Kluber's upcoming X-ray will guide next move

CLEVELAND – When Corey Kluber first addressed the media after fracturing his right ulna on May 1 in Miami, he said he believed he would pitch again this year. Now that his arm has been in a cast for about three weeks, he may be close to making his next step toward that goal.

On Monday, Indians manager Terry Francona said that Kluber will have an X-ray on Thursday to determine whether he is ready to have his cast removed.

“Depending on that, the cast could come off and he could be in a removable splint,” Francona said before the Indians' 6-4 loss to the A's at Progressive Field. “But it depends on what the X-ray says.”

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The timeframe for his return is still far from being set, but the X-ray coming back OK could be positive news for an Indians rotation missing two of its starters.

Kluber was shut down from all activity for the first week after he sustained the injury. Francona said the 33-year-old recently started cardio activities, like riding the stationary bike to begin working out his lower half.

“Obviously, there’s points in time where the team’s on the road and you’re not with them, that sort of stuff is difficult, too,” Kluber said earlier this month. “But I think just from a personal standpoint of going through the process of healing from it, I think the initial stage where you’re not able to do much -- you just kind of have to sit around and be at your body’s mercy -- is probably the most frustrating thing.”

Kluber’s fracture came on a 102.2-mph line drive off the bat of Brian Anderson in the fifth inning at Marlins Park. After the ball struck his throwing arm and bounced toward the first-base line, Kluber’s initial reaction was to go field the ball, but after a few steps he realized he wouldn’t be able to move his arm. He attempted to flip the ball with his glove to make the play. He was ultimately taken out of the game.

This date in Indians history

1998: Kenny Lofton recorded five RBIs in a 14-5 win at Kansas City.