CLEVELAND -- Working with a depleted rotation last October, Indians manager Terry Francona leaned heavily on his bullpen during his team's World Series run. Closer Cody Allen and relief ace Andrew Miller shouldered the bulk of the load, making it fair to wonder if there would be any negative carryover this season.
As April ends, Allen and Miller have been just as overpowering out of the chute as they were down the stretch and throughout the postseason. One month does not make a season, but Francona's late-inning duo has hardly looked fazed by the extra bullets they fired off in the playoffs.