Tomlin to miss 3-4 months after shoulder surgery Indians lose depth as righty will join Floyd, Swisher and Walters on DL By Jordan Bastian / MLB.com | @MLBastian | April 3, 2015 + 79 COMMENTS GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- The Indians lost a layer of pitching depth on Friday, when it was announced that right-hander Josh Tomlin is scheduled to undergo surgery on his throwing shoulder. Tomlin is slated to have an arthroscopic debridement of the acromioclavicular (AC) joint in his right shoulder on Wednesday, when Dr. Mark Schickendantz will do the procedure at the Cleveland Clinic. The Indians expect Tomlin to be sidelined for at least three to four months following the operation. "This offseason, it was something that kind of crept up," Tomlin said. "It's something I've tried to battle with since then, but it kind of lingered on through spring. It's something that I don't think was going to go away, so this is something we had to do to make it go away." The 30-year-old Tomlin experienced shoulder soreness early in Spring Training, but the issue calmed down after a brief shutdown period, during which he received a cortisone shot. He returned to the mound and continued to build up his innings throughout camp, but the discomfort flared during a Minor League outing on Monday. Tomlin decided it was not smart to continue pitching through the issue, and an MRI exam earlier this week revealed chronic inflammation in the shoulder joint. "It had its good days and its bad days," Tomlin said. "Once the bad days started outweighing the good days was when I knew something probably needed to be done." Cleveland had optioned Tomlin to Triple-A Columbus on Sunday, but the team expects to be able to have the option rescinded in order to place the pitcher on the Major League disabled list to start the regular season. Tomlin would join righty Gavin Floyd (right elbow), outfielder Nick Swisher (both knees) and utility man Zach Walters (oblique) on the DL. In parts of five seasons with the Indians, Tomlin has gone 29-28 with a 4.89 ERA in 85 games, including 70 starts. Selected by Cleveland in the 19th round of the 2006 First-Year Player Draft, he is the longest-tenured player in the Indians' system. Tomlin missed the bulk of the 2013 season due to Tommy John surgery on his right elbow. Tomlin is hoping to be able to help Cleveland in the second half of the season. "That's the goal," Tomlin said. "That's the time range, and we'll try to get that down quicker." Chisenhall's impressive day not enough for Carrasco Indians' No. 2 starter allows six runs; third baseman hits two-run triple By Jordan Bastian / MLB.com | @MLBastian | April 3, 2015 + 11 COMMENTS GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Brewers second baseman Scooter Gennett drove in three runs and Indians starter Carlos Carrasco labored in his final outing of the spring, leading to a 6-3 Cactus League victory for Milwaukee on Friday afternoon at Goodyear Ballpark. Gennett led an early offensive attack for the Brewers, who scored six runs on seven hits within the first three innings against Cleveland. The second baseman drove in one run with a double in the second frame and added a two-run single in the third. Also in the third inning, first baseman Adam Lind launched a leadoff home run to ignite a four-run frame for Milwaukee. "I was looking at the numbers for our regulars and all of them, really, have had good springs," Brewers manager Ron Roenicke said on Friday morning. "I think that's encouraging. I know you don't always go by Spring Training, but it should give them confidence going into the regular season." Like the Indians, the bulk of Milwaukee's batting order on Friday featured most of the projected Opening Day lineup. Carrasco, who is scheduled to make his first regular-season start on Wednesday against the Astros, surrendered six runs (five earned) on six hits in only 2 1/3 innings. The Tribe's No. 2 starter struck out two and walked two, watching his pitch count climb close to 75 in the game. Following his abbreviated start, Carrasco added pitches in the bullpen to work up to around 90. Carrasco cited a mechanical flaw for his struggles against Milwaukee. "Today in the game, I kind of fell a little bit behind the hitters," Carrasco said. "I felt a little bit tired, but I'm ready. It was more probably my mechanics today. I was a little bit on the side instead of up, but I feel fine. "I'm really happy [with my spring]. Whatever happened today, I'll just learn from that." The lone unearned run against Carrasco came courtesy of a fielding error in the second by Indians third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall, who had two miscues on the afternoon. Chisenhall did what he could to atone for the early gaffe, driving a pitch from Brewers No. 3 starter Wily Peralta to right field in the bottom of the second for a two-run triple. Shortstop Jose Ramirez followed with an RBI single for Cleveland. Peralta worked 4 2/3 innings for Milwaukee, allowing three runs on five hits and ending with two strikeouts and one walk. Up next: For his final tune-up for the regular season, right-hander Trevor Bauer will take the mound in a 3:05 p.m. ET Cactus League contest against the Brewers on Saturday afternoon in Maryvale, Ariz. Relievers Nick Hagadone, Kyle Crockett and Jeff Manship are also slated to pitch in Cleveland's final Spring Training game. The game will be available on MLB.TV, Gameday Audio and in an exclusive free webcast on Indians.com. Francona nervous, excited for Opening Day Indians manager praises Mills for spring work; Friday's lineup may be preview of opener By Jordan Bastian / MLB.com | @MLBastian | April 3, 2015 + 2 COMMENTS GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Each year, Indians manager Terry Francona experiences the same gamut of emotions during the final days of Spring Training. As Opening Day inches closer, a familiar blend of jitters and joy overwhelms the manager. "I'm nervous. I have some anxiety. I'm really excited," Francona said on Friday. "It really doesn't change. It's the darndest thing. ... If there's ever a time that you get to Opening Day and you're not terrified and excited, it's probably time to do something else. "It's the most unique day. It's really hard to explain, but it's an unbelievable feeling." The Indians open this season on Monday, when they will take on the Astros at 7:10 p.m. ET at Minute Maid Park in Houston. Francona said he was recently having a chat with Roberto Perez about the first game of the year, and the manager quickly realized it was the first Opening Day of the young catcher's career. "I said something about Opening Day, and he got goosebumps," Francona said with a smile. "He was like, 'Look at me.' That was pretty cool." Here are some more notes and quotes from Friday: • With his Opening Day roster established, Francona held a team meeting on Friday morning to go over goals for the season, some housekeeping items and to praise bench coach Brad Mills for the work he did in mapping out and executing this Spring Training. "I don't want to have meetings just to have meetings," Francona said. "At the beginning of camp, it's important to tell guys what the expectations are. And then, even though the message doesn't really change, because we feel like we do about the game, it's different when you have 25 guys." • Thursday's Cactus League lineup against the Brewers had leadoff man Michael Bourn, followed by Jason Kipnis, Michael Brantley, Carlos Santana, Brandon Moss, Yan Gomes, David Murphy, Lonnie Chisenhall and Jose Ramirez. That might be a preview of Cleveland's regular lineup, but Francona noted that Ryan Raburn might start on Monday with Astros lefty Dallas Keuchel on the mound. "To be truthful, I don't know what our lineup is right now," Francona said. "You're not going to see something crazy." • Francona is looking forward to returning to Cleveland to see the result of the renovations at Progressive Field. "From everything I've heard, it's going to be pretty cool," Francona said. "I know that [team president Mark Shapiro] and some of those guys have really put a lot of time and effort into making this more in line with maybe where Cleveland is." • Francona noted that Bourn, Kipnis, Brantley and Raburn would head to a Minor League game on Saturday to face Tribe left-hander TJ House. Veteran Nick Swisher (knees), who will open the season on the disabled list, will not play in another Cactus League game. 'Klubot' takes Opening Day assignment in stride By Jordan Bastian / MLB.com | @MLBastian | April 3, 2015 + 13 COMMENTS GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- At this time two years ago, Corey Kluber was packing his bags for Columbus. He was not deemed ready to join Cleveland's Opening Day rotation, so the pitcher headed back to Triple-A, waiting and hoping for another opportunity to arise. "All along, we thought this kid could be a starter for us," Indians manager Terry Francona said. "I don't know if anybody knew where it would go." When Kluber got another chance, he took full advantage, providing baseball with a remarkable story of a player pitching his way from obscurity to prominence.