Clevelinks: Cleveland Indians Demote Salazar; Bold Predictions; Spring Training Surprises

Cleveland Indians send down Danny Salazar; five bold predictions have been made; and Spring Training surprises have been discussed

Yesterday, the Cleveland Indians optioned Danny Salazar to Triple-A Columbus and whittled down the starting pitching competition. Allowing ten earned runs in 11 innings, Salazar has struggled mightily this spring. He has shown his electric stuff, as evidenced by his 15 strikeouts, but has yet to show command, walking five total batters. He competed for one of the two remaining spots in the Indians’ rotation.

What the demotion does is mean that the final decision a bit more apparent, with T.J. House, Josh Tomlin, and Zach McAllister being the last men standing. Striking out 15 batters against three free passes, House has pitched relatively well this spring. His 5.60 ERA is not great, but it could be a lot worse. He pitched well before getting hit hard recently. On the other hand, Tomlin has barely pitched at all this spring, logging just eight innings due to missing time with a shoulder injury. McAllister has perhaps performed the best of the three, posting a 3.21 ERA and 15 strikeouts versus four walks across 14 innings.

A few weeks back, Jeremy Klein and Kyle Downing argued if Zach McAllister should be the Tribe’s fifth starter, one supporting a bullpen job; the other, a rotation spot. Ultimately, 74% of voters thought that McAllister should have a rotation spot. More recently, Matt Bretz and Andrew Schmid debated as to whether the Indians are better off without Gavin Floyd, but Zach McAllister became a point of debate, with the two arguing over whether McAllister should be in the rotation or bullpen.

In other news, Cody Norman made five bold predictions for the Indians in 2015. From rebounds to breakouts, he covers all the bases. What bold predictions will he make for your favorite team? Read the piece to find out! Finally, the Weekly Wroundtable made its return. This week, your favorite writers answered the question: what has been the biggest surprise this spring?

More from around the AL Central:

Cleveland Indians Demote Danny Salazar to Triple-A – Wahoo’s on First

Friday Five: Bold Predictions for the Cleveland Indians in 2015 – Wahoo’s on First

Weekly Wroundtable: Cleveland Indians’ Spring Training Surprises – Wahoo’s on First

Kansas City Royals Could Emerge with Draft Day Steal – Kings of Kauffman

Will the Twins’ Rotation Be Better in 2015? – Puckett’s Pond

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