2021 Series #23 | Indians @ Cubs | June 21-22

[Wham with the Right Hand]

The Indians head west to take on the Cubbies for a short two-game series. The Cubs are 40-32 and have lost 5 of their last 7 games. They are a very impressive 25-12 at home against 15-20 away which is one of the biggest home/road differentials in baseball. We'll be getting the Cubs at their best - in Wrigley.

The Indians swept the Cubs in two games in Cleveland by scores of 3-2 and 2-1 with Bieber and Hentges starting. I doubt we'll be holding the Cubs to three runs this series. But they've only scored 16 runs in their last 8 games so they are not swinging the bats well at the moment.

At home the Cubs are averaging 4.84 runs per game against 3.85 on the road. They are big swingers, ranking 5th in the majors in home runs per game, 28th in batting average and 21st in OBP. They are 21st in stolen base attempts and 27th in success rate. They basically just wait for the home run.

There was a column in the Chicago paper recently where the Cubs were talking about needing to play more small ball because they've been hitting so many solo and two-run homers. Because of so few runners on base they don't score that much despite all the dingers. But they're not built for speed.

Their pitching is good, ranking 12th in the majors in ERA at 3.84. Craig Kimbrell is an elite closer with 20 saves and 10 hits allowed in 29.1 innings. His ERA is 0.61. They have two set-up guys with 15 and 17 holds and ERA's of 1.78 and 1.82. You can't be behind after six innings.

Kris Bryant, 3B, is having a good year at .279/.877 with 13 HR's and 39 RBI's. He's been awesome against lefties (1.329 OPS) but just average against righties (.247/.746) so that's good for the Indians. His OPS is 200 points higher on the road, another good thing for the Tribe.

Anthony Rizzo, 1B, has a wierd split, hitting .357 against lefties and .216 against righties. I don't expect Tito will be using Kyle Nelson the next couple of days. It will be all right-handers facing the Cubs unless the game is totally out of hand.

Joc Peterson is hitting .250/.834 against righties so they need to be careful with him. Other than Bryant, Rizzo, and Peterson nobody is having a good year at the dish. Their team batting average is .226

Tonight Aaron Civale goes for his 11th win against Adbert Alzolay, 4-5, 4.24. Alzolay is a right-hander who went six innings against the Indians in the first series and allowed three runs in the 3-2 loss. He has been out for two weeks with a finger blister so he might be a bit rusty. They will have him on a pitch count tonight. Alzolay averages 5.2 innings per start. He throws an 86 mph slider and ranks in the 61st percentile in chase rate, so the Indians need to look for that slider and not chase it out of the zone. Alzolay gets a lot of swings and misses. His whiff rate is 28.2%. The Indians need to be patient against this guy. He threw 94 pitches against them in May so they should know what he tries to do.

Civale is coming off a rough start where he allowed 9 hits and 5 runs in 5 innings against the Orioles. With no sticky stuff allowed anymore (umps will start checking for it tonight) everyone expects to see an increase in offense across the league. I'm not looking for a 2-1 game tonight. I don't know if Civale has been using it and if so, how much it will impact his effectiveness, but we'll see what happens tonight. I'm wondering if he already went off it in that last start against Baltimore. Civale's ERA has been climbing: 2.94 in April, 3.57 in May, and 4.26 in June. I'm getting concerned.

We need to win tonight because tomorrow it's Eli Morgan (12.57 ERA) against Kyle Hendricks (9-4, 4.13). Hendricks got torched in April but his more recent ERA's are 2.67 in May and 2.96 in June, so he's been great the last eight weeks. One ray of hope; his home ERA is 4.60 and lefties are hitting .314/.982 against him. Batters are hitting .120 against him with RISP so he knuckles down with runners on base. He allows base runners (1.30 WHIP) but doesn't let them score. The Indians have excelled with RISP in June so we'll see who wins that matchup, assuming we get some runners on second and third.

Still, Morgan vs. Hendricks and his 9 wins and 2.85 ERA the last two months is no contest, so we better win tonight behind Civale.

The Tribe is 21-12 against the AL Central and .500 against everyone else.

Harold Ramirez has three HR's in the last two games and says he's trying to get more elevation on the ball. Well, it's working. He still needs to stop chasing so many pitches that are not even close.

Trevor Stephan is quietly starting to figure out how to use that big arm of his. In his last 10 innings he's given up 7 hits, 5 walks, 2 earned runs, and struck out 11. The two runs both came on solo home runs with the Indians down 6-2 in an 8-2 loss.

We're seeing young pitchers like Stephan, Quantrill, Hentges, and Mejia starting to turn things around. They all have a lot of arm talent but have been inconsistant. Bryan Shaw has hit a rough patch and Kyle Nelson imploded against the Pirates, but otherwise the bullpen is looking good and the young starters are making baby steps. Plesac threw a bullpen and is due for another today. Reyes is taking batting practice. Josie pinch hit yesterday and hopefully will be ready to at least DH this series.

The Indians are 11-6 in their last 17 games and help is on the way.

 

[Andrew Scheid]

The Indians head west to take on the Cubbies for a short two-game series. The Cubs are 40-32 and have lost 5 of their last 7 games. They are a very impressive 25-12 at home against 15-20 away which is one of the biggest home/road differentials in baseball. We'll be getting the Cubs at their best - in Wrigley.

The Indians swept the Cubs in two games in Cleveland by scores of 3-2 and 2-1 with Bieber and Hentges starting. I doubt we'll be holding the Cubs to three runs this series. But they've only scored 16 runs in their last 8 games so they are not swinging the bats well at the moment.

At home the Cubs are averaging 4.84 runs per game against 3.85 on the road. They are big swingers, ranking 5th in the majors in home runs per game, 28th in batting average and 21st in OBP. They are 21st in stolen base attempts and 27th in success rate. They basically just wait for the home run.

There was a column in the Chicago paper recently where the Cubs were talking about needing to play more small ball because they've been hitting so many solo and two-run homers. Because of so few runners on base they don't score that much despite all the dingers. But they're not built for speed.

Their pitching is good, ranking 12th in the majors in ERA at 3.84. Craig Kimbrell is an elite closer with 20 saves and 10 hits allowed in 29.1 innings. His ERA is 0.61. They have two set-up guys with 15 and 17 holds and ERA's of 1.78 and 1.82. You can't be behind after six innings.

Kris Bryant, 3B, is having a good year at .279/.877 with 13 HR's and 39 RBI's. He's been awesome against lefties (1.329 OPS) but just average against righties (.247/.746) so that's good for the Indians. His OPS is 200 points higher on the road, another good thing for the Tribe.

Anthony Rizzo, 1B, has a wierd split, hitting .357 against lefties and .216 against righties. I don't expect Tito will be using Kyle Nelson the next couple of days. It will be all right-handers facing the Cubs unless the game is totally out of hand.

Joc Peterson is hitting .250/.834 against righties so they need to be careful with him. Other than Bryant, Rizzo, and Peterson nobody is having a good year at the dish. Their team batting average is .226

Tonight Aaron Civale goes for his 11th win against Adbert Alzolay, 4-5, 4.24. Alzolay is a right-hander who went six innings against the Indians in the first series and allowed three runs in the 3-2 loss. He has been out for two weeks with a finger blister so he might be a bit rusty. They will have him on a pitch count tonight. Alzolay averages 5.2 innings per start. He throws an 86 mph slider and ranks in the 61st percentile in chase rate, so the Indians need to look for that slider and not chase it out of the zone. Alzolay gets a lot of swings and misses. His whiff rate is 28.2%. The Indians need to be patient against this guy. He threw 94 pitches against them in May so they should know what he tries to do.

Civale is coming off a rough start where he allowed 9 hits and 5 runs in 5 innings against the Orioles. With no sticky stuff allowed anymore (umps will start checking for it tonight) everyone expects to see an increase in offense across the league. I'm not looking for a 2-1 game tonight. I don't know if Civale has been using it and if so, how much it will impact his effectiveness, but we'll see what happens tonight. I'm wondering if he already went off it in that last start against Baltimore. Civale's ERA has been climbing: 2.94 in April, 3.57 in May, and 4.26 in June. I'm getting concerned.

We need to win tonight because tomorrow it's Eli Morgan (12.57 ERA) against Kyle Hendricks (9-4, 4.13). Hendricks got torched in April but his more recent ERA's are 2.67 in May and 2.96 in June, so he's been great the last eight weeks. One ray of hope; his home ERA is 4.60 and lefties are hitting .314/.982 against him. Batters are hitting .120 against him with RISP so he knuckles down with runners on base. He allows base runners (1.30 WHIP) but doesn't let them score. The Indians have excelled with RISP in June so we'll see who wins that matchup, assuming we get some runners on second and third.

Still, Morgan vs. Hendricks and his 9 wins and 2.85 ERA the last two months is no contest, so we better win tonight behind Civale.

The Tribe is 21-12 against the AL Central and .500 against everyone else.

Harold Ramirez has three HR's in the last two games and says he's trying to get more elevation on the ball. Well, it's working. He still needs to stop chasing so many pitches that are not even close.

Trevor Stephan is quietly starting to figure out how to use that big arm of his. In his last 10 innings he's given up 7 hits, 5 walks, 2 earned runs, and struck out 11. The two runs both came on solo home runs with the Indians down 6-2 in an 8-2 loss.

We're seeing young pitchers like Stephan, Quantrill, Hentges, and Mejia starting to turn things around. They all have a lot or arm talent but have been inconsistant. Bryan Shaw has hit a rough patch and Kyle Nelson imploded against the Pirates, but otherwise the bullpen is looking good and the young starters are making baby steps. Plesac threw a bullpen and is due for another today. Reyes is taking batting practice. Josie pinch hit yesterday and hopefully will be ready to at least DH this series.

Great stuff, per usual, Wham.

One nitpick: "Josie pinch hit yesterday and hopefully will be ready to at least DH this series." The series won't have a DH because of dopey NL rules. Still, I would expect JRam back at 3B today.

 

[Wham with the Right Hand]

Great stuff, per usual, Wham.

One nitpick: "Josie pinch hit yesterday and hopefully will be ready to at least DH this series." The series won't have a DH because of dopey NL rules. Still, I would expect JRam back at 3B today.

Thanks, nice catch.

 

[LL3]

Granted, Eli Morgan is not a good match up vs. anyone at the moment, but I'm not raising the "W" flag for the Cubs just yet. Each game is unique, and we certainly have the capability to win or lose both of these. Hoping Civale bounces back with a good performance tonight, and that we get JRam back on the field in the friendly confines.

 

[Lee]

Great stuff, per usual, Wham.

One nitpick: "Josie pinch hit yesterday and hopefully will be ready to at least DH this series." The series won't have a DH because of dopey NL rules. Still, I would expect JRam back at 3B today.

Jose will DH. Imagine the Cubs confusion when Jose comes in to hit for the pitcher. It is so confusing, it is next level brilliant.

Once again Francona out manages the other team.

 

[Wham with the Right Hand]

Bobby Bradley is 0-for-14 with 8 strikeouts since his first inning home run against the Orioles. He's chasing high fastballs and low breaking balls out of the zone. After a fantastic start which made people (including me) think he had transformed himself into a different hitter it's starting to look like that might not be the case.

He has one hit in his last 18 at-bats. I hope he can snap out of it, but when he first came up he was jumping on a lot of first pitch fastballs but now it looks like pitchers are no longer starting him off with fastballs in the zone.

 

[thestatman]

The White Sox have 18 games left till the break. They play Pittsburgh, Baltimore. Seattle, 2 series with Minnesota, and Detroit. 18 straight against really bad teams.

 

[thestatman]

I would think Plesac will get a start in Columbus in a few days and will be back in the rotation in about 15 days. Take a seat Eli.

 

[DCTribefan]

The White Sox have 18 games left till the break. They play Pittsburgh, Baltimore. Seattle, 2 series with Minnesota, and Detroit. 18 straight against really bad teams.

This board thought the same heading into series’ against Baltimore, Seattle, and Pittsburgh.

 

[Criznit]

Bobby Bradley is 0-for-14 with 8 strikeouts since his first inning home run against the Orioles. He's chasing high fastballs and low breaking balls out of the zone. After a fantastic start which made people (including me) think he had transformed himself into a different hitter it's starting to look like that might not be the case.

He has one hit in his last 18 at-bats. I hope he can snap out of it, but when he first came up he was jumping on a lot of first pitch fastballs but now it looks like pitchers are no longer starting him off with fastballs in the zone.

Bradley also has a really obvious timing step when he swings. Seems to me anything to knock him out of his rhythm really hurts him. I know pitchers like to be consistent/repeatable with their delivery, but I assume they are able to add a wrinkle here and there without messing themselves up.

Bobby is going to K a lot. If he can mitigate that with bombs and walks, fantastic. Hope for 230/270/500 - with the K's not being double plays.

 

[thestatman]

This board thought the same heading into series’ against Baltimore, Seattle, and Pittsburgh.

Anything can and does happen in baseball. But if the tribe goes to break less than 5 games behind Chicago, I will be pleasantly surprised. Cease and Kuechel got lit up over the weekend. but that happened against the best offense in baseball.

 

[thestatman]

I would like the team to steal more bases. In particular, Amed and Zimmer. With Eddie hitting a lot better, no reason why Amed doesn't steal second when Josie is batting. He hasn't been cuaght yet and I don't see anybody pitching around Jose if he does it.

 

[thestatman]

Bradley also has a really obvious timing step when he swings. Seems to me anything to knock him out of his rhythm really hurts him. I know pitchers like to be consistent/repeatable with their delivery, but I assume they are able to add a wrinkle here and there without messing themselves up.

Bobby is going to K a lot. If he can mitigate that with bombs and walks, fantastic. Hope for 230/270/500 - with the K's not being double plays.

I haven't given up on Bobby at all. But what I noticed is that he's missing fastballs in the zone as of late.

 

[Wham with the Right Hand]

I would like the team to steal more bases. In particular, Amed and Zimmer. With Eddie hitting a lot better, no reason why Amed doesn't steal second when Josie is batting. He hasn't been cuaght yet and I don't see anybody pitching around Jose if he does it.

Definitely think Amed and Zimmer should be running at every opportunity. The Indians were second in baseball in stolen base percentage last time I checked. I don't think they run enough.

 

[thestatman]

Definitely think Amed and Zimmer should be running at every opportunity. The Indians were second in baseball in stolen base percentage last time I checked. I don't think they run enough.

Yes this bothers me. Either the first or the second pitch, Amed and Zimmer should be on the move.

This team is still third from the bottom on batting average. Use the run game more.