After winning the first two games of the ALCS, the Cleveland Indians are in the driver’s seat. However, Terry Francona does have some difficult decisions to make regarding his starting rotation.
Raise your hand if you had the Cleveland Indians going undefeated in their first five postseason games…I bet that’s not many of you. It seemed like the odds were stacked against the American League Central champs going into October. The team was set to play the scorching hot Boston Red Sox with a nearly retired Big Papi. Cleveland also wasn’t particularly playing the best competition heading into the postseason either, with the team not playing a postseason opponent since late August.
However, probably the biggest blow to their postseason outlook were the losses of Carlos Carrasco and Danny Salazar, both of whom are among the best pitchers in the American League. Apart from former Cy Young winner Corey Kluber, this left manager Terry Francona with uncertain options in Trevor Bauer, Josh Tomlin and Mike Clevinger. Losing two top of the rotation starters for the entire postseason would derail most team’s playoff chances, but the Indians have started the playoffs in improbable fashion.
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Not only did the Indians sweep the Red Sox, who were picked by many to represent the American League in the World Series, they did so in short order. Trevor Bauer got the nod in the opening game of the ALDS, and while he wasn’t particularly good, he did enough for the Indians offense to drive the team to victory. Kluber pitched like an ace in the second game of the best-of-five as he threw seven shutout innings. Josh Tomlin also pitched a solid five innings before turning the game over to the bullpen to preserve the sweep.
That formula has worked to perfection again in the opening two contests of the ALCS as well. Kluber pitched a shutout in the series opener with Tomlin doing just enough to get to the ball to Andrew Miller and company in game number two. However, while relying on the some of their dominant relief pitchers has worked thus far, Francona’s management of his starting rotation may be the key to this series. Toronto has a clear advantage there and the Indians cannot let a few bad decisions jeopardize their postseason run.
In light of Bauer cutting his finger before his scheduled start, the Indians had to have Kluber and Tomlin start the first two games at Progressive Field, which pushed Bauer and Clevinger to get the ball in Toronto. However, the Indians’ skipper may be starting to rethink those probables.
According to Jerry Crasnick of ESPN, Francona doesn’t have his rotation set in stone and may decide to pitch his ace on short rest, which is something that Kluber himself would be willing to do, even though he’s never made a start on short rest in his professional career.
"“Yeah, definitely,” Kluber said before Game 1. “I think we’re at the point in the year where anybody is going to do anything they can to help the team win. If that means starting on short rest, pitching out of the bullpen on short rest, if it comes down to it and that’s what the team needs to get a win, then I’m all for it.”"
There has been speculation about whether Francona would be comfortable with the likes of Mike Clevinger and minor league starter Ryan Merritt getting postseason starts because of their lack of experience. The veteran skipper opened up about his flexibility regarding the rest of the series.
"“We’ve talked about not just Game 4, but Games 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7, because there’s a little ambiguity there with Trevor and his finger and Clevinger not being stretched out,” Francona said. “So I think there are some options for us moving forward."
It’s understandable why Francona would fret over these decisions with starting pitching meaning so much in postseason baseball. It’s not a situation that many Indians fans imagined when they looked at their starting rotation before the start of the regular season, but the Indians have succeeded so far in making the best of a challenging situation. Francona will certainly not be taking anything for granted in Toronto because he knows that one poor decision can have a lasting impact on the remainder of the series.
"“The one thing we don’t want is to make a decision that we think puts our team in a good spot if the pitchers don’t feel that way. So we’ll keep communicating with them, and we’ll do what we think is in our best interest. But it can’t just be for one game, because there’s always a trickle-down effect.”"
(Quotes from espn.com)
So while the former two-time World Series winning manager didn’t exactly specify that Kluber may start on short rest on Tuesday, it certainly seems like a strong possibility, especially if the Indians have a chance to sweep the Blue Jays in game four. Obviously, the decision has a lot to do with what happens today and how Kluber feels, but if I had to put money on it, I would expect Kluber to start game four with the Indians putting a heavy workload on their pen when/if they arrive home for game five.
What do you think about the Indians starting Kluber on short rest? Let us know in the comment section below.