World Series Preview: Cubs vs. Indians

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The 2016 World Series is as historically significant as a postseason series could possibly be. Decades of accursed heartache, frustration, and apathy culminate in a clash of Midwestern institutions with a combined 176 years of championship-less futility between them.

The Cleveland Indians last won the World Series in 1948, one year after Jackie Robinson broke baseball's color barrier (and Cleveland's own Larry Doby did the same in the American League). The Chicago Cubs have not reigned as champions since 1908. Between failures and jinxes, goats and black cats, heartbreak and miraculous calamities, these two baseball towns have finally put themselves in a position to shed long-awaited tears of joy.

To reach the World Series, the Indians have sprung from borderline apathy. After winning six division titles in a seven-year stretch (including five in a row) from 1995 to 2001, Cleveland had made the playoffs only twice in the 14 years since then.

An 81-80 record last year only compounded the relative normality of a moribund franchise with the dubious distinction of having a popular fictional film in their honor (Major League), celebrating the team's depravity, to alleviate some of the disappointment fans have had to live with along the way. The last time the Indians made it to the World Series, they faced off against a Florida Marlins franchise that was in its mere fifth year of existence. The talented youngsters of that squad managed a walk-off hit by Edgar Renteria to clinch Florida's first title and Cleveland's return to irrelevance.

This season was a complete turnabout from those circumstances. A 14-game consecutive wins streak capped a June month that saw Cleveland go 22-6, raising their record from a respectable 35-30 to a remarkable 49-30. Reigning Cy Young winner Cory Kluber led the pitching staff with another stellar year, finishing with a 18-9 record and 3.14 ERA.

Trevor Bauer, the youngest pitcher on the entire staff to throw over 60 innings, proved his worth as he went 12-8 with a 4.26 ERA. Cleveland's offense provided plenty of support, plating the 5th-highest run total in the league even though their home run totals were low.

The Cubs have been working towards this outcome ever since team president Theo Epstein took over the reigns five years ago. Their history of ineptitude has enough detail to fill volumes, so long versions of that information will be spared here. Quick rundown: No title since 1908; no pennant since 1945; six outs from the 2003 World Series before the super villain known as Bartman burst onto the scene. This team, and season, has skewed differently, however.

For starters, this was the first Cubs team to get as many as 103 wins since 1910. Only two Cubs teams have been younger than this one in the last 40 years, and those have come in the last two years. The movement is lead by Anthony Rizzo, Addison Russell, Kris Bryant, Javy Baez, Wilson Contreras, and Jorge Soler. All of their ages range from 22 to 26, so don't be surprised if they stick around for a while.

The matchups for the first four games are as follows:

Game 1, Tuesday, Oct. 25, 8 p.m: Jon Lester (Cubs) vs. Corey Kluber (Indians)
Game 2, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 8 p.m: Jake Arrieta (Cubs) vs. Trevor Bauer (Indians)
Game 3, Friday, Oct. 28, 5 p.m: Josh Tomlin (Indians) vs. Kyle Hendricks (Cubs)
Game 4, Saturday, Oct. 30: TBD (Indians) vs. John Lackey (Cubs)

No matter the outcome of the Series, a great baseball mind will receive credit for two of the greatest accomplishments in sports history. If Chicago wins, Theo Epstein will have put together a championship Boston Red Sox team, which had not happened since 1918, and this Cubs team. If the Indians win, Terry Francona will have managed that 2004 Boston team in addition to this version of the Indians. Regardless, both men should be celebrated as saints and saviors by the cities they have cultivated impossible success from.

Prediction: The Chicago Cubs, on the strength of a fantastic starting pitching rotation, an impossible closer, and the joyful exuberance of their young players giving all they have while enjoying the game they love, will take the World Series by a 4-1 margin.

Cubs Send Kyle Schwarber to Arizona Fall League

(photo credit: mlb.com)

The Chicago Cubs have sent Kyle Schwarber to the Arizona Fall League. He could possibly join the team if they advance to the World Series. They will look to advance with a win in Game 6 over the Los Angeles Dodgers tonight.

Schwarber tore his ACL and LCL at the very beginning of the season and it was determined that he wouldn't return at all this season. However, he could play as a designated hitter in the World Series should they advance. He hit five home runs for the team back in the 2015 playoffs. They were swept by the New York Mets in the NLCS in 2015.

ALCS Preview: Blue Jays vs. Indians

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The American League Championship Series begins Friday, October 14 as the Toronto Blue Jays and Cleveland Indians square off in a best-of-seven series to determine the American League representative in the 2016 World Series.

Cleveland reached the League Championship Series by continuing the regular season success they had straight into the playoffs. The 94-67 record the Indians finished with earned them the Central Division crown and left them one win behind the Texas Rangers (in one less game played) for best record in the AL. Cleveland faced the Boston Red Sox in the Division Series and proceeded to dispatch of them in a 3-game sweep. Game 1 was a 5-4 nailbiter, followed by a 6-0 pounding in Game 2, and concluding with 4-3 clincher in Game 3.

The Indians were powered by a team-high five hits and four runs from third baseman Jose Ramirez. Five different players had a home run each, and Lonnie Chisenhall led the team with four RBIs during the three games they played. Cleveland's three starting pitchers (Corey Kluber, Josh Tomlin, and Trevor Bauer) combined for 16 2/3 innings pitched, giving up five runs on 13 hits and four walks, with 17 strikeouts along the way. The bullpen pitched 10.1 innings, giving up just two runs on eight hits with 14 strikeouts.

Toronto earned their way into the postseason by qualifying for a one-game wildcard against the Baltimre Orioles, winning in dramatic, walk-off fashion courtesy of an extra-inning home run by Edwin Encarnacion. From there, the Blue Jays powered their way through sweeping the Texas Rangers, raking 10 home runs (3 by the red-hot Encarnacion) on the heels of four different players (Encarnacion, Troy Tulowitzki, Ezequiel Carrera and Josh Donaldson) putting up six hits each in the three games of the series.

The Indians enter the league championship series hoping to end the 68-year drought since the last time Cleveland won the World Series, in 1948. The Blue Jays won in back-to-back years in 1992 and 1993, including Joe Carter's championship-clinching, walk-off homerun to win the Series in 1992. 2015 was the only playoff appearance for the team since the '93 championhsip. The Indians made it to the World Series as recently as 1997, only to fall to the upstart Florida Marlins, and 1995 before falling to the Atlanta Braves.

Game 1 begins at 8:00 pm ET, with Corey Kluber taking the mound for Cleveland, and Marco Estrada getting the nod for Toronto.

NLDS Preview: Dodgers vs. Nationals

(photo credit: USA Today)

When the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Washington Nationals meet for a highly-anticipated NLDS, both squads will be looking to shake off recent postseason disappointment. Despite having some of the league’s most talented rosters, Los Angeles and Washington have not made it past the NLCS dating back to 2012. The Nationals missed the playoffs last season, while Los Angeles enters with the longest active postseason streak in the MLB. 

Unlike in year’s past, Los Angeles will enter this series as a healthy team, but that wasn’t the case in the regular season. Los Angeles placed 28 players on the disabled list, which was an MLB record, a record you don’t want to have. One of those 28 players was ace Clayton Kershaw, who missed most of the season but is back and healthy for the postseason. In fact, Kershaw will be the Game 1 starter for LA, while Max Scherzer will be on the bump for Washington. 

Kershaw was 12-4 with a 1.69 ERA this season, but he has struggled mightily in the postseason. He’s compiled a 4.64 ERA in 64 postseason innings. With Stephen Strasburg not available for the Nationals, Scherzer is far and away their number one pitcher. Scherzer went 20-7 with a 2.97 ERA this season, while also posting a 0.97 WHIP. Rich Hill will start Game 2 for Los Angeles, while Kenta Maeda is slated to start Game 3 for the Dodgers. Washington has not announced who will start in those games, but expect Tanner Roark and Gio Gonzalez to be in consideration for those starts.

 Los Angeles and Washington met six times this season, with Los Angeles taking five of those six games. Los Angeles (91-71) turned a seven-game deficit in the division into a NL West title. Washington (95-67), ran away with the NL East, as they were not in first place for only four days during the season. The Nationals earned home-field advantage in the series, so Games 1 and 2 will be played at Nationals Park. The series will then shift to LA, where Games 3 and 4 (if necessary) will be played at Dodger Stadium. Finally, if the series does go to a fifth game, then that would go back to Nationals Park for a do-or-die Game 5. 

Los Angeles has some serious power at the plate, and most of that comes from their young stars. Shortstop Corey Seager has put together a season that has put him into consideration for NL Rookie of the Year, and even NL MVP. Seager hit .308 with 26 homers and 72 RBI’s. Outfielder Joc Pederson also presents a problem at the plate, as he hit .246 with 25 homers and 68 RBI’s. Veterans Adrian Gonzalez and Chase Utley have the experience and the ability to impact a series. 

On the other side, Washington’s lineup has been severely impacted by injuries. Second baseman Daniel Murphy, who’s been one of the best hitters in the MLB (hit .347 with 104 RBI’s) has been dealing with a glute strain, but he’s expected to play in Game 1. 

Star outfielder Bryce Harper, who’s had a down season and has been dealing with a thumb injury, will also be able to play in the series. He hit just .243 with 24 homers and 86 RBI’s. Catcher Wilson Ramos, who’s been one of the MLB’s best catchers all season, will not be playing in this series with a knee injury.  Game 1 is today at 5:38 p.m. ET, and it can be watched on FS1.  

ALDS Preview: Rangers vs Blue Jays

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The Texas and Rangers and Toronto Blue Jays in the ALDS for the second consecutive season. In last season's meeting, the Blue Jays advanced in just five games.

The iconic moment in the series was when Jose Bautista hit a home run to give the Blue Jays the lead in Game 5. After hitting the home run, he threw his bat in what has been known as a "bat flip". This angered the Rangers all offseason.

In their last meeting back on May 15, Bautista got into a fight with Rougned Odor. There is a lot of bad blood between these two teams. This could carry on into this series. 

NLDS Preview: Giants vs Cubs

Who said it was going to be easy for the 2016 Chicago Cubs? All the pressure has been on the Cubs dating back to last December. They had high expectations and a lot of hype coming into this year. At the least, they’ve lived up to every single bit of expectations they had after posting a 103 win season for the first 100 win season since 1935. 

From now on though, those last 162 games do not matter. The players, fans, and organization is focused on one thing, and thats gold in October. With the Giants winning the wild card game, the Cubs now have their opponent for the NLDS. They will have their work cut out for them but the Cubs are the team to beat in all of baseball. 

In the regular season, the Cubs won the season series vs San Fran going 4-3. Now, Cubs fans, you know that means nothing. Last year the Cubs swept the New York Mets in the regular season but then come October the Mets swept the Cubs when it meant most and knocked them right out of the playoffs. But it's still something to point out. They also outscored the Giants 23-17 this year while our pitching staff had an ERA of 1.94 vs the Giants bats. 

Talking about pitching, lets look at the pitching matchup:

Game 1: Cueto/Lester- If you remember the series in early September at Wrigley Field, Jon Lester cruised through the Giants lineup through 7 innings and flirted with a no hitter. That's something that sticks out in my mind. With Lester on the mound, there will also be great defense around him. Expect Baez at 3rd base and Bryant in LF for game 1. Cueto is very dominate vs the Cubs this season though. Cubs hitters are hitting just .200 vs him this season. Cueto got exactly what he wanted though and thats to see the Cubs in the post season. It should be a fun game 1 to set the tone for the series.

Game 2: Samardzija/Hendricks- Jeff Samardzija spent 7 years on the North Side of the Chicago before getting shipped out to Oakland in the deal that landed us Addison Russell. He said he got sick of waiting for the future in Chicago and waiting for prospects that may never pan out. Boy, did they ever & now he will have to face them in October form. Hendricks will try and match his regular season numbers in the post season and cause a lot of weak contact on the ground like he has all year.

Game 3: Bumgarner/Arrieta- This is a match up a lot of people will want to tune in for. No matter what team you root for. Bumgarner's stats speak for itself in the post season. In 15 post season starts he has a 1.94 ERA and he proved that in this years Wild Card game. If Arrieta can minimize the runs against the Giants and the Cubs batters can run up Mad Bum's pitch count to get to their bullpen, they will be in good shape. It's going to be hard to get a run or two off of Bumgarner but their bullpen is a whole different story. The Cubs never quit and will eat their bullpen alive this whole series. Arrieta loves the west coast. His last 6 starts in the state of California: 0.20 ERA, 45.0 IP, 15 Hits, and 1 ER. Those are insane numbers. We will see if he can continue that this series on the west coast in game 3. 

This is going to be a fun exciting series both ways. If you're a fan of baseball, you're in for a treat. Nothing is going to be given. The last series between these two teams, in September, each game was decided by a run. Get pumped. 

ALDS Preview: Boston Red Sox vs. Cleveland Indians

(photo credit: Boston Globe)

The AL Central Division Champions, the Cleveland Indians (94-67), will host the AL East Champions, Boston Red Sox (93-69) at Progressive Field for games one and two before heading to Fenway Park for games three and four. If a game five is needed, it'll be held in Cleveland.

The last time these two teams met in the playoffs was nine years ago in the ALCS. The Indians would lose that series in seven games. Boston scored eight runs in the last two innings of game seven that sealed their trip to the World Series, which they would win.

The Red Sox won the season series with the Indians going 4-2. Five of those six games came before June, and before Cleveland began to pick up steam. In Game 1 of the ALDS, which starts Thursday Night (8:00 pm, TBS), the Indians will start Trevor Bauer who has a 12-8 record with a 4.26 ERA, but who has been incredibly inconsistent of late. In Bauer's last seven starts, he has an ERA of 7.28. The Red Sox on the other hand, will start AL Cy Young favorite, Rick Porcello (22-4, 3.15 ERA). Porcello hasn't allowed more than three earned runs in game since July 24.

In game two of the ALDS, the Indians will start their ace, Corey Kluber, who has a 18-9 record with a 3.14 ERA. He'll be going against another ace for the Red Sox in David Price. The former Tampa Bay Rays ace went 17-9 with a 3.99 ERA for Boston in 2016. The Red Sox gave Price a seven-year, $217 million deal prior to the season.

 Given the massive contract, Price has given up a lot runs during the course of the season. His 1.17 home runs per nine innings was the second most of his career. Price, however, has only allowed two or fewer runs in all but two of his last ten games. In his only start against Cleveland this season, which was Opening Day, Price was able to limit the Tribe to only two earned runs on two hits, while striking out ten batters through six innings.

For the Indians, Kluber has been their workhorse yet again this season. Kluber is also in the mix for the AL Cy Young Award this season. He was fifth among AL starters in innings pitched (215), fourth in strikeouts per nine innings (9.50), fourth in earned run average (3.14), first in fielding independent pitching (3.26), and second in FanGraphs WAR (5.1) behind a three-way tie of Chris Sale of the Chicago White Sox, Justin Verlander of the Detroit Tigers and Rick Porcello of the Red Sox.

Game three of the ALDS will take place at Fenway Park, with Clay Buchholz taking the mound. Buchholz had a rough season, going 8-10 with a 4.78 ERA. He had a major problem with giving up home runs, as well as issuing walks on the season.

The Indians will combat Buchholz with Josh Tomlin, who went 13-9 on the season with a 4.40 ERA. In Tomlin's last four starts of the season, he only allowed five earned runs while only surrendering one home run. He also didn't allow a single walk during that span. In Tomlin's only start against the Red Sox, back on August 15, he only allowed three runs on seven hits with zero walks in 7.2 innings.

If games four and five are needed, it'll mean both teams could be in panic mode. The Red Sox would likely start either Rick Porcello or David Price. The Indians could go with Corey Kluber or game one starter Trevor Bauer.