Carrasco Sharp Again as Tribe Takes Series

Carlos Carrasco and Michael Bourn led the Tribe to a victory on Thursday night.  Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

Cleveland Remains Relevant Behind Bourn, Carrasco in 3-2 Win

Michael Bourn added two more triples to his season total, Michael Brantley and Jason Kipnis had some timely 2-out hitting, and Carlos Carrasco gave up only one run over 6 2/3 innings as the Cleveland Indians came out on top over the division rival Chicago White Sox.  Zach Walters came close to hitting another home run, but was robbed by a leaping catch over the fence from Dayan Viciedo.  With Seattle idle, the Indians moved up half a game in the wild card race, trailing the Mariners and division rival Tigers by only four games.

The Positives

Bourn’s speed is looking just fine.  He’s been hot at the plate since coming off his latest DL stint.  Jose Ramirez had two more hits as well, and shouldn’t go unnoticed.  Carrasco, of course, had another encouraging start that makes us think that this whole dominance as a starter thing might be for real.  Kipnis continues to be hot in his home town of Chicago.  Cody Allen struck out the final four batters he faced for his 18th save.

The Negatives

Although it’s painful to watch Walters go 0-for-4, he did have another nice power stroke that took a ball over the fence.  It just so happens that this time it wasn’t one of those tape measure shots that left no chance for a highlight reel defensive play.  Chris Dickerson is still playing below replacement level.  And Michael Brantley’s fantastic numbers over the first four months continue to drop due to his unexpected August slump.

Check It Out
-Since John Axford was yanked from the closer role, Allen has saved all 18 games he’s had the opportunity to close out.
-Carlos Carrasco has a 0.73 ERA since rejoining the rotation.
–Carlos Santana drew two more walks and continues to lead all of baseball with 93 this season. Second on the list is Giancarlo Stanton at 87.