Cleveland Indians back to No. 4 spot in ESPN power rankings

The Cleveland Indians had a great week and remain ranked near the top in the latest edition of ESPN’s MLB power rankings.

The Cleveland Indians return to Progressive Field tonight with a five-game lead in the AL Central division after an an amazing road trip that featured eight wins in 11 games.

The team also returns home with a new right fielder as Jay Bruce will finally make his home debut with the Indians after building his legend on the road. His 10-game hit streak looks to grow as well.

The recent success on the road keeps the Indians near the top of ESPN’s MLB power rankings, coming in at No. 4 overall.

From the article:

"You already know Corey Kluber is cruising, and Danny Salazar seems back on track (mostly). But have you also noticed that Trevor Bauer has started to dominate on the mound? He has thrown five straight quality starts, and mixing in more cutters and changeups has boosted his whiff rate to give the Tribe four starters with 10 or more K/9 since the break. — Christina Kahrl, ESPN.com"

No. 4 overall is likely the highest spot the Indians will get all season as the Los Angeles Dodgers are firmly planted No. 1 overall. After that comes the Washington Nationals and Houston Astros, who continue to have giant leads in their respective divisions.

Yet all that matters is that the Indians win the AL Central, and worry about the rest later.

Home-field advantage in the postseason is ideal, but it will be hard to catch the Astros who currently sit seven games ahead of the Indians. However, the Indians are only 4.5 games back of the Red Sox who are in town for a four-game series beginning tonight. A sweep or taking three of four can get the Indians in prime position to snag that second overall spot in the AL.

Fighting not only for the division but for the top spot in the league is a great problem to worry about, and the recent stretch of games from the Indians seems to signal that the team is about to really pull away in the division.

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