Indians P Corey Kluber placed on 15-day DL w/ finger injury

It has been a fantastic season for Cleveland Indians starting pitcher Corey Kluber, but that success has been placed on a hold for at least 15 days. Kluber was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Tuesday as a result of a finger sprain on his right (pitching) hand.

Kluber was coming off of one of his top outings of the season, as he completely shut down the vaunted Detroit Tigers offense through 7.1 innings on Monday night, but it wasn’t exactly out of the ordinary to see him sustain success. For the 2013 season, Kluber has a very solid 3.54 ERA (3.15 FIP, 2.97 xFIP) with a sparkling 1.92 BB/9 walk rate to go along with a top-end 8.56 K/9 strikeout rate.

With the Indians just 4 games back of the Tigers in the AL Central, the timing couldn’t be worse for Kluber and company. There isn’t a defined timetable (as of this moment) for his return, but even with a minimum stay, he’ll miss 3 starts, and as Cleveland’s best pitcher this season, that is clearly not ideal.

Kluber is likely not this good (as his 4.18 career ERA would indicate), but his peripherals don’t indicate any “fluke” production, and there is a real possibility that he is a legitimate top-end starter. More details will be released on his return date, but until then, Cleveland will have to make due without his services.