The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Tribe to beat Dodgers in 2017 World Series
Don’t believe everything you hear coming out of Las Vegas. Like, for example, don’t believe adding star pitcher Chris Sale means the Boston Red Sox will win the American League pennant in 2017.
The Red Sox also lost slugger David Ortiz to retirement.
The Indians, on the other hand, return their formidable starting rotation intact. They lost Mike Napoli’s big bat in free agency, but they added Edwin Encarnacion’s even louder bat and are getting back Michael Brantley’s timely hitting.
Sale, to put it delicately, had difficulty controlling his emotions with the Chicago White Sox when things didn’t go his way. Imagine how the pressure will build when those white sharks in the Boston media attack him if he gets rocked in back-to-back starts in Fenway Park? The lefty’s 17-10 record last year won’t mean much.
Losing Game 7 to the Chicago Cubs last fall was heart-breaking, but the Indians didn’t crack under pressure. They never were supposed to get that far — at least according to those oracles in Las Vegas — but took the Cubs to 10 innings in the winner-take-all game.
The Tribe will be able to call on that experience gained last fall if somehow the Central Division is still tight in the last two weeks in September. They know how to manufacture victories in the postseason if injuries force Manager Terry Francona to alter plans.
Add it all up, and from this vantage point it will be the Indians, not the Red Sox, representing the American League when the World Series begins on Oct. 24. Furthermore, it won’t be a rematch of the 2016 World Series, even though the oddsmakers in Vegas have made the Cubs favorites to repeat as champions. Instead, the Indians will defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers in six games to win their first World Series title since 1948.
Nothing was fluky about the Indians’ march to the pennant last year. If anything, they were the poster team for perseverance because they won despite Brantley missing 151 games with complications from a 2015 shoulder injury, and Abraham Almonte missing 80 games while being suspended for using PEDs — an indiscretion that made him ineligible for the postseason.
There are no holes in the Indians’ everyday lineup. They are starting the season April 3 in Texas with Jason Kipnis on the disabled list with a
sore right shoulder. Once he returns by mid-to-late April the biggest challenge for Francona will be deciding the batting order for his stacked lineup.
Once Kipnis returns, Francona could have designated hitter Carlos Santana leading off, followed by shortstop Francisco Lindor, left fielder Brantley, first baseman Encarnacion, third baseman Jose Ramirez, second baseman Kipnis, center fielder Tyler Naquin, right fielder Abraham Almonte and catcher Yan Gomes.
That’s a scary lineup for any pitcher to face — even Sale.
Yandy Diaz is likely start at third against the Rangers on opening day. Right fielder Lonnie Chisenhall is on the disabled list with a sore shoulder. But he’ll be eligible to return on April 9.
Starting rotations don’t get much better than Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, Danny Salazar, Josh Tomlin and Trevor Bauer. And when one of the starters is injured, as will inevitably happen in a six-month season, help from Mike Clevinger and Ryan Merritt in Columbus is a phone call away.
Francona is sometimes accused of over-working his bullpen, but he will be careful how he uses Boone Logan, Bryan Shaw and Andrew Miller to get to closer Cody Allen. The Indians might have to play 174 games before the World Series begins. Francona doesn’t want those golden arms to turn into limp noodles.
So put your money on the Indians and don’t worry about political correctness. Chief Wahoo will have reason to smile seven months from today.