Thursday, October 20, 2016

ALCS Review - World Series Bound!


WE'RE GOING TO THE WORLD SERIES!

You read that right! Your 2016 Cleveland Indians are heading to the fall classic, their first World Series appearance since 1997. Terry Francona's team have a chance to join Cleveland immortality, to be up there with the Tribe greats like Bob Feller, Satchel Paige, Bob Lemon, Larry Doby and Lou Boudreau. 

I am writing these words just minutes after Carlos Santana gloved the final out of game 5 and I'm still stunned that the Indians were able to dispatch the Blue Jays so convincingly, emerging as 4-1 victors in the ALCS to take the pennant.

Onto the review:

Game 1 - Friday, October 14, 2016 - Progressive Field


We waited a long time for Francisco Lindor. Or at least it felt like a long time, such was the level of anticipation for the Puerto Rican to make his debut in the show. The 21 year-old broke onto the big stage in 2015 and narrowly missed out on the AL Rookie of the Year award. He was everything we hoped for and more. His sophomore season saw him continue his development, becoming a leader in the clubhouse and earning a spot on the All Star team. Lindor was a big reason why the Indians won the AL Central this season. I wouldn't swap him for any other shortstop in the majors.

And then he went and added to his lore, by coming up big in the post-season, thanks to a huge home run in game 1 of the ALDS that KO'ed Boston and then another homer in game 1 of the ALCS. Toronto never saw him coming, but Indians fans did. We've known about him for years and it's about time the national media did too.

With Corey Kluber bending but not breaking and Marco Estrada in the midst of a strong outing, Lindor came to the plate in the top of the 6th inning with the game scoreless. With 1 out and Kipnis at first base after a walk, Lindor patiently waited for his pitch and pounced on an Estrada change-up left up just a little bit. And that was all she wrote, as Lindor golfed it into the right center field stands and the Indians never looked back. Lindor's homer gave the Indians a 2-0 lead that they weren't going to surrender and the Tribe took game 1.

A quick word must be said for the Indians pitching staff too. To keep that monster Toronto lineup scoreless was a real achievement. Kluber pitched into the 7th inning and despite not being his usual dominant self, he still kept the Jays off the board. He wriggled out of a few potential scoring opportunities for Toronto so credit must go to our ace.

And then Andrew Miller entered the game and did his thing. In 1.2 innings of work Miller fanned 5 Blue Jays to completely extinguish any remaining threat the visitors posed. Cody Allen pitched the 9th and retired the side in order, striking out Michael Saunders in the process, and picked up the save. Miller has understandably taken all the plaudits but Allen has been stellar as well in October.

Game 2 - Saturday, October 15, 2016 - Progressive Field


When the Indians traded for Andrew Miller at the end of July, I had some misgivings. I knew he was an elite reliever that could (and would) take our bullpen to the next level. But I was sad to see us lose Clint Frazier, the center field prospect the Tribe drafted in 2013. Frazier was the first draft pick that I had researched properly prior to the draft so I followed his ascent up the minor league ladder with more interest than usual. So when we sent him packing to the Yankees I was gutted that he'd never make it to the majors in an Indians uniform. I don't think he was too far away either, and the Yankees definitely have a good one on their books.

However, with all that being said, acquiring Miller might prove to be one of the best trades the Indians have ever made. After dominating the Red Sox in the ALDS and blanking the Blue Jays in game 1, Miller pitched on back-to-back nights and was sensational yet again.

Josh Tomlin got the start and had another great outing, pitching 5.2 innings and striking out 6, giving up just a single run, a Josh Donaldson RBI double. Bryan Shaw finished up the 6th inning, facing just one batter, a Troy Tulowitzki ground ball out.

Enter Miller, and the big lefty just took Toronto apart. He pitched the 7th and 8th innings and never let a batter even sniff first base. Miller struck out 5 Blue Jays and made them look foolish, keeping them so off balance they had a hard time staying upright and not hitting the dirt. His breaking stuff is just cruel at this point. Cody Allen entered the game in the 9th and earned another save, striking out 2 in a flawless performance.

The Blue Jays pitched a good game as well, limiting the Indians to just 4 hits in total. Francisco Lindor had half of those, one of which was a liner up the middle in the bottom of the 3rd inning, scoring Rajai Davis to give the Indians a 2-1 lead. The scoreline didn't budge for the rest of the game and just like that, the Tribe had a 2-0 lead in the ALCS.

Game 3 - Monday, October 17, 2016 - Rogers Centre


The Indians travelled north for game 3, to the Rogers Centre in Toronto. I'd seen Jays fans on social media and forums saying how things would be different on their home turf, how Toronto would make things right and get back in the series.

The Indians wouldn't let them though, even when starter Trevor Bauer had to exit the game in the 1st inning as the injury to his pinkie finger resurfaced. Hey Trevor, how about in the future you put the toys and drones away in October?

Despite losing their starter much earlier than anticipated, the Indians turned to their bullpen and it was a real team effort as the Tribe sent 6 arms to the mound over the course of the game. Dan Otero, Jeff Manship, Zach McAllister, Bryan Shaw, Cody Allen and Andrew Miller all combined to pitch a collective 8.1 innings, allowing just 2 earned runs, 1 walk, and struck out 8 Jays, with Shaw, Allen and Miller getting most of those.

The Tribe offense collected 7 hits altogether, with Mike Napoli and Jason Kipnis breaking out of their October slumps to record key home runs. Kipnis' homer in the 6th inning was especially crucial, breaking open a tie game. Jose Ramirez added some insurance with a single in that inning to score Napoli, increasing the lead to 4-2 and the Jays couldn't recover, dropping game 3 in front of their home crowd.

Game 4 - Tuesday, October 18, 2016 - Rogers Centre


In front of a rabid Toronto crowd the Blue Jays proved the Indians were not invincible after all, beating the Tribe 5-1 to take back a game in the series.

Jays starter Aaron Sanchez stymied the Indians lineup over 6 strong innings, limiting them to just 2 hits and 1 earned run, a Roberto Perez double that scored Coco Crisp in the top of the 5th inning. Toronto's bullpen pitched the final three innings and kept the Indians from mounting a comeback.

Corey Kluber, on only 3 day's rest, pitched well but couldn't prevent the Jays taking their first lead in the entire ALCS. Josh Donaldson clubbed a solo homer in the bottom of the 3rd to put Toronto ahead and Ezequiel Carrera blooped a single in the bottom of the 4th that Tyler Naquin really should have caught, allowing Troy Tulowitzki to score. That was all Kluber allowed but the Indians offense couldn't overcome the Jays' slim lead, and the Tribe bullpen surrendered 3 more runs later in the game to put the result beyond them. You can't win them all I suppose but the Indians still had a commanding series lead heading into game 5.

Game 5 - Wednesday, October 19, 2016 - Rogers Centre


With the Indians rotation still hurting, the Tribe turned to rookie pitcher Ryan Merritt for game 5 of the ALCS. Merritt, the 24 year-old lefty who previously had just 1 career start (and win) to his name, stepped to the mound in the biggest game of his career and the most important in recent Indians' history.

The rookie wasn't shaken by the moment though and pitched superbly, as he lasted into the 5th inning without allowing a run, as he struck out 3 Blue Jays in the process. For a guy making just his second start in the major leagues, he certainly didn't let the bright lights get to him. Nerves of steel from the rookie.

The Tribe offense got their customary early lead, thanks to a Mike Napoli double in the 1st inning and a Carlos Santana home run in the 3rd. Veteran outfielder Coco Crisp added another post-season homer to his résumé, knocking one over the fence in the top of the 4th inning to stretch the Tribe lead to 3-0.

After Merritt departed in the 5th inning, Bryan Shaw recorded some key outs before handing the ball to Andrew Miller with 2 outs in the 6th. When Miller entered the game, even I could hear the groans from the Rogers Centre all the way over here in England. He continued his post-season dominance and was incredibly efficient in his work, throwing just 21 pitches over 2.2 scoreless innings, as he kept the Jays from mustering any sort of comeback, thanks to that unhittable slider he has in his arsenal. Miller deservedly took home the ALCS MVP award for all of his unbelievable performances in this series.

Enter Cody Allen for the 9th inning, who hadn't blown a save on the road all season. He made us sweat a bit after surrendering a lead-off double to Jose Bautista, but then Allen settled in to record the final three outs with relative ease. The Indians emerged 3-0 winners on the night and took the ALCS series 4-1 to win their first AL pennant since 1997 and progress to the World Series. Cue delirious celebrations in the Rogers Centre visitor's locker room that will undoubtedly last long into the night.

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The Indians now await the victors of the NLCS, as game 1 of the World Series isn't until Tuesday 25 October. Personally I'd rather take the Dodgers than the Cubs, although Chicago have shown signs of vulnerability in October. After the Tribe's dominance over Boston and Toronto, I'm feeling confident, whoever the opposition will be.

In the meantime, if a generous soul wants to send me one of these t-shirts, I'd greatly appreciate it!


Thanks for reading.

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