. And I miss that when I’m gone. So, I’ll just try to continue to keep track of what’s going on, and the doctors are so good and conscientious that we’ll figure it out. It just might take a little while to get a handle on exactly what’s been going on.”

On being able to manager in the All-Star Game:

“I hadn’t even thought about that. That’s what I mean, I don’t know exactly. I can’t really tell you more. I would, if I could. And I’m OK. It’s a huge honor to go to that thing. I felt a little wiped out after the other night, but I don’t feel wiped out. I think anybody that stays up all night and gets poked and prodded, it’s not the funnest way. But, no, I think that’s a big honor and I look forward to that.”

Asked if he got bombarded with texts:

“Oh my goodness sakes. You hate to [not reply]. People are so kind, but after 180 or 200, it’s like you’re getting stressed out doing that. Chris actually took down names. He’s unbelievable. He’s like Mother Teresa. I felt bad, because he’s working, taking care of me. I feel guilty. And it’s all real. It’s not just me. It’s everybody he comes into contact with.”

Asked if watching the reaction to Monday’s win in the hospital was eye-opening:

“I probably don’t stop to think about it very often, because you get so immersed in what we’re doing. You almost get like tunnel vision. I know a lot of days, we laugh about it, like Sunday mornings when we’re on the road, and we’ll be driving to the ballpark and you’ll see people heading out on like picnics and you’re like, ‘What is that?’ Because we’ve never done it. But, I don’t know. I don’t want to get too deep, but it was a good feeling. I was sitting in there௘²௘me and a couple of the docs and everything௘²௘you could hear some of the people. Yeah, it did feel good. Those people seemed to really care. A nurse would come in and say something and they’d be like, ‘Hey, it’s 12–9.’ Heck yeah. What we do is so important to us, but it’s not life or death. But, it’s so amazing the impact it can have on people for something that isn’t. It’s like when your team is playing good, people seem to walk around with their chest out a little bit more. And you get so immersed in caring about your team௘²௘that’s part of what’s so good about it.”

On bench coach Brad Mills being able to take over seamlessly:

“That’s one of the things I’ve said for a long time, and I guess it proves it out. If I leave a field during Spring Training, I know the drill is going to be done just like it’s supposed to. The lineup was just like I would’ve written it out. I say it, because I mean it. Over the year, I think I’ve learned more from Millsy about baseball than he’s ever learned from me. I’ll always feel that way. And he may do some things different, if he was a manager. That’s just probably common sense. But, he does things how I want to do it, because he knows that that’s the way it’s supposed to be. It’s hard to find a guy that brings so many qualities that he does. I mess with him all the time, but I know how fortunate I am to have him. These types of things don’t just grow on trees, where you’re with somebody for 40 years and you about know him better than you know yourself. That’s pretty special.”

Back to baseball…

On whether Trevor Bauer’s stats are misleading:

“I don’t know about numbers lying, because I firmly believe that what your numbers are, that’s what you are. Our record௘²௘it’s not the last 10; our record is what it is. The same thing with ERAs and things. In Trevor’s case, it seems like he’s gotten to it in a peculiar way. They don’t all match up. He’s held his stuff really well from the first start to now and even gotten stronger and you’ve also seen him command his fastball and work ahead much better. If you ask Trevor, he’d probably give you a different answer because that’s what he does. That’s OK. I think those are really more in line with what’s happened.”

On the offense’s inconsistency:

“It’s not just us. It happens around the league. You look at Texas right now. They’re .500 or a couple games over and I’m sure they would rather be 20 games over also. It happens everywhere. I think we’re in the middle of the league as far as offense. How many times do we sit here and say, ‘Man, we have to do this better.’ We’re in the middle. Think of the teams that are in last. You always see your own warts and what you’re not doing because you get fixated on us, which you should, but I think sometimes you need to step back and look around. You can get so fixated on what we’re doing or not doing that it’s not helpful.”

On Cody Anderson spending a few days with the team:

“I think it’s really valuable. Just three days to check in with his buddies, get to see everybody that’s so fond of him. I know he can’t throw for a while yet, but as you can see, he’s in great shape. He’ll turn this into a positive. It’ll take a while, because it’s a pretty significant injury. But he’ll eventually turn this into a positive. At some point, you’ll see him come back and probably be better than he was before.”

As he left the room…

“If things don’t go well tonight, remember that’s still Millsy pulling some of the strings.”

Indians report: Manager Terry Francona glad to be back with team, will continue to be monitored By Ryan Lewis CLEVELAND: Indians manager Terry Francona was back with the club on Wednesday, a day after being cleared of any major medical issues. Francona exited Monday’s game before the fourth inning and was taken to the Cleveland Clinic. He also left a game on June 13, reporting dehydration and an elevated heartbeat. On Wednesday, he expanded on those symptoms, which were also the cause of his departure Monday night. Francona will continue to be monitored as he remains with the team. On Wednesday, he was wearing a heart monitor. “I’ve been tested like crazy, and they’ve ruled out some really serious things which makes you feel better,” Francona said. “I’ve had some bouts of getting light-headed to the point where it feels like the lights are going to go out, which is not a good feeling. “So I got a monitor on that — they’re keeping an eye on me, just kind of keep track of it. There’s no common denominator when it happens. So, the one good thing is there’s so many good medical people that care about doing a really good job, so that’s a good feeling.” Francona wanted to return to the team on Tuesday but was told by president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti to stay home and rest. “Wouldn’t let me. How about that?” Francona said. “And if I could handle watching it on TV — it’s way worse. Because not that you can do anything in the dugout, but at home, you’re stuck. And you’re watching the guys that you live and die with every day and you’re not there, it’s not a good feeling. “Other than that, I don’t know what to really say. It just has happened a few times and sometimes they’re more severe than others. There have been a lot of times where I’d just take a deep breath, reel it in, and I’m OK. But there have been a few times where I haven’t been able to.” Doctors ruled out any serious medical issues but have yet to directly diagnose what might be causing Francona’s symptoms. As Francona was being taken to the hospital, the Indians were pulling off a seven-run comeback to beat the 15-9. He got a kick out of the excitement within the hospital. “Jason Genin, one of our doctors, drove me to the hospital,” Francona said. “So he had it on his phone. And it was what, 9-3. Park, 9-4. Got in, it was 9-5. They’re setting me up in there and Lonnie got a base hit and it was 10-9. “We couldn’t get it on the TV. But we’re in the emergency room and you can hear nurses yelling. It was really cool. I had it on my phone and you could hear people I couldn’t see reacting, which I thought was really cool. That gave me a huge lift, just hearing people react to the game of baseball, our baseball, it made me feel good.” Francona has said he’s mostly embarrassed by the ordeal. “It’s nice to have your uniform on and be back, because what I love is the day-to-day stuff,” Francona said. “I love it. This is the most comfortable place in my life, where I am. And I miss that when I’m gone. “So, I’ll just try to continue to keep track of what’s going on, and the doctors are so good and conscientious that we’ll figure it out. It just might take a little while to get a handle on exactly what’s been going on.” Akron Beacon Journal LOADED: 06.29.2017 Indians 5, Rangers 3: Trevor Bauer delivers strong outing to lift Indians By Ryan Lewis CLEVELAND: Indians starting pitcher Trevor Bauer has been searching for answers all season. He found a few of them Wednesday night. Bauer turned in one of his better starts this season, leading the Indians to a 5-3 win over the Texas Rangers at Progressive Field. Bauer allowed just one run on four hits and one walk and struck out three in 6ѿ innings. His lone blemish came courtesy of red-hot Rangers catcher Robinson Chirinos, who slugged a solo homer to center field in the fourth inning to cut the Indians’ lead to 3-1. With the score still 3-1, Bauer recorded perhaps the biggest out of the game in the sixth. With two outs and two runners in scoring position, Bauer was left in the game to face left-hander Nomar Mazara. On his 98th pitch of the night, Bauer induced Mazara to ground out to Jason Kipnis at second base to end the inning. As Bauer walked off, he clapped into his glove and then acknowledged the home crowd’s ovation. The Indians have said some numbers might have indicated Bauer was pitching better than his record or his ERA suggested, and for one night at least that statement might have been given some validity. Bauer (7-6) did receive some defensive help Wednesday night. Shin-Soo Choo led off the fourth with a line drive into the right-center field gap. Bradley Zimmer ranged over and made a sliding catch to take away extra bases, making a tough play look easier than it was. Later, with two on and one out in the sixth inning, Adrian Beltre ripped a ball down the third-base line. Jose Ramirez made a diving play to field it and completed the throw to get Beltre at first and a run. That led to Andrew Miller, who struck out four in 1Ҁ scoreless innings to get to the ninth inning. Closer Cody Allen entered one night after giving up a game-winning home run and again struggled against the Rangers (39-39). Elvis Andrus hit a solo home run and Rougned Odor added an RBI single with two outs to cut the Indians’ lead to 5-3 and bring Chirinos to the plate representing the tying run. Allen then struck out Chirinos to end the game. The Indians (41-36) found early success against Rangers starter Yu Darvish (6-7). Kipnis led off the first inning with a fly ball to left field and wound up on second base on an error by Mazara. Francisco Lindor, who recently has been struggling at the plate, followed with an RBI single to right field to put the Indians on top 1-0. Two innings later, that lead was extended to 3-0. With two runners on, Michael Brantley singled to center field, scoring Kipnis from second base. Ramirez later singled to right to score Lindor. Two walks, a by Kipnis and Lindor being intentionally walked set up a bases-loaded situation in the seventh. Brantley and Edwin Encarnacion each hit a run-scoring single to left field to put the Indians up 5-1. Indians manager Terry Francona returned to the dugout after exiting Monday’s game and missing Tuesday’s game with health issues. Akron Beacon Journal LOADED: 06.29.2017 Indians 5, Rangers 3: 16 Walk-Off Thoughts on Trevor Bauer, simplicity at its best, Cody Allen again By RYAN LEWIS Published: June 28, 2017 1. Assuming he has his stuff on a given night, Trevor Bauer sure seems to be at his best when he simplifies his pitch repertoire and sequencing. 2. Last season, Bauer entered a stretch while working with Chris Gimenez in which he simplified his expansive repertoire, instead focusing on a more streamlined mix of pitches. He then rattled off seven consecutive quality starts, the longest such streak of his career. Consistency has been something lacking in his still-young career, but he found it then. 3. Over the past month, he seems to have mostly found again. And, in large part, it’s because he’s simplifying things. Specifically, he’s focusing on featuring his fastball and curveball. 4 Per brooksbaseball.net, Bauer last season threw his curveball 19.9 percent of the time. In April of this season, it was about the same: 16.71 percent. Then, in May, Bauer started to go to the curveball more often. He threw it 30.02 percent of the time in May and is now up to 35.25 percent of the time in June entering Wednesday’s start. Meanwhile, per Brooks, his fastball usage this season is up to 39.92 percent from 23.57 recent last year. 5. Bauer has always considered the curveball his best pitch. So roughly a month or so ago, the Indians got together and decided it was time to rely on it. 6. Bauer: “There's a lot of things that kind of led to it. It wasn't like a, 'Let's make an abrupt change,' type of thing. We were kind of talking about it. We talked about it as a staff, with Mickey and the whole staff, about throwing our breaking stuff earlier and more often. I talked about it with Roberto. He thought that it's my best pitch and, 'You should use it more.' I've always felt like I was most effective when I throw like 40-50 percent fastballs and use more offspeed stuff. But, when I was doing that early in the year, my cutter and my changeup are hard. So, they're just kind of like slightly slower fastballs. So, I didn't really have like an offspeed pitch besides my curveball. So, all those things combined. When we had the meeting as a staff, and kind of talked about each individual, what we each need to do to be more successful, that was one of the decisions that was made then.” 7. Bauer, even going back to his days as a top prospect, has always had a mid-90s fastball and that curveball. His repertoire has been built around that, but at times it became convoluted. It isn’t just that Bauer is throwing his best pitch more often, it’s that his fastball might play off of it in a more effective way. Instead of trying to go after hitters with an extensive pitch mix, the better route has been to attack with his two best pitches and allow them to play off one another. 8. Bauer, on his curveball: “It's been nice. It doesn't get hit hard. It doesn't get hit a whole lot at all, so I'm definitely happy with that. I think it's helped minimize some of the hard contact, just because I have more of a wider speed differential. It's always been my best pitch. It's never really gotten hit, so it's kind of to be expected throwing it more, that those results would hold. But, it's very nice to see them stay true to what should happen.” 9. Perez: “That’s probably his best pitch after his fastball. I kind of talked to him, because it’s huge for him. If he throws it early for strikes, then guys are going to chase with two strikes. We’ve been talking a lot, trying to get on the same page every time. I mean, we’ve been using it a lot. They don’t do a lot of damage on his curve ball. It’s been working. It’s good for him.” 10. Terry Francona: “I’m glad because with the arm he has, when he uses his fastball to different parts of the plate, it makes him a much better pitcher. Like I said, he may give a different way of explaining it, but that is such an effective weapon for him.” 11. Francona and others this season have said they see indicators that Bauer has been better than his ERA might show (and we don’t even need to list his win-loss record). Indians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti spoke to that on Tuesday. 12. Antonetti: “I think Trevor has actually pitched better than maybe his surface numbers show. I think he’s talked about that a few times, I think you guys may have written about it once or twice. But I actually to some extent, I do agree with some of those. Maybe not in every instance, but I think on balance, he has pitched better than his ERA might reflect. He is that guy that is constantly searching and thinking about ways that can get better. If he was 10-3 with a 3.20 ERA, he would still be thinking about, ‘Hey, how can I get better in the second half than I am right now.’ That thirst, that desire to improve, and the work he is willing to put in to make that happen, I think is one of Trevor’s strong points. What we’re hopeful [of] is that that all that work will translate into some consistency in performance, and hopefully that is right around the corner.” 13. So, again, Twitter is talking about Cody Allen’s usage. Allen entered in a tied game on Tuesday night and gave up a solo home run. He then entered on Wednesday night in a non-save situation and gave up two runs before striking out Robinson Chirinos to end the game. 14. There are a couple of things to point out, as many were criticizing the move, especially considering Allen had pitched the previous two nights and it wasn’t a save situation. The first is that the home run was obviously a legitimate run allowed, though the second run scored in large part because the Indians weren’t holding Jonathan Lucroy on first base and he advanced to second via defensive deference (which is a terrible ruling, but that’s for a later time). A bloop single then brought him home which, in a one-run game, would have normally just been a single to put two runners on base. 15. The second part is that the Indians have gone to Allen before with a four-plus run lead, as he’s one of their two top-of-the-line relievers. Francona was also looking forward to the upcoming four-game series with Detroit, which includes a double-header on Saturday. It’ll basically guarantee the bullpen is pretty taxed, barring a flurry of strong outings by the starting rotation. Allen will be unavailable tomorrow and then rested for the trip to Detroit. It’s possible that will also be the case with Andrew Miller, who threw 1 2/3 innings Wednesday night. 16. Francona: “Yeah, but four runs. We usually do. I wanted him to have a little bit of wiggle room. I’d rather him be down tomorrow for a noon game because we got a lot of baseball this weekend. If we’re going to give him a blow, I wanted it to be tomorrow.” Akron Beacon Journal LOADED: 06.29.2017 Manager Terry Francona rejoins Cleveland Indians sporting a heart monitor BY PAUL HOYNES CLEVELAND, Ohio - Manager Terry Francona rejoined the Indians at Progressive Field on Wednesday with something new added to his uniform. It's was a heart monitor and the next time Francona feels his heart racing he's supposed to push a button on the monitor so doctors can examine what's going on inside his body. It was just such an episode Monday night that forced Francona to leave the dugout while the Indians were playing the Rangers at Progressive Field and be admitted to Cleveland Clinic. It was the second time Francona was forced to leave a game this month with an rapid heart rate and lightheadedness. Francona, who did not manage the Indians on Tuesday night, said he's experienced the symptoms before but has been able to "take a deep breath' and get through them. That was not the case on June 13 against the Dodgers or Monday. "The button marks the time (of the episode), just to see how it's affecting me," said Francona. "Because when it happens, my heart rate really picks up fast. They just want to be able to monitor it." Terry Francona followed Cleveland Indians' crazy comeback from hospital Francona stayed at the Clinic overnight Monday and returned to his downtown apartment on Tuesday. He underwent several tests and the Indians said none of them showed signs of a serious health problem. Francona added that his heart rate increases when his blood pressure goes down. As for what could be causing the symptoms, Francona said the doctors are still researching it. "We'll figure it out," said Francona. Stress is a part of every big-league manager's life. This is Francona's 17th year on the job, the last five with the Indians. "That's one thing the doctors have certainly talked about," said Francona. "I've tried to even think if it could be. I honestly love what I do. I've never once ever thought, 'Oh, boy, I've got to go to the ballpark.' I feel like I've been in much worse places worrying-wise. "The doctors explained to me that your body reacts differently to things. I think they want to eliminate other things first, because I've been through so much (physically). I've been on medications for the past 15 years and they just want to make sure that nothing has changed because of that." Francona has an artificial hip and knees. He has circulation problems caused by a pulmonary embolism in 2002. In 2005, he was hospitalized with chest pains while managing the Red Sox. Terry Francona and Brad Mills are of the same mind Francona led the Indians to the World Series last year and will manage the AL All-Stars on July 11 at Marlins Park in Miami. Ideally, a four-day break might serve Francona better than a couple of non-stop days at the All-Star Game, but he said he plans on being there. "It's a huge honor to go to that thing," said Francona. "I felt a little wiped out after the other night (Monday), but I don't feel wiped out (now). I think anybody that stays up all night and gets poked and prodded, it's not fun. But, no, I think that's a big honor and I look forward to that." When Francona left Monday's game, the Indians trailed the Rangers, 9-3. By the time he got to the Clinic, the Indians had started their comeback toward a 15-9 victory. "The game was unbelievable," said Francona. "I don't know if it felt good or bad. When I left all of a sudden things took a turn for the good." Francona said that when he was in the emergency room at the Clinic, he could nurses and others cheering as the Indians started their come back. "It was really cool," said Francona. "I had the game on my phone and I could hear, but couldn't see the people reacting. I thought it was really cool. That gave me a huge lift, just hearing people react to the game of baseball, our baseball, it made me feel good." Cleveland Plain Dealer LOADED: 06.29.2017 Cleveland Indians hurler Cody Anderson counting down the days until he can throw again BY ZACK MEISEL, CLEVELAND.COM CLEVELAND, Ohio -- In six weeks and five days, Cody Anderson will be permitted to toss a baseball. But who's counting? Anderson is, for one. Remember him? The Indians could use him right about now, with a shaky rotation limping into the summer stretch. Anderson underwent Tommy John surgery in late March. Since, he has rehabbed in Goodyear, Arizona. It's about as glamorous as it sounds. "Oh yeah," Anderson said. "It's boring." It's a bit balmy in the Arizona desert this time of year. Anderson is the elder statesman at the complex, tasked with the same mundane checklist, day after day. "You get that sense of 'You're on your own,'" he said. So then why was Anderson in such pleasant spirits in the Indians' clubhouse at Progressive Field on Tuesday afternoon? "I'm counting down every day to get back to throwing," he said. "I couldn't be happier than I am right now as far as how [my elbow] feels. It feels better than it has in a long time." Anderson's elbow started barking last season, which led to an arthroscopic procedure in November. In March, Anderson elected to have the Tommy John operation. Anderson won't pitch for the Indians this season, but he's at peace with the decision. "It's a long process of slowly building strength and getting flexibility back," he said. "So far, it's been way ahead of schedule with everything." Eventually, he'll be able to resume normal activities that involve his left arm, like picking up boxes or opening and closing the sliding glass door when he walks in and out of his residence while barbecuing. "That movement is strenuous," he said, "so you have to switch your hands around and pull it to the left." Anderson has devoted plenty of time to watching the Tribe. It's a bittersweet few hours per day. "I watch every single game, every day," Anderson said. "Sitting in your living room 1,000 miles away -- it's really, really tough not being able to help or at least be there for depth. That part is really a struggle. Other than that, I just have to keep focusing and hopefully help them next year." That's part of the reason the Indians had him venture northeast to meet with the team doctors, spend some time with his teammates and escape from the heat. Anything to break up the monotony. Before long, it'll break up for good. "I try not to look too far ahead," Anderson said, "but I am counting down. I feel really strong. At this point, I feel stronger than I ever have. I'm really excited about that." Cleveland Plain Dealer LOADED: 06.29.2017 Manager Terry Francona, Cleveland Indians' offense returns on same night in 5-3 win over Texas BY PAUL HOYNES, CLEVELAND.COM CLEVELAND, Ohio - Manager Terry Francona returned to the Indians' dugout. Trevor Bauer pitched into the seventh inning for his third straight start and the offense did a lot more than it did Tuesday night. The Indians used those three elements to beat Texas, 5-3, at Progressive Field on Wednesday night. The Indians gave Bauer a 1-0 lead against Yu Darvish in the first inning when Jason Kipnis reached on an error by left fielder Nomar Mazara and scored on Francisco Lindor's single. The Indians had a chance to make it a bigger inning when Edwin Encarnacion doubled Michael Brantley to third with one out, but Jose Ramirez bounced back to Darvish to catch Brantley in a rundown between third and home. They stretched that lead to 3-0 with two runs in the third on RBI singles by Brantley and Ramirez. It was the first of two RBI singles by Brantley and illustrated why Francona likes him in the No. 3 spot. Bauer (7-6, 5.24) took the early lead and ran with it. Bauer, pitching to contact, held the power-hitting Rangers scoreless through four innings. The zeroes ended when catcher Robinson Chirinos homered with two out in the fifth to make it a 3-1 game. It was the fourth homer in as many games for Chirinos and his second straight against the Indians. Chirinos, who has seven homers and 10 RBI in his last 10 games, homered Tuesday night in the Rangers' 2-1 win. Terry Francona on Trevor Bauer: 'He's getting to be dependable' Bauer, who has allowed 14 homers this season, recovered quickly. He ended the fifth by striking out Joey Gallo and pitched out of a jam in the sixth thanks to a fine play by Ramirez at third. Shin-Soo Choo and Elvis Andrus hit consecutive singles after Bauer retired leadoff hitting Delino DeShields. Adrian Beltre sent a hard grounder down the third baseline that Ramirez stopped with a dive behind the bag. He righted himself and bounced a throw across the infield to first to get Beltre. Bauer ended the inning by getting Mazara on a grounder to second. "Josie has been playing great defense at third base for a long time," said Bauer. "That play that Jose made really saved that inning. If the ball rattles around down in the left field corner that one run, maybe two." Bauer allowed one run on four hits in 6 1/3 innings. He struck out three and walked one. It was the first time in 16 starts that Bauer has allowed just one earned run. "He was really good," said Francona. "Texas has a good lineup. He really competed. He gave up the one home run, a solo, and got us to the point in the game where we can give the ball to Andrew (Miller) which is always good. "He's becoming very dependable, which is a real compliment to any pitcher." The Indians added two insurance runs in the seventh. Ernesto Frieri started the seventh in relief of Darvish (6-6, 3.11) by walking Bradley Zimmer and Roberto Perez, the eighth and ninth hitters in the lineup. After Kipnis advanced them with a sacrifice bunt and Lindor was intentionally walked, lefty Dario Alvarez relieved to face Brantley and Encarnacion. Trevor Bauer on increasing the use of his curveball Both hitters delivered RBI singles to left for a 5-1 lead. Darvish, 0-3 at Progressive Field and 1-3 against the Indians overall, allowed two earned runs on seven hits in six innings. Andrew Miller and Cody Allen closed the game for Bauer. Miller pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings, but Allen struggled in the ninth. He allowed a leadoff homer to Andrus and an RBI single to Rougned Odor before ending the game. It was the second homer Allen has allowed in as many games. On Tuesday night, he allowed the game-winner to Beltre in the ninth. What it means The Indians improved to 5-1 against Texas and 15-4 against the AL West this year. Bauer recorded his first career win against the Rangers in four start. The pitches Bauer threw 103 pitches, 61 (59 percent) for strikes. Darvish threw 101, 69 (68 percent) for strikes. Pitching change Pitching coach Mickey Callaway, not Francona, removed Bauer in the seventh inning. The last time Francona didn't make a pitching change was Monday when he left the dugout and was taken to Cleveland Clinic because of a rapid heart rate and lightheadedness. Francona was still in the dugout on Wednesday night when Callaway removed Bauer and called for Miller. Thanks for coming The Rangers and Indians drew 21,200 to Progressive Field on Wednesday night. First pitch was at 7:10 p.m. with a temperature of 78 degrees. Next The Indians will end their season series against the Rangers on Thursday afternoon when they send Corey Kluber (6-2, 3.24) to the mound at 12:10 p.m. Texas will counter with right-hander Andrew Cashner (3-6, 3.50). SportsTime Ohio and WTAM/1100 will carry the game. Kluber has struck out 10 or more batters in his last three starts. In his last start, he struck out 13 Minnesota Twins, but was not involved in the decision. He is 2-1 with a 4.36 ERA in five starts against Texas. Casher is expected to come off the disabled list to face the Indians. He has been on the DL since June 15 with a strained left oblique muscle. This will be his first start since June 14. He has one career start against the Tribe, losing a game on Sept. 2, 2016 while pitching for Miami. Cleveland Plain Dealer LOADED: 06.29.2017 Cleveland Indians sign SS Tyler Freeman, their second pick in the June draft BY PAUL HOYNES, CLEVELAND.COM CLEVELAND, Ohio - The Indians have come to terms with shortstop Tyler Freeman, their second selection in the June draft. Freeman, 18, was selected with the 71st pick in the draft. The Indians acquired the pick in Round B of the Competitive Balance Lottery. The right-handed hitting Freeman batted .526 (51-for-97) with eight doubles, four triples, four homers and 36 RBI for Etiwanda (Calif.) High School. Freeman will report to the Arizona Rookie League Indians in Goodyear, Ariz. The Indians, who did not have a first-round choice this year because they signed Edwin Encarnacion, came to terms with Freeman for a signing bonus of $816,500, according to mlb.com. That was the value of Freeman's slotting bonus. Freeman had signed a letter of intent to go to Texas Christian University. So far the Indians have signed 27 players taken in the draft. They have yet to sign their top pick, high school outfielder Quentin Holmes. They selected Holmes with the 64th overall selection. The slotting bonus for Holmes, who has signed a letter of intent to play at Mississippi State, is $969,900. Cleveland Plain Dealer LOADED: 06.29.2017 Cleveland Indians' Trevor Bauer credits defense in 5-3 win over Texas Rangers BY PAUL HOYNES CLEVELAND, Ohio - Indians third baseman Jose Ramirez didn't know the ball was in his glove until he got to his feet and felt it in there. When he realized his dive behind third base to stop Adrian Beltre's sharp grounder wasn't in vain, he bounced a throw across the infield to Carlos Santana for the second out of the sixth inning. Shin Soo Choo moved from second to third and Elvis Andrus went from first to second on the play, but if the ball had gotten past Ramirez the score would have been tied, 3-3, Wednesday night. "That was a game changer," said catcher Roberto Perez. Said Trevor Bauer, who was on his way to a 5-3 win over Texas at Progressive Field, "The play Jose made saved that inning." Bauer, who allowed one run in 6 1/3 innings, received some defensive help before the sixth inning as well. In the fourth, Choo opened the inning with a liner to the gap in right center field. Bauer, working with a 3-0 lead, thought it was a double. Then center fielder Bradley Zimmer closed on the ball and made a sliding catch near the warning track. "For how big Zimmer is (6-5), how fast he is, is really impressive," said Bauer. "He made a tough play look fairly easy." Zimmer has been impressive with his speed on the bases since being promoted from Class AAA Columbus on May 16. Wednesday night was the first time he's been pushed defensively. "I don't know if I've seen him leave his feet on purpose yet," said manager Terry Francona. "That was a nice play, a really nice play. Then a couple of hitters later he goes back on a ball and makes it look fairly easy (to retire Nomar Mazara). "He's done a really good job in center field. What's nice is that normally with younger guys, as long as they stay healthy, they're going to get better because you get to know the league. That's really exciting." Ramirez said he bounced his throw across the diamond for one reason. "That's the best option right there," he said through interpreter Anna Bolton, "With runners on first and second, I didn't want to make a crazy throw to (Carlos) Santana at first base. So that was the best way to give Santana a chance to catch the ball." Bauer (7-6, 5.24) struck out three, walked one and allowed four hits in 6 1/3 innings. For the last several starts, he's been relying mostly on his four-seam fastball and curveball and the results have been encouraging. Trevor Bauer on increasing the use of his curveball "There was a lot of things that kind of led to it," said Bauer. "It wasn't like let's make an abrupt change type thing. We talked about it as a staff with Mickey Callaway (pitching coach) about throwing our breaking stuff earlier and more often "I talked about it with Roberto (Perez). He thought the curveball was my best pitch and that I should use it more." ADVERTISING Said Perez, "We've been using it a lot. I don't think they do much damage on the curveball. When he's throwing 95 mph to 96 mph and he's got that hook, he's hard to hit. He's throwing the ball a lot better. I'm proud of him." On Wednesday night, according to baseball savant, Bauer threw 41 four-seam fastballs and 31 among his 103 pitches. The fastball topped out at 97.3 mph. At the other side of the velocity scale was a 74.6 mph curveball. Cleveland Plain Dealer LOADED: 06.29.2017

Which Cleveland Indians are deserving of an All-Star Game trip? CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Terry Francona still plans to manage the All-Star Game in Miami next month, despite his recent health concerns. He'll bring his staff with him, too. How many of his players will make the trip? Every team is guaranteed at least one All-Star. The Indians have a number of players performing well in the fan voting, but as of the league's latest update on Monday, none led his particular position. Which Tribe players are deserving of an All-Star Game nod? Let's examine. By Zack Meisel, cleveland.com

Jose Ramirez The case for: Where do we begin? He has produced a .322/.377/.557 slash line, 12 home runs and nine stolen bases. He rarely strikes out. He's the heartbeat of the Indians' lineup and he recently batted .500 over a 14-game stretch that included 11 multi-hit games. He ranks fifth among all AL position players in WAR, fourth in batting average, sixth in percentage and eighth in on-base percentage. The case against: He trails Miguel Sano in the voting for third basemen, but he has likely developed enough of a reputation to warrant a spot via player vote or league choice. And that isn't a case against him. There's nothing else to put in this space. He oozes personality. His ever- tumbling helmet frequently prompts laughter. It's Ramirez's world. We're all living in it.

Andrew Miller The case for: When Miller surrendered tie-breaking home runs on consecutive nights earlier this month against the Dodgers, the mystique wore off. Miller, to the surprise of many, proved to be human. For that week, at least. Miller, who has logged a 1.52 ERA, with nearly 14 strikeouts per nine innings, breezed through five batters on 21 pitches on Wednesday night. He struck out four of the five helpless bystanders. The case against: It can be difficult to handicap the field of relievers most deserving of an All-Star nod. Every team must be represented and the bullpen is the most convenient place to fill a spot for a team without any obvious candidates. Still, Miller is having as good of a season as any AL reliever not named Craig Kimbrel. Those two, Chris Devenski, Dellin Betances, Tommy Kahnle and Will Harris should probably top any All-Star relief list.

Corey Kluber The case for: The right-hander ranks sixth among AL starting pitchers in WAR, even though he missed a month because of a lower back strain. Kluber boasts a 3.24 ERA and a 2.66 FIP (second in AL) and he has struck out 11.6 batters per nine innings (third in AL). The case against: Because of his disabled-list stint, he trails the pack in games started. So, his rates and percentages all glisten, but his counting stats fall a bit short.

Michael Brantley The case for: After essentially missing an entire season, Brantley has returned to his old form at the plate, with a .299/.360/.430 slash line. Francona plugged him into the familiar No. 3 spot in his batting order and he hasn't looked back. The case against: Brantley hit five home runs in April, but hasn't hit one since. Two of the guys he's chasing in the balloting, Aaron Judge and , have combined for 51 home runs this season. Brantley ranks fourth in the voting among AL outfielders. Corey Dickerson, Aaron Hicks and Avisail Garcia all have strong cases. Brantley ranks 17th among AL outfielders in OPS.

Francisco Lindor The case for: Lindor led the voting at shortstop for a while before Houston's Carlos Correa took command of the pole position. It's hard to argue, too. Lindor excelled at the start of the season and he has displayed a new home-run stroke at the plate. His strikeout rate (12.1 percent) is one of the best in the league. However… The case against: Lindor's batting average and on-base percentage have taken a tumble over the last two months. Among the 14 AL shortstops with at least 220 plate appearances, Lindor ranks eighth in batting average, eighth in on-base percentage, fourth in slugging and fourth in WAR. Correa and Xander Bogaerts seem like shoo-ins. If the AL carries three shortstops, Lindor stands a chance. Carlos Carrasco The case for: Carrasco has been the steadiest force in a shaky Indians rotation this season. The Indians have won 12 of his 15 starts. Carraso has struck out 96 in 90 2/3 innings. The case against: Carrasco probably stood a better chance before he suffered through his worst start of the year on Monday against the Rangers. Carrasco's ERA jumped to 3.67 from 2.99.

Cody Allen The case for: Allen has been somewhat shaky lately, but he still owns a 2.90 ERA, with 44 strikeouts in 31 innings this season. The case against: His numbers don't catch your eye like Miller's do, and Allen has posted better statistics in past years. His hits per nine innings rate has increased from 5.4 last year to 9.0 this season. Lonnie Chisenhall The case for: The numbers, on their own, appear worthy of a trip to South Beach. Chisenhall has posted a .306/.369/.573 slash line, with 10 home runs and 41 RBI. The case against: He's done his damage over only 179 plate appearances, thanks to two DL stints and a platoon role. His output has been exceptional, but does he have the volume to get enough people to notice? Nick Goody The case for: This is, obviously, a long shot, but Goody has logged a 1.17 ERA in his first year with the Indians, with 34 strikeouts and only 18 hits allowed in 30 2/3 innings. The case against: While his numbers sparkle, Goody isn't exactly pitching in the eighth or the ninth with the game on the line. Plus, it isn't always easy to stand out in a relief role.

Terry Francona returns to the dugout in time to see Trevor Bauer shut down Rangers by T.J. Zuppe, 3 hours ago CLEVELAND — Indians manager Terry Francona is pretty oblivious to the world outside baseball. It's not because he isn't smart — despite what he may tell you — and he certainly has outside interests. But the sport is such an every day grind, it rarely offers those entrenched in it an opportunity to see a different perspective.

There are probably easier ways to get that view than spending a night at the hospital. But while being put through a battery of tests to determine the cause of his recent dizziness and lightheaded feelings he's been experiencing recently, he was able to witness the reactions of workers around the Cleveland Clinic firsthand, watching his club's surprising Monday night comeback unfold from a vantage point he's unfamiliar with — the outside looking in.

“I probably don't stop to think about it very often, because you get so immersed in what we're doing,” Francona said. “You almost get like tunnel vision. I know a lot of days, we laugh about it. Like Sunday mornings when we're on the road, and we'll be driving to the ballpark and you'll see people heading out on like picnics and you're like, ‘What is that?' Because we've never done it. But, I don't know. I don't want to get too deep, but it was a good feeling.”

Following his early exit from the dugout and eventual departure from the dugout, he was getting updates from Jason Genin, the member of the club's medical staff that initially took him to the hospital. As Francona's team slowly chipped away at the Rangers' seven-run lead, he could see the excitement grow within those around him following the game.

“I was sitting in there — me and a couple of the docs — you could hear some of the people,” he said. “It did feel good. Those people seemed to really care. A nurse would come in and say something and they'd be like, ‘Hey, it's 12-9.' Heck yeah.”

Thankfully, Wednesday was a far more normal experience. He will wear a heart monitor over the next few weeks — just in case he experiences another episode — but almost everything else was seemingly back to normal after missing most of the past two games.

Coming off the 2-1 loss Tuesday, the Indians' bats were able to do enough damage against starter Yu Darvish (six innings, three runs, seven hits) and the Rangers bullpen (two innings, two runs), and Trevor Bauer was fantastic in 6 1/3 innings, leading to a 5-3 win. But situations like Francona's health scares over the past two weeks serve as a reminder that the things we spend hours debating and concerning ourselves with on an every day basis will never compare to something as big as someone's personal well-being.

However, that doesn't make those emotions and conversations insignificant.

“What we do is so important to us, but it's not life or death,” Francona said. “But, it's so amazing the impact it can have on people for something that isn't. It's like when your team is playing good, people seem to walk around with their chest out a little bit more. And you get so immersed in caring about your team — that's part of what's so good about it.”

By the numbers

.172: Opposing batting average against Bauer's curveball over the past two seasons.

Our own Travis Sawchik recently chronicled how Bauer is using his curveball more to his advantage, a trend that became noticeable at the end of May and has continued throughout his June outings. He threw the curve 31 times on Wednesday night, according to Baseball Savant, and as was expected, it garnered the lowest average exit velocity (81.7 mph) of all of his 103 total pitches in the win.

Since utilizing his “best pitch” more, he's posted a 3.82 ERA over 37 2/3 innings. That's not necessarily spectacular, but it's damn sure acceptable. Simplifying the pitch mix is not a new idea for Bauer, but it's one he's warmed up to since that May 30 start, relying mostly on his fastball and curve to collect better results.

After his 6 1/3-inning, one-run outing, Bauer repeated a lot of the same ideas that he told Sawchik earlier this week. We won't rehash all of that (I suggest reading Travis' article, though), but it does appear to be working. And the man at least partially behind winning Bauer over on the idea of throwing more curves, catcher Roberto Perez, has been encouraged by the righty's performance since the shift in usage.

“When he’s throwing 95, 96, he’s got that hook, it’s hard to hit,” Perez said. “I think he’s throwing the ball a lot better. I’m really proud of him. I know he’s been working so hard. I know that the numbers are not where they’re supposed to be. But he’s going to be really good.”

46 percent: The catch probability on Bradley Zimmer's impressive fourth-inning snag on Wednesday night.

Zimmer's robbery of Shin-Soo Choo on a catch deemed four stars by MLB Statcast was the first time, at least in my recent memory, that we've seen the rookie get a chance to really show off his range and speed by tracking down a deep fly. Even the replay doesn't do justice to the ground Zimmer covered on the play, grabbing and sliding to make the play in right-center.

We've recently written about why Zimmer's defense and base-running should eventually break him of any limitations of a platoon, and with Austin Jackson expected to miss 3-4 weeks with a quad injury, he'll likely get the chance to play every day. The value he brings as the club's best defensive outfielder should overcome any possible struggles against left-handed pitching, and plays like Wednesday's demonstrate how his speed can take away at least two bases from the opposition.

“That was a really nice play,” Francona said. “Then a couple hitters later, he goes back on a ball that he makes look fairly easy. We’ve talked about it several times, he’s done a really good job in center field. What’s nice is, normally with younger guys, as long as they stay healthy, they’re going to get better as you know the league and things like that, which is really exciting.”

Bauer was extremely appreciative of Zimmer and Jose Ramirez's defensive contributions. Ramirez made one of the game's biggest plays by robbing Adrian Beltre of a potential double and RBI with a diving grab and throw from the third base line. Without that defensive gem, Bauer's sixth inning would have taken on a completely different complexion.

“Josey has been playing a great defensive third for a long time,” Bauer said. “The play that Jose made kind of saved that inning. If that ball rattles around in the corner, it's at least one run, maybe two. It's probably a double, guys on second and third and one out. And the inning kind of spirals from there. I got a lot of help from the defense.”

3: Consecutive days Cody Allen has pitched.

Of course, less than 24 hours after pointing out all the reasons why Allen can pitch whenever the hell he wants — save situation or not — he gives up a pair in another non-save situation to make things interesting in the ninth. Despite giving up three runs over the past two days in non- save situations, I'm still not changing my tune. The save stat is kind of silly and we could probably all benefit from its fade into obscurity — just like a pitcher's win-loss record.

Focusing on things that actually matter, Allen has now given up a homer in three of his past four appearances — Elvis Andrus got him on a second-pitch fastball Wednesday night — but Francona hasn't seen anything concerning within the short stretch.

“I think his curveball actually is back to what it was early in the year,” he said. “Last night he probably threw a pitch he shouldn’t of, or didn’t need to, to Beltre, because he was throwing the ball really well. Tonight, Andrus is about 7-for-9 off of him now. And then the next run, we’re not defending the .”

To Francona's point about Allen's curveball, he earned seven more whiffs on it during the win and induced an average exit velocity of 58.6 mph with it. Of his 25 total pitches, 18 of them were knuckle-curves. With the offering performing at an elite level, it's easy to justify that much usage. In fact, with hitters apparently gearing up for his fastball (that's what the recent homer surge seems to be indicating), maybe it's something to lean on even more heavily.

As for why he went to Allen with a four-run lead, said Francona: “I’d rather him be down tomorrow for a noon game, because we've got a lot of baseball this weekend. If we’re going to give him a blow, I wanted it to be tomorrow.”

The Indians (41-36) and Rangers (39-39) will wrap up their four-game series on Thursday afternoon.

2: Runs batted in for Michael Brantley in the three-spot.

Given Ramirez's torrid hitting stretch, it's easy to understand why many would prefer him hit in the top three of the Tribe's order, but there's a method behind Francona's madness. Having two high-contact, high-average hitters like Brantley and Ramirez to protect Edwin Encarnacion (hitting .326 in June) offers some flexibility.

“It’s not a knock on [Ramirez],” Francona said. “I really like the idea of protecting Edwin with a switch-hitter. You go back and look where [] and Victor [Martinez] were really [dangerous]. Victor was sitting behind him, and it just made you think so many times. You can’t really go get the lefty because you got a switch-hitter back there. I just love when Brant’s hitting in those situations. That ball to left field tonight shows you. That’s the hitter he is and he’s been that way for a long time.”

Say what?

Terry Francona, on getting to return from his brief time away:

“I don’t care what your vantage point is. Sitting on TV or here. I always want us to win. We show up at whatever, 10:30, 11 o’clock, the idea is to win. I don’t care if you feel good or bad or in between, that’s why we’re here.”

Trevor Bauer is joining the breaking ball revolution by Travis Sawchik, Yesterday On May 30 against the A’s at Progressive Field, the baseball world received a glimpse of Trevor Bauer it has rarely seen: Bauer was pleased with the process and results.

In the seventh inning, he snapped off his 47th curveball of the game — a career high for a start — and the A’s Rajai Davis swung over the top of a pitch, which seemed to fall off an invisible cliff. It marked the 14th strikeout of the game, a career-best for Bauer. He pivoted on the mound after Davis whiffed on the pitch, and produced a primal scream directed toward the outfield and late afternoon sky. He flexed both arms. It was a rare demonstrative display from Bauer, and it was also perhaps a release of frustration.

Bauer has been searching. He has been perplexed why he has been hit so hard, so often this season. While his strikeout and strikeouts-minus- walks rates stood and remain at career-best levels, his ERA stood at a MLB worst 6.00 among qualified starters at the end of May.

But it was on that late May afternoon that Bauer perhaps found something. He perhaps arrived at an answer that has helped elevate the careers of Rich Hill, Lance McCullers and Drew Pomeranz in recent seasons. He is moving away from convention, moving away from the idea that he has to establish his fastball. He is more and more leaning on a curveball as a primary pitch.

Since May 30, Bauer has thrown his curveball at a 36.4 percent rate, the second greatest frequency among MLB starters.

Since May 30, Bauer has a 4.31 ERA and a 3.14 FIP. Great numbers? Not exactly. But it does mark improvement, and much needed improvement form the perspective of the club. The Indians have sent Danny Salazar to the minors in hopes of straightening him out, and the Indians know there could be few impact arms available in the trade market, driving up acquisition costs.

Bauer is perhaps part of the curveball revolution. And as one of the game’s most open-minded, and experimental pitchers, it is perhaps of little surprise that he would test conventional wisdom. What is surprising is that a pitcher who has taken pride in having a variety of pitches to attack hitters in a variety of ways, is turning to simplification of pitch mix to reach a new level. And the curveball is not just a good pitch for Bauer, it has played as a great pitch.

*** Bauer reached a pivot point in late May.

“I just got to a point where I was so frustrated with everything getting hit,” Bauer said.

Despite a fastball that averages 94 mph, opponents are slugging .515 against the pitch. They were slugging .505 against his sinker, .576 against his cutter and .591 against his changeup. Only his curveball was quieting opponents’ bats (.345 slugging).

And it has continued something of a career-long trend, where Bauer’s curveball has been his best pitch. According to weighted runs created, only Bauer’s curveball has rated as an above-average pitch (17.3 runs above average for his career). But he has thrown it only on 16.4 percent of his offerings.

Consider the year-by-year slugging marks against Bauer's pitchers via BrooksBaseball.net: In late May, Bauer decided to break from tradition.

“Every time I throw my fastball it gets murdered. That’s what it seems like,” Bauer told The Athletic. “It’s my worst performing pitch as far as batting average … if you have a shitty heater why do you have to establish that? Why can’t you establish a good pitch?”

It was in mid May where Indians catcher Roberto Perez suggested that Bauer lean more on the curveball. Indians pitching coach Mickey Callaway suggested Bauer throw fewer fastballs. Bauer agreed with the idea. He can recite where his curveball ranks among major leaguer starters' in vertical drop (second) at nearly 10 inches.

“The only thing that never gets hit is my curveball,” Bauer said. “So I started throwing more of them because it was frustrating having everything well located, or not, get hit.

Spin Cycle The most curveballs thrown this season by MLB starters, according to PITCHf/x data Lance McCuller HOU 574 Bronson Arroyo CIN 567 Drew Pomeranz BOS 518 Alex Cobb TB 517 Trevor Bauer CLE 415 Jose Quintana CHA 414 Jerad Eickhoff PHI 399 Scott Feldman CIN 388 Luis Perdomo SD 382 Robbie Ray ARI 358

Bauer’s curveball has elite movement, but he was also looking for something else: velocity separation.

“Everything was hard. My cutter and changeup were all 88 [mph] plus my fastball at that time was 93 so I had a 5-mph spread going,” Bauer said. “Hitters are always on time. You have to rely on movement to get it off the barrel, and stuff like that … I am trying to use the curveball more as a speed differential pitch.

Since May 30, Bauer is only throwing his changeup at a 4.7 percent rate. He’s thrown his cutter at a 7.4 percent rate. He’s become a two-pitch pitcher like Hill, like McCullers. We will have to see how committed he is to the approach. But he is comfortable with the idea of relying less on his fastball.

Consider Bauer's pitch usage by month since 2015: Bauer said at UCLA only 35 to 40 percent of his pitchers were fastballs.

“I threw all sorts of breaking stuff, so I have that long history of relying on my off-speed stuff,” Bauer said.

He said in the past few years he has spoken with teammates about relievers who have gone to breaking pitches as their primary offerings — like Andrew Miller — employing mid 90s velocity not as a primary offering but as a vehicle to setup their swing-and-miss breaking pitches. Bauer's fastball velocity has ticked up to 94 mph, and he's more often throwing four-seamers up in part to pair with the curveball. And his curveball might be getting better.

*** Every offseason Bauer follows a similar routine.

Immediately after the season he flies to his native Los Angeles and spends a week with his parents where he has medical evaluations. He then travels to Salt Lake City for a biomechanical evaluation. He then returns to his home in Texas where he checks in on his house and relaxes for a week, before traveling to Seattle where he spends most of his offseason.

Bauer spends much of his offseason in Seattle because of the cutting-edge facility, Driveline Baseball, which is based there. Bauer has his own high-speed cameras he uses to evaluate his pitch movement and function, he is often skeptical of TrackMan radar readings of spin. Driveline has similar high-speed cameras and advanced capabilities to evaluate performance.

“There are certain key elements when you go about developing a pitch that you have to have, you have to interpret information,” Bauer said. “That’s where I think I have an edge.”

After the 2015 season, it was at the Driveline facility, on its green astroturf and between its batting-cage netting, where Bauer experimented with a new curveball grip. The curveball has always been his best pitch, but what if it could be better? In the training facility, he raised his index finger and began throwing a few spiked or knuckle curveballs. What happened? The pitch’s spin rate jumped by 150 rpm.

Bauer had overhauled his mechanics since leaving UCLA, where he put up Tim Lincecum like numbers in the Pac 10. After a few throws he asked Driveline founder Kyle Boddy — who is obsessed with sports science and technology as much as Bauer — about the pitch.

“I said what do you think about this?” Bauer said. “He said ‘I don't see why not.’ ”

In 2015, Bauer’s curve averaged 2,423 RPMs.

This season? 2,530.

The pitch helps Bauer generate strikes looking, and hitters whiff on 33 percent of their swings against the pitch, but Bauer’s curve also has produced seven ground outs for every one fly ball, the best rate among MLB starters. It’s been one of the best pitches in the game in 2017.

*** If this is a new model for Bauer, leaning on a fastball or curveball on 90 percent of his offerings, he would be one of the least likely pitchers to simplify.

Bauer has said he has thrown as many as 12 different pitches or variations of pitches. PITCHf/x has Bauer throwing seven different pitches in his career, and five at a rate of 10 percent or greater including his four-seam, two-seam and cut fastballs along wth a slider, changeup, curve and knuckle curve. But is there something to be said of simplicity producing sophistication?

What’s interesting about Bauer’s curve is that it plays well multiple times through the order.

It suggests that Bauer might not need to overly rely upon a third or fourth pitch to navigate through opposing lineups multiple times.

Is there also an element of muscle memory that improves a pitch over the course of a season, or even in the course of a start, by throwing it more often?

Asked about how or if he might benefit from a more limited pitch mix, by throwing certain pitches more often, Bauer cited studies on the difference between “block” and “randomized” practice.

Block practicing is essentially drill work, practicing a skill over and over the same way, while randomized is practicing a skill through different methods, sequences and positions. A 1979 study by John Shea and Robyn Morgan found randomized practice created more effective learning.

“For training purposes, it makes sense to train in a randomized way, trying a different weight every time, every throw,” said Bauer, who trains with weighted balls. “A different pitch every time, throw from a different slope, randomize each throw so your body is constantly having to adapt to learn. In a game, that is a block scenario, so of course you are going to get some sort of block effect if you throw a curveball 30 or 40 of 50 times. It will probably be a better curveball at the end of that game, although a lot of things go into it like fatigue and game situations. … But you do get a block effect. It still comes down to how hitters react.”

What seems clear is the pitch is already one of the game's best and it can perhaps continue to improve. Perhaps it can reach another level and take Bauer to a different level of performance.

Cleveland Indians: Terry Francona calls health scare ‘just irritating, kind of embarrassing’ By David Glasier, The News-Herald Rest easy, Indians fans.

After his second health scare of the season, veteran manager Terry Francona was back on the job on June 28 and in fine fettle.

Speaking to reporters before the Indians hosted Texas in the third game of a four-game series at Progressive Field, Francona was prepared for a series of questions about getting ill and having to leave the dugout early in the first game against the Rangers on June 26.

The 58-year-old Francona was taken to Cleveland Clinic and remained there into the wee hours while doctors and clinicians administered tests designed to pinpoint the cause of his discomfort.

Bench coach Brad Mills took over as manager for the duration of that game and all of the next game when Indians president Chris Antonetti ordered Francona to take a night off and catch up on his sleep. Francona said the symptoms that triggered his early exit from the dugout on June 26 were similar to those he experienced during and after a game at Progressive Field on June 13 against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was hospitalized and treated for dehydration. The next day, he returned to work.

“For all of you who bet on the under, you’re going to lose because I’m not going to die,” Francona said, kiddingly. “It’s just irritating, kind of embarrassing.”

The joking about circumstances surrounding his latest trip to the hospital didn’t end there.

“I told Chris (Antonetti), one of things they were checking were reactions to Millsy (Brad Mills) or maybe being allergic to Millsy and some of his ways,” Francona said.

Andre Knott, on-field reporter for SportsTime Ohio telecasts of Indians games, also was singled out by Francona for blame in a good-natured way.

“I’ve had test after test after test. The only thing that was conclusive is maybe there was a stress reaction to Andre’s tie that night.,” Francona said. “It was so bad, it threw me in a tizzy.”

It wasn’t lost on Francona that the series opener took what he called an “unbelievable” turn for the better after he departed with his team on the short end of a 9-2 count. The Indians scored 13 unanswered runs en route to a 15-9 victory.

“I don’t know if I felt good or bad,” Francona said. “When I left, things all of a sudden took a turn for the good. You can take that a few different ways.”

The four-time American League Manager of the Years also made light of the hundreds of supportive text messages he received since this latest incident and the kind words he heard from players, coaches and team officials upon his return to the ballpark on June 28.

“When people start to be kind, that makes you nervous. It’s like, (expletive), I’m dying,” Francona said with a straight face.

Kidding aside, Francona said he recognizes there is nothing vaguely humorous about having to be admitted to the hospital twice in less than two weeks.

”I’ve been tested like crazy and they’ve ruled out some really serious things. That makes you feel better,” he said. “I’ve had some bouts of getting light-headed to the point where the lights were going to go out, which is not a good feeling.

“I’ve had (the symptoms) on and off for a while,” Francona added. “For me to leave a game, it’s got to be pretty intense. I don’t like to do that.”

Doctors have outfitted Francona with a monitor to keep tabs on his vital signs in case the symptoms recur.

“They’re keeping an eye on me,” he said. “There’s no common denominator. The one good thing is there are so many good medical people who care about doing a really good job. It may happen again. If I have another episode, they want to be able to know how it’s affecting me. When it happens, my heart rate really picks up fast. They want to be able to monitor that.”

Francona said the doctors are, at least for now, discounting stress as a potential trigger for his health issues.

“I honestly love what I do. I’ve never once thought to myself, ‘Why did I go to the ballpark today?’ I feel like I’ve been in much worse places, worrying-wise. The doctors explained to me your body can react differently to things. I’ve been on medications for like the past 15 years. They just want to make sure nothing has changed because of that. We’ll figure it out. It’s just not fun a lot of times.”

Francona tipped his cap to Antonetti for assisting with replies to the many text messages and other inquiries about his health status.

“He’s like Mother Theresa,” Francona said. “He’s working and taking care of me. I felt guilty.”

During the hours he spent at the hospital, Francona heard and saw his caregivers reacting to the Indians’ improbable comeback. It opened his eyes to the way Indians fans everywhere are emotionally invested in the team.

“I probably don’t stop to think about it very often because we get so immersed in what we’re doing. You almost get like tunnel vision,” he said. “We’ll be driving to the ballpark on a Sunday morning and see people heading out on picnics and we’re like, ‘What is that?’

“I don’t want to get too deep, but it was a good feeling that those people really seemed to care,” Francona added. “What we do is so important to us, but it’s not life or death. It’s so amazing the impact it can have on people for something that isn’t. When your team is playing good, people seem to walk around with their chest out a little bit more.”

Francona said this latest health scare will not keep him from managing the American League team in the All-Star Game on July 11. He secured that honor when the Indians won the American League championship last season on their way to the World Series.

Ingraham: Francona ready to get back to baseball, life Jim Ingraham | The Chronicle-TelegramPublished on June 29, 2017 | Updated 12:52 a. m. This is serious business.

Not baseball.

Life.

The two keep colliding with one another in the Indians’ dugout, inside manager Terry Francona.

It happened again Monday night, when Francona’s heart started racing, the ballpark started spinning and it was time for another trip to the hospital.

Francona is a baseball lifer. The game is his life, and his life is the game. He is one of the few people lucky enough to be doing as an adult exactly what they were born to do.

In Francona’s case, as has been abundantly clear by the success he’s had, he was born to manage baseball teams. He manages well. He manages great.

Now he’s has to manage his team AND himself.

“I’ve got a monitor on,” he said. “They want me to press a button when I start to feel it again.” That’s right. Baseball’s most creative and resourceful manager is now a push-button manager. But it’s not what you think.

It’s not baseball.

It’s life.

Serious business.

On Wednesday, Francona rejoined the baseball team he is paid to manage. It’s the team he managed all the way to the seventh game of the World Series last year, but not before he missed a game in Washington after experiencing chest pains.

In 2001, on a flight to Seattle to interview for the managing job with the Mariners, Francona had chest pains that were diagnosed as a pulmonary embolism on each side of his lungs.

Monday night was Monday night, but less than two weeks earlier, also during a game in Cleveland, Francona had to leave the dugout for the hospital after experiencing a rapid heart rate and dizziness.

That time, as was the case Monday night, no major health issues were found.

“They tested me like crazy,” he said. “They ruled out serious things, which makes you feel good.”

Apparently, nothing was ruled in that was worrisome enough to prevent Francona from being back in uniform and back in the dugout for Wednesday night’s game at Progressive Field

“It may happen again,” said Francona, off-handedly, as though referring to a mosquito bite. “I’m not going to die. It’s just irritating.”

Terry John Francona is 58 years old. He’s been in for 37 years, the last 21 as a manager, the last 17 of those as the manager of major league teams.

“I love what I do,” said the two-time American League Manager of the Year.

So did Indians manager Birdie Tebbetts, who in 1964, at age 52, underwent bypass surgery after suffering a heart attack at the end of spring training. Tebbetts probably should have sat out the year, but he was back managing the Indians on July 4.

Charlie Manuel loved baseball, too. In 2000, Manuel’s first year as the Indians manager, he missed most of spring training, and missed 15 games during the regular season after undergoing two separate colon surgeries.

Managing a team can take a toll on managers. The hours stink, the travel is heavy, you eat at all the wrong hours and the stress … the stress can be … “That’s one of the things they’re looking at,” said Francona, who has been on various medications for his various ailments for the last 15 years.

“It may happen again. I’m not going to die, it’s just irritating. But for me to leave a game, you know it’s got to be intense.”

In his return-to-work meeting with the media prior to Wednesday’s game, Francona was his usual self, cracking wise about his condition, and the fact that the Indians rallied for an epic 15-9 victory AFTER he left the dugout.

He’s a manager who is great at striking the right balance between what’s important and what’s not.

That point was driven home as he lay in the emergency room, listening to the hospital staff cheering while watching the Indians game on a nearby TV.

“That gave me a huge lift, seeing people getting excited about our game,” he said. “I remember riding to the ballpark one day and seeing some people leaving to go on a picnic. And I’m like, ‘A picnic? What’s that?’”

For Francona, it was an eye-opener.

“What we do is so important to us,” he said. “But it’s not like it’s life or death.”

It’s only baseball. Not like this other stuff.

“I felt wiped out the other night. I don’t feel wiped out now,” Francona said, playing the old manager’s optimist card.

“It’s happened before, and it’s been worse. But we’ll figure it out. It’s not a lot of fun, and it might take a while.”

But for Francona, this is serious business.

It’s baseball, but it’s also life. To him, they are one in the same, and he embraces both.

“This,” he said, “is the most comfortable place in my life.”

TRIBE NOTES Indians 5, Rangers 3: Bauer outpitches Darvish to help Tribe to win Chris Assenheimer ByChris Assenheimer | The Chronicle-TelegramPublished on June 28, 2017 | Updated 6:33 a. m. CLEVELAND -- Texas’ Yu Darvish was the featured pitching attraction Wednesday night at Progressive Field, but Indians right-hander Trevor Bauer wound up playing the starring role.

Offering up one of his best outings of the year, Bauer outperformed the American League All-Star candidate to help Cleveland to a 5-3 victory in front of 21,200 fans.

Bauer allowed just a run on four hits over 6 1/3 innings, limiting the Rangers to only one base runner through the first three innings and one hit through the first four.

“He was really good,” manager Terry Francona said of Bauer, who improved to 7-6 with a 5.24 ERA over 16 starts. “I mean, that’s a good lineup. I know at times there’s some guys, kind of like us, that are hitting a little bit lower than maybe they would.

“He really competed. He gave up the one home run, solo (to Robinson Chirinos in the fifth), and got us to a point in the game where we could give the ball to Andrew (Miller), which is always good. He’s becoming very dependable, which is a real compliment to any pitcher.”

Since focusing primarily on a fastball-curve ball mix -- heavy on the breaking ball -- over the past month, Bauer has pitched markedly better, with more positive results.

“It’s been nice,” Bauer said of the effectiveness of his curve. “It doesn’t get hit hard. It doesn’t get hit really at all. I’m definitely happy with that. I think it’s helped me minimize some of the hard contact. It’s always been my best pitch. It’s never really gotten hit.”

The Indians scored all of their runs within the first three innings off Darvish, who entered the night with a 6-5 record and 3.12 ERA over 16 starts.

Francisco Lindor’s base hit scored Jason Kipnis two batters into the bottom of the first inning, with Michael Brantley and Jose Ramirez providing run-scoring singles in the third. The Indians tacked on two more runs in the seventh on base hits from Brantley and Edwin Encarnacion.

Every player in the lineup had at least a hit, except for Lonnie Chisenhall and Roberto Perez, with all of them reaching base at least once.

“It’s a good way to play, when you’re getting contributions, you got guys on base,” said Francona, who returned to the dugout after missing Tuesday night’s game with a medical issue. “You’re not going to cash in every time, like we didn’t, but we kept putting pressure (on) and fortunately we got a couple tack-on runs to make the ninth inning not quite as nerve-racking as it could have been.”

Miller took over for Bauer and struck out four of the five batters he faced through the eighth.

It wasn’t as smooth for right-hander Cody Allen, who allowed two runs in the ninth -- one on a solo home run from Elvis Andrus on his second pitch. Allen, who allowed the game-winning homer to Adrian Beltre on his first pitch Tuesday, didn’t allow a homer over his first 15 appearances, but has surrendered five over his last 16 games.

Cleveland also got a lift from its defense.

Bradley Zimmer made a sliding catch in center field and ran down another drive, with third baseman Jose Ramirez making a diving stop with two on in the sixth that saved at least a run.

“Josie’s been playing a great defensive third for a long time,” Bauer said. “But the play that Jose made kind of saved that inning. If that ball gets into the corner, it’s at least one run, maybe two, and then the inning kind of spirals from there. I got a lot of help from the defense. Overall, it was a good team win.”

“Playing good defense, we’ve seen in past years, the good, the bad, kind of the in-between,” Francona said. “The way Trevor was throwing the ball tonight, we catch the ball and it ends up where it’s supposed to, you’re going to be in pretty good shape.”

Contact Chris Assenheimer at 329-7136 or [email protected]. Like him on Facebook and follow him @CAwesomeheimer on Twitter.

RubberDucks 6, Erie SeaWolves 5 Ducks 6, ͒SeaWolves 5

Storylines: The Ducks scored four runs in the fifth inning and relievers D.J. Brown and Cameron Hill held the SeaWolves to a run on three hits and three strikeouts.

Duckbills: The score was tied entering the bottom of the fifth, but outfielder Todd Hankins scored on a fielder’s choice and first baseman Bobby Bradley and third baseman Joe Sever each hit an RBI single. Bradley later scored on a . Left-hander Matt Whitehouse (4-3) pitched ѿ innings and allowed four runs on seven hits and six strikeouts. All-Star Cameron Hill picked up his fourth save.

Next: 12:05 p.m. Thursday at Canal Park. Ducks right-hander Matt Esparza (4-0, 2.14) and SeaWolves right-hander Beau Burrows (2-1, 5.21) are the scheduled pitchers.

Four RubberDucks selected to play in Eastern League All-Star Game Four RubberDucks will join 44 other players in the Eastern League All-Star Game scheduled for July 12 in Manchester, N.H.

Catcher Francisco Mejia — who is hitting a league-leading .352 — highlights a RubberDucks contingent that also includes infielder Yu-Cheng Chang and pitchers Thomas Pannone and Cameron Hill.

They’ll play on the Western Division team alongside selections from the Altoona Curve, Erie SeaWolves, Richmond Flying Squirrels, Harrisburg Senators and Bowie Bay Sox. The opposing Eastern team combines players from the Reading Fightin’ Phils, Trenton Thunder, Binghamton Rumble Ponies, Portland Sea Dogs, Hartford Yard Goats and New Hampshire Fisher Cats.

Mejia and Pannone earned their all-star berths through the fan vote, and league managers and team personnel picked Hill and Chang.

“Really excited for the four guys that were named to the All-Star team today,” Ducks manager Mark Budzinski said. “The whole team’s worked hard, but glad that the other coaches and media felt that those guys were deserving and happy for them, proud for them.

“It’s spread around a little bit. We wish all our guys could [make it], but obviously you can only get so many. We’re appreciative of the ones that earned the right to be named.”

Mejia is the Indians’ top prospect and is in his first season in Double-A. Last season, he put together a professional baseball-best 50-game hitting streak with the High Class A .

Pannone (3-1) has tossed 30ѿ innings for the Ducks with a 2.01 ERA, and also pitched 27Ҁ innings for the Hillcats in five starts. He received a no-decision Tuesday for six innings of work against the SeaWolves.

Hill has thrown 41Ҁ innings of relief for the Ducks this season, allowing 15 runs and 33 hits. In seven appearances in May, he’s allowed just three earned runs and has struck out nine. His season ERA is 2.60. Chang is hitting .215 this season but has totaled 17 home runs, which ranked fourth in the league entering Wednesday. He’s also fifth in extra base hits at 32, but second in strikeouts with 81.

RubberDucks left-hander Matt Whitehouse adjusting to life as a starting pitcher This time last year, RubberDucks left-hander Matt Whitehouse would only pitch when he heard his name on the other end of a bullpen phone.

Now his approach is different.

Whitehouse, who switched roles from reliever to starting pitcher this season, likened his former role to a sprint. Before his start against the Erie SeaWolves on Wednesday, he said he now has time to warm up all day long.

“I think relieving is like zero to 100. You hear your name out there on the phone and you get warm real quick and your heart’s pounding. [Starting] is more of a marathon,” Whitehouse said Tuesday. “You kind of got to ease your way into it. You know you’re there to pitch six or seven innings to give your team a chance to win.”

Indians coaches asked Whitehouse about becoming a starter in the offseason, referencing his successful eight previous career starts at various levels in the minor leagues. He started four games in 2013 with the Mahoning Valley Scrappers, but after Tommy John elbow surgery in 2014, he started twice in the 2015 Arizona League and twice more in Lynchburg during the 2016 season.

The Indians drafted Whitehouse out of the University of California, Irvine in 2013, but even there, he was a reliever. He struck out 10 batters in just six innings of work before he departed the school for professional baseball after just one season.

It was only at Damien High School (Calif.) that Whitehouse was truly a starter. He pitched three complete games and was 9-2 as a senior, striking out 87 in 70 innings. The highlight of the season was a 17-strikeout no-hitter.

After missing much of the 2014 and 2015 seasons with injuries, Whitehouse labored to develop a detailed warm-up routine he didn’t have at Damien or UC Irvine. He said it’s become a habit no different than brushing his teeth after waking up each morning.

“I think the biggest setback for a lot of guys is health issues and injuries,” Whitehouse said. “In high school and college, your body’s still kind of young. ... As you get older, you realize it’s good to have a warm-up routine and that it’s there for a reason.”

Despite numerous injuries to his throwing arm, Whitehouse has still climbed as high as Triple-A, although his results have been mixed. In six innings with the this season, Whitehouse picked up a win in one of his two starts — but allowed nine runs, eight of them earned, and his ERA was 12.00. Last season he tossed 2ѿ scoreless innings for the Clippers.

“I think you take the good with the bad,” Whitehouse said. “You file the good things, you file the bad things and you learn from it. Whether it’s a good experience or it’s a bad experience, you always want to learn from it. The next time, wherever you’re at, you pull the information you need and hope it helps you.”

RubberDucks manager Mark Budzinski said Whitehouse has improved in each of his six starts, developing an arsenal of pitches he can use to deceive batters he’s already faced once or twice in the game.

“You’ve got to be consistent from a day-in, day-out standpoint at this level and above to get to the big leagues and stay there,” Budzinski said. “It’s learning as a pitcher how to command your pitches and be able to throw as a starter three to four pitches for a strike. When you’re behind in the count, throw the off-speed stuff and be confident in that. Little things like that are what we talk about with Matt.”

Whitehouse said what coaches will ask him to do next to reach Cleveland — or even Columbus again — is out of his hands, but he also said he’s up for the task. For now, though, being so close to the major leagues only further incentivizes his work as a starting pitcher.

“It’s the next stepping stone to bigger and better things,” Whitehouse said. “It is definitely a motivation.”

Lake County Captains pitcher Hillman excels in loss By David Glasier, The News-Herald Lake County starter Juan Hillman did not figure in the decision June 28 as the Captains came up on the losing end of a 4-0 shutout at the hands of the Great Lakes (Mich.) Loons at Classic Park.

As well as he pitched, Hillman deserved a better fate.

In his 14th and best start of the season, the 20-year-old left-hander from Florida emphatically shut down the Loons.

Hillman limited the Loons to one hit in seven innings, retiring the first 17 batters he faced before Loons’ second baseman Gersel Pitre coaxed a two-out walk in the top of the sixth. A one-out double by Cody Thomas in the bottom of the seventh was the only hit yielded by Hillman, who finished with eight strikeouts. He threw 90 pitches, 57 for strikes. “This was my best start, by far. It was a great experience,” Hillman said. “I’ve had ups and downs this season, mostly downs, but I’ve stayed with it and trusted the process.”

Hillman said his best pitch was a four-seam fastball he commanded throughout the strike zone. While his record stayed at 3-3, Hillman lowered his ERA from 6.22 to 5.66.

“Everything you want from a starter, Juan gave it to us this time,” Captains pitching coach Jason Blanton said. “He was aggressive in the (strike) zone from the beginning. He’s been one tough inning away from doing this for the last month. Today, he didn’t have that bad inning.”

Jacob Lee followed Hillman to the mound for the Captains and retired the side in order in the top of the eighth.

Lee, a 27-year-old right-hander who missed all of last season after having elbow surgery, had a rough go of it in the ninth. He walked three straight batters and gave way to Ryder Ryan.

On the first pitch from Ryan, Great Lakes designated hitter Keibert Ruiz hit a grand slam to right-center field to put the Loons in front, 4-0.

That’s the way the game ended as Loons reliever and eventual winner Andre Scrubb (3-0, 1.27 ERA) blanked the Captains over the final two frames.

The Captains slipped to 5-2 in the second half with the loss. They managed only two hits and stranded 10 base runners.

“It’s tough when a starter gives you that kind of effort and you still lose,” Captains hitting coach Justin Toole said. Toole filled in for manager Larry Day, who was in Cleveland for a meeting of the Indians’ minor-league managers.

Great Lakes improved to 4-3.

Trevor Bauer, Michael Brantley lead Cleveland Indians over Rangers, 5-3 By Steve Herrick, The Associated Press Indians manager Terry Francona watched his team’s 2-1 loss June 27 on television after being released from the hospital.

The result and vantage point were much better June 28.

Trevor Bauer pitched into the seventh inning, Michael Brantley drove in two runs and Cleveland beat the Rangers, 5-3, in Francona’s return to the team.

Francona was cleared to come back after another health scare forced him to leave the June 26 game and miss June 27. The 58-year-old Francona has been fitted with a heart monitor, but he said doctors have ruled out any serious health issues. “I always want us to win,” he said. “We show up, the idea is to win. I don’t care if you feel good or bad or in between, that’s why we’re here.”

Bauer (7-6) held Texas to one run — Robinson Chirinos’ homer — and four hits in 6 1/3 innings.

Bauer was helped by two outstanding defensive plays. Rookie center fielder Bradley Zimmer took away an extra base hit from Shin-Soo Choo with a sliding catch in the fourth. Jose Ramirez made a diving stop of Adrian Beltre’s hard grounder behind third base and threw him out with two runners on in the sixth.

“I thought the ball was a double that Zimmer ran down,” Bauer said. “He made a tough play look fairly easy. The play Jose made kind of saved that inning. I got a lot of help from the defense.”

Brantley had RBI singles in the third and the seventh. Ramirez, Francisco Lindor and Edwin Encarnacion also drove in runs.

Yu Darvish (6-6) gave up three runs — two earned — in six innings and has one win in his last seven starts. The right-hander pitched seven shutout innings in his last start, but left as a precaution with tightness in his triceps.

Darvish missed the entire 2015 season because of Tommy John surgery, which caused him some concern between starts that turned out to be an unnecessary worry.

“Coming in, I thought, ‘Man, this may be my last outing (of the year) because of the triceps,’” he said through a translator. “It crossed my mind because that was where I was hurting — my triceps area — before I had surgery. But it didn’t feel that way when I got out there, and by the fifth or sixth inning, I wasn’t thinking about it at all. I feel fine.”

Andrew Miller struck out four of the five batters he faced. Elvis Andrus hit a leadoff homer in the ninth off Cody Allen. Rougned Odor added an RBI single, but Allen struck out Chirinos to end the game.

Cleveland has won five of six against Texas this season. Rangers left fielder Nomar Mazara dropped Jason Kipnis’ fly ball for a two-base error to begin Cleveland’s first. Lindor’s single to right put the Indians ahead.

Francona was hospitalized for the second time this month with a rapid heart rate and feeling lightheaded during Monday’s game and wasn’t at the ballpark Tuesday.

Pitching coach Mickey Callaway changed pitchers in the seventh inning, but Francona was in the dugout the entire game.

STILL ROLLING

Andrus was 3 for 4 and has hit in 32 of 34 career games at Progressive Field. He’s batting .420 (55 for 131) in Cleveland’s ballpark.

ACE RELIEVER

Miller has struck out 64 in 41 1/3 innings and has recorded three or more strikeouts in 12 appearances this season.

STILL HEARING IT

Rangers catcher Jonathan Lucroy has been booed throughout the series. Indians fans haven’t forgotten that he turned down a trade that would have sent him from Milwaukee to Cleveland at last season’s deadline.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Rangers >> OF Carlos Gomez (sore back) was not in the lineup for the second day in a row. He struck out as a pinch-hitter in the eighth. Indians >> RHP Danny Salazar (sore shoulder) will throw a simulated game June 30 at Double-A Akron.

UP NEXT Rangers >> RHP Andrew Cashner will be activated off the 10-day DL to make his first start since June 14. He has been sidelined with a strained left oblique.

Indians >> RHP Corey Kluber struck out a season-high 13 against Minnesota on June 24. His three straight double-digit trikeout games are one shy of the franchise record.

Knights 7 / Clippers 6 | Asche’s RBI hit caps Knights’ comeback Cody Asche delivered a two-out, RBI single in the bottom of the ninth to give the Charlotte Knights a 7-6 victory Wednesday night at BB&T Ballpark that ended the Clippers’ four-game winning streak.

Down 6-5 with two outs and no runners on base in the ninth, Charlotte’s Danny Hayes singled off Kyle Crockett (1-2). Pinch-runner Everth Cabrera then scored on a Grant Green double to tie it. Green scored the game-winner on Asche’s line drive to center field.

The Clippers grabbed a 3-0 lead in the third inning on a Tyler Naquin RBI single, a Yandy Diaz groundout that delivered Josh Wilson with a run and a wild pitch, which scored Abraham Almonte.

After allowing five unanswered runs to the Knights, the Clippers took a 6-5 lead in the top of the ninth on another run-scoring single by Naquin, who scored on an Eric Kratz sacrifice fly. Chris Colabello drive home Diaz with a go-ahead single.

Naquin and Kratz each had three hits.

Green led the Knights with three hits, three runs and a pair of RBI. He homered in the sixth to start a three-run rally. Yoan Moncada hit a solo homer in the fifth.

Bobby Parnell (1-1) got the win despite allowing three runs in the ninth.

Indians top Darvish as Rangers play waiting game on trades BY JEFF WILSON Calls for the Texas Rangers to trade Yu Darvish, and crass remarks about the need to extend his contract immediately, started leaking onto social media early Wednesday night. Those tired witticisms usually come from the bitter or disenfranchised, the look-at-me types and the uninformed, every time Darvish doesn’t fulfill the expectations he takes with him to the mound. The Rangers were pleased with how Darvish pitched over six innings in a 5-3 loss to the Cleveland Indians. He allowed three runs (two earned) on seven hits and left the start without any concerns about the triceps tightness that forced out of his last start. The Rangers, meanwhile, currently have no intentions of trading Darvish and will consider reopening conversations about an extension before season’s end. They might do it before the looming July 31 non-waiver trade deadline. For now, the Rangers are in a holding pattern. They aren’t buyers or sellers, but rather are observers to see what will happen to a team that is nearing full health in the rotation and is at full health offensively. Ten more good days before the All-Star break and a good week coming out of it will keep the Rangers from selling potential free agents like Darvish, Jonathan Lucroy, Carlos Gomez and others, and will likely have them seeking a bullpen piece for a playoff push. “For the first time since last year, we’re starting to get a look at the full complement of this team,” general manager said. “In spring training we never got to see it, not with the WBC, the injuries and everything else. The bullpen struggling. It’s been hard to get our arms around the club.” Despite all the chatter, Darvish (6-6) didn’t pitch all that poorly. There was a costly error to the Indians’ first batter and a leadoff walk in the third that turned into a run. Any team will take that from its starting pitching. The Rangers had only minimal complaints about Darvish’s lack of off-speed command in the early going, but were encouraged by his two- and four-seam fastballs and a midgame adjustment to his cut fastball. The offense didn’t provide him with much support against Trevor Bauer, who entered with a 5.53 ERA. The only run he allowed in 6 1/3 innings came on a solo homer by Robinson Chirinos, who connected in his fourth consecutive start. The bullpen allowed two sloppy runs in the seventh, and those loomed large as the Rangers scored twice in the ninth, one on an Elvis Andrus homer, and brought the potential tying run to the plate. Daniels noted the club’s improved play the past three weeks (12-7 despite four losses incurred by the bullpen) as a sign that the Rangers will remain in the playoff hunt. The Rangers are likely going to need to secure a wild-card spot to reach the postseason, but are still mindful of the 2015 team’s charge to the crown from eight games back on Aug. 2. The Rangers acquired Cole Hamels, and Sam Dyson at the deadline that year. They won’t unload their top prospects this year, save for the unexpected opportunity to acquire a franchise-altering player, but they are likely to shop for a veteran bullpen piece. “We’ve certainly got our work cut out for us if that [a third straight AL West title] is going to be an opportunity,” Daniels said. “But between that and the two wild cards, I think this team has shown enough in the past for us to believe in them. “The bottom line is our lineup and our rotation, we’re going to go as they go. The reality is this is our group. I don’t see us looking outside for upgrades in those areas. The question is bullpen-wise. What are our internal options? And, then, what does the trade market look like?” Daniels declined to mention where things stand with Darvish, fulfilling a promise he made to agent Joel Wolfe when talks ended during spring training. Among the factors then that created pause with the Rangers was Darvish’s health, and he has answered those concerns. He threw 101 pitches against the Indians five days after leaving his start at Yankee Stadium following only 88 pitches because of triceps tightness. Darvish admitted that the triceps was in the back of his mind, primarily because it was similar to the discomfort he felt in 2015 before learning he needed Tommy John surgery. But it was a distant thought after his final two innings of a game in which he thought he pitched well enough to win. “I think I had decent stuff, and I was getting ground balls,” said Darvish, who struck out six. “They got through the fielders. It is what it is.” The Indians got him for a the unearned run in the first as Nomar Mazara muffed Jason Kipnis’ deep drive to start the inning. Darvish did well to escape with only one run after two hits. A leadoff walk to Kipnis and three hits in the third resulted in a 3-0 lead for the Indians, who went to their bullpen horse, Andrew Miller, in the seventh. The Rangers turned to Ernesto Frieri and Dario Alvarez in the seventh, and the Indians added two runs. If the Rangers are going to make a trade next month, it will be for a veteran reliever for the bullpen. “There’s a value in sooner than later to have these guys for a longer period of time,” Daniels said. “But when you’re evaluating the bullpen market vs. the others, the price you’d pay to day vs. the price you’d pay later is significantly different.” For now, despite the social media cattiness, Darvish and other potential free agents aren’t on the trading block. Star-Telegram LOADED: 06.29.2017