Cleveland Indians: Reliving past postseason series against the Yankees

Ahead of the Cleveland Indians Wild Card Series against the New York Yankees, we relive the postseason history between the two clubs.

The Cleveland Indians made a run at the end of the season that secured them the fourth seed in the American League postseason picture, but with that comes facing the New York Yankees in the Wild Card round.

The Indians have been known for their pitching while the big bats of the Bronx Bombers are the headlines for the Yankees, making for an interesting matchup that will be fun to watch.

Each team has their fair share of postseason history, good or bad, but this matchup will be a culmination of an odd season that has been 2020. Focusing on the history between the two teams, there is an obvious advantage on one side.

One of these teams was the American League representative in the World Series each season from 1995 until 2001, but that doesn’t quite do the advantage justice.

This postseason appearance for the Tribe is their 14th in club history, while the Yankees have made the postseason 16 times since 2000 alone.

The Yankees have 27 World Series titles in the history of the organization and the Tribe haven’t won a ring since 1948, which was only their second.

The Yankees are currently in a drought of 11 years between titles, the last coming in 2009, standing as the third longest drought in club history. The longest came during the span from 1962 until 1977.

The Indians have the longest active streak for a World Series drought at 72 years and didn’t even make the postseason over a 40 year span, pinned between the 1954 World Series loss and the 1995 World Series loss. During that stretch, the Yankees won six titles.

There’s little to question when it comes to who history backs in this matchup, but luckily that doesn’t play a factor in the outcome. While the Yankees have been dominant for decades, the Indians enter with the momentum needed.

The postseason history between the two teams is brief with this being just the fifth meeting, but each has brought an exciting storyline to the postseason. The Indians and Yankees have each won two games in the postseason series, so this will be a rubber match of sorts.

1997 ALDS: Cleveland Indians top New York Yankees, 3-2

The 1997 American League Division Series between the Cleveland Indians and defending champion New York Yankees was a back-and-forth battle that consisted of high-scoring games. Game 4 of the series had the lowest combined score at just five while the first game had the highest with 14 runs scored.

The series opened up with a win for the Yankees in an 8-6 final score. Sandy Alomar belted a three-run home run in the first inning, but it wasn’t enough as the Yankees combined for four home runs as a team.

The second game turned to the Tribe behind starting pitcher Jaret Wright. Wright tossed six innings and allowed three runs, but was able to secure the win thanks to a five-run fourth inning by Cleveland.

With the series tied at a game each, the venue shifted to Jacobs Field where the Yankees routed the Indians 6-1 in Game 3. David Wells pitched a complete game for New York, despite striking out just one batter, keeping his pitch count at just 104 pitches.

In Game 4, the Indians once again battled back. New York scored two in the top of the first, but that would be all they got. Entering the bottom of the eighth down 2-1, the Indians scored a run in both the eighth and ninth to walk-it-off and force a deciding Game 5.

In the series finale of Game 5, it was again Jaret Wright on the mound for the Indians, picking up his second win of the series for the Tribe.

A 4-3 final in Cleveland’s favor helped the Indians advance to the ALCS where they topped the Baltimore Orioles to advance to their second World Series in three seasons. Going seven games with the Florida Marlins, the Indians fell just shy of their first title since 1948.

1998 ALCS: New York Yankees best Cleveland Indians, 4-2

After having never met in the postseason, the Yankees and Indians squared off in consecutive seasons, this time in the American League Championship Series. While this series didn’t go seven games, the series was full of offensive explosions.

The first game of the series set the tone for what would be the other five, seeing the Yankees rattle off seven runs in the 7-2 win over the Tribe. The matchup was a familiar one with David Wells and Jaret Wright facing off, two of the better pitchers from the 1997 series.

The second game was much closer, going 12 innings to decide a winner. In the top of the 12th, the Indians logged three runs to secure the 4-1 victory and even up the series as it transitioned to Cleveland.

The Tribe captured the first game at Jacobs Field. The Yankees scored in the first inning, but were shutout the rest of the way as the Indians tallied six runs for a 6-1 win and a 2-1 series advantage. Unfortunately, that was the last win the Tribe would get in the series.

New York claimed 4-0 and 5-3 wins the next two games in Cleveland to take a 3-2 series lead back to Yankee Stadium. In Game 6, the Yanks scored nine runs in a 9-5 win to secure the series win and advance to the 1998 World Series.

The Yankees went on to sweep the San Diego Padres in the World Series for their second title in three years and the first of three straight.

2017 ALDS: New York Yankees edge Cleveland Indians, 3-2

Yet another decade passed before another Indians, Yankees postseason series, coming just three years ago in 2017 for the most recent matchup. Coming off the 2016 World Series appearance, hopes were high for Cleveland and the series began well. However, the Yankees battled back and eventually took the series.

The first game looked promising for the Tribe as they jumped out to a 4-0 win to begin the series. Trevor Bauer tossed 6.2 scoreless innings with eight strikeouts before handing the ball over to Andrew Miller and Cody Allen who locked up the win.

For the third straight postseason series between the teams, Game 2 went into extra innings, seeing the Indians capture a 9-8 win in 13 innings after scoring four in the sixth and one in the eighth to force extras. Francisco Lindor led the way for Cleveland, registering four RBI in the contest.

From there, the tide turned, seeing the Yankees claim the next three games. Game 3 was close with New York edging out a 1-0 thanks to a Greg Bird home run in the eighth inning off of Miller.

The momentum shift proved detrimental for the Tribe as they fell in Game 4 by a score of 7-3 and then Game 5, 5-2.

Advancing, the Yankees lost to the Houston Astros in the ALCS who technically then won the World Series, but there should be a nice, big, bold asterixis next to that title.

2020 ALDS: Cleveland Indians versus New York Yankees

So, here we are. The fifth postseason meeting between the Cleveland Indians and the New York Yankees. The rubber match. We’ve done the scouting report, we know the pitchers, there’s really just one thing left to do.

This series could be the most exciting of them all. While the past provided strong matchups of evenly matched teams, this year could be much different.

The Indians have been built on strong pitching while their offense has slowly and steadily come back to life. The Yankees have been built on power, but their pitching has quietly been the driving force this season.

Tonight will kick off the series between the two teams as part of four games being played today before a full slate of eight games on Wednesday. First pitch for Game 1 is set for 7 p.m. as is Game 2 on Wednesday. If a third game is needed, it’ll be played on Thursday, but a time hasn’t been announced. The entire series will be played at Progressive Field.

In the history of the series, the winner has advanced to the World Series twice, being the Indians in 1997 and the Yankees in 1998. Could this be the third time?