Cleveland Indians: 3 takeaways from series win over Seattle

The Cleveland Indians picked up another series victory this weekend with two wins over the Seattle Mariners. Here is what stood out from the series.

The Cleveland Indians have picked up the pace, finishing April with a record of 14-10 and climbing to first place in the American League Central.

The latest series against the Seattle Mariners got off to a slow start with a boring 3-1 loss Friday night, but picked up with a 4-3 win on Saturday and ended with an offensive display in a 12-4 victory on Sunday.

Let’s now take a look at three things that stood out over the weekend.

1. Kipnis is still settling in

Jason Kipnis went a combined 0-for-8 with four strikeouts in the first two games of the series, but ended on positive note with a 1-for-4 day.

His .161 batting average is an eyesore, but he is essentially three weeks or more behind the rest of the team. With only 31 at-bats so far this season, his sample size is too small to panic. However, he does need to start producing out of the sixth spot in the lineup.

If he doesn’t, Lonnie Chisenhall could easily slide up in the order. A move down for Kipnis wouldn’t be permanent, but the Indians need to have the most efficient lineup possible while Kipnis works through his early slump.

2. Still waiting for proof of consistency on offense

The Indians had a third inning to remember on Sunday, scoring eight runs in what was a nightmare inning for Seattle’s Chase De Jong, who got chased after 2 2/3 innings of work.

But that one inning saw the Indians score more runs than they had scored in the previous two games.

The Indians are winning, which is all that matters. But it would be nice to see the lineup provide a bit more consistency against average pitching so outings like Carlos Carrasco‘s on Friday, in which he went eight innings and allowed three runs, aren’t wasted.

The record shows this team usually finds a way to win, but if the offense can pick it up it will be a May filled with few losses.

3. The Tribe are rolling

The Indians have now won four series in a row, and are now in Detroit set to being a four-game series.

Even when the team does have a frustrating loss, the next day has seen them bounce back and pick up a victory.

Next: Indians finish April in first place

The 4-2 homestand was also a great sign, even though three of the wins were one-run games that had fans nervous up until the final out.