Clevinger gets ball first for Cactus opener

Getting noticed on the pitching-rich staff of the Indians for someone whose last name isn’t Kluber, Carrasco or Bauer can be like being short and getting stuck in the back row of a group picture.

All Mike Clevinger did last season was improve his record from 3-3 with a 5.26 ERA in 2016 to 12-6 with a 3.11 ERA, yet the 27-year-old right-hander with the rock-star hair was sent to the bullpen for the postseason. It wasn’t an indictment on Clevinger; Manager Terry Francona didn’t need a fourth starter against the Yankees in the ALDS.

“His stuff is plenty good,” Francona told reporters Feb. 20 in Goodyear, Ariz.

“His batting-averageagainst when he was ahead in the count or behind in the count was one of the biggest differences in the league. When he got ahead of guys, he put them away. When he got behind, he paid a price, but his stuff is tremendous.

“He competes. He’s not scared. Sometimes guys mature at different times as far as pitching. We feel he’s a really good pitcher, either as a starter or a reliever. Obviously, you want to check a guy as a starter first.”

Clevinger will start the Cactus League opener Feb. 23 when the Tribe plays the Reds.

Ryan Merritt will follow Clevinger to the mound. Francona did not detail the

parade of pitchers who will follow Merritt.

Throwing the first pitch of the exhibition season won’t count for anything when the regular season begins in Seattle on March 29, but it sends the signal Francona considers Clevinger an important part of the pitching staff. Clevinger was 5-1 with a 0.99 ERA in September 2017. His last three appearances, in which he went 1-1 with one no-decision, were in relief.

Clevinger, not surprisingly, is itching to pick up where he left off.

“It’s like the chicken and egg conversation,” Clevinger told reporters Feb. 20. “Does confidence bring success or vice versa?

“I think last year it was more like I felt like I belonged, but needed that success to show me. Once I saw a few starts strung together in a row, starting with the Royals and then had a few

good runs after that. I hit a rough patch with Colorado and saw I could bounce back after that. Once I saw I could bounce back, I thought I really do belong. I could refine my mistakes and capitalize from them.”

This spring is important to Merritt, too. The hero of the 2016 ALCS with Toronto is out of options, meaning the Indians cannot simply send him to Columbus without exposing him to waivers.

ROSS D. FRANKLIN — ASSOCIATED PRESS Mike Clevinger reaches out to catch the ball as he warms up with other pitchers at the Indians’ spring training facility Feb. 16 in Goodyear, Ariz.