Thursday Game 3 box score ready to start. Brantley makes his spring debut. Aviles is in CF today. Bauer on the mound.
So if he's got a guaranteed spot behind Kluber and Carrasco and Floyd, and Tomlin and McAllister are theoretically two of the contenders for no. 5 I guess that means either Salazar or House is left behind which is too bad. I'd like all 6 of them!

1-2-3 for Tribe in the first vs. Cueto Cy runnerup in the NL last year. FA next week, will probably bolt.

Gomes again batting 2nd for Indians today.

Reds score first on a Chisenhall error. What's new. Lonnie messes up the next play too but good grab by Santana saves him from another error.

after 4 it's still 1-0. Chapman fanned the side in the 3rd. Chisenhall has whiffed twice to go along with his sloppy feeling

Bauer worked 3 innings, which is surprising for this early. He also was interviewed and sounded very intelligent and not at all flaky. He recognizes he is not physically gifted so he works on all the things he can do to outperform those bigger and stronger guys. He described the various pitching schools he worked with over the winter. He likes that training as much as he does actually pitching in ballgames. He's certainly not 'uncoachable', perhaps if anything he's open to too many theories, but nothing actually leads to that conclusion.

Indians have two singles, both by Murphy, that's the offense.

Bruce Chen fanned the side in the 4th. He's on our side, at present.

Pitching for the Reds......best name in baseball...Badenhop

5 spot for the Tribe in the 5th: key hits, 2 run single by Jose Ramirez; 2 run homer by Yan Gomes. All this off Burke Badenhop was an effective big league reliever last season. The rally continues with two outs and two on and a new pitcher in for the Reds.

Kids getting opportunities; I didn't think they were in camp already:

Brad Zimmer with a walk and a triple. Bobby Bradley and Nellie Rodriguez also got at bats. Someone named Murphy playing 3rd base, and hit a double; not anyone in our system by that name last year.

Turns out to be Taylor Murphy who was an OF with Mahoning Valley last summer, now playing 3rd. 18th round draft pick. Maybe the youngest kids have come in first so they are the ones available to play these last few innings. Kind of expect guys from Akron or Carolina to be dropping in rather than 2014 draft picks.

Announcers mentioned that there was a B game so perhaps the older minor leaguers played there.

Indians doing nothing at all offensively on Monday p.m. 8 K already. On the mound Carrasco went 3 and allowed 1 run on solo homer. Bruce Chen has just allowed back to back homers and then a double. He's making himself as expendable as I'd like to see. Sometimes the best lines in spring training are lousy ones from guys who you don't want to make the team.

Giving lots of game time to Jerry Sands at 1st and the indistinguished minor league OF Jordan Smith. Would be nice to see them gone soon.

My choice for leadoff hitter, Jason Kipnis, is at the top of the order today. I'd bat Bourn 9th until the hamstrings go again; a fair number of reasonable replacement options now on hand in Ramsay, Naquin, Holt, Hood.

I agree trying Kipnis at leadoff and moving Bourn down. I assume Gomes batting 2nd is to give him more at bats so that he can be replaced earlier.

That's what Tito said about Gomes. I also doubt he will hit Bourn ninth. If he's ever going to make that change it would happen preseason; Tito hates altering basic lineup in-season.

bourn, kipness, brantley, santana, kid from Oak, gomez, swisher, Chiz, rameriez. SP Kluber, Closer Allen. Just not that tough to figure out this year....

bourn, kipness, brantley, santana, kid from Oak, gomez, swisher, Chiz, rameriez

Good job Frank, only spelled 3 names wrong.
Also, Swisher is not going to be ready anywhere near opening day, thank goodness. "Kid from Oak" i.e. Moss, will probably open at DH, with Murphy or maybe Raburn in right. Your lineup, if this supposed to be a batting order, opesn with 3 lefties in a row, which Francona does not want to do, so Ramirez could hit second. Lindor is having a great spring but I suppose there's no way he starts the season with the Tribe unless Kipnis reinjures himself and Ramirez slides over to 2nd which is supposed to be his best position.