The week began with a series win against Kansas City with the Indians taking two out of three on the road against the Royals.

However, Cleveland (27-29) couldn’t capitalize on the recent momentum as the Tribe then dropped two of three against Baltimore (26-30) to finish the week at 3-3. Overall, the Indians still have won 13 out of their last 19 games to jump back into contention.

Even better for Cleveland is the fact that Kansas City (31-23) has won just three of its last 10 games and Detroit (30-28) has lost eight of its last 10 overall. So, the division race has tightened up considerably with the Minnesota Twins (33-23) in first place, six games ahead of Cleveland after the Twins have won five out of their last 10 games.

Some concern lingers, though, about the health of Michael Brantley’s back as the outfielder was on the bench Sunday after he played left field on Saturday. Prior to that game, Brantley served as the designated hitter for the games on Thursday and Friday.

Dr. Smooth will now have two consecutive days rest as the Indians are off on June 8th, so hopefully the short time of rest will help prevent any long-term flare ups of his back or even cause him to miss significant time.

Brantley is hitting .302 with four home runs and 33 RBIs in 47 games, but has batted just .229 with a .617 OPS in his last 18 games, according to MLB.com.

Also on the injury front, pitchers Josh Tomlin, who has been on the 60-day disabled list after right shoulder surgery, and Scott Atchison, who is on the 15-day disabled list due to a sprained left ankle, are close to being able to throw off the mound soon, according to the MLB.com. Atchison might pitch for Double-A Akron on Wednesday.

Third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall has continued his recent struggles as he is hitting just .219 in his last 10 games with only one home run, four runs scored and just three RBI during that span.

He also had a bad day in the field on Sunday when he committed two errors. His defense this season has shown improvement though, but his hitting has been rather poor. Overall, Chisenhall is hitting .208 with four home runs and 19 RBI and .587 OPS in 52 games.

It might be time now to make a change at that position either by trade or a call up from Triple-A Columbus.

When Francisco Lindor is eventually called up to the Big Leagues, perhaps Mike Aviles could spend more time at third base. Or the Indians could call up slick-fielding third baseman Giovanny Urshela, who would immediately provide an upgrade on defense. It’s doubtful either would hit worse than Chisenhall right now.

Speaking of prospects, the 2015 Draft begins at 7 p.m. June 8 and runs through June 10 with coverage on the first day provided by MLB.com and MLB Network starting at 6 p.m. Second and third day coverage will be provided by MLB.com.

Cleveland will have the 17th pick in the first round of the draft and the 42nd pick as part of MLB’s competitive balance picks. In the second round, the Indians will have the 59th pick overall and the 93rd overall selection in the third round.

Corey Kluber (3-6, 3.81 ERA) at 7:10 p.m. against Seattle lefty Roenis Elias (2-3, 2.94 ERA). Kluber has pitched much better recently as he has given up just nine runs in his last 40 innings going 3-1 during that span despite giving up four runs and taking the loss in his last start on June 3 against the Royals.

The 25-year-old Cuban native Elias is 2-2 in his last four starts compiling 27 innings and he has given up eight runs and struck out 19 during that span.

Trevor Bauer (5-2, 2.94 ERA) makes the start at 7:10 p.m. June 10 against righty Taijuan Walker (2-6, 5.80 ERA). In his last seven appearances, Walker has lost four out of his last five decisions along with two no-decisions.

Meanwhile, Bauer has been red hot as he has given up just seven runs in his last 36 innings, while striking out 36 during that same span.

Shaun Marcum (2-1, 5.19 ERA) will make another critical start at 12:10 p.m. June 11 in his battle to secure the fifth spot in the Tribe’s rotation. He faces lefty J.A. Happ (3-1, 3.31 ERA).

Marcum gave up three runs in 6.1 innings during his last appearance on June 5 to take the loss against Baltimore.

The Detroit series begins at 7:08 p.m. on June 12, followed by a 4:08 p.m. start on June 13, then wrapping up with a 1:08 p.m. start on June 14. Neither team has announced a starter for any of the games in the series.

Who’s Hot – Who’s Not

 Danny Salazar continues to pitch well as he picked up his sixth win on Saturday to move to 6-1 on the season. Salazar also struck out 10 Orioles in seven innings while giving up only one walk and one run.

Nick Swisher had injected some energy to the team when he came back from the disabled list, but his on-field performance has fizzled. Swisher is hitting just .200 in his last 10 games, managing just six hits in his last 30 at bats and scoring only two runs, driving in three and hitting one home run. For the season, Swisher is hitting just .213 with two home runs and eight RBI.

 Zach McAllister has also struggled recently and is 1-1 with a 4.09 ERA in his last 10 games, even though he has struck out 15 in 11 innings during that span. For the season, McAllister is 1-2 with a 3.82 ERA with 37 Ks in 30.2 innings.