Cleveland Indians: Three keys to victory against the Chicago White Sox

Three keys to victory for the Cleveland Indians in Chicago

The Cleveland Indians limp into action against the White Sox following a disappointing 3-5 homestand which ended with a 10-2 shellacking at the hands of the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday.

While the offense has continued to struggle with inconsistency, the rotation suffered its first casualty when Logan Allen was optioned to Columbus following a trio of starts where he threw just 5.2 innings, total, allowing 11 runs and a whopping six dingers over the three-game stretch.

The Tribe was off on Thursday; a break that was much-needed after five relievers labored to complete nine innings against the Twins due to Allen’s short outing, and the Twins penchant for smacking home runs off Tribe pitchers.

Now the Cleveland Indians hit the road, well-rested, and looking to get the season back on track. The circumstances are favorable for the Tribe as they return to the top of the rotation. Shane Bieber faces off against Dallas Keuchel in the series opener, tonight at 8:10 ET. Bieber continues his historic streak, and will have the opportunity to overthrow Randy Johnson’s all-time record for consecutive starts with eight, or more, strikeouts in a game (17).

As for Saturday and Sunday, the Indians are yet to formally announce who will take the hill in those two contests. They may decide to skip Triston McKenzie – who missed his scheduled start due to the off day – and continue with the normal sequence, behind Bieber, of Zach Plesac and Aaron Civale to battle against Lance Lynn and Lucas Giolito, respectively.

The Indians come into Chicago having lost six of their last ten games, while the White Sox are heading in the opposite direction. They are 8-2 in their last ten games and, now, just a game and a half back of the division lead. They have hit their stride with a combination of great starting pitching, excellent offense, and protecting home field. The White Sox currently have the best home record (8-4) in the AL and have scored a league-leading 124 runs. The Indians will need to be at the top of their game to escape with a series win. Here are three keys to holding off José Abreu and co.