Cleveland Indians: 3 takeaways from the series loss in Toronto

The Cleveland Indians had one great performance against the Toronto Blue Jays, but were unable to win the series in the ALCS rematch.

The recent series against the Toronto Blue Jays gave Cleveland Indians fans a glimpse of the different versions of this year’s team.

There was the version that has trouble scoring, which was seen in Monday’s 4-2 defeat. Then there was the version when a dominant pitching performance is backed up with enough offense, as seen in Tuesday’s 6-0 victory.

The final version, and perhaps the most rare, was seen on Wednesday. The starting pitching was awful, but the offense quickly made up the difference. But the game ultimately ended with a loss charged to a bullpen pitcher, as Cody Allen gave up a game-winning hit to lose the series.

Here’s what stood out from the series north of the border.

1. Cookie remains the ace

Carlos Carrasco is off to an amazing start. He continued it Wednesday with seven innings of scoreless work, allowing just three hits and striking out seven. He also had six runs from his offense, which is a rare sight this year.

His ERA is down to 1.86 and he has not allowed more than three runs in any start this year. He has also gone at least 5.2 innings in all of his starts this year, setting up the team for a victory every five days.

With Corey Kluber recovering from an injury and the others in the rotation struggling, Carrasco is the clear ace of the rotation.

2. A bullpen loss was bound to happen

Wednesday night’s game ended in defeat for the Indians, but it was a surprise that the loss was charged to a bullpen pitcher.

Five pitchers came in after Danny Salazar‘s five-run start, and shut things down for the most part. But Cody Allen was charged with the loss after giving up a game-winning single to Ryan Goins. It was just the second run allowed by Allen all season, and his first loss.

Indians fans had been spoiled all season by the great pitching out of the bullpen, so it was only a matter of time before the bullpen lost a game. Yet it was not a total collapse, as the group had to try to make up for Salazar’s bad start. So don’t overreact about Allen just yet. He is still one of the best relief pitchers in the game.

3. Yan Gomes continues to improve

Yan Gomes played in six games on the recent road trip and raised his average from .176 to .246 during that time. He picked up multiple hits in three of those games, and even hit a clutch three-run home run that sealed a victory on Tuesday.

Next: April minor league review

This is the Gomes fans have been waiting to see for the past two years, and even a .250 average would warrant him being in the lineup on a consistent basis. With his great defense, this resurgence at the plate once again makes him a weapon for the Indians.