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Cleveland Indians: Three Non-Roster Invitees with best chance to make Opening Day roster

By Aaron Gershon |
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 20: Bryan Shaw #27 of the Cleveland Indians in action against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on August 20, 2015 in the Bronx borough of New York City. The Indians defeated the Yankees 3-2. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 20: Bryan Shaw #27 of the Cleveland Indians in action against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on August 20, 2015 in the Bronx borough of New York City. The Indians defeated the Yankees 3-2. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
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These three players will need to earn their spot in Spring Training but should have a good chance to make the Cleveland Indians opening day roster.

The Cleveland Indians will begin reporting to Goodyear, Arizona, next week for Spring Training, where several spots on the teams’ opening day roster will be up for grabs.

As of now, the Indians have signed six players to Minor League deals with an invite to Spring Training and incentives if they were to make the Indians roster.

Those players include a handful of veterans with multiple years of MLB experience and those who could be candidates for a bounce-back season in an Indians uniform.

Which of the three currently signed Non-Roster Invitees have the best chance to earn a spot on Cleveland’s opening day roster?

Here’s a look at the three with the best shot.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 06: Heath Hembree of the Philadelphia Phillies prepares to pitch against the New York Mets at Citi Field on September 06, 2020 in New York City. (Photo by Steven Ryan/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 06: Heath Hembree of the Philadelphia Phillies prepares to pitch against the New York Mets at Citi Field on September 06, 2020 in New York City. (Photo by Steven Ryan/Getty Images) /

The non-roster invitee with perhaps the best chance to crack Cleveland’s opening day roster is 32-year-old reliever, Heath Hembree.

Hembree has spent parts of the last eight seasons in the majors, with the majority of those coming with the Boston Red Sox. From 2015-18, Hembree was one of Boston’s most reliable relievers as he posted a career-best 2.65 ERA in 38 relief outings in 2016, a 3.63 ERA in 62 2017 appearances and in 2018 earned a World Series ring while serving as a set-up man for Craig Kimbrel.

Last season, the wheels fell off for the former Red Sox as he pitched to a 5.59 ERA in 11 appearances. He was shipped off to the Philadelphia Phillies midseason, but the change of scenery did not help out the veteran as he posted a sky-high 12.54 ERA in 11 outings.

Despite his awful 2020, a full and normal spring training with a fresh start may help Hembree rediscover his success from just a few years ago and allow him to make the Indians Opening Day roster as a mid-reliever.

CLEVELAND, OH – MAY 17: Bryan Shaw #27 of the Cleveland Indians pitches during a game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Progressive Field on May 17, 2017 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Rays defeated the Indians 7-4. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OH – MAY 17: Bryan Shaw #27 of the Cleveland Indians pitches during a game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Progressive Field on May 17, 2017 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Rays defeated the Indians 7-4. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

From 2013-17, Bryan Shaw was one of Terry Francona’s most trusted relievers. He never posted an ERA above 3.52 in that span, made at least 70 appearances and clutched up in the postseason.

As a result of his success, Shaw got a big-time free agent contract with the Colorado Rockies after the 2017 season as he signed a 3-year $27 million deal to head to the Rocky Mountains.

Pitching the majority of his games at Cores Field did not go over well for Shaw as he posted a 5.93 ERA in 2018 and 5.38 ERA in 2019. He was released by Colorado right before the start of the 2020 season and signed on with the Seattle Mariners, where he pitched in just six games in which he posted a dreadful 18.00 ERA but did earn a victory.

Now, he returns to Cleveland, hoping to rediscover the nasty stuff that once made him a staple of the Indians bullpen.

With a strong Spring Training, it’ll be hard for Francona to turn Shaw away as he’s been a key to much of the Indians’ success this past decade.

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 24: DJ Johnson #63 of the Colorado Rockies pitches during the game against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park on September 24, 2019 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/Getty Images)
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 24: DJ Johnson #63 of the Colorado Rockies pitches during the game against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park on September 24, 2019 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/Getty Images) /

After a year in Japan, 31-year-old left-handed reliever D.J. Johnson is back in the states as he signed on as a non-roster invitee with the Indians.

Johnson spent minor league stints with the Rays, Diamondbacks, Twins and Angels before finally reaching the majors with the Colorado Rockies in 2018.

There, he made seven regular season appearances pitching to a 4.26 ERA and posting a 1-0 record. He also pitched a 0.2 of a postseason inning for Colorado in which he struck out two batters and did not allow a run.

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He went onto make the Rockies 2019 Opening Day Roster and made 28 relief appearances that season, posting a 5.04 ERA.

While his career numbers are less than impressive, he would bring some MLB experience to what is expected to be a relatively young Indians bullpen and also help make up for the loss of left-handed closer Brad Hand by adding an experienced southpaw to the bullpen.

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