Cleveland Indians: 2 internal pitchers best fit to complete a healthy rotation

2 internal pitchers best fit to complete a healthy Cleveland Indians rotation

The Cleveland Indians starting rotation has been a game of musical chairs so far this season with minor league pitcher after minor league pitcher trying their hand in the majors. At the beginning of the season there was optimism that the “Big Three” of Shane Bieber, Aaron Civale and Zach Plesac could hold down the fort, but injuries have derailed that plan.

Luckily, Plesac is back healthy and Bieber and Civale are on the road to recovery with the hope of returning later this month yet. However, even with those three there are still two spots in the starting rotation still up for grabs amongst the remaining pitchers throughout the organization.

There’s a chance that the team could look to fill the spots externally with trades, but the team’s efforts to cut payroll this year show that the avenue of a trade might be a bit more difficult than in past seasons. Even when the team brought in players like Franmil Reyes or Yasiel Puig, it was at the cost of a starting pitcher, which is a luxury the team no longer has.

Taking all that into consideration, odds are the Tribe are going to have to piece together the rest of their starting rotation with what is available in-house. There isn’t much, but there’s been enough flashes of potential that two players have separated themselves from the group. It isn’t a wide margin by any means, but there’s enough of a gap that the two are rather clear.

The hope is that the team decides to spend a little bit and bring in at least one arm, but should they have to find an internal answer, these two pitchers are the top candidates to fill the need. They might not be the best, but they are all the team has at this point.