CLEVELAND -- Nick Sandlin released a 94.9 mph heater in the eighth inning on Wednesday and his arm essentially collapsed.

It’s a scene that no pitcher or team wants to witness. Sandlin’s arm appeared to have fallen limp in his follow through, and after a ball was thrown back to him, he didn’t even attempt to raise his arm. He was pulled in the middle of the at-bat against Oakland’s Matt Olson and was immediately labeled with right shoulder tightness. That quickly changed to a right shoulder strain on Thursday morning, and even that may change again after the team receives the results of his MRI.

Sandlin has been one of the more reliable options for the Indians bullpen that’s battled inconsistency in the second half of the season. He’s owned a 2.94 ERA with 48 strikeouts in 33 2/3 innings. So, as the club waits to hear his official diagnosis, how will it fill the vacancy Sandlin leaves?

The Indians will start by turning to lefty Alex Young, who was claimed off waivers by Cleveland on July 26 from the D-backs. The Westlake, Ohio, native spent part of the last three seasons at the big league level with Arizona, collectively pitching to a 4.73 ERA. In 2019, Young was primarily a starter and has slowly transitioned into the bullpen since then. This year, he owned a 6.26 ERA in 41 2/3 frames with the D-backs before joining Triple-A Columbus at the end of July. In Young's time with the Clippers, he posted a 6.35 ERA in 5 2/3 frames with five strikeouts and three walks.

His numbers may not be the most attention-grabbing, but Indians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti broke down what the reports have said about Young and how he can help at the Major League level:

“So, Alex is kind of a physical left-handed pitcher,” Antonetti said. “He’s had extensive experience as a starter up through 2019, and since then has pitched in a variety of different roles. So we feel like he can come up and provide us some length in the bullpen and just help stabilize our ‘pen if we have a need there.

“He’s been throwing the ball pretty well. He does a good job of throwing the ball over the plate, get some ground balls, four-pitch mix. He’s got two fastballs -- a four-seamer and a two-seamer -- a cutter, a changeup and a curveball. So he mixes pitches pretty well and does a pretty good job of attacking left-handed hitters, specifically.”

Bieber to get back on the rubber
For the first time since Shane Bieber was placed on the injured list on June 14, the Indians’ ace may finally be able to get back on the mound. It’s been a slow progression for Bieber -- slower than he hoped and expected -- but he finally has made enough positive steps to advance from playing catch.

Antonetti said Bieber will travel with the team to Detroit over the weekend to hopefully throw a bullpen on either Friday or Saturday. It’s still a long road for him to get to the point of rejoining the active roster, and a return this season is still highly questionable, however it’s a reassuring sign that what Bieber has been dealing with isn’t more serious than his original shoulder strain diagnosis.

Tito could be back at the ballpark soon
Indians manager Terry Francona underwent hip surgery over a week ago and has been recovering at his apartment in Cleveland. His progression has been optimistic and Antonetti said the hope is that Francona can soon start doing his rehab at the ballpark so that he can be around the team more rather than having to watch from afar.

“He's still very much engaged,” Antonetti said. “Lots of communication back and forth, not only with myself and [general manager Mike Chernoff], but with the coaching staff and DeMarlo [Hale]. I think he likes being in the dugout a little bit more where he has more control than watching on TV where there's a little bit less control and he's an observer like most of us.”