Cleveland Indians: Previewing the weekend series in Minnesota
Storylines
The Indians bullpen is starting to rally
Don’t look now, but since the dismal outing last Sunday the Indians bullpen has started to show signs of rhythm. Particularly Dan Otero, who has lowered his ERA to 2.75 with a whip of 0.85 in the last seven days. Zach McAllister has lowered his whip to 0.75 in the last week and Tyler Olson has allowed only one earned run since May 5.
It’s a bit of a stretch but maybe some momentum is what these guys have needed. They’re having trouble preserving shutouts, but if the Indians offense stays hot, allowing one run isn’t the end of the world.
Worst/Best case scenario
Worse Case: 2-2 series tie
This might be pushing it, but right now I don’t see the Indians losing more than two games to the Twins. The offense is simply too good and the Twins are not playing well at all right now. That being said, it is a division series. Anything can happen when the Indians play these AL Central teams. There could be a horrible meltdown and I’ll look foolish. But we are talking likely outcomes here.
Best case: 4-0 series win
The Indians have a good chance to continue their hot streak against another struggling team. If their play against the White Sox is any indication, they’ll look to take advantage of it. Should a sweep be the case, they will extend their win streak to nine games.
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The first game of this series starts tonight at 8:10 pm and will continue through the weekend until Sunday.