Cleveland Indians: Checking in on how notable former Indians fared in 2020

RHP, Trevor Bauer

Trevor Bauer helped the Indians win three AL Central titles, started two games in the 2016 World Series and was named an All-Star in 2018 while in Cleveland, but no year of his career was better than his 2020 campaign as a member of the in-state rival Cincinnati Reds.

Bauer posted a national league-leading 1.73 ERA posted a 5-4 record and joined Indian right-hander Shane Bieber as the only other pitcher in baseball to strike out 100 or more batters during the COVID shortened season as he recorded exactly 100 punch outs in 73 innings of work.
Serving as the Reds ace, Bauer helped guide Cincinnati to the postseason for the first time since 2013.

There, he tossed a gem in the Reds Game 1 matchup of their Wild Card Series with the Atlanta Braves as the right-hander dealt 7.2 shutout innings with 12 strikeouts, just two hits and not a single walk.

Unfortunately, Bauer did not receive any run support as the Braves won the game 1-0 in 13 innings and would sweep the Reds after winning Game 2 the following day 5-0.

Now, Bauer enters free agency where he’ll likely spark the interest of nearly every club hoping to win a championship in 2021.

Despite the sour ending to the season and likely his tenure as a Red, Bauer will likely become the first Cincinnati pitcher to win the Cy Young Award in franchise history.

C, Yan Gomes

After six years with the Indians that included a trip to the World Series and All-Star game appearance in 2018, Yan Gomes was traded by the Tribe to the Washington Nationals.

Gomes found his way back to the World Series in 2019, where he helped Washington earn their first-ever World Series title and resigned with the club on a two-year deal in the offseason.

In his first year of his new contract, Gomes put together a solid season at the plate for the defending champs as he slashed .284/.319/.464 with four home runs and 13 RBI’s as he played 30 games as he split catching duties with fellow Kurt Suzuki who made 33 starts.

While Gomes had success at the plate, it was a lost season for the Nationals. They became the second straight defending World Series champion (2018 Red Sox) to miss the postseason the following season as Washington finished the year 26-34.

Gomes will look to help the Nats get back to October in 2021 in what will be a contract year for the former Indians catcher.

While Edwin Encarnacion only spent two seasons (2017-18) as a Cleveland Indian, he quickly became a fan favorite. Indians’ fans fell in love with the slugger’s tremendous power, parrot walk, and contributions to a pair of AL Central championship clubs.

Encarnacion spent the 2020 season on his third different team since he departed Cleveland. He was traded from the Indians to the Seattle Mariners after the 2018 season and after just over two months with the club was traded to the New York Yankees.

There he helped lead the Yankees to a 103-win regular season and AL East title but was not resigned after the season and wound up inking a one-year deal with the Chicago White Sox.

The 37-year old went through his share of struggles during the shortened season as in 44 games, he slashed just .157/.250/.377 but still showed off his power as he clubbed 10 home runs and picked up 19 RBI’s.

His veteran leadership did not go without impact as he helped mentor a young White Sox club that clinched a postseason berth for the first time since 2008 and took the AL West Champion Oakland Athletics to Game 3 of the Wild Card Series.

Encarnacion will again be a free-agent offseason and hope to find a suitor who values his home run stroke despite an overall decline in production.

OF, Michael Brantley

There are few players that have played for the Cleveland Indians in the last decade loved more by the fan base than Michael Brantley.

Brantley spent eight years with the Indians in which he was named an All-Star three-times, win a Silver Slugger Award and finish third in 2014 AL MVP voting.

After the 2018 season, Brantley departed Cleveland in free agency to sign a two-year $32 million deal with the Houston Astros.
In his first year as an Astro, Brantley helped guide Houston to the World Series after an All-Star season that saw him slash .311/372/.502 with 22 home runs and 90 RBI’s.

In 2020, Brantley had yet another solid year at the plate as in 46 games; he slashed .300/.364/.476 with five home runs and 22 RBI’s as he helped Houston clinch their fourth straight postseason berth.

Brantley is now fighting to help Houston get back to the World Series as he was a key contributor in helping the Astros sweep the Minnesota Twins in the Wild Card Series and take down the Oakland A’s in four games in the ALDS.

Through seven postseason games, he is slashing .345/.406/.621 with two home runs and seven RBI’s.

Brantley and the Astros currently trail the Tampa Bay Rays 1-0 in the ALCS.