Cleveland Indians Roundup: Indians Win; Series Preview; Roberto Perez out 2-3 Months

The Cleveland Indians beat the Kansas City Royals

Our own Matt Bretz previewed the new series between the Cleveland Indians and the Kansas City Royals. Both teams entered the series with records one game above .500, and it marked the first time that the two clubs had met all season. The Indians had just finished a sweep of the Detroit Tigers and looked to continue that success.

In last night’s game, the Tribe sent out Danny Salazar to match Yordano Ventura. Salazar had pitched well in his five starts before the game, and he continued the trend with 7.2 shutout innings. More impressively, he struck out nine batters while walking one and allowing just four hits, all singles. 

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Jose Ramirez also continued his hot hitting with a three-for-three showing that included two doubles and five runs batted in. Francisco Lindor also joined the three-hit club, in what amounted to be yet another great game for the youngster.

In other news, the Cleveland Indians announced that Roberto Perez would miss two to three months. The catcher underwent surgery to repair the damage to his right thumb from an impressive play at the plate. Perez made a diving tag on a poor throw to out Odubel Herrera of the Philadelphia Phillies, but the spectacular effort came with a big price.

The Indians’ back-up catcher was arguably the best alternate in baseball last year. Armed with elite defense, a .348 on-base percentage, and a .174 isolated power, Perez had it all. FanGraphs’ rated his season as being worth 1.7 wins above replacement, which was quite impressive considering that he only appeared in 70 games.

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More from around the American League Central:

Cleveland Indians-Kansas City Royals Series Preview– Wahoo’s on First

Cleveland Indians Beat Detroit Tigers 9-4, Complete Sweep – Wahoo’s on First

Perez Expected to Miss Two to Three Months – Indians.com