The Cleveland Indians had originally tabbed veteran John Axford to be their closer prior to last season, but early struggles by Axford led to young Cody Allen taking over the role in the middle of May.
Allen took the ball and ran with it, converting 24-of-28 save opportunities with a 1.49 ERA during his stint as the team's go-to ninth-inning man.
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As Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes, "the assumption is that Allen should be effective once again. He's only 26. But who knows? It's a pressurized job. Confidence means nearly as much as ability."
The role of a Major League Baseball closer is a volatile one, with the high-visibility nature of the job magnifying the smallest failures because of the importance each outing has to a game's outcome.
Regardless, manager Terry Francona remains confident in Allen - content to ride the hot hand and hope he continues to build himself into a top-tier closer.
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