Cleveland Indians: A Position-by-Position Breakdown of the ALCS
Oct 10, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; Cleveland Indians teammates celebrate after defeating the Boston Red Sox 4-3 in game three of the 2016 ALDS playoff baseball series at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
The Cleveland Indians and Toronto Blue Jays have each rolled through their competition, and will now square off with the American League pennant on the line. How do the two teams stack up against each other?
The Cleveland Indians defied nearly everyone in the baseball world when thy swept the Boston Red Sox in the American League Division Series. Likewise, the Toronto Blue Jays walked off against the Baltimore Orioles in the AL Wild Card game, and then swept the Texas Rangers in the ALDS.
Perhaps no two teams in Major League Baseball are hotter as the American League Championship Series gets underway at Progressive Field on Friday night.
The Indians relied on the longball and a dominant bullpen in their victory over the BoSox, while the Blue Jays have been straight up mashing the ball and getting quality outings from their starters. There have been three walk-off victories so far this postseason, and two of them have come north of the border, both in knockout games. Edwin Encarnacion hit a walk-off home run against the Orioles that still hasn’t landed, and they put away the Rangers in game three on a walk-off error.
The World Series is on the line, and neither side has seen the Fall Classic in quite some time. After a season series that was about as evenly matched and entertaining as any in the game during the regular season, Cleveland and Toronto are ready to pull out all the stops in search of their ultimate goal.
Let’s take a look at how the Tribe and Jays match up.
Catcher
Oct 9, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays catcher Russell Martin (55) hits a solo home run against the Texas Rangers in the first inning during game three of the 2016 ALDS playoff baseball series at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports
Indians: Roberto Perez, Yan Gomes
Blue Jays: Russell Martin, Dioner Navarro
Cleveland might not be where they are today if it wasn’t for the catcher position, which is hard to believe considering that the unit was somewhat of a black hole during the regular season. Roberto Perez set the tone early in game one against Boston, making a great tag on Brock Holt to limit early inning damage, hit an opposite-field home run, and generated another score with his baserunning.
Perez was the only catcher that the Indians used in the ALDS, but that doesn’t mean that Tito doesn’t have backstop reinforcement. Yan Gomes is on the Indians’ ALCS roster, and could see some time behind the plate if need be. Meanwhile, Jonathon Lucory went 1-12 during the Blue Jays sweep of the Rangers. Life comes at you fast.
Toronto counters with a marvelous game manager themselves in the form of Russell Martin. Martin is no stranger to postseason play, as he has been on a postseason team every year since 2011. The veteran has only had one hit so far this postseason, but he had his fingerprints all over the Blue Jays clinching win on Tuesday, extending the Toronto lead with a solo home run in the first inning.
Martin also hit the ball that the Rangers misplayed which led to Josh Donaldson running home with the game-winning run.
Veteran Dioner Navarro, who has yet to play this postseason, is a serviceable backup that was picked up in an August trade with the White Sox, but struggled to the tune of 6-for-33 since that time.
Infield
Oct 7, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor (12) and second baseman Jason Kipnis (22) celebrate after defeating the Boston Red Sox during game two of the 2016 ALDS playoff baseball series at Progressive Field. The Indians won 6-0. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
Indians: Jason Kipnis, Mike Napoli, Francisco Lindor, Jose Ramirez, Michael Martinez
Blue Jays: Josh Donaldson, Darwin Barney, Devon Travis, Troy Tulowitzki, Justin Smoak
Both Toronto and Cleveland have electric infields. The Indians are led by shortstop Francisco Lindor, who is young, but is also arguably one of the best players in baseball. Lindor had a great sophomore campaign, slashing .301/.358/.435 with 15 home runs and 71 RBIs. The 22-year old is batting just .250 for far this postseason, but he set the tone early in game one with his home run. Oh, and he’s a wizard in the field.
The Blue Jays counter with Josh Donaldson, who might be the best third baseman in all of baseball. Donaldson won the AL MVP last year, and he’s made a case to repeat this year, with a .284/.404/.549 slash line, 37 homers, and 99 RBIs. He hasn’t stopped hitting in the postseason, either, going 7-for-13 (.538) in the ALDS.
Jose Ramirez‘s breakout season is spilling into the postseason, as he’s been a force in the batters box (.500 average,) on the base-paths (four runs scored,) and in the field.
Toronto shortstop Troy Tulowitzki finally looks to be comfortable in Toronto, and his production has gone up because of it. Tulo is batting .353 with five RBIs this postseason, and his bat helped kickstart a number of Toronto rallies against Texas. The same can be said for Indians second baseman Jason Kipnis, who has three RBIs this postseason, and has been a leader for the club all year.
The rest of the Toronto infield really has yet to find their footing so far this postseason. Toronto second baseman Devon Travis has only one hit this postseason and has appeared in just two games as he battles a knee injury, while both first baseman Justin Smoak and utility player Darwin Barney are still searching for their first hit.
Cleveland has had struggles at the plate of its own, mainly in the form of first baseman Mike Napoli, who was just 2-for-12 (.167) against Boston, but has the opportunity to start a party every time he steps up to the plate (he also has the only postseason stolen base for the Indians).
Outfield
Oct 9, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays center fielder Kevin Pillar cannot catch a ball hit for a two-run double by Texas Rangers first baseman Mitch Moreland (not pictured) in the 6th inning during game three of the 2016 ALDS playoff baseball series at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports
Indians: Rajai Davis, Coco Crisp, Tyler Naquin, Brandon Guyer, Lonnie Chisenhall
Blue Jays: Jose Bautista, Ezequiel Carrera, Kevin Pillar, Michael Saunders, Melvin Upton Jr.
Outfielders have been an X-factor for both of these teams so far this postseason. The Indians have been jumpstarted by the offensive play of right fielder Lonnie Chisenhall, while Toronto right fielder Ezequiel Carrera has been the unlikely postseason hero for the Blue Jays thus far.
Chisenhall has batted .300 so far this postseason, and helped turned the momentum against the Red Sox when he hit a big game-tying single in the first inning of Game One and a three-run home run in Game Two. Carrera, who started his big league career in Cleveland, has been a spark plug for the Jays offense, batting .375 while adding a home run, two RBIs, and four runs scored.
The rest of the Indians outfield were also factors in the sweep of the BoSox. Tyler Naquin finally got the monkey off his back when he hit a big two-run single in game three, Brandon Guyer went 3-for-4 in Game Two, Coco Crisp gave the Indians their permanent Game Three lead with his two-run home run over the Green Monster at Fenway Park, and Rajai Davis has game-changing speed.
Toronto’s outfielders are filled with positive attributes as well, and that begins and ends with Jose Bautista. Batista etched his name in postseason lore last year when he had the bat flip heard around the world, and while he’s only batting .200 this postseason, two of his three hits have left the yard. Kevin Pillar is one of the best fielding center fielders in all of baseball, and he’s chipped in in the power column this postseason with one home run. Michael Saunders looks to have put his rough second half behind him, as he’s hitting .286 so far this postseason, and the same cane said for Melvin Upton, who’s batting .286 as well with a homer.
Designated Hitter
Oct 4, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Edwin Encarnacion (10) reacts after hitting a walk off three run home run against Baltimore Orioles in the 11th inning to give the Jays a 5-2 win in the American League wild card playoff baseball game at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
Indians: Carlos Santana
Blue Jays: Edwin Encarnacion
No matter how the Blue Jays’ season ends, Edwin Encarnacion has already had the kind of postseason young children dream of when they’re growing up playing the game. First he opened it up by hitting a walk-off three run home run in the wild card game, and he hasn’t stopped hitting since then. Encarnacion is currently batting .375 with three home runs and 7 RBIs, which are both tops of any batter in the postseason thus far.
Encarnacion is a free agent at postseason’s end, and after a regular season in which he hit 42 longballs and drove in an AL-best 127 runs, Toronto will have to break out the checkbook in a big way to retain his services.
Cleveland counters with a power bat of its own in Carlos Santana. Santana only has two hits so far this postseason, but he’s coming off of a productive year in which he hit a career-high 34 home runs.
Santana was the hottest hitter in the Tribe’s lineup during the final month of the regular season, slashing .327/.454/.625 with nine doubles, six homers, and 21 RBIs in the last 29 games, and has traditionally hit very well against the Blue Jays, sporting a career 134 OPS+.
Starting Pitching
October 6, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Indians starting pitcher Trevor Bauer (47) throws in the first inning against the Boston Red Sox during game one of the 2016 ALDS playoff baseball game at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Indians: Corey Kluber, Trevor Bauer, Josh Tomlin, Mike Clevinger
Blue Jays: Marco Estrada, J.A Happ, Marcus Stroman, Aaron Sanchez
Cleveland and Toronto spent most of the season battling for first place in team ERA, that is until the Indians pitching staff got plagued with injuries and required the Tribe to go on a month-long rotational soul-search. The Tribe has now settled into a rotational groove, while the Blue Jays are looking to build on the great starting pitching that they got in their first series.
Cleveland will send ace Corey Kluber out for Game One in the hopes that he can duplicate the masterful performance he had against Boston. Kluber handcuffed the Red Sox in his first career postseason start, allowing up three hits over seven shutout innings in the Indians win.
Estrada threw the ball just as well in his lone postseason start, as he came within two outs of a complete game. He ended up going 8.2 innings, giving up one run to Texas.
Trevor Bauer will take the bump for the Indians in game two in the hopes that he can derail Toronto 20-game winner J.A Happ. Happ is a legitimate Cy Young contender after going 20-4 in the regular season with a 3.18 ERA. Bauer didn’t have the best start of his career in Game One of the ALDS, but it wasn’t his worst one either. Bauer gave up three runs over 4.2 innings before giving way to the bullpen, but it was exactly the kind of start the team needed to be in a position to win.
Josh Tomlin will look to build on his Game Three clinching win when he goes against Toronto fireballer Marcus Stroman in the third game of the series. Tomlin put his second-half struggles behind him in his last start, giving up only two runs in five innings to help the Indians put the Red Sox away. Tomlin is always susceptible to the home run ball, which is something that the Blue Jays are very good at hitting. If he can keep the ball down like he did against at Fenway, though, then he could be a dangerous weapon for the Indians.
Stroman started the Wild Card game for the Jays, and he had a solid outing, giving up only two runs over six innings. The 5-foot-8 25-year old had some command issues in the regular season, so look for the Indians to take advantage of that.
Game four will be the battle of young studs when Mike Clevinger goes up against Aaron Sanchez. Clevinger was in the bullpen for the ALDS, but he was never needed. He had an interesting role for Cleveland during the regular season, as he served as a “utility pitcher,” making 17 appearances with10 in a starting capacity and seven out of the bullpen. Clevinger compiled a 1-3 record with a 5.93 ERA as a starter, but he went 2-0 with a 3.00 ERA as a reliever.
Sanchez turned the baseball world upside down during the regular season, going 15-2 with a 3.00 ERA, but he also had the Blue Jays worst start of the postseason. The rookie only went 5.2 innings while giving up six runs when he took the hill against the Rangers.
Relief Pitching
Oct 10, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; Cleveland Indians relief pitcher Andrew Miller (24) delivers a pitch in the sixth inning against the Boston Red Sox during game three of the 2016 ALDS playoff baseball series at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
Indians: Cody Allen, Cody Anderson, Jeff Manship, Zach McAllister, Andrew Miller, Dan Otero, Bryan Shaw
Blue Jays: Danny Barnes, Joe Biagini, Brett Cecil, Scott Feldman, Jason Grilli, Aaron Loup, Roberto Osuna, Ryan Tepera
The 2016 Indians very well might change the way that major league managers use their bullpens. The reason that the Tribe won their aforementioned Bauer start was because Andrew Miller came in in the fifth inning and locked the game down. One of the reasons that Cleveland did this was because they have Cody Allen for the ninth inning. Miller (four innings, two hits, seven strikeouts) and Allen (three innings, five strikeouts, two saves) were each dominant against the Red Sox, and were key cogs in the Indians victories.
The Indians have only used two other relievers outside of Allen and Miller this postseason (Dan Otero and Bryan Shaw) which means the remaining relief corps will be fresh for their showdown with the slugging Jays.
Toronto’s bullpen runs deep as well, as their relief crew has only given up two runs all postseason. Joe Biagini and his 3.2 scoreless innings has been the unlikely hero for their bullpen this postseason, Jason Grilli has pitched two scoreless set-up innings, and closer Roberto Osuna is 1-0 with one save over five scoreless innings, but we all know what happened the last time he pitched against the Indians.
Cleveland went 4-3 against Toronto in the regular season, but it was as close a matchup as either team faced all year. As we’ve shown, there will be star power all over the field in this ALCS, and game-within-the-game tests that will pit some of baseball’s best against each other. With the ultimate prize of a trip to the World Series on the line, that’s exactly the way it should be.
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