Kluber, Arrieta sparkle in Tribe win

March 9th, 2016

MESA, Ariz. -- Cy Young Award winners Jake Arrieta and Corey Kluber did not disappoint in their Cactus League matchup Wednesday.
Neither pitcher served up a run, and the Indians' Giovanny Urshela greeted Arrieta's replacement, Pierce Johnson, with a leadoff home run in the third to lead Cleveland to a 5-3 victory over the Cubs. Yan Gomes added a solo homer for the Indians in the sixth, and the Cubs' Jeimer Candelario connected on a solo shot in the fifth.
Castrovince: Arrieta, Kluber embody game's unpredictability
Kluber, who won the American League Cy Young Award in 2014, struck out four, gave up two hits and walked one over three scoreless innings in his second spring start.

"I felt good," Kluber said. "It was nice to get out there and get extended, get up and down three times. Obviously, that's the goal each time in the spring, to get a little bit further. Plus, in the second inning, I got some baserunners, so that got the pitch count up a little bit. I got to work out of the stretch and work out of a jam."
"[Kluber looked] really good," Indians manager Terry Francona said. "He mixed in offspeed, changeups to lefties, breaking ball. ... I thought he looked like he was really just staying in his delivery. That's the second outing now where it looks like he's got pretty good tempo, keeping the ball down, late movement. All the things that make him good."
Arrieta, the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner who is coming off a season in which he went 22-6 with a 1.77 ERA, struck out the first two batters he faced, and finished with four strikeouts over two innings. His fastball registered 96 mph on the stadium radar gun.

"I'm at exactly where I thought I would be," Arrieta said. "No aches or pains, bumps or bruises. Now I'm on my five-day [routine], which is important for me. Tomorrow, I can go through my normal routine."
"Nice matchup," Francona said. "If you're a fan coming to a game, that's two pretty good starters to watch."
Johnson took over for Arrieta in the third, and Urshela welcomed him by hitting his second spring home run. Erik Gonzalez singled, and two outs later, Tyler Naquin walked to set up Carlos Santana's RBI single.
The most acrobatic play of the game came with two outs in the Chicago second. Addison Russell was at first, and Jeimer Candelario singled to right. Russell was able to leap over the ball, then did a somersault, got to his feet and scrambled in time to second base.
Minor League prospect John Andreoli hit a two-run homer with two outs in Cubs' ninth for the final margin.
Up next for Indians: Right-hander Carlos Carrasco is scheduled to log three innings on Thursday, when the Indians host the Padres in a 3:05 p.m. ET Cactus League clash at Goodyear Ballpark. Lefty TJ House is also slated to work three innings, as he competes for the lone vacancy in the Tribe's rotation. The game will be available on Indians.com.
Up next for Cubs:Jon Lester will make his first spring start on Thursday when the Cubs travel to Peoria, Ariz., to face the Mariners. Lester is coming off a 11-12 season with the Cubs in which he posted a 3.34 ERA in 32 starts. The game will begin at 1:05 p.m. Arizona time and be broadcast on Cubs.com.