3 Reasons the Indians Will Win the AL Central And Make a Deep Playoff Run

The second half of the MLB season is just one day away and the Cleveland Indians will be 5.5 games behind the AL Central leader, Minnesota Twins. The Indians

The second half of the MLB season is just one day away and the Cleveland Indians will be 5.5 games behind the AL Central leader, Minnesota Twins. The Indians will face the Twins this weekend to kick start the second half of the season. This team has changed drastically in my opinion since the last time Cleveland and Minnesota faced off.

The Indians can close the gap this weekend while facing the Twins or Minnesota can inch away once again.

I’m going to give you three reasons that the Indians will win the AL Central which will hopefully give you a better outlook on a team that was heavily criticized in the first half.

3.) Emerging Stars

Carlos Gonzalez, Hanley Ramirez, and Leonys Martin all are no longer with the Indians. IF the Indians retained all the players mentioned above, who knows if Oscar Mercado or Bobby Bradley would even have a spot on the roster.

Mercado has fit in nicely at the two spot in the lineup with an average of .281, 11 doubles, 6 stolen bases, 4 homers, and 17 RBIs

Roberto Perez has proved what he can do as an everyday starting catcher, putting up better numbers than Yan Gomes is in Washington.

Perez is hitting .256, 5 doubles, 16 home runs, 36 RBIs, but has struck out 67 times throughout 63 games.

Gomes is batting .211, with 7 doubles, 3 home runs, 20 RBIs, 44 strikeouts in 55 games.

Many fans were upset when Cleveland traded away Yan but it doesn’t look like a terrible move. Another move many strongly disliked was trading Edwin Encarnacion to Seattle, although Yandy Diaz is having a heck of a season in Tampa Bay losing Edwin you are only missing on the homers, not a spectacular hitter. Plus in return, the Indians received 2019 starting first baseman for the AL All-Stars, Carlos Santana.

If you dive into the stats Edwin is hitting .216, 9 doubles, 25 homers, 56 RBIs and 78 strikeouts in 81 total games and is now a member of the Yankees.

Jake Bauers who Cleveland received from the Rays is hitting .245, 11 doubles, 11 homers, 36 RBIs but has struck out two times more than Encarnacion with 80 throughout 82 games.

Santana not only made his first all-star appearance but has hit .297, 17 doubles, 19 homers, 52 RBIs, struck out 56 times in 87 games. Santana previously didn't get hot until the second half which can make for a historic season for the first baseman.

Yandy is hitting .277, 18 doubles, 11 home runs, 32 RBIs, and has struck out 50 times throughout 67 games.

2.) Momentum is Key

Momentum is always key in all sports. The Indians have been one of the best teams in baseball since June 1st. Since June 1st, the Indians have a record of 21-9. The Minnesota Twins, on the other hand, have played near .500 baseball since then holding a record of 17-15.

Cleveland has become a streaky team and coming into this series against the Twins have been winners of 6 straight.

The Indians have always been known as a second-half team as well under the tutelage of manager, Terry Francona. The team has finally found their chemistry during the month of June and playing exciting baseball without two of their All-Star starting pitchers. Cleveland will face some tough opponents in the month of August when they face the Yankees, Red Sox, Rays, and Rangers to name a few teams, I fully believe the Indians will handle business against them.

Don’t forget hat Jose Ramirez seems to finally be heating up and could hopefully have a strong second half.

1.) Pitching Survives With Additions of Kluber and possibly Carrasco in the Near Future

The Cleveland Indians faced adversity early into the 2019 season but found a way to emerge with a successful June and a hot July start before the All-Star Break.

With Indians starting pitchers going down with injuries and illnesses, new pitchers had to emerge as well as the bullpen. Zach Plesac, Adam Plutko, Aaron Civale, and Jefry Rodriguez were all given opportunities to be the starting pitcher for Cleveland.

In 23 starts that group of starting pitchers had a record of 8-9, an ERA of 3.42, 97 strikeouts, in 130.3 innings pitched.

At one point Trevor Bauer and Shane Bieber were the only Cleveland starters from the Opening Day Rotation.

Bieber has continued his roll from the 2018 season having a record of 8-3, 3.45 ERA, 141 strikeouts, in 112.1 innings pitched in the 2019 season

Bauer is leading the team in innings pitched with 132, holding a record of 8-6, 3.61 ERA, 149 strikeouts, in 20 starts.

The Indians managed to keep themselves afloat in the AL Central division race and will have Corey Kluber return still and possibly Carlos Carrasco.

Trevor Bauer might not be a member of the Indians following the trade deadline but Cleveland should be in good shape after seeing four young starters emerge in 2019 from the farm system.