Cleveland Indians five-point checklist for the month of July

Figure out the Cleveland Indians starting rotation

There’s no question that June was hard on the Tribe’s starting rotation seeing three starters go down with injuries. However, the unit wasn’t exactly strong before the injuries happened. Bieber, Civale and Plesac were overall solid, but they had their moments of being off. As for the rest of the rotation, it was really just a big question mark.

The team has tried prospect after prospect to fill the rotation, but none have really separated themselves from the group as an answer for the duration of the season. The front office has made a few adjustments with veteran free agents, like Brad Peacock, who we’ve yet to see. Those signees could help, but that’s a big risk.

Whether it be finding someone internally or adding a player through a trade, the Cleveland Indians need to shore up their rotation to have at least four strong starting pitchers. The return of Bieber, Civale and Plesac should help tremendously, but that still leaves one more spot to address.

Oftentimes teams will go to a four-man rotation in the playoffs. If that’s the case for Cleveland this year, they still need to find one more arm to complete the unit. With time running out on ways to fix that, they need to do so in July.