The Indians will look to win their second consecutive series against an AL Central rival as they take on the White Sox Wednesday night in Chicago in the rubber game of a 3-game set. The first two games of the series exemplified the theory that matchups on paper can often be misleading, as Trevor Bauer outpitched Chris Sale in a Game 1 Indians victory, while Carlos Rodon bounced back to outduel Carlos Carrasco and help the Pale Hose to even the series in Game 2. So what will happen in the third and final game of this weekday set?
In the rubber game, the Tribe sends Josh Tomlin (4-1, 2.55) to the mound to take on Jeff Samardzija (9-11, 4.87). Tomlin has been fantastic in his return from injury, keeping hitters off balance more than ever and limiting base runners at an equally unprecedented rate. The soft-throwing righthander has allowed only 22 hits and just three walks in 35.1 innings pitched, adding up to an impressive 0.71 WHIP through his first 5 starts…move over, Clayton Kershaw!
As has been typical throughout his career, the gopher ball has been Tomlin’s bugaboo, as he has yielded 7 homers in those 35+ innings, but they have caused minimal damage (hence the impressive 2.55 ERA) because he is allowing so few base runners. Samardzija, on the other hand, has been rather disappointing for Chicago, as the hard-throwing righty has struggled in 2015, yielding 200 hits and 24 homeruns in 184 IP. All his struggles aside, the former Notre Dame wide receiver has been stellar in saving his best for the Tribe (2-0, 0.64) in two starts this season. This is a free agent year for Samardzija, so look for him to be tough down the stretch as he looks to play his way into a big contract this offseason.
INSIDE THE TRIBE
*The Indians current trail Texas by six games for the final spot in the AL Wild Card Standings. Winning the current series in Chicago would be clutch in helping to keep the Tribe’s dwindling playoff hopes alive.
*Which Wahoo players have been most effective versus Samardzija in their careers? Why none other than the two youngsters who have been on fire recently: Francisco Lindor and Michael Martinez (combined .667 career average).
*Crazy stuff: Tomlin is 0-2 versus Chicago in his career, but the current White Sox roster is just 4 for 37 (.108) against the Cleveland righthander…with zero homeruns. The Tribe is hoping that is no jinx and he can continue his winning ways against the Southsiders Wednesday night.
*Home field (dis)advantage: In his past five home starts at U.S. Celluar Field, Samardzija has sported a paltry 9.00 ERA and allowed a whopping NINE homeruns. The Wigwammers are hoping for another clunker from Samardzija in order to take the series.
WEDNESDAY NIGHT’S LINEUPS
| Indians | White Sox | ||
|
2B
|
Jason Kipnis (L) |
CF
|
Adam Eaton (L) |
|
SS
|
Francisco Lindor (S) | 3B | Tyler Saladino (R) |
|
LF
|
Michael Brantley (L) |
1B
|
Jose Abreu (R) |
|
DH
|
Carlos Santana (S) |
LF
|
Melky Cabrera (S) |
|
RF
|
Lonnie Chisenhall (L) |
DH
|
Avisail Garcia (R) |
|
CF
|
Abraham Almonte (S) |
RF
|
Trayce Thompson (R) |
| 1B | Chris Johnson (R) |
SS
|
Alexei Ramirez (R) |
| 3B | Jose Ramirez (S) |
2B
|
Carlos Sanchez (S) |
|
C
|
Roberto Perez (R) |
C
|
Tyler Flowers (R) |
|
SP
|
Josh Tomlin (RHP) |
SP
|
Jeff Samardzija (RHP) |