Cleveland Indians: Jay Bruce making his first start with the team

Jay Bruce gets the start tonight as the Cleveland Indians are looking to rebound after a rough series opener against the Tampa Bay Rays.

Thursday’s loss for the Cleveland Indians followed a familiar formula. The offense was unable to put up much of an effort, leading to the bullpen receiving the blame for another loss.

To be fair, Nick Goody did allow a go-ahead home run to lose the game, but one run from the Indians’ offense wasn’t going to get it done regardless.

Jay Bruce made an appearance in yesterday’s game, but a flyout in his only at-bat kept the Bruce hype at a minimum during the tough loss.

But as Indians fans have seen all year, this team has been able to go on offensive tears after games in which it seems the players forgot how to hit a baseball. Here’s to hoping that happens tonight.

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Jay Bruce gets the start in right field tonight, where he should be seen regularly until Lonnie Chisenhall makes his return. And even then, if Michael Brantley remains injured it wouldn’t be shocking to see Bruce be an everyday player.

The entire offense needs to get going, but Bruce will be under a microscope after ownership decided to take on his salary in exchange for him to be a key part of this offense.

We can talk about his numbers in New York, but all that matters now is how he does with the Indians. If he can’t handle the pressure, well, we will get to that if it needs to be discussed.

The other notable part of tonight’s lineup is Giovanny Urshela being at third base, while Jose Ramirez will be at second base. This will likely be the regular defensive alignment until Jason Kipnis makes his return, with Erik Gonzalez remaining the reserve infielder.

Urhsela has his problems on offense, but his defense is too stellar to have on the bench with Kipnis out. Even when Kipnis is healthy, Urshela remains an option for Terry Francona to play more regularly.

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All eyes will be on Bruce tonight, so hopefully he can provide fans with a memorable moment in his first start.