Cleveland Indians Beat Rays Behind Anderson’s Gem; How Far from Rock Bottom?

Anderson makes curtain call to strong debut versus Rays

We don’t want to put the cart before the horse with the issues the Cleveland Indians have had to find a fifth starter that can consistently get the job done, but Cody Anderson is making a solid case after his second strong outing in a row, both against the Tampa Bay Rays. He took a perfect game into the seventh before former Indian Grady Sizemore hit a solo shot to end the bid.

But Anderson finished strong, and the offense did their part putting up a seven-spot to help give him his first Major League win. All-Star hopeful Jason Kipnis bounced back from a 0-for-7 in the doubleheader against the Orioles to go 3-for-4 to get back near the top of the leaderboard.

The dual shutout doubleheader against the Orioles was a tough one to swallow, and the Indians are nearing a point where decisions will need to be made as far as personnel. After a stretch of improvement, the Tribe has slipped back down near the White Sox in the standings and will need to be realistic about their chances in the second half as the trade deadline approaches.

Cody Norman once again has the weekly “who’s hot, who’s not”, and—spoiler–the list will once again feature Kipnis in the hot section. But there’s been a lot more not in recent weeks, which will need to change and in a hurry for Cleveland.

These and other stories you might have missed:

‘Indians ride another solid start from Anderson to win over the Rays’ – Wahoo’s on First

‘Are the Tribe hitting rock bottom? – Wahoo’s on First

‘Kimmel’s Guillermo show the danger of ASG paper ballots’ – Cut4

‘Who’s hot, who’s not–Week 12 edition’ – Wahoo’s on First

‘Many ASG races still up for grabs in final days’ – MLB.com

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