Do you remember how the Indian pitcher Zach sent Plesac home to Chicago because he broke the protocol to go out with friends on Saturday night? It turns out he was not alone.
The Cubs will not face Mike Clevinger tomorrow because he joined Plesac:
Mike Clevinger has also broken team rules in the past road trip. A statement from the Indians: pic.twitter.com/RS64c4vBoA
– Mandy Bell (@ MandyBell02) August 10, 2020
Here’s the kicker – even after knowing Plesac had been sent home to go out on Saturday night, had to rent a car to drive home – Clevinger apparently said nothing and traveled back with the team:
Cleveland Indian pitcher Mike Clevinger went out with teammate Zach Plesac in Chicago on Saturday night in violation of team protocol, sources told ESPN. Clevinger was suspended from his scheduled start Tuesday against the Cubs and will be quarantined. He flew with the team Sunday.
– Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 10, 2020
That’s fantastic there. That must have been some funny thing behind the scenes among teammates who knew Clevinger was dating Plesac, saw Plesac sent home, and Clevinger said nothing. Apparently.
Mr. Indian starter Mike Clevinger sat through a team meeting yesterday and defended Zach Plesac knowing he had been out with Plesac, and then flew back with the team. Now, the Indians discover that Clevinger was out with Plesac and so they quarantined Clevinger appropriately.
– Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) August 10, 2020
If you make an irregularly selfish decision, there is now the risk – however light-hearted – that Clevinger picked up COVID-19 while he was out and then handed it over to teammates in the interim. Teammates who have to host the Cubs tomorrow.
Chronologically this does not seem likely, but do you really want to exclude everything when it comes to this virus? I do not necessarily expect this to affect the games this week, unless there are positive tests tonight or tomorrow, but come on. If you’re the Cubs, are you not feeling a little uneasy right now? And pretty spoiled?
Anyway. Assuming the games are played, the Cubs will now face Carlos Carrasco on Wednesday, as planned, but Adam Plutko on Tuesday. Plutko, 28, has been an up-and-down deep starter for the Indians in recent years, with some successful outings but totally meh results. If his name sounds vaguely familiar, it’s because he knocked out the Cubs for six innings at Wrigley Field in early 2018.
