Buckle up, we’ve got ourselves an old-fashioned race for the AL Central crown
Zack Meisel 4h ago 9
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Within one minute of each other on Sunday afternoon, Miguel Sanó and Carlos Santana launched three-run homers in the tops of their respective first innings.
The games unfolded about 500 miles apart, but the Indians and Twins have a sense of what the other is doing. Santana’s blast, on his first hack since healing his sore left shoulder, handed the Indians a 3-0 head start. Sanó’s shot pushed the Twins’ early lead to 5-0.
What we have here is an old-fashioned chase for the AL Central crown, the sort of high-speed pursuit typically reserved for the league’s other five divisions. The Indians have whittled the once-mountainous Twins advantage to a two-game edge. And in a little more than a week, Terry Francona’s troops will file into Target Field for their most momentous regular-season series in recent memory.
The Indians have paid attention. They have watched the Twins’ games when the schedule permits, glanced at the standings on their phone, talked openly about their new role as the hunter and as the target of skeptics’ ire.
“This team has been circling those games,” said Jason Kipnis, who sported a shirt that read “We believe that we will win, 2019” after his grand-slam performance on Saturday night. “This team has had one focus and one focus only the last two months and that’s been chasing down these Twins, and we did it even faster than maybe we might have thought.”
Much of the deficit-shaving has transpired over the last two weeks, after the Twins took two of three at Progressive Field following the All-Star break. A Charmin-like schedule has certainly aided the Indians’ cause as they storm the top of the division. They have feasted on the Royals and Tigers in the past six weeks, and the degree of difficulty will increase exponentially over the next month. But at least they have capitalized; they own the best record in baseball since the calendar flipped to June.
“A lot of people are going to (say) we’re doing this against K.C. or Detroit or the White Sox without good, winning records,” Kipnis said. “But those are the same teams the Twins are playing. We’ve won series against the Yankees, Boston and the Twins themselves. It’s not like we’re just not beating anyone that’s good. We’re just trying to win the game that’s in front of us. Even when you play teams with bad records, there are slip-ups, there are mistakes. There’s stuff that happens. We’re just coming to play every day and it’s just not letting that happen. Even when you’re playing the lower-record teams, to win this many games, and to win the games you’re supposed to, this often, is a real tip of the cap to this clubhouse.”
Remaining schedules
Cleveland: 3 vs. KC, 6 vs. DET, 7 vs. CHI
Minnesota: 10 vs. KC, 10 vs. DET, 9 vs. CHI
Ah, but there’s one particular matchup that holds more weight than all of those lopsided clashes: The Indians and Twins still square off 10 more times. Should one team claim the bulk of those meetings, that could swing the division a certain way.
(Nick Turchiaro / USA Today)
So what has fueled the Indians’ charge following their early-season limp to a 29-30 start, which placed them 11.5 games behind the Twins?
The bullpen, full of aging soft-tossers and matchup-based relievers, has maintained its grip on the lowest ERA in the league. The group boasts a 3.30 ERA, miles ahead of second-place San Francisco’s 3.78 mark.
The outfielders have lengthened and strengthened Francona’s lineup. Oscar Mercado has planted himself in the thick of any AL Rookie of the Year dialogue, and Tyler Naquin, when his body cooperates, has hit everything in sight.
“We knew that our outfield, people from the outside were doubting us a lot,” Mercado said. “Just the fact that we’re able to go out there and compete every day at a high level and prove people wrong, we love that.”
As Mercado chatted with reporters on Saturday night, Naquin walked past and quipped, “He only had four (hits),” referencing the rookie’s 4-for-5 showing. About a week earlier, Mercado notched his first career five-hit effort. Naquin was quickly informed that Mercado had, in fact, just finished complimenting his teammate, so there was no need to needle him.
“He’s been nothing short of amazing, especially lately,” Mercado said.
And then there’s José Ramírez, whose resurgence is perhaps the most critical development. The diminutive dynamo has posted a .348/.389/.696 slash line during the past six weeks, with nine home runs and only 10 strikeouts. He slugged a homer in each of the four games in Kansas City last weekend.
“I feel like everybody’s been on the edge of their seat waiting on him to come back,” Mike Clevinger said. “And some people started to doubt whether it was, and now it’s here and there’s no better timing than now, for sure.”
The scorching stretch coincides with the birth of his daughter, Isabella. When I asked if the newborn is a good-luck charm, Ramírez replied: “Of course. She’s a blessing.”
Mercado has marveled from across the dugout, the clubhouse and the field.
“I wasn’t on the team last year,” Mercado said, “and I keep asking him, ‘Man, is this kind of what it (was like)?’”
Now, the roster isn’t flawless, and it’s up to the front office to attempt to enhance it this week. Even Kipnis admitted he’s far from a prototypical No. 4 hitter, but the current roster configuration has resulted with him batting in the cleanup spot against right-handers.
“I don’t claim to be a four hitter,” Kipnis said. “I’m well aware that’s just how the lineup has dictated itself with the personnel we have here. That’s just how we’re trying to do it. I know I’m not your ideal four hitter. Even I’d rather have someone in there with a little more thump. But when you get good at-bats up and down the lineup, it almost doesn’t matter. You just put people where you can and if it’s working and we’re scoring runs, you don’t try to mix it up.”
The Indians figured the Twins would present more of a threat in the AL Central than any team has the last couple of years. That said, an 11.5-game deficit was new territory for a club that has captured the last three division titles. They weathered the storm and started to sort out the roster, determining who could help and who wasn’t needed.
And now, with two months to decide the victor, it’s on.
“We’re a dangerous team right now,” Mercado said, “and we know that.”
