Category Archives: Game Previews

Cleveland begins series with 1st place Royals

Posted on by
Advertisements

The 13-13 Cleveland Baseball Club travel to Kansas City to take on the 16-10 American League Central division leading Royals.

Put your hand up if you had the Kanas City Royals leading the American League Central at the beginning of May. That’s right, nobody predicted this early season start for the Royals and the Cleveland Baseball Club will be facing a tough task in their four-game road series in Kansas City.

Cleveland’s starter for Game 1 will be Aaron Civale. Civale is coming off an outing which saw him allow 4 runs on 8 hits in 7.2 innings against the Minnesota Twins. One of the more interesting aspects of that performance is that Civale got the Twins to hit into 18 ground ball outs with 8 fly outs and 4 strikeouts.

Only four Kansas City Royals batters have faced Civale in the past. Hunter Dozier, Cam Gallagher, and Whit Merrifield are a combined 4-8 with 1 double against Civale with Nicky Lopez being 0-3.

Starting for Royals is Daniel Lynch, who will be making his major league debut. The 24-year old left handed pitcher stands 6’6″ and was the 34th overall pick in the 2018 MLB draft. During Lynch’s two seasons in the minors he has a 2.50 ERA, 1.192 WHIP, and 9.6 K/9.

First pitch will take place at 8:10 P.M. at Kauffman Stadium

Cleveland turns to Zach Plesac Sunday vs Chicago

Posted on by
Advertisements

The Cleveland Baseball Club still has a chance to come away with a series win in Chicago.

The good thing about baseball is that enough games are played that an ugly loss like Saturday’s can be forgotten completely with a win in the next game. That is exactly what the Cleveland Baseball Club is hoping for as they hand the ball to Zach Plesac for the series finale against the White Sox.

Zach Plesac will be looking for a better performance this time out considering he has been pummeled in his last two starts against the White Sox. Plesac has allowed 12 runs on 14 hits in only 5.2 innings against Chicago this season. The one positive is that his second start he was able to go 5 innings, a significant improvement over his first start which saw him unable to get out of the 1st. It will be crucial for Plesac to change his plan for attack because what he has tried the last two times simply has not work. At some point the pendulum has to swing back in the other direction resulting in a good pitching performance. That pendulum swing could come in Sunday’s contest.

Chicago will be starting Lucas Giolito opposite of Zach Plesac in this matchup. Unlike Zach Plesac, Giolito pitched well in his last start against Cleveland, only allowing 3 hits over 7 innings in a 2-0 Cleveland win. The White Sox ace has allowed 11 runs (12 total) in his last two starts, so things are not exactly going well for him at the moment. Cleveland will have to hope that this version of Giolito shows up on Sunday or else it could be a long day yet again.

First pitch is scheduled for 2:10 P.M. at Guaranteed Rate Field

Triston McKenzie starts Saturday in Chicago

Posted on by
Advertisements

It will be his fourth start of the season as the Cleveland Baseball Club takes on the Chicago White Sox.

After a 5-3 win on Friday, the Cleveland Baseball Club is looking to secure a series win in Chicago on Saturday. In their quest for their second straight win over the White Sox, they will hand the ball to Triston McKenzie.

Triston McKenzie will be making his fourth start of the year and he is looking for two things. To limit walks and to go deeper into games. The good things is that both of those go hand in hand. McKenzie has walked four batters in three of his four appearances this season and that has led to high pitch counts and early exits. The good news is that his only start which he didn’t walk four was against Chicago earlier this season. Perhaps McKenzie can repeat his approach from that outing to limit his walks.

Starting opposite Triston McKenzie is Lance Lynn. Lynn is pitching way above his skill level this season with a 0.92 ERA and 0.915 WHIP. Both of these numbers are well below his career averages of 3.53 and 1.285. At some point these numbers will see a correction and that could come in Saturday’s matchup.

Jose Ramirez is the only Cleveland batter who has homered off of Lynn in the past, homering twice in 11 at-bats. Ramirez also has 1 of 3 doubles against Lynn, the others belonging to Jake Bauers and Andres Gimenez.

First pitch is scheduled for 4:05 at Guaranteed Rate Field

Shane Bieber starts for Cleveland in Chicago

Posted on by
Advertisements

The Cleveland Baseball Club will turn to reigning the Cy Young Award winner when they take on White Sox in Chicago.

Not too long ago the Cleveland Baseball Club took on the Chicago White Sox with Shane Bieber on the mound. Things went well for Cleveland and Bieber as he struck out 13 batters over 9 innings in a 2-0 win. A repeat performance could be in store as Bieber will look to get back into the win column after losing his last start against the Yankees.

Shane Bieber has an era of 2.48 in 5 starts this season with a 0.936 WHIP and 14.1 K/9. Bieber’s 57 strikeouts on the year is first in the American League and second in the majors behind Jacob deGrom.

As expected, Jose Abreau and Yoan Moncada are the two Chicago hitters who have given Shane Bieber issues in the past. Abreu is 8-23 with 3 home runs and Moncada is 6-23 with 2 homers and a double. If Cleveland is going to come away with a win it will have to start with keeping these two in check.

Starting opposite Shane Bieber will be Dallas Keuchel. After some shaky starts to the year Keuchel has rebounded, shutting out Texas over 6 innings in his last start. When it comes to facing Keuchel it is about getting good contact as he is not a strikeout pitcher. Cleveland will have to square up Keuchel’s pitches in order to avoid being shut down.

First pitch is scheduled for 8:10 P.M. at Guaranteed Rate Field.

Cleveland looking to finish off sweep of Twins

Posted on by
Advertisements

The Cleveland Baseball Club is looking to finish off the sweep of the visiting Minnesota Twins Wednesday afternoon (weather permitting).

The Cleveland Baseball Club won their second straight game over the Minnesota Twins thanks to some clutch home runs from Franmil Reyes. Now the Cleveland Baseball Club has a sweep in their sights in their third and final game of their series at home.

Logan Allen gets the call for Cleveland looking for two things in particular, a longer start and a better performance. Allen has only last 4.1 innings combined in his last two starts, allowing 7 runs on 9 hits including 3 home runs. The young lefty needs a correction in the worst way and Wednesday could provide that opportunity. Minnesota has not necessarily been a powerhouse this season and the fact they are without a few of their regular bats could be just the recipe for Allen to be heading in the right direction. If not, there could be questions about how Cleveland handles their pitching rotation moving forward.

The Twins will hand the ball to J.A. Happ who is having a start to the season no one expected. Happ has only allowed 3 runs on 8 hits in 16 innings so far and that is significantly better than his past performances indicate his talent level to be. The 38-year old starter has a career 3.96 ERA, 1.297 WHIP, and 7.9 K/9 over his 15 years in the big leagues. At some point Happ will revert back to his career averages and that could be Wednesday in Cleveland.

Interestingly enough it is former Twins outfielder Eddie Rosario who has had some past success against Happ. Rosario is 4-13 with 2 home runs and a double when facing the Twins starter previously. Perhaps Rosario could be the player who takes advantage of Happ when it is all said and done.

First pitch is scheduled for 1:10 at Progressive Field as long as the weather wants to cooperate.

Cleveland looks to win second straight over Twins

Posted on by
Advertisements

The Cleveland Baseball Club is looking for their third consecutive win and second straight over the Minnesota Twins Tuesday.

Monday’s matchup provided all the drama one could need thanks to a clutch two-run homer from Jordan Luplow in extras. Now Cleveland is looking to win their second in a row against the Minnesota Twins.

Cleveland will be trotting out Aaron Civale as their start on Tuesday and he will be looking to build upon his performance from last Thursday. Civale allowed just 2 runs (3 total) in 5.1 innings against the Yankees. The issue for Civale in that start was the fact he walked four batters which led to his early departure. Civale has been lock solid this season and the most consistent starter not named Shane Bieber.

There are two Twins bats that Civale needs to be extra careful against in this start, Mitch Garver and Nelson Cruz. Garver has homered twice and Cruz once in six at-bats each. Neutralizing these two bats is a must if Cleveland is going to win their third consecutive game.

Minnesota’s starter will be Kenta Maeda and things have not gone well for him so far. Maeda has allowed 14 runs in 17.2 innings including 7 in his last start against Boston. In fact, Maeda has increasingly allowed more runs in his last three starts (2,3,7). This trend is bound to revert to the norm due to the high amount of runs allowed in his previous start, but it does indicate that he is not pitching at a level expected of him and that’s good for Cleveland.

Facing Maeda could be good news for the struggling Cesar Hernandez as he is 7-23 lifetime against the Twins starter with 3 doubles and 2 home runs. This could be the catalyst that Hernandez needs to finally get going this season.

First pitch is scheduled for 6:10 P.M. at Progressive Field

Zach Plesac faces Twins at home

Posted on by
Advertisements

The Cleveland Baseball Club are set to take on the struggling Minnesota Twins at Progressive Field.

It was a disappointing weekend for the Cleveland Baseball Club, but they were able to avoid the sweep with a 7-3 win over the Yankees on Sunday. Now the focus is on the next series and with that Zach Plesac taking the mound against the Minnesota Twins.

Zach Plesac will be searching for a much needed rebound performance after getting pounded by the Chicago White Sox in back-to-back starts. Plesac allowed 12 runs on 14 hits in just 5.2 innings, not exactly the start Cleveland was looking for from an arm they are counting on.

Twins hitters are 3-16 when facing Zach Plesac and two of those hits are home runs from surprising sources, Willians Astudillo and Byron Buxton. The only other hit is a double by Brent Rooker.

Jose Berrios will be Minnesota’s starter and he is coming off a performance which saw him give up only 1 run on 4 hits in a loss to Oakland. Cleveland will have to hope that Berrios is off his game as he has given their lineup trouble in the past. As a team Cleveland is slashing .180/.256/.325 with an OPS of .581 in 74 at-bats. Jose Ramirez and Roberto Perez each have a home run off of Berrios and they will look for another Monday.

First pitch is scheduled for 6:10 P.M. at Progressive Field

Triston McKenzie starts Sunday against Yankees

Posted on by
Advertisements

As the Cleveland Baseball Club looks for to avoid the sweep, they will turn to their young pitcher as they take on the New York Yankees Sunday.

After their third straight loss to the New York Yankees, The Cleveland Baseball Club is on the edge of being swept in a four-game series. In need of a shutdown performance, they will hand the ball to Triston McKenzie while searching for an elusive win at home.

It will be the third start and fourth appearance overall for Triston McKenzie this season. In his two starts McKenzie has allowed 4 runs on 7 hits in 9 innings while striking out 13 batters. The issue for McKenzie has been walks as he has 10 walks in 12.2 innings on the year. Triston McKenzie will have to limit the free passes when facing a Yankees lineup that frequently makes pitchers pay for issuing walks.

Jameson Taillon will be the Yankees starter as he makes his fourth start of the year. It’s been mixed results for the 29-year old during his first season in pinstripes. Taillon was able to shut down a potent Braves lineup in his last start as he only allowed 1 run in 5 innings while striking out 5. Prior to that it was 7 earned runs on 11 hits including 3 home runs against the Orioles and Blue Jays in just 8.1 innings. While he is trending upward from that start on April 13th in Tampa (Toronto), he is still inconsistent and Cleveland has to hope that it will be that version of Taillon who made the trip to Progressive Field.

Shane Bieber faces Yankees at home

Posted on by
Advertisements

It will be a battle of the aces in Game 3 of the series between the Cleveland Baseball Club and New York Yankees.

The Cleveland Baseball Club is turning to Shane Bieber while the Yankees send out Gerrit Cole. Cleveland is looking to get their first win of the series while New York is looking to secure a series win. Friday’s loss to New York was almost a carbon copy of Thursday’s and that must eat away at Cleveland.

Shane Bieber is looking to continue his outstanding start of the season. Bieber has been absolutely dominant this season as he made some history in his last start, striking out 13 en route a Cleveland win. Bieber’s 48 strikeouts this season lead all of baseball by a comfortable margin. This matchup will prove to be a bit more difficult as the Yankees are a tough opponent despite their early season struggles.

In previous matchups Shane Bieber has been incredibly effective against the Yankees batters, holding them to a 3 hits in 22 at-bats and 7 strikeouts. One of the three hits allowed by Bieber was a Brett Gardner home run, but that appears to be nothing more than an anomaly.

Like Shane Bieber, Gerrit Cole has dominated the next lineup he faces. Cole has held Cleveland batters to 4-36 with 12 strikeouts in the past. Jake Bauers and Jose Ramirez have each homered off Cole previously, the only extra-base hits for Cleveland off the Yankees starter.

First pitch is scheduled for 6:10 P.M. at Progressive Field

Logan Allen to start vs. visiting Yankees

Posted on by
Advertisements

The Cleveland Baseball Club continue their four-game series with the visiting New York Yankees.

The Cleveland Baseball Club continue their series with New York Yankees and Logan Allen will start against Jordan Montgomery. Game 1 provided some ups and downs in what was a disappointing 6-3 loss for Cleveland.

Logan Allen will be making his fourth start of the season as he is looking for a bounce back performance after allowing 3 runs (5 total) in a 10-3 loss to the Cincinnati Reds. The good news is that Allen has pitched better in his previous two starts, only allowing 3 runs total across 10 innings against the Tigers and Royals. While the Yankees lineup is better than the previous opponents for Logan Allen, they haven’t been hitting all that well to start the season. Allen will have to be careful as to not be the catalyst which gets the lineup going.

For the Yankees it will be Jordan Montgomery who gets the call and like Logan Allen, will be looking for a rebound performance. After not allowing a run in 6 innings against the Orioles Montgomery has allowed 4 runs in back-to-back starts against the Tampa Bay Rays. Montgomery’s ERA this season sits at 4.24, which is slightly worse than his career average of 4.24. Montgomery just has not been able to find his form from earlier in his career after missing the majority of the 2018 and 2019 seasons.

First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 P.M. at Progressive Field