Yonder Alonso back into the lineup Monday night when they host the Chicago White Sox in the first game of a three-game series at Progressive Field.
Prior to Monday’s game T.J. Hockenson Jersey , Alonso will be activated off the family medical emergency list. He has missed the Indians’ last three games.
Alonso returns just in time to face one of his favorite opponents. In seven games against the White Sox this year, Alonso is hitting .400 (10-for-25), with four walks, four doubles, three RBIs and a .483 on-base percentage.
The pitching matchup Monday night will be the identical pitching matchup from last Wednesday in Chicago: White Sox right-hander Dylan Covey vs. Indians right-hander Trevor Bauer.
Bauer (5-5, 2.69 ERA) outpitched Covey (3-1, 2.29) in that game, even though Covey and the White Sox won the game 3-2. That was the last win by the White Sox, who have lost their last four games and were swept in a three-game series by the Detroit Tigers.
“Overall, it wasn’t a very good series for us Justice Hill Jersey ,” White Sox pitcher James Shields told MLB.com. “We’ve been playing some really good baseball as of late, and we’re going to try to go into Cleveland feeling positive.”
Bauer pitched 7 2/3 innings, allowing three runs on four hits with 12 strikeouts and two walks. Covey pitched seven innings giving up two runs on 10 hits, with five strikeouts and no walks.
Bauer has struck out 10 or more batters in four consecutive starts, the longest such streak in the majors this season. The only other Indians pitchers who have had 10 or more strikeouts in four consecutive starts are Bob Feller and Corey Kluber.
Bauer has also struck out 10 or more batters in five of his last six starts and ranks third in the American League with 121 strikeouts, trailing only Gerrit Cole (130) and Chris Sale (129). After averaging 10 strikeouts per nine innings last year as a 17-game winner, Bauer this year is averaging 11.6 strikeouts per nine innings, which also ranks third in the league behind Cole and Sale.
In 15 career appearances against the White Sox, Bauer is 6-3 with a 3.55 ERA.
Covey started this season at Triple-A Charlotte where, in seven starts http://www.ravenscheapstores.com/ben-powers-jersey-cheap , he was 3-1 with a 2.33 ERA. After being recalled by the White Sox, he lost his first game but in his last five starts is 3-0 with a 1.53 ERA. In three starts in June, Covey is 2-0 with a 1.00 ERA.
Cleveland’s pitching staff is in a bit of disarray after the club put two pitchers on the disabled list on Sunday. Carlos Carrasco, who was hit on the right elbow by a line drive off the bat of Minnesota Twins’ Joe Mauer on Saturday, was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a right elbow contusion. Right-hander Shane Bieber was recalled from Triple-A Columbus to replace Carrasco on the roster.
The preliminary diagnosis on Carrasco is a right elbow contusion, although he’s getting an MRI on Monday.
“Once he gets the MRI we’ll know exactly what’s going on in there,” Indians manager Terry Francona said.
The Indians also placed left-handed reliever Tyler Olson on the 10-day disabled list with a strained rib cage and recalled right-handed reliever Evan Marshall from Columbus.
Cleveland’s struggling bullpen has gotten a major boost from left-hander Oliver Perez, who was signed as a free agent on June 2 and has pitched well. In eight appearances, he has a 1.29 ERA with seven strikeouts and no walks in seven innings.
“He has a lot of deception, and he has good stuff Iman Marshall Jersey ,” Francona said. “His breaking ball has a lot of bite and his velocity is good. I think we caught a break there.”
MILWAUKEE — Despite bolstering their lineup by adding Lorenzo Cain and Christian Yelich over the winter, runs have been hard to come by for the Milwaukee Brewers this season.
Except against the Philadelphia Phillies, that is.
Through the first four meetings between the two teams this season, Milwaukee has scored 40 runs and surpassed the 10-run mark in three of those contests, winning all three including a 13-2 decision Friday night.
The Brewers’ only loss to Philadelphia this season came last Sunday when right-hander Zach Eflin (3-2, 3.63) held them to a pair of runs over six innings as the Phillies avoided a sweep with a 4-3 victory at Citizens Bank Park.
“I go out every outing with the intent for it to be my best, but especially when you have a team that beats us twice in a row, you really kind of bear down,” Eflin said afterward. “I wouldn’t say try harder, but you want to make sure you limit your mistakes and put a stop to what’s happening.”
He’ll get another shot at holding Milwaukee’s offense in check Saturday afternoon when the Brewers (42-27) and Phillies (35-32) resume their three-game weekend series at Miller Park.
Eflin’s performance against Milwaukee helped solidify what had been a somewhat tenuous hold on rotation slot. The 24-year-old got off to a good start http://www.ravenscheapstores.com/trace-mcsorley-jersey-cheap , posting a 1.56 ERA through his first three outings then scuffled in a pair of five-run efforts against the Blue Jays and Dodgers.
He stabilized himself by holding the Cubs to a run over 7 2/3 innings on June 5 and followed that with his strong showing against the Brewers, striking out nine.
“I think the biggest change is him being responsible for taking that step forward, him deciding how he’s going to get swings and misses,” Phillies manager Gabe Kapler said. “It’s explosive fastballs up to left-handed batters and using his four-seam (fastball) instead of the two-seamer, sometimes, to left-handers has made a huge difference.”
Right-hander Junior Guerra (3-4, 2.71) takes the mound for Milwaukee, looking for his first victory since May 14. Guerra has pitched beautifully during that stretch, though, posting a 2.22 ERA with 23 strikeouts and only five walks in 28 1/3 innings of work.
He is looking much more like the pitcher who had a breakout campaign two years ago as a 31-year-old rookie David Montgomery Jersey , than he does the Guerra of last season, who was hindered by injuries, inconsistency and command issues.
“I’ve been working a lot with (pitching coach Derek Johnson),” Guerra said after holding the Cubs to a run over six innings in his last start. “We’ve been working a lot on rhythm, throwing strikes. That’s one of the biggest factors for me in doing this well.
“I just feel like I’m healthy, and that’s the most important thing. When I’m healthy, I feel like I can contribute to this team. That’s the most important thing compared to last year.”