CLEVELAND, Ohio (WJW) – Now restricted Cleveland Indians pitchers Mike Clevinger and Zach Plesac will be tested for coronavirus Wednesday.
The two were quarantined and placed on the restricted list Tuesday after it was learned both players violated team rules by leaving their Chicago hotel Saturday.
Plesac was sent away from the team Sunday.
Word that Clevinger had also broken protocol didn’t come until after he traveled home with the team, potentially exposing them to coronavirus.
Clevinger had been scheduled to start Tuesday at home.
Instead, Adam Plutko took the mound, and if Tuesday night’s game is any indication, the team has some work to do to move past the distractions.
They lost to the Chicago Cubs 7-1.
Plutko talked about the situation after the game.
“They hurt us bad. They lied to us. They sat here, in front of you guys, and said things publicly that they didn’t follow through on. It’s gonna be up to them. It really is.”
Plutko and shortstop Francisco Lindor both said they’d have to work to regain the team’s trust.
“I’ll let them sit here and tell you how they’re going to earn our trust back. I don’t need to put words in their mouths. The term I continue to hear, and excuse my language, is ‘grown-ass man’, right? So those grown-ass men can sit here and tell you guys what happened and tell you guys what they’re going to do to fix it. I don’t need to do that for them,” Plutko said.
“We’re all humans,” Lindor said. “We all make mistakes. However, trust is earned and they’re going to work to gain our trust.”
Clevinger issued a statement Tuesday:
“There is an implicit trust that each of my teammates share as we navigate a season during this pandemic, and I broke that trust. In Chicago, I made the mistake of violating the protocols but the biggest mistake of all was not immediately coming clean to my teammates. I owe them better. I now realize that by even exposing myself to just one person more than necessary, I am putting myself, my teammates, the guys I compete against, the umpires, the staff, the Indians organization as well as the Game that I love at risk. There is no excuse for my actions, and I can only take responsibility and learn from my mistakes. Moving forward, I promise my actions will reflect a full understanding of the protocols set in place while I continue my passion for competing for the incredible Indians’ fans and the City that I adore.”
Cleveland manager Terry Francona returned to the game Tuesday after being hospitalized.
“We’ll deal with it like we always do,” he said. “We care about each other. It doesn’t mean you don’t get disappointed with each other or even mad at each other sometimes. But what I care about is making it better.”
He continued, “Just trying to figure out how do we make this better so it doesn’t happen again,” he said. “The players will have a lot to say about this. Taking ownership of what we’re doing is really important.”
Carlos Carrasco (2-1) starts Wednesday night at home.
The St. Louis Cardinals and the Miami Marlins have had coronavirus outbreaks, prompting MLB to discuss a ‘bubble’ similar to the NBA.
