Salazar was solid, not spectacular, against the Houston Astros, allowing one run on five hits and one walk with nine strikeouts over 7 1/3 innings. Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
HOUSTON — Right-hander Danny Salazar offered the Indians enough glimpses of greatness the past two seasons for Cleveland to anticipate something special Thursday night.
Salazar was solid, not spectacular, against the Houston Astros, allowing one run on five hits and one walk with nine strikeouts over 7 1/3 innings. Given his penchant for inconsistency, a solid performance in a no-decision is worthy of praise. Anticipating when his immense talent will shine regularly is a chore.
“You don’t know,” Indians manager Terry Francona said before the Indians pulled out a 2-1, 13-inning win over the Astros. “I’m not saying he doesn’t get it, I just mean he’s young and he hasn’t pitched a lot of major league innings (157 1/3). I think what we’ve seen with Danny is some inconsistencies. He’ll go out one night and it’s like game on like the game he threw against Detroit (a shutout on Sept. 3). And then he’ll bounce back and the next start is OK.
“I think that’s part of the learning curve, too, knowing that you’ve got to be ready every five, sometimes six, days. Regardless of what you have, you’ve got to go out there, and that’s part of it.”
Salazar, 24, was electric down the stretch as a rookie in 2013, earning the start in the American League wild-card game against Tampa Bay last Oct. 2. He gave up three runs in four-plus innings, and Cleveland lost 4-0.
He slumped to open this season, earning a temporary demotion. Salazar was great in spots — as in first career shutout against the Tigers — and ordinary in others.
The “when” of Salazar putting it together requires patience.
“I don’t know if with young pitchers it’s even fair to expect them to understand everything before they’ve gone through it,” Francona said. “This guy hasn’t gone through a full year yet in the major leagues.”
