The Indians announced their 25 man ALDS roster earlier today and, all things considered, it was pretty predictable. The most notable absences were Danny Salazar, who is not quite ready to return from his right forearm strain and will continue throwing in Goodyear, Arizona, and Kyle Crockett, who was the Indians only left handed specialist.
Starting Rotation
Trevor Bauer
Corey Kluber
Josh Tomlin
As expected, the previously announced starters for games one through three are the only starters on the roster. Even if Salazar had been included, it would have been in the bullpen and he still could be should the Indians continue on to the ALCS. If the series continues beyond three games it’s expected that the rotation will continue with Bauer pitching game four on short rest and Kluber pitching game five on regular rest.
Starting Line-Up
Carlos Santana
Roberto Perez
Mike Napoli
Jason Kipnis
Francisco Lindor
Jose Ramirez
Rajai Davis
Tyler Naquin
Brandon Guyer
Lonnie Chisenhall
The players here are listed in around the horn fashion and both sides of the outfield platoons are included as starters as all four outfielders will likely start at least one game. Surprisingly, the one way that Guyer has not been as billed is that he has hit right handed pitching very well, arguably better than the left handed hitters, so if he were to start every game in left, Chisenhall in right and the other two platooning in center, it wouldn’t be the worst idea. The worst idea would be to start the other Indians outfielder.
Bench
Chris Gimenez
Yan Gomes
Michael Martinez
Coco Crisp
Here’s where things get dicey. While Gomes did have that bit of excitement in his final game with a two run home run to lift everyone’s spirits, it’s arguable how much he is actual capable of right now. Beyond him, the Indians should do their best to keep the other three out of the line-up at all costs. Crisp has been absolutely terrible defensively and outside of a couple big knocks, has been poor with the bat as well. Gimenez is also unreliable at the plate and in the field while Martinez is arguably the worst player in baseball history.
Where Gomes and Gimenez will likely come into play is the fact that the Indians are carrying an extra starting outfielder who will be on the bench. If Terry Francona prefers, he could use that player to pinch hit for Perez every game, then use Gimenez or Gomes to finish things out. Crisp could be used in similar fashion, but there comes a time when Martinez is getting into a game as anything but a last second defensive replacement, it probably means something really bad has happened.
Bullpen
Cody Allen
Andrew Miller
Bryan Shaw
Dan Otero
Zach McAllister
Jeff Manship
Mike Clevinger
Cody Anderson
This is both the Indians biggest strength (beyond their infield defense) and possibly the location of their biggest weakness, at least in roster selection. Allen, Miller, Shaw and Otero can shorten a game to four innings fairly comfortably and because of the increase in off days compared to the regular season, could each pitch every single game. Beyond that is the trouble. McAllister has been great of late, but his fastball only pitch selection can be terrifying, especially against a powerful lineup like Boston. Manship has been avoided in all but the most desperate of blow-outs and if Anderson has to pitch, things will have really gone South.
Clevinger is on the roster mostly as an emergency back-up for Tomlin and, even if he is pitching well, Tomlin shouldn’t go through the line-up more than twice. This is simply asking for trouble, so if he is able to go four innings in game three, then hand the game over to the rookie for two, it should be considered a positive situation as long as he also hands over a lead.
As mentioned before, the one pitcher who really deserved a spot, but was left off was Crockett. He’s looked extremely good from July on with a 2.19 ERA, 13 K’s in 12.1 innings and 12 scoreless, hitless and walkless appearances in his last 18 games. In his last four, he faced five batters, struck out four and didn’t allow a hit or walk (one base runner reached on a dropped third strike). Over his career, he’s allowed a .236 average against to lefties and struck out 41 in 145 at bats without giving up a home run.
If the Indians have to face David Ortiz in a late, close game, the first man you would want in would be Miller, then Allen, but if a reliever has to face him or any other Red Sox left hander in a tough situation prior to the seventh, the Indians could sorely regret leaving Crockett off this roster. Especially considering his success in his rookie 2014 campaign, he has been criminally underused in the past two seasons and it’s easy to predict a situation where the Indians would be better served with a second left hander in the bullpen than a second long man in Anderson.
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