Yankees and Indians are set for decisive finale
There were no noticeable signs of panic or pressure. Now is not the time to show any weakness.
As the Cleveland Indians got ready for their biggest game this season, a winner-take-all Game 5 against the New York Yankees, everything seemed normal, routine.
Before answering questions at his news conference, manager — and Cavs’ season-ticket holder — Terry Francona asked about the National Basketball Association team’s new lineup, joked about his limited vocabulary and later tried on all-star shortstop Francisco Lindor’s diamond-encrusted, $30,000 necklace.
The mood around the cage was typically loose Tuesday during batting practice, with a few players shagging flies while keeping an eye on slugger Edwin Encarnacion as he tested his sprained ankle.
Their season is on the line, and the Indians, who haven’t lost three straight since Aug. 1, know it.
“Boils down to the loser goes home,” ace Corey Kluber said.
Unable to put the Yankees away in the booming Bronx, the Indians, who are chasing their first World Series title since 1948, have another chance to advance on Wednesday night — and a date with Houston in Major League Baseball’s American League Championship Series — against a New York team riding momentum into the finale of this AL Division Series.
Cleveland’s 2-0 series lead seemed to vanish in a New York minute.
Backed by a raucous crowd that rocked Yankee Stadium on every pitch, the wild-card winners edged the Indians 1-0 in Game 3, and then took advantage of four errors by one of baseball’s best defensive teams in Game 4 to win 7-3 on Monday night. After the Yankees blew a fiverun lead and lost Game 2 in 13 innings on Friday night, it appeared their days were numbered.
Instead, they fought back. CC Sabathia knew they would.
“This is a team that I felt like every time, whether it’s in a game or coming up through the season, we had tough times or backs against the wall, I felt like we responded really well,” said Sabathia, who will face Kluber in Game 5. “So I didn’t see why we couldn’t go home and play well and end up back here.”
For Yankees manager Joe Girardi, redemption is within reach.
His decision not to ask for a replay review in Game 2 turned New Yorkers against their manager.
“It’s really important,” said Girardi, “for the guys, the organization, the ownership, management, fan base,” he said The Indians may have Encarnacion for the first time since Game 2, when he sprained his right ankle. Cleveland’s cleanup hitter has responded well to treatment and tested his ankle by jogging in the outfield.
Encarnacion’s presence and pop transforms the Indians.
“We know how dangerous he is,” Girardi said. “He’s probably been one of the best RBI guys in our league for the last three or four years. He changes the lineup.”