The Cleveland Indians will face the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday. Should the Indians have a lead entering the ninth manager Terry Francona is unsure of who he will give the ball to as the teams closer.
Chris Perez was removed from the role as the season came to an end and is unlikely to return to it in the playoffs.
Matt Albers, Joe Smith and Justin Masterson are all options to get the ball in the ninth inning.
“We went from losing our best pitcher to probably being the only team left in baseball that could have a guy finish the game potentially throwing three innings,” Francona said of Masterson, via Indians.com. “That’s quite a weapon. We plan to use it. That’s kind of the way we’ve played all year. Somebody picks somebody else up at a different time. We may not do it in a conventional style, but that doesn’t mean we can’t do it.”
An All-Star this season Masterson finished the year 14-10 with a 3.45 ERA.
