CLEVELAND —r league career Carl Yastrzemski Jersey , two-time Cy Young Award winner Corey Kluber will be on the mound Tuesday night when the Cleveland Indians host the Chicago White Sox in the first game of a three-game series.Kluber (18-7, 2.91 ERA) will make his first start since a 6-5 loss in Tampa Bay on Sept. 9, when Kluber only lasted 1 2/3 innings, throwing 55 pitches. Forty-four of those pitches came in the second inning and resulted in only two outs. It’s the most pitches that Kluber has ever thrown in one inning.In 1 2/3 innings, he gave up four runs and five hits with four strikeouts and one walk.Article continues below ...The Indians skipped Kluber’s next start, but it wasn’t because of that ugly start in Tampa Bay. It was because manager Terry Francona wanted to get Kluber lined up to pitch Game 1 of the American League Division Series, which will likely be Oct. 5 in Houston.In the meantime, Kluber will have three starts remaining in the regular season, the first of those Tuesday night against a White Sox team that Kluber has historically done well against.In his last start against Chicago, a 12-0 win on June 20, Kluber pitched seven scoreless innings and gave up one hit, with seven strikeouts and one walk.In two starts against the White Sox this year, he is 2-0, having pitched 13 scoreless innings on four hits, with 17 strikeouts and one walk. In 22 career appearances against Chicago, he is 11-4 with a 2.90 ERA.The Indians on Saturday clinched their third consecutive AL Central title, so Francona is able to use the final two weeks of the regular season to give some of his regulars occasional days off while trying to get two key veterans ramped up for the postseason.Reliever Andrew Miller, who has made three separate trips to the disabled list this year, is still trying to get back into peak form.“He’s taking steps in the right direction. He’s got to keep building Ted Williams Jersey ,” Francona said.The other veteran is third baseman Josh Donaldson, whom the Indians acquired in a trade with Toronto on Aug. 31. Donaldson missed most of this season with a calf strain. He has played in four games for the Indians since being activated off the disabled list and is hitting .154 (2-for-13) with one home run and one RBI.“He just needs some reps,” Francona said. “Every time he plays it feels like an investment. The more he plays (the better he’ll be). He’s playing the heck out of third base. We’ve just got to get him his at-bats.”Chicago’s starting pitcher on Tuesday will be left-hander Carlos Rodon (6-5, 3.10), who has historically pitched well against Cleveland.Rodon’s last start came against Kansas City on Sept. 12, when he got no decision in a 4-2 White Sox victory. In that game, Rodon pitched six innings, allowing two runs and five hits, with five strikeouts and five walks.Rodon’s last start against Cleveland came Aug. 10. The White Sox won that game 1-0, but Rodon did not get the decision, despite pitching eight scoreless innings on four hits with five strikeouts and two walks.In three starts against the Indians this year, Rodon is 0-1 with a 2.79 ERA. In 13 career appearances against Cleveland, Rodon is 4-2 with a 2.44 ERA. As the final week of the 2018 MLB regular season winds to a close and we get set for another exciting postseason, it's never too early to start looking ahead to free agency.This year's free-agent class has been among the most anticipated in recent memory for years now, with young superstars Bryce Harper and Manny Machado headlining a star-studded group of players set to hit the open market.The rumor mill won't really kick into full swing until the annual Winter Meetings, but let's take a quick run through some early rumors surrounding some of the top names in this year's class. We've also predicted how this year's qualifying offers will shake out.Moving Parts on the Philadelphia Phillies InfieldMaikel FrancoRich Schultz/Getty ImagesThe Phillies were busy on the free-agent market last offseason, handing multi-year deals to Jake Arrieta, Carlos Santana, Tommy Hunter and Pat Neshek. This winter is expected to be equally busy http://www.redsoxproshops.com/authentic-dustin-pedroia-jersey , and an expected pursuit of top-tier free agent Manny Machado could have a ripple effect on the team's infield alignment.Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia wrote:"Recently, [manager Gabe] Kapler has used Santana at third as a way to improve the Phillies' outfield defense. With Santana at third, Rhys Hoskins can move from left field to his natural first base and Kapler can use a stronger defender in left."There are variables to consider when weighing the possibility of using Santana at third base full time. One is Manny Machado. The Phillies are going to make a free-agent run at him this winter. He would look good at third base, but he might want to play shortstop and the Phils would probably be open to that to get him. Another is Maikel Franco. He had some big downs and some big ups in 2018. Will the Phils keep him or look to deal him? The guess here is they will look to move him."Franco, 26, has posted a 105 OPS+ with 22 home runs and 68 RBI this season, and he has team control through the 2021 season.However, limited on-base skills (.314 OBP, 6.2 percent walk rate, per FanGraphs) and below-average defense (-12 DRS, -6.9 UZR/150, per FanGraphs) have limited him to 0.2 WAR.Still, he'd be an intriguing buy-low candidate for a team with the patience to try to unlock his full potential.Either way, there are enough moving parts on the Philadelphia infield to make this one of the more compelling storylines of free agency.Nelson Cruz Interested in Re-Signing with Seattle MarinersNelson CruzJayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images"He's happy in Seattle and wants to stay there," Nelson Cruz's agent Bryce Dixon told Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times. "He's hopeful we can work something out. From his perspective, he definitely wants to come back. He loves Seattle."Cruz, 38, is having another excellent season for Seattle with a 138 OPS+ and 36 home runs.In four seasons with the team, he's averaged 40 home runs and 102 RBI while posting a 148 OPS+ Nomar Garciaparra Jersey , and he's been good for 16.9 WAR over the course of his four-year, $57 million deal.His advanced age makes anything beyond a one-year deal with a second-year mutual option unlikely, but it's hard to bet against another strong season given his consistent production.The Mariners have other factors to consider, though.An aging Robinson Cano might fit best at DH at this point in his career, but Cruz is also limited to DH duties, so there might not be an obvious spot for both players.Starting pitching also figures to be the primary focus of the offseason, so the team might opt to use the $14.25 million it paid Cruz this season to help add an impact arm.Cruz won't be eligible for a qualifying offer since he's already received one in his career, so that should help expand the market of interested teams.The Qualifying Offer MarketBryce HarperMark Brown/Getty ImagesMark Polishuk of MLBTradeRumors recently wrote a piece previewing the qualifying offer market. He broke the potential candidates into the following categories:"The Easy Calls":Patrick Corbin, Yasmani Grandal, Bryce Harper, Dallas Keuchel, Craig Kimbrel, A.J. Pollock,Elvis Andrus (opt-out) and Clayton Kershaw (opt-out)."The Borderline Cases":Michael Brantley, Charlie Morton, DJ LeMahieu and Justin Smoak (team option)."Probably Not":Adrian Beltre, Jed Lowrie, Nick Markakis, Hyun-Jin Ryu http://www.redsoxproshops.com/authentic-dustin-pedroia-jersey , David Price (opt-out)The qualifying offer figure was $17.4 million last winter and will likely sit around $18 million for this offseason.Cruz and Daniel Murphy are not eligible for an offer since they've already received one in their careers, while Machado, J.A. Happ and Cole Hamels can't be extended an offer since they were traded at midseason.So let's take a crack at predicting what will happen with those 17 players.Receives an Offer and Accepts:Charlie MortonReceives an Offer and Declines:Patrick Corbin, Yasmani Grandal, Bryce Harper, Clayton Kershaw, Dallas Keuchel, Craig KimbrelDoesn't Receive an Offer: Adrian Beltre,Michael Brantley, DJ LeMahieu, Jed Lowrie, Nick Markakis, A.J. Pollock, Hyun-Jin RyuOther:Andrus and Price (opt-in), Smoak (option exercised)Teams have five days after the conclusion of the World Series to extend qualifying offers to players, and players then have 10 days to decide whether to accept or reject, so it's always the first item on a lengthy checklist of notable offseason dates.Will Machado sign with the Phillies and cause an infield shakeup? Is Cruz part of the Seattle Mariners' future plans? How will the qualifying offer process impact his year's free-agent class?We're still more than a month away from the start of the offseason, but there are already plenty of fun talking points surrounding free agency.All stats courtesy of Baseball Referenceunless otherwise stated and accurate through Sept. 25.