Pitching at its finest
The Houston Astros, who won backto-back American League West titles, turn their attention to an even more impressive feat — back-to-back World Series championships.
Their first challenger, the Cleveland Indians, are seeking their first World Series title since 1948, the longest current drought in the majors. The best-of-five Division Series pits the two best starting rotations in the AL and two managers, A.J. Hinch and Terry Francona, with championship pedigrees.
There’s no doubt that on paper the Astros have a better team than the Indians. They won 103 games, the second most in the major leagues, and 12 more games than the Indians, who played in a weaker division.
Here’s what each team needs to do to win this series:
Which rotation will step up?
It will be a battle of aces and former Cy Young winners. The Astros are led by Justin Verlander (16-9, 2.52 ERA), Gerrit Cole (15-5, 2.88 ERA), Charlie Morton (15-3, 3.13 ERA) and Dallas Keuchel (12-11 3.74 ERA) and a staff that led the majors with a 3.16 ERA. The Indians will counter with Corey Kluber (20-7, 2.89 ERA), Carlos Carrasco (17-10, 3.38 ERA), Mike Clevinger (13-8, 3.02 ERA) and Trevor Bauer (12-6, 2.21 ERA) and a staff that ranked second in the AL with a 3.39 ERA.
Can Alex Bregman and the stare be stopped?
Bregman thrives on the big stage. The All-Star third baseman flashed signs of his potential last October with four home runs and 10 RBI, despite a .208 batting average. This season he led the offense when Carlos Correa and Jose Altuve were injured and struggled. He hit a careerhigh 31 homers with 103 RBI and had the fifth-best OPS (.926) in the AL. And in clutch situations, he posted a slash line of .386/.488/.735 with runners in scoring position.
Astros must get to the Indians bullpen early
While their rotations might be able to match each other, their bullpens can’t. The Indians bullpen isn’t the same as it was when they won the 2016 AL pennant. Andrew Miller posted a 4.24 ERA after an injury-plagued season. Cody Allen has been inconsistent with five blown saves in 32 chances. However, the Indians did acquire reliever Brad Hand at the trade deadline to try to shore up their shortcomings.
Indians dynamic duo or dud?
Francisco Lindor and Jose Ramirez form a dynamic duo. When they are on their game, the offense flourishes. The two combined for 77 homers, 198 RBI and 59 stolen bases this season. But Lindor has struggled against the Astros, batting .097 (3-for-31) with seven strikeouts in 2018, and Ramirez had a second half to forget, batting .218 with 10 homers. The Indians need them to step up. The pair went a combined 4for-38 and struck out 13 times in losing to the New York Yankees in the ALDS.
Series schedule:
❚ Game 1: Friday, at Houston, TBS, 2:05 p.m. ET
❚ Game 2: Saturday, at Houston, TBS, 4:37 ET
❚ Game 3: Monday, at Cleveland, TBS
❚ Game 4 (if necessary): Tuesday, at Cleveland, TBS
❚ Game 5 (if necessary): Thursday, at Houston, TBS