The Cleveland Indians and Boston Red Sox square off in a 2016 American League Divisional Series clash of World Series favorites. With the Indians winning the division for the first time in a decade and the Red Sox coming off of two-straight last place finishes in the AL East, we're guaranteed history once this series is finished. Who's got the edge? Who's going to advance? Here's our Indians vs. Red Sox: Complete ALDS Preview & Prediction.
Projected Pitching Matchups (CLE vs. BOS)
Game 1: Trevor Bauer (12-8) vs. Rick Porcello (22-4)
Game 2: Corey Kluber (18-9) vs. David Price (17-9)
Game 3: Josh Tomlin (13-9) vs. Clay Buchholz (8-10)
Game 4*: TBD vs. Eduardo Rodriguez (3-7) (if necessary)
Game 5*: TBD vs. TBD (if necessary)
How Cleveland Wins The Series
Get a great pitching performance from someone other than Kluber
Kluber is the ace of Cleveland's staff, and is the kind of guy where you know exactly what you're going to get from him. Bauer and Tomlin are decent, but are unproven and can also be inconsistent. Boston led the AL in virtually every offensive category, so getting a performance from someone else to slow that offense will give the Indians an advantage early in this short series.
How Boston Wins The Series
Young players don't shy away from the moment
Boston's roster more than triples Cleveland's in postseason at-bats, but several of their key contributors will be making their postseason debuts this week. Mookie Betts, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Andrew Benintendi are all playoff rookies, and all are needed for this team to play at the highest level. In fact, the Red Sox have relied on their young players in the past. Jacoby Ellsbury stepped up and played a big role in 2007, while Xander Bogaerts’s emergence helped Boston win the World Series in 2013. Who will it be this time?
What They're Saying About Cleveland
Indians' Trevor Bauer completes cycle from bullpen to ALDS Game 1 starter
A brief history of the Indians and Red Sox in the postseason
What They're Saying About Boston
Boston Red Sox have several Gold Glove candidates
ALDS questions: Can injured Indians keep up with Red Sox?
Prediction: Red Sox in 4
Cleveland has been solid all season long, but Boston is a team that has really caught fire of late and are peaking at the right time. They went 20-10 over the last month of the season - including an 11-game win streak - that took them from wild card contender to AL East champs. Look for them to continue that hot streak.