Cleveland Indians ace Corey Kluber generally says very little, preferring to let his pitching do his talking.
This week, the reigning American League Cy Young Award winner did sit down for a one-on-one interview with our Dave Chudowsky to look ahead to the upcoming season, and look back at how 2017 came to a close.
Kluber was superb for the Tribe last season. His 18 wins tied for the most in the American League. His 2.25 ERA was easily the lowest in the AL, while his 265 strikeouts were second only to Boston's Chris Sale. (Keep in mind, injuries kept Kluber to only 29 starts in 2017)
Injuries were the only thing that could stop the Klubot. He was on the disabled list for all of May due to a back strain, then suffered an ankle injury in August. Kluber was clearly not himself during the American League Division Series, allowing 9 runs on 10 hits in 6.1 innings of work as the Indians lost the series to the New York Yankees.
Yet, neither Kluber nor the Indians ever admitted that he was hurt during the ALDS. "I don't think anybody is 100% at that point of the year," Corey told Dave Chudowsky. "In October, guys are playing through all kinds of things. The Yankees just were better than us in those last three games and advanced."
Indians fans can feel good that Kluber looked sharp in his first Cactus League outing earlier this week, striking out 3 in 2 innings, while allowing a run on a hit and a walk. Let's just hope the two-time Cy Young Award winner stays healthy.
Watch Dave Chudowsky's complete interview with Corey Kluber in the player above