Clevelinks: Cleveland Indians Great Passes Away; Injury Bug in Camp

The great Al Rosen passed away, and several Cleveland Indians have gone down to illness or injury

Yesterday was a sad day for the Cleveland Indians, as former great Al Rosen passed away. “Flip” played his entire career with the Tribe, and is the most recent Indian to win the AL MVP Award. Despite only playing in ten seasons, and seven full ones, the slugger hit 192 dingers and accumulated an fWAR of 35.2, both of which are good enough to be top ten on the Indians’ all time leader list. Click here for Matt Bretz’s piece on Rosen’s legacy.

In other news, Zach Walters has an oblique injury (Put a link to Matt’s piece). Walters’s injury was at first reported as an abdominal strain, but Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reported that it is indeed a right oblique strain. No matter the cause, an injury is still concerning. Walters hit a combined ten home runs across 62 games for both the Indians and Nationals last season, and posted an isolated power of .260. While he is still pegged as around replacement level, Walters is a nice source of right-handed power for which many Tribe fans call.

To continue the bad news, Carlos Carrasco went home with flu like symptoms, according to Jordan Bastian. Carrasco pitched incredibly well at the end of last season, and ended the year with a good stat line overall. His 2.55 ERA is matched almost perfectly by a 2.44 FIP and 2.66 xFIP, good enough for a 3.2 fWAR. To continue the statistical overload, his 21% strikeout differential was the ninth best among pitchers with more than 120 innings pitched.

In happier news, Jose Ramirez had a great game. The shortstop hit three singles in four at bats and made a few nice plays in the field. Returning to doom and gloom, the Indians lost two to seven against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Offseason addition Bruce Chen gave up three earned runs across four innings without striking out a single batter. The lefty is competing for the final spots in the starting rotation.

More from around the AL Central:

Former Cleveland Indians’ Great Al Rosen Passes Away – Wahoo’s on First

Bruce Chen Adds Left-Handed Depth to Indians’ Pitching Staff – Wahoo’s on First

AL Central Rankings: Who is the No. 1 Centerfielder? – Southside Showdown

Kansas City Royals Players to Avoid in Fantasy Baseball – Kings of Kauffman

‘Indians fall to the Dodgers, 7-2’ – Wahoo’s on First

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