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Cleveland Indians: Changes made to bullpen; Belisle sent out

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FORT BRAGG, NC - JULY 03: A detailed view of baseballs prior to the game between the Miami Marlins and Atlanta Braves on July 3, 2016 in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. The Fort Bragg Game marks the first regular season MLB game ever to be played on an active military base. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
FORT BRAGG, NC - JULY 03: A detailed view of baseballs prior to the game between the Miami Marlins and Atlanta Braves on July 3, 2016 in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. The Fort Bragg Game marks the first regular season MLB game ever to be played on an active military base. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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 After several mediocre performances, the Cleveland Indians have decided to make a few changes in their bullpen.

Matt Belisle is out and Ben Taylor is in. This morning, the Cleveland Indians announced they has designated righty Matt Belisle for assignment and have selected the contract of Ben Taylor from Triple-A.

Why was this move made?

This happened because Belisle, for the most part, has been ineffective in his outings. Through his eight appearances in a Tribe uniform he sports a 5.06 ERA over 10 and 2/3 innings. He’s veteran who has been around a while but he’s new to the Indians and that could be why he got the boot.

Some may have expected a guy like Zach McAllister or Nick Goody to get sent down based on their performances, but that’s not the case. McAllister doesn’t have any options and would need to be DFA’ed. Since McAllister has been with the Tribe a lot longer than Belisle has and Terry Francona has a stronger rapport with him, that probably helped him stay, despite his 9.58 ERA. Nick Goody does have a minor league option so he would make some sense, but Francona decided to keep him.

Who is Ben Taylor?

Taylor was claimed off waivers during this past offseason. The 25 year old righty has a 3.48 ERA in eight appearances so far for the Triple-A Columbus Clippers. He has three saves in as many opportunities in Triple-A, so he’s been able to handle the late inning situations. That could be useful provided Andrew Miller is on the DL right now.

As a seventh round pick by Boston in 2015, Taylor moved quickly through the minor league system as an advanced college arm.

Taylor has big league experience with the Boston Red Sox, whom the Indians claimed him from a few months ago. He has a 5.19 ERA in his career in the big leagues. It’s not exactly eye popping but he should get a better opportunity for success in Cleveland than he did in Boston.

Next: Shane Bieber promoted to Triple-A

The Cleveland Indians needed to make a change in the bullpen because of the recent poor play. As tough as it is to lose a veteran like Belisle, giving the young pitcher a chance should be exciting.

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