Spring Training, Day 3, Goodyear, Arizona

All the fielding practice that Michael Brantley took while coming back from shoulder surgery has quickly paid off.

(Chuck Crow / The Plain Dealer)

GOODYEAR, ARIZONA -- The smile.



That's what said so much about Michael Brantley's return to Cactus League action.



The All-Star left fielder had the kind of night that makes Tribe fans dream.



And dream big.



Very, very big.



What would you like to hear about first? The 2-run majestic home run to right field or his beautiful throw to home plate from left field?



But let's start with the smile.



"It was a very good day," said Brantley about the Tribe's 10-5 victory over the Cubs in front of a Goodyear Ballpark record crowd of 11,616 Saturday.



He is coming back from surgery to repair a labral tear in his right shoulder on November 9. The operation put a huge question mark about Brantley being ready for opening day.



There were even internet reports that he could be out until the middle of the summer.



Guess again.



"It was exciting being out there," Brantley said. "I got up at 5:45 (a.m.), ready to go."



I asked him about what kind of timetable was set for him after the surgery?



"I was told I was going to be ready when I told them I was going to be ready," he said. "I did everything the training staff asked me to do. And everything the doctors asked me to do. I didn't take a day off, I stuck to the program."



A SPECIAL NIGHT



The first pitch he saw, he unleashed that smooth left-handed swing. His wrists are quicker than a snake's tongue. He drilled a 390-foot liner to dead center, caught by the outfielder.



Why swing at the first pitch in his first game back?



"I got a good fastball over the plate and I put a good swing on it," he said. "I'm not going to just work the count, I'm going to (approach) it like I would in the season."



In the fifth inning, there was the home run. He clubbed a towering fly ball to right field that had to carry at least 400 feet deep into the Arizona night.



He hit it off Justin Grimm, who had 1.99 ERA for the Cubs last season.



Pitching out of the bullpen, Grimm allowed only four homers in 62 innings. So Brantley connected against a legitimate big league pitcher, not some scared kid from Class AA getting a chance to show his stuff in March.



I asked Brantley if he knew he'd hit a homer.



"I never think anything I hit is going out," he said.



He was being truthful. Brantley has 35 homers in the last two seasons. But he doesn't dwell on home runs.



As Corey Kluber said: "He's got the same swing, no matter what. He's got a really short, simple swing. I think that's why he's able to repeat it so easily. I'm not a hitting coach, but if I could teach somebody a swing, I'd say swing like that."



Last season, Brantley made contact on 93 percent of his swings. That's the most in the Majors.

He is one of only three players with more walks than strikeouts in 2015.





KLUBER & BRANTLEY



Kluber allowed only one run in five innings.



The Cubs loaded the bases in the third inning. Kris Byrant ripped a single to left. Brantley fielded it perfectly, came up throwing. One bounce to catcher Yan Gomes. He slapped the tag on the Cubs' Ben Zobrist, who was trying to score from second base.



OUT!



"He plays a great left field," said Kluber. "That was a big play in that inning right there. Bases loaded, nobody out, all of a sudden you can kind of sneak one out right there with him making a great throw and getting the guy at the plate."



Granted, the left-handed Brantley had surgery on the right shoulder. So his throwing arm is fine.



He played a few innings in a minor league game on Thursday and also threw out a runner at the plate.



"You can do the outfield defensive drills every day, but there is nothing like game speed," said Brantley. "You can practice all you want, but when the adrenaline is flowing, there is nothing like it.



ALL-AROUND PLAYER



In the last four years, he has thrown out an average of 10 runners per season. The career .292 batter is so much more than just a good hitter.



Brantley is a good left-fielder. He's a clutch hitter, a career .329 batter with runners in scoring position.



In the last two years, he has stolen 38 bases and been thrown out only twice.



"He just wants to be with the team," said Kluber. "That's probably the most important thing for him, like it is for all of us. We don't want to be sitting in the dugout not able to play when the games matter. I think that's probably the most frustrating thing for any player."



That's why Brantley kept smiling, the warmth of it melting away some of the frustration he felt during the winter as he rehabilitated after surgery.



"From what I've gathered from talking to him, if he's ready on Opening Day, great," said Kluber. "If it's not, make it as little time as possible."



WORKING AT IT



Manager Terry Francona has been talking about all the defensive drills that Brantley has been doing to keep sharp.



"It's pretty obvious that he's been working hard," said Francona. "Besides the fact that he took some good swings, you could see how everyone reacted to him. He's done every drill they've asked and more."



The power was especially impressive because it's the right arm and shoulder that drives the bat during a swing for a lefty hitter. You'd never guess Brantley had surgery.



"I've had other surgeries before and I know what I have to do to come back," said Brantley. "That's been one of the most important things. . . I learned from experience."



Brantley had surgery to repair a broken hand in 2011. He had another surgery in 2012 for a sports hernia.



"I still have some bumps in the road to get over," he said. "Playing back-to-back games. . . Playing full games. . . Playing multiple games."



All of that is true, but Brantley's appearance on a Saturday night remind Tribe fans how they have a very special player in left field.





