Cleveland Indians: Three young pitchers who could get starts in September

September call-ups are almost upon us and that means some new faces could get playing time with the Cleveland Indians. With teams wanting to get regular guys extra rest before the October grind, expansion provides depth to do just that.

The Cleveland Indians are rolling in August. They have won five straight games and the pitching has been phenomenal over the last week.

We have all seen what Corey Kluber has done since June 1, but the rest of the staff has also joined the fun. The staff had a 30-inning scoreless streak this past week as a unit.

They swept the Kansas City Royals in an important division series. The pitching was a big part of that as they shutout the Royals in all three games.

As good as the pitching has been there are times where the Indians may want to get their rotation extra rest. The September call-ups will offer room to do so.

Ryan Merritt is the first and most obvious choice. Merritt is best known by fans for his heroics in the ALCS against the Blue Jays.

Merritt went 4.1 innings during Game 5 of the series giving up no runs on two hits with three strikeouts. The solid outing in a high pressure situation gave the young pitcher high praise from the fans and team.

Merritt wasn’t done there, however, as he has continued pitching well in 2017. In his three starts he has a line of 15.1 innings with a 1.76 ERA and 1.50 WHIP.

Merritt is much like Josh Tomlin in that he works the corners. His stuff is not overpowering so location is everything for this southpaw.

He is the obvious choice to get a start in September due to having already made four pitching appearances this season. He has shown the ability to give the team a solid outing when called upon.

More from Away Back Gone

• Cleveland Guardians tantalizingly close to locking up AL Central tiebreakers
• Cleveland Guardians: Terry Francona becomes meme in profanity-laced ejection
• Say goodbye to defensive shifts and hello to bigger bases, pitch clock in 2023
• Cleveland Guardians: Shane Bieber second-fastest to 800 strikeouts in major-league history
• The next week will make or break the Cleveland Guardians’ season

Another possible starter for the Indians in September is Shawn Morimando. He is in Triple-A in Columbus but has gotten action in Cleveland.

In 2016, Morimando made two appearances and they did not go well. He gave up six runs in just 4.2 innings.

The point of rest for the starters is not to have a guy like Kluber out there but to have a pitcher who can log innings. Morimando gives you that and he deserves a spot start in September.

The last pitcher on my mind is Adam Plutko. Another Triple-A guy who has seen limited action in Cleveland.

Plutko made two appearances in 2016 for Cleveland and, like Morimando, they did not go all that well. He gave up three runs in only 3.2 innings. Again, the point is not to have an ace out there but a guy that can give you innings.

The Indians also have Josh Tomlin nearing a return which can only help the rotation and bullpen. With Mike Clevinger giving mostly good outings, the Indians have plenty of options on how to give their top guys rest in the rotation.

Next: Indians draft recap

The push for October is heating up and these call ups could help get guys fresh for that run. One thing is for sure, pitching is again becoming a strength of the team at all the right times.