The Cubs waited and then jumped on Indians starter Trevor Bauer, who had left his previous postseason outing after only 21 pitches because of a bleeding pinkie.
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While the Indians were struggling, Jake Arrieta had the demenour of Juggernaut from Marvel’s X-Men, in the sense that his momentum kept growing as the game went on.
Especially since Kyle Schwarber, the wunderkind who was playing in the Arizona Fall League earlier in the week to see if his surgically-repaired left knee was ready for the World Series, ripped two RBI singles, leading Cleveland manager Terry Francona to say, “I can see why Theo (Epstein) sent a plane for him”. Francisco Lindor and Roberto Perez, who powered Cleveland’s offense to a Game 1 win, were kept hitless by the Cubs.
This means that Schwarber is unlikely to play.
The 2015 Cy Young Award victor was solid this season but hasn’t replicated last year’s success.
Willson Contreras #40 of the Chicago Cubs celebrates with Aroldis Chapman #54 after defeating the Cleveland Indians 5-1 in Game Two of the 2016 World Series at Progressive Field on October 26, 2016 in Cleveland, Ohio.
Tomlin had a 13-9 record with a 4.40 ERA and a 1.190 WHIP. List prices for World Series tickets at Wrigley range from $85 to $565, according to Major League Baseball figures. He has a 0.938 WHIP in the postseason.
The Cubs also have the advantage with hitters like Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Javier Baez and Addison Russell.
“The story is it’s absolutely remarkable what he did”.
Cubs pitchers batted a respectable.157 during the regular season, and Schwarber is excited about his pinch-hitting duties for the next three games.
The Cubs decided Thursday not to chance putting the young slugger in the field in Games 3, 4 and 5 at Wrigley Field after his remarkable return from a severe knee injury.
Their at-bats were good during a Game 1 shutout loss, the Cubs insisted.
Rizzo got the inning going when after fouling off four straight pitches, he drew a walk from Indians reliever Zach McAllister. Indians pitching had been on an 18 inning scoreless streak heading into the match-up.
Fans voted for the recipients on MLB.com and Twitter, and for the seventh straight year, a panel of Hall of Fame players led by Aaron joined fans in voting for the awards.
Fans planning to see the first pitch will need to tune in earlier than expected.
The Cubs scored their second run in the third inning on a base hit by Kyle Schwarber, driving in Rizzo from second base.
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Francona admitted that was the plan all along when he pulled Kluber in the top of the seventh on Tuesday night after watching his ace baffle the Cubs over the course of 88 pitches. However, the Indians will raise their concentration level and mount a rally.
