Brantley’s return key to Cleveland’s ’17 outfield

CLEVELAND — The Indians’ roster is formidable with the addition of free-agent slugger Edwin Encarnacion, but it is not without question marks. The outfield currently contains the most uncertainty, though Cleveland believes it can remedy the situation with the options already in hand.

The signing of Encarnacion to a three-year, $60 million contract on Thursday likely brings an end to any lucrative free-agent additions for the Tribe. That means that Cleveland is counting heavily on a healthy return from left fielder Michael Brantley, who missed the bulk of last season due to right shoulder and biceps woes. Now, the Indians are in wait-and-see mode when it comes to Brantley’s status.

“We’re working through his tolerance,” Indians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti said on Thursday. “He’s continuing to progress. As each day goes by, we’ll hopefully continue to get more and more information and continue to see him make more progress.”

Brantley began non-contact swings over the holidays, and he’s now back in Cleveland continuing his rehab from right biceps tenodesis surgery in August. Antonetti noted that it is difficult to have specific dates for the next steps in Brantley’s hitting progression, as the schedule is dictated on how the outfielder responds to the increased level of activity.

That was the same issue that the Indians dealt with last season, when Brantley was limited to only 11 games while working through a rehab …

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