Starting today, Tuesday, the Indians will play Michael Brantley in three straight games to see if his shoulder can take the strain:
Francona said it would probably mean lot to Brantley’s mental state if he can get through the next three games with no problems.
“Yes, very much so,” said Francona. “But maybe he needs more reps. Maybe he needs to get a little beat up. There’s just a lot of things that would go into it. I think he’s worked so hard that he’s in a good spot. I’d just hate to put the opening day thing on him – there might be a little gray area there.”
The idea of a healthy productive Brantley brings a smile to Francona’s face. If he returns to form, Brantley would be the everyday left fielder and would probably hit third in front of Edwin Encarnacion.
The Indians played very well without Brantley in 2016. His coming back healthy would give the Indians one more reason to be optimistic about breaking their World Championship drought.
from baseballmusings.com http://ift.tt/2o62Yrk
No comments:
Post a Comment