GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Since winning the first of his two Cy Young awards in 2014, Corey Kluber has started each of the Cleveland Indians' last four Opening Days.
But with the 2019 opener now just eight days away, Kluber's Opening Day streak appears to be in question. And according to Indians manager Terry Francona, the team will soon share who will be taking the mound when the Indians faces the Minnesota Twins at Target Field next Thursday.
"I'd say, probably very soon we'll announce it," Francona said on Tuesday at the team's Spring Training facility in Goodyear. "Like real soon. We just want to make sure of a couple things."
Francona added on Wednesday that he'll likely announce his decision after Kluber makes his scheduled Spring Training start against the Chicago Cubs on Friday.
Earlier this month, Francona first revealed he planned on making changes to his team's rotation, which has largely remained consistent for the better part of the past two years. Of note, the 2-time World Series champion manager hinted at a likely rearranging of his top three, which has consisted of Kluber, Carlos Carrasco and Trevor Bauer.
“Ideally, we would have Trevor in-between Kluber and Carrasco early in the season just because Trevor’s usually the one guy that can go deeper into games earlier than the other guys," Francona said. "So if you separate them, it will help our bullpen, but we have time to get to that."
According to Francona, either Kluber or Bauer will be his team's Opening Day starter, with whatever decision is made creating a domino effect. Should Kluber remain Cleveland's Opening Day starter, Bauer would likely jump Carrasco as the team's No. 2 starter, creating the buffer between Kluber and Carrasco that Francano desires.
But should Bauer get the Indians' Opening Day nod, Francona's decision could become more complicated.
That's not to say Francona couldn't still achieve separation between Kluber and Carrasco in the team's rotation. In one scenario, he could start Kluber second, Mike Clevinger third and Carrasco fourth. In another, he could start Carrasco second and Kluber fourth.
Or Francona could put his plans on the backburner, starting Bauer first, Kluber second and Carrasco third. Right now, the biggest hurdle standing the way of Francona's decision seems to be a slow start to the spring for Kluber, who made just his second start of the preseason on Sunday, surrendering five runs on six hits over 3 2⁄3 innings against the Cincinnati Reds.
"Giving Kluber a chance to make sure he's ready," Francona said of his prolonged decision-making process. "And then we'll explain some other things after that."
It appears that explanation will be coming sooner rather than later.
