Cleveland Indians: Joe Smith was solid in Tuesday’s wild loss

The Cleveland Indians’ only acquisition at the trade deadline had a solid debut with the team in Tuesday’s loss against the Boston Red Sox.

Tuesday night marked the first time Joe Smith appeared in a game for the Cleveland Indians since 2013, and fans were treated to a great return.

Smith went two full innings, allowing just one hit and striking out a batter to set up his team for a victory. Obviously, things didn’t turn out that way.

The final result is what Indians fans will remember most from Tuesday, perhaps along with Austin Jackson‘s insane catch. But Smith’s performance should not be overshadowed.

There is still all of August to make some trades, but Smith was the team’s only acquisition before the non-waiver trade deadline, putting a lot of pressure on him to be a great arm out of the bullpen.

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He entered Tuesday’s game in the bottom of the seventh inning after Bryan Shaw and Andrew Miller combined to allow four runs in the sixth.

Smith proceeded to shut down the side in order in the seventh and get out of the eighth after allowing one hit.

Smith was set to slot in alongside Shaw, Miller and Cody Allen as the main pieces in the bullpen, but he may play a larger role now that Miller has been placed on the 10-day disabled list.

The injury doesn’t appear to be major, but Smith joins Allen as the two best arms in the bullpen right now at a crucial time in the season, so expect to see a lot of him in the upcoming weeks.

A lot of fans wanted another left-hander to be acquired before the deadline, but Smith is a nice addition as his side-arm delivery is its own weapon. There is also the potential emergence of Tyler Olson, who had himself a nice night on Tuesday as well.

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Smith was brought in to add depth, but he may be needed to become one of the go-to guys with Miller out and the rest of the big names having some trouble this season. Cody Allen and Bryan Shaw are not spiraling out of control in any way, but they have been used a ton this season and Smith can help take some of that high-leverage workload.