Cleveland Indians Look for Back-to-Back Wins; Jason Kipnis Activated

Bauer, Indians look for series win against Red Sox

Terry Francona will spend some time with his good friend John Farrell as Farrell begins cancer treatment before the Cleveland Indians take on the Boston Red Sox, then he’ll lead his team in search of a series win as Trevor Bauer (9-9, 4.35) looks to bounce back from a rough outing against the Yankees in which he allowed six runs in just 3 1/3 innings. He’ll be opposed by the Sox Eduardo Rodriguez (6-5, 4.83), who comes off a bad start of his own in which he allowed eight runs over six innings.

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The Indians (55-62) will swap out infielders for the game, as Jason Kipnis has been activated while Chris Johnson heads to the DL after what he believes is a reaction to a spider bite in the team hotel. Kipnis is still the AL batting lead at .326, just ahead of the Rangers’ Prince fielder at .324. The Tribe will have a chance end their offensive woes–temporarily at least–as the Sox have allowed 65 hits and 12 hoe runs for an 8.23 ERA in their last five contests.

The Red Sox (52-66) should have an equally good opportunity against Bauer who has struggled against the AL East this season. He’s 0-2 with a 9.82 this season and has a career mark against the AL East of 1-6 with a 6.65.

Bauer is in need of a solid start, as his frustration has spilled over into the media and onto Social Media where he’s very active. “I’ll figure it out at some point, but right now, I don’t know, so it doesn’t make any sense to keep asking me about it,” Bauer said.

Since being recalled and used primarily as an outfielder, Lonnie Chisenhall is a new player. In his 15 games back he’s slashing a line of .375/.412/.542 with two home runs and eight RBIs. He’s also posting a ridiculous .485 BAbip.

First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET at Fenway Park. SportsTime Ohio will have the television coverage while WTAM 1100 and WMMS100.7 will have the radio broadcast.

Here are the lineups for tonight’s game: