CLEVELAND: In part due to the impending pitching situation forced by Game 4, the Indians are carrying 12 pitchers and two catchers through the American League Championship Series against the Toronto Blue Jays.
In the American League Division Series against the Boston Red Sox, the Indians had 11 pitchers and three catchers. Rookie left-hander Ryan Merritt will be available throughout the ALCS as an addition to the bullpen, and catcher Chris Gimenez will not be on the roster.
“Having three catchers, we really liked,” Indians manager Terry Francona said. “But OK, what can derail the series? Not having enough pitching. So having a guy that throws strikes and has seemed to handle everything that’s been thrown at him so far, he might end up bailing us out of a game. You never know.”
Rookie Mike Clevinger, barring something unforeseen, will be starting Game 4 but isn’t lengthened out to a full start, meaning the bullpen will carry most of the load. Merritt adds an additional arm to the mix, as well as being the second left-hander along with Andrew Miller.
The adjustment also points to confidence in Yan Gomes and his fractured wrist. Gomes didn’t appear in the ALDS, but being the only backup to Roberto Perez for this series indicates the club feels comfortable enough with his status to carry only those two.
If Gimenez were needed to replace Gomes in the event of him aggravating the injury, the Indians can make that move. The consequence is that Gomes would then be unavailable for the World Series, should they advance.
Gomes still feels discomfort in his wrist but has been told by trainers that he can’t injure it any further. The bigger issue when he returned was swinging a bat.
“I think I’ve started to get used to it,” Gomes said on Thursday. “I’m not favoring it at all or holding back on anything. I think for a few weeks now, I’ve been able to take a full swing. It doesn’t really hurt that much anymore.”
The Indians’ sweep of the Red Sox led to some luxuries. Perez played well enough and the last four in the bullpen pitched well enough that the Indians didn’t need any contributions past them.
That likely won’t be the case in the ALCS.
“I’m guessing in a seven-game series, there’s a pretty good chance we either run for Roberto or hit for him depending on how things are going,” Francona said. “Last series was, I would say, kind of an anomaly. We just used the four relievers and no extra catcher. That’ll probably be different this series.”
Green light
The Indians might have a greater opportunity in this series to use the kind of aggressive base-running that became part of their image during the regular season. That especially means outfielder Rajai Davis, who led the American League with 43 steals at age 35.
Blue Jays catcher Russell Martin ranks among the league’s worst catchers at throwing runners out. Per Baseball Prospectus’ “Throwing Runs” metric, Martin ended the season with a -2.7 mark, the fifth-worst mark in baseball.
“I definitely think we can take advantage,” Davis said. “If they don’t hold us tight enough or close enough, guys are going to be looking to get 90 feet closer. It’s easier to score from second base than from first. If we can get into scoring position, I think we’re going to try to take advantage of that opportunity.”
Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Indians blog at www.ohio.com/indians. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/RyanLewisABJ and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/RyanLewisABJ