World Series Game 7: Five factors that determine how Cubs-Indians plays out
CLEVELAND – When the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians have waited so long for a World Series championship, it’s only fitting that they make their fans wait until a seventh game to find out which team will end its historic drought.
Here are the most important factors to watch:
The starters
The Cubs will put the ball in the hands of the starting pitcher who had the lowest ERA in the majors this season, 26-year-old Kyle Hendricks.
Hendricks won the clinching game of the National League Championship Series when he outdueled Clayton Kershaw by tossing 7 1/3 shutout innings.
Manager Joe Maddon praised his “slow heartbeat” as he seemed immune to the pressure of the situation.
“He’s able to control his emotions really well,” Maddon said before Game 6. “I like the fact that he commands other pitches in fastball counts well, which really presents difficult situations for the hitter.”
“He’s an artist.”
The Indians will counter with their ace, Corey Kluber, who may have been destined to be on the mound for Game 7 ever since he tossed a scoreless inning in the All-Star Game in San Diego.
Kluber was the winning pitcher, and the American League’s victory is what gave the Indians home field advantage in the World Series.
Manager Terry Francona mapped out his rotation before the series to have Kluber lined up to start Game 1, Game 4 and Game 7. So he’s carefully managed his ace’s workload throughout the series so he could pitch effectively on short rest.
“I haven't found much of a difference yet in the way I feel when I go out there on three days' rest as opposed to four,” Kluber said. “And I don't know if that's just doing the extra recovery stuff to where you get as close to normal as you can possibly get.”
Then again, “normal” for Kluber is close to unhittable. In five postseason starts, he’s allowed three earned runs in 30 1/3 innings (0.89 ERA).
And he’s looking to become the first pitcher since Mickey Lolich of the Detroit Tigers in 1968 to start and win three games in a single World Series.
Superstar shortstops
This World Series has featured two of the game’s top young shortstops in the Cubs’ Addison Russell and the Indians’ Francisco Lindor – both just 22 years old.
Russell has struggled at the plate in the playoffs, but he came up big in Game 6. His two-run double gave the Cubs a working margin in the first inning and his grand slam in the third essentially put the game out of reach.
“Being part of the Cubs, you're put in the limelight. And early on you're forced to deliver whenever the game's kind of on the line,” Russell said. “So having that practice throughout the whole season and then finally here comes the big moment in the postseason, in the World Series, it's just I wouldn't say it's bread and butter, but you definitely learn to control those feelings.”
Lindor has been the Indians’ best hitter in the postseason, leading the team with a .340 average and making several dazzling plays in the field.
It wouldn’t be a surprise for either one of them to come up with a big play at the most important time tonight.
Relief efforts
If there’s one thing that didn’t go the Cubs’ way in Game 6, it was the need to bring in closer Aroldis Chapman in the seventh inning to douse a potential Indians rally.
Chapman threw 42 pitches in recording an eight-out save in Game 5 and could have used two full days of rest until he pitched again. But that didn’t happen.
Maddon said he didn’t think using Chapman to get four outs would have any impact on his ability to come back a day later for Game 7.
Meanwhile, the Indians used five relievers in Tuesday’s loss – but not Andrew Miller or Cody Allen, who have combined for 28 2/3 innings in the postseason and have given up a total of one earned run.
They’ll be at full strength and likely available for two innings (or more) apiece.
“You always want to win the game, but the next best thing, and we've talked about this before we even started, was try to make them use pitching even in a loss,” Francona said. “So we hung around enough, at least Chapman had to pitch. You never know, maybe that helps us.”
In addition, both managers could even call on any number of their starting pitchers, who’ll be available if needed tonight.
“We have three months to recover,” Cubs lefty Jon Lester said. “There’s really no rules. There’s no guidelines, there’s no boundaries, there’s no anything. We’ve played 170-something games to get down to this one game. I would imagine Tito (Francona) is going to do the same thing on his side as far as all hands on deck.”
Managers, special
Both Maddon and Francona have seemingly pushed all the right buttons this postseason.
Maddon moved designated hitter Kyle Schwarber up to the second spot in the batting order for Game 6 and will likely have him there again in Game 7. He’ll also have the advantage of a deeper bench.
Although right fielder Jason Heyward has slumped on offense, he did have two hits against Kluber in Game 4. And his outstanding defense has never faltered. Look for Heyward to be in the lineup again in right field.
Francona’s one important lineup decision will be who gets the start in center field. Rookie Tyler Naquin had a Game 6 to forget, miscommunicating with right fielder Lonnie Chisenhall on what was ruled a double by Russell in the first inning, then striking out with the bases loaded in the fourth as the Indians were trying to claw their way back.
Veteran Rajai Davis, who has better range on defense and better speed on the bases, could get the nod.
While the Cubs may have a deeper bench, Francona will have more options with his bullpen in Game 7.
X Factors
When the Cubs entered the postseason looking to win the franchise’s first World Series title since 1908, the pressure was squarely on them – especially after winning 103 games in the regular season.
But falling behind 3-1 and facing elimination in each of the past three games has been a different kind of pressure altogether.
“I don’t think you’re human if you didn’t get nervous in Game 5,” said first baseman Anthony Rizzo. “It was the most nervous I’ve ever been on a baseball field. That’s going to take me a long way in my career. I feel like that single game, just how intense it was, and be able to calm my nerves. It’s always there, you’ve got to breathe through it. This is baseball. There’s nothing more to it.”
Third baseman Kris Bryant has come up with several big hits the past two games, after starting the World Series 1-for-14. He broke out in Game 6 with four hits, including a home run. The odds-on favorite to win the NL MVP award seems to be primed for a huge Game 7.
On the Indians’ side, second baseman Jason Kipnis has been the heart and soul of the team all season long. He was the only one to do much offensively in Game 6, collecting three hits – a single, a double and a home run.
One franchise’s drought is going to end tonight. The 68 years without a title in Cleveland or the 108 years on Chicago’s North Side.
“We want to be the group that breaks the string,” Maddon said. “It's just correct and apt that we'd go seven games.”