Indians' Roberto Perez: Starts in spring finale
Perez started behind the plate and played four innings in the Indians' exhibition finale Tuesday against the Rangers, finishing 1-for-2 with a base hit and a strikeout.
Injuries to Jose Ramirez (knee), Francisco Lindor (calf) and Jason Kipnis (calf) leave the Tribe lineup in flux heading into Thursday's season opener in Minnesota, but Perez looks on track to be included in the starting nine and hit somewhere in the bottom half of the order. Perez wrapped up the spring with a .279 average and two home runs in 43 plate appearances, but his career .205/.298/.340 regular-season slash line is a better representation of what to expect from the backstop in 2019. He'll earn starts on the strength of his defense, with the Indians viewing anything he provides as a hitter as a bonus.
