How Indians, Astros match up in ALDS

How the Indians and Astros match up in their ALDS: Starting pitching

Indians: Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, Mike Clevinger, Shane Bieber/Trevor Bauer

Astros: Justin Verlander, Gerrit Cole, Dallas Keuchel, Charlie Morton This is the marquee battle of the Indians-Astros series. The Indians will send Kluber to the mound against Verlander in the series opener in a game that could set the stage for what follows. Verlander was 16-9 in 2018. He did not face the Indians in 2018, but in 13 years with the Tigers he was 20-24 against the Tribe. The Indians are the only team that has a winning record against him. Kluber was 20-7 in 2018. He is 6-3 lifetime against the Astros. He faced them twice in 2018 and allowed just two earned runs in 13 1⁄3 innings. Carrasco (17-10, 3.38 ERA) will face Cole (15-5) in Game 2. Carrasco was 8-6 pitching on the road this season. The playoff stage is not too big for him; he pitched 5 2⁄3 scoreless innings against the Yankees in the 2017 ALDS. Cole is 4-0 over his last seven starts. He pitched seven innings in one start against the Indians in 2018 and allowed three runs. Clevinger doesn’t get the recognition of Kluber, Carrasco and Bauer, but he should. He was 13-8 with 207 strikeouts in 2018. He averaged 6 1⁄3 innings a start. Manager Terry Francona could decide to use Bauer in relief of Clevinger in Game 3, which would mean Bieber would start Game 4. Keuchel is 4-1 against the Indians, but 0-1 against them in two starts this season. He made 34 starts in 2018 and was 12-11. He won more on the road (8-5) than at home. He will face Clevinger in Game 3 at Progressive Field on Oct. 8. Indians manager Terry Francona is uncertain whether his Game 4 starter will be Bieber or Bauer. Bauer would relish the opportunity, but he might be more valuable pitching more frequently in pressure situations out of the bullpen, a la Andrew Miller. It’s one of those good problems to have, because Bieber, 11-5, proved he belongs in the Indians rotation. However, he gave up 11 earned runs in two starts before allowing only two hits and no runs in six innings against the White Sox on Sept. 26 in his last start. To be able to save Morton for the fourth game is a reflection of how pitching rich the Astros are. He is 15-3 in 2018 with a 3.13 ERA. Edge: Indians

Infield

Indians: First base: Yonder Alonso, second base: Jose Ramirez, third base: Josh Donaldson, shortstop: Francisco Lindor Astros: First base: Yuli Gurriel, second base: Jose Altuve, third base: Alex Bregman, shortstop: Carlos Correa Donaldson is the wild card for the Indians in the ALDS and as long as they remain in the playoffs. He hit .280 in 16 games with the Indians after being acquired from the Blue Jays at the trading deadline. The more he played, the more confident he was at the plate. Bregman and Gurriel are solid for the Astros on the infield corners with a combined 41 home runs and 188 RBI in 2018. Alonso, albeit somewhat quietly, finished fourth on the Indians with 83 RBI. Alonso is adept at scooping out balls thrown in the dirt. The middle infielders on both teams are their respective pitchers’ best friends for all the hits their flashy gloves turn into outs. Lindor had a much better year than Correa (15 home runs 65 RBI), his friend and rival, at the plate. Lindor scored 129 runs, drove in 92, clouted 38 home runs and hit .277. Lindor, though, has to prove he can produce in the postseason. He was 2-for-18 in the playoffs last year. He drove in two runs in 27 at bats in the 2016 World Series. Ramirez slumped at the end of the season, hitting just .171 over his last 30 games. Like Lindor, he disappeared in the 2017 ALDS, hitting an anemic .100 with two hits in 20 at bats. The Indians will bow out quickly if Lindor and Ramirez fail again. Altuve, the 2017 American League MVP, hit .316 in 2018. He is going into the playoffs at a .315 clip over his last 15 games. He crushed Indians pitching in seven regular season games, collecting 15 hits in 32 at bats. Edge: Astros

Outfield

Indians: Left field: Michael Brantley, center field: Jason Kipnis, right field: Melky Cabrera

Astros: Left field: Marwin Gonzalez, center field: George Springer, right field: Josh Reddick The Indians outfield is vastly improved from the 2017 ALDS trio because Brantley is healthy. He batted .309, scored 89 runs, homered 17 times and drove in 76 runs. He has the edge over Gonzalez, who hit .247. Plus, Brantley’s hunger after missing the 2016 postseason and batting only twice last year can’t be measured. Springer is better than Kipnis defensively, but Springer’s production dropped in 2018, hitting 22 home runs after hitting 34 last year. Kipnis has hit three home runs and drove in 11 while hitting .261 in 14 games as a center fielder. Cabrera still has a smooth hitting stroke. He hit .280 in 250 at bats with six home runs and 36 RBI. He has a strong throwing arm. Reddick has nearly 200 more at bats (433) than Cabrera, but only nine more RBI. He has also tailed off from a year ago when he hit .314 and drove in 82 runs in 477 trips to the plate. In short, the Indians outfield is better than it was a year ago. The Astros outfield is not as productive as it was last season when Springer was named World Series MVP. Edge: Indians

Catcher

Indians: Yan Gomes Astros: Martin Maldonado Gomes hit .266 in 2018 compared to .232 a year ago. He homered 16 times in 2018 and 14 times a year ago, but he drove in more runs last year (56 compared to 48) despite more at bats this season (403⁄341). Maldanado played in 41 games with the Astros after being acquired in a trade with the Angels. He hit .231 and drove in 12 runs with the Astros. Maldanado threw out 17 of 35 would-be base stealers totals this season: five of eight while with Houston. That is important in this series because the Indians led all of baseball with 135 stolen bases. Gomes just finished his worst season throwing out runners. He gunned down 20 of 69 (29 percent) after throwing out 42 percent of base stealers last year. Edge: Astros

Designated hitter

Indians: Edwin Encarnacion Astros: Evan Gattis Encarnacion finished 2018 with 32 home runs and 107 RBI. He is going into the playoffs with a hot bat, hitting .407 with 11 hits in 27 at-bats over his last seven games and five home runs with 22 RBI over his last 30 games. Gattis was the Houston DH in 110 games this season. He does not have Encarnacion’s power. He homered 25 times and drove in 78 runs while batting 407 times: 93 fewer than Encarnacion. Gattis has a .226 batting average compared to .246 for Encarnacion. Edge: Indians

Bullpen

Indians: Oliver Perez, Andrew Miller, Cody Allen, Brad Hand

Astros: Collin McHugh, Lance McCullers, Hector Rondon, Ryan Pressley, Roberto Osuna The Indians bullpen was shaky at times this season, but got back on track in September. It is flexible in the back end, with the addition of lefty Brad Hand, so Francona doesn’t have to use Allen in the closer role every game. Miller is likely in his final month as an Indians pitcher; a strong October will mean a bigger salary in free agency. Bauer isn’t listed here, but he could be a key reliever in middle innings. The Astros are difficult to beat if they have a lead after six innings. Pressley has a remarkable 0.77 ERA in 26 games with the Astros. He and McCullers are used in middle relief. McHugh and Rondon set up closer Osuna, the former Blue Jay who is 12-for-12 in save opportunities with Houston. Edge: Astros