Cleveland Indians: Breaking down the Opening Day bullpen

Oct 19, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Cleveland Indians relief pitcher Cody Allen (37) pitches during the ninth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays in game five of the 2016 ALCS playoff baseball series at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 19, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Cleveland Indians relief pitcher Cody Allen (37) pitches during the ninth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays in game five of the 2016 ALCS playoff baseball series at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
1 of 8
Oct 19, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Cleveland Indians relief pitcher Cody Allen (37) pitches during the ninth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays in game five of the 2016 ALCS playoff baseball series at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 19, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Cleveland Indians relief pitcher Cody Allen (37) pitches during the ninth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays in game five of the 2016 ALCS playoff baseball series at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Indians’ bullpen is set for Opening Day, so let’s take a look at each member of what should be one of the most dominant bullpens in baseball.

The Cleveland Indians entered the year with a solid foundation in the bullpen. The likes of Andrew Miller, Cody Allen and Bryan Shaw are the big names in the group, but the other members of the group aren’t too bad themselves.

The offseason addition of Boone Logan helps bolster the bullpen, showing fans that the front office is committed to filling every need on the team as it pursues that elusive World Series championship.

The national focus will be on Miller throughout the year, as some fans may expect the bullpen ace to throw multiple innings in each outing and repeat his postseason success. However, that is just not possible during the course of the 162-game regular season. There may be some outings when he goes more than one inning, but if he does he will not be ready to go the next day.

He also doesn’t need to go multiple innings during the regular season, as there is a strong group behind him in the bullpen. Also, a healthy starting rotation should mean less work for the bullpen, given the group’s anticipated success comes to fruition.

The Indians bullpen should end up being one of the most dominant in all of baseball, and should remain rather consistent throughout the year, barring any injuries. Let’s take a look at the seven members of the bullpen, and what to expect from each player in 2017.

Schedule