Indians Top White Sox 4-2 To Pick Up Series Win; Three Takeaways

Few things are better on a 90 degree day in Cleveland than watching the Indians pick up a win. A crowd of 26,611 was on hand for the final match-up in the

Few things are better on a 90 degree day in Cleveland than watching the Indians pick up a win.

A crowd of 26,611 was on hand for the final match-up in the series between the Indians and the Chicago White Sox on Sunday.

The Tribe came away with the 4-2 win to win the series. It is the second time they have won a series against Chicago in 2017.

Carlos Carrasco picked up his sixth win of the year, allowing seven hits and two runs in five and a third innings. Carrasco now has a 3.36 ERA for the season.

The Indians have off tomorrow, but here are three takeaways from the win ahead of their big series with the Los Angeles Dodgers this week.

1. Bullpen Dominance

While Carrasco got the win and worked his way out of numerous jams early, the standout performers on Sunday afternoon were really the relief pitchers.

After five and a third innings of work, manager Terry Francona decided to go with Andrew Miller in the sixth inning.

Miller finished the inning with two strikeouts, and pitched the seventh inning as well, striking out one more. He finished the night allowing no hits and throwing only 22 pitches, 14 of which were strikes.

“That was the biggest spot in the game. It’s really nice to have a guy like that that can go out there and win more often than not in those situations,” Indians' closer Cody Allen said.

Bryan Shaw and Allen finished out the game in the eighth and ninth innings respectively. The only hit the bullpen allowed came in the ninth inning off of Allen on a single from Yolmer Sanchez.

This sort of dominance is something that Tribe fans are familiar with, but with the off day tomorrow, Francona was able to go with Miller earlier than usual, making the relievers an even more formidable group.

"He’s just really good. And to boot, he’s really competitive. He’s not the loudest guy but when he’s on, everybody sees," Francona said.

"When he’s not perfect, he has that ability to really compete. It’s a nice combination."

The White Sox also talked about the difficulty of facing the Indians' rotation.

"They’re good. That’s why they made it to the World Series last year," Chicago third baseman Todd Frazier said.

2. Back Third Of The Order

The trio of Austin Jackson, Roberto Perez and Erik Gonzalez all played integral roles in the Indians' offense on Sunday.

Jackson ended the night with one hit in one at-bat. He also scored a run in the bottom of the fourth inning on an RBI single from Gonzalez.

Perez finished with one RBI single in three at-bats as he drove in Edwin Encarnacion for the first run of the day in the second inning.

However, Gonzalez was by far the standout on offense. He finished the afternoon with two hits, including his RBI single in the fourth, and a double to lead off the seventh inning.

Gonzalez also scored the final run of the day on an RBI double from Francisco Lindor.

Francona said Gonzalez presents a sort of dilemma for the Tribe, because the guys he plays for are "everyday guys" who don't sit often.

"He was in the middle of everything," Francona said about Gonzalez's play. "He’s staying sharp, he’s not losing a step defensively."

"I try to do my routine everyday like if I am going to play," Gonzalez said. "I’m prepared everyday."

3. Strong Win Ahead Of A Big Test

Ultimately, Sunday's win was a good momentum builder ahead of a day of rest before one of Cleveland's toughest series match-ups in 2017 so far.

The Indians kick off a three-game series with the Dodgers on Tuesday, and will have the tough task of going against Clayton Kershaw.

The lefty has never had a losing season in his decade long career, and will be looking for his ninth win of 2017 at Progressive Field on Tuesday.

"We’ll enjoy the off day tomorrow, and then we’ll show up for a pretty good test against the Dodgers," Allen said.

You can read more about the pitching match-ups for the series here.