Now that we have the Wild Card round behind us -- and, man, what great action we were provided by the four teams involved -- it's time to move onto the series. Specifically, the divisional series round.
The Red Sox visit the Indians Thursday evening as the second game in a nice doubleheader of action for the home viewers. Here's the down-and-dirty information:
Time: 8:08 p.m. ET
TV: TBS
Live streaming: Either TBS.com or MLB.tv (full details are in those links)
We've already previewed the entire series in-depth, so those interested in a deep dive should go check it out.
As for Game 1 in Cleveland's Progressive Field, let's take a quick look at the pitching matchup.
Trevor Bauer (12-8, 4.26) vs. Red Sox
The former number three overall pick just finished the most productive season in his career, posting a 110 ERA+, but there are some warts for a division champion's Game 1 starter. That tends to happen when the top three members of the rotation are injured (with Corey Kluber coming back for Game 2). Command issues can arise with Bauer, as he walked 70, hit nine and threw three wild pitches this season. Many times he's able to stave the issue off, but when he doesn't, it can go south quickly.
Bauer has a 4.73 ERA at home this season as opposed to 3.67 on the road and was 3.30 in the first half before a 5.36 second half. In his last six starts, his ERA is 6.39.
In six innings against the Red Sox this season, Bauer gave up six earned runs. Though no one has seen him more than six times -- thus, it's not meaningful data -- overall, current Red Sox are hitting .390 with a 1.139 OPS against him.
So things aren't looking overly promising on this front for the Indians.
Rick Porcello (22-4, 3.15) vs. Indians
Possible AL Cy Young winner Porcello is coming off career bests almost across the board. In 223 innings, he had a 1.01 WHIP and 189 strikeouts. His 5.91 strikeouts per walk was the best in the majors (thanks in part to Clayton Kershaw not qualifying for the ERA title).
On the road, Porcello is a bit worse than at home, but he still boasts a 3.31 ERA and 0.99 WHIP. He was good in the first half but he's really hit his stride down the stretch, posting a 2.62 ERA since the All-Star break.
Porcello saw the Indians back on May 22, going 5 2/3 innings and allowing two runs on five hits.
There's actually a lot of personal history here, due to Porcello's many years with the Tigers. Here are the Indians he's faced more than 20 times:
Carlos Santana: .293/.370/.561, 2 2B, 3 HR in 46 PA
Jason Kipnis: .323/.400/.452, 1 2B, 1 HR in 35 PA
Coco Crisp: .231/.259/.269 in 28 PA
Lonnie Chisenhall: .273/.333/.455 in 24 PA
Mike Napoli: .318/.348/.500, 2 2B, 1 3B in 23 PA
On paper the starting pitching matchup definitely favors the Red Sox and we could probably safely say heavily.
Let's take this chance to note that games aren't won on paper and there's more to a game than the starting pitching matchup.
