Cleveland Indians have enough versatility to give Juan Uribe extra time to recover

With Juan Uribe currently sidelined after taking a ground ball to the groin, the Cleveland Indians will need a temporary third baseman. But there’s no reason for Tribe fans to panic.

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Super utility man Jose Ramirez moved from the outfield to third base in Cleveland’s game against Royals Monday night, while the Indians trotted out Rajai Davis (left field), Tyler Naquin (center field) and Lonnie Chisenhall (right field) in the outfield.

While Naquin and Davis were hitless in a combined seven at-bats, Chisenahll and Ramirez made up a big part of Cleveland’s offense for the night. The Indians’ offense had a rough night, combining for just four hits while recording five walks. But Chisenhall got on base three times (two hits and a walk), while Ramirez walked once in four plate appearances.

While Cleveland was on the losing end of Monday night’s game, Terry Francona is likely to trot out a similar lineup until his third baseman returns. Cleveland does have other options, however. Michael Martinez and Chisenhall are each capable of playing third base, and Ramirez can stay in the outfield.

The trio’s versatility will help Cleveland play around Uribe’s injury until he is capable of returning to the lineup. It’s unclear when that will be, but he’s day-to-day and could even return to the lineup tonight.

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The Cleveland Indians should be relatively happy that Uribe will not be out for an extended period of time. After all, it could’ve been much worse. But the Tribe are well equipped to work around the injury and can afford to give the veteran some extra time to recover.