Seven things to watch in the Indians-Blue Jays ALCS
After both the Blue Jays and Indians swept their respective ALDS matchups, the clubs will square off in the ALCS starting Friday. For the Blue Jays, it marks the second straight season reaching the round as they look to return to the World Series for the first time since 1993. The Indians, who last saw the ALCS in 2007, seek their first championship since 1948.
Here are seven things to watch in the ALCS between the Indians and Blue Jays:
Hot pitching vs hot hitting
The Indians rode their starting staff to the postseason in 2016. And though they played the ALDS without two of their three top starters – injured Carlos Carrasco and Danny Salazar – they used an effective bullpen to stifle a Red Sox offense that led the Majors in OPS in the regular season, holding Boston to seven runs total across the three-game sweep. And Salazar could return, in some role, from the forearm strain that has sidelined him since early September.
The Blue Jays’ offense, meanwhile, torched the Rangers’ pitching staff in their ALDS matchup, beating up on aces Cole Hamels and Yu Darvish in the process. With a deep and potent lineup featuring superstars like Josh Donaldson and Jose Bautista and homerun power throughout, the Blue Jays spent the series showing, once again, that no team can be too homer-dependent.
Francisco Lindor
Donaldson, the reigning AL MVP, is probably the biggest star in the series, but no player on either side can match the upside of the young Indians’ shortstop. Lindor, at only 22, is already one of the game’s best all-around players and has been since the day he came up last June.
He does everything well: TORONTO BLUE JAYS third baseman Josh Donaldson (above) is congratulated by teammates after scoring the winning run against the Texas Rangers in the 10th inning during Game 3 of the ALDS at Rogers Centre. Below, Cleveland Indians teammates celebrate after defeating the Boston Red Sox 4-3 in Game 3 of the 2016 ALDS playoff baseball series at Fenway Park. He hits for average and some power, he gets on base, he steals bases at a good clip, and he plays spectacular defense at the game’s most difficult position. And he does it with a certain joyful flair that makes him a delight to watch play.
The injury report
Salazar, even in a limited role, could play a big part in the Indians’ success if he can return to action. The 26-yearold righty struck out 161 batters in 137-plus innings during the regular season, and adding him to the already good Cleveland bullpen would mean the Indians might only need five decent innings from their non-Corey Kluber starters before the relievers can take over.
Meanwhile, the Blue Jays will wait to see if Francisco Liriano or Devon Travis can play in the series. Liriano suffered a concussion on a comebacker during the division series, and Travis sat out all but the first game of the series with a bruised knee.
Encarnacion’s case for free-agent megabucks
The Blue Jays’ first baseman hit two homers and posted a 1.417 OPS in the division series. A pending free agent, Encarnacion already has plenty on his resume to show he’s one of the game’s best power hitters. But the postseason showcase can’t hurt for generating hype, or for putting pressure on the Blue Jays to open up their checkbooks to extend him.
Budding stars
In addition to Lindor, switch-hitting 24-year-old third baseman Jose Ramirez turned in a breakout season for the Indians in 2016 and spearheaded the club’s offense attack against the Red Sox. The Blue Jays feature a trio of extremely promising young pitchers in starters Aaron Sanchez and Marcus Stroman and closer Roberto Ozuna.
Great defense
The Blue Jays and Indians ranked Nos. 1 and 2 in the American League, respectively, by defensive efficiency — the rate at which a team turns batted balls into outs. The Indians do it mostly with slick infield defense from Lindor, Ramirez and second baseman Jason Kipnis. Beyond perennial Gold Glove candidate Josh Donaldson at third, the Blue Jays feature one of the best and most exciting defensive outfielders in the game in center fielder Kevin Pillar.
Russell Martin vs the running game
The Blue Jays’ Ontario-born backstop has a reputation as one of the best defensive catchers in the game, but he struggled throwing out baserunners during the regular season in 2016. After leading the American League by throwing out 44% of wouldbe base stealers in 2015, Martin’s rate plummeted to 15% this season. The Indians led the American League in steals in 2016, and stole them at an excellent 81.2% clip.
(USA Today/TNS)