World Series, Game 1: Indians jump out to a 1-0 lead
In an electric atmosphere in Cleveland, the Indians jumped out to a 1-0 World Series lead with a 6-0 win over the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday night. Cleveland led from the onset, riding on the backs of Corey Kluber and Andrew Miller for a combined eight innings of pitching that allowed only six hits and zero earned runs. Roberto Perez provided plenty of surprising offense in the form of two home runs, including a three-run homer in the eighth inning to all but seal the game.
In his World Series debut, Kluber came out dealing, becoming the first pitcher in World Series history to strike out eight batters through the first three innings. Kluber ended up throwing six shutout innings while allowing only four hits. Following a single by Ben Zobrist to start the seventh inning, Miller was brought in to close the door on a potential Cubs rally. Miller made it interesting, though, walking the bases loaded before retiring the next three Cubs hitters to end the inning. Miller also ran into trouble in the eighth inning, but stranded runners on first and second by striking out Kyle Schwarber to end the threat. He ended the night having two hits and two walks over two innings. Cody Allen came in and earned the save in the ninth inning.
Jon Lester, on the other hand, did not appear to be the dominant postseason pitcher we’ve come to expect, allowing two runs in the first inning after loading the bases. Lester also allowed a solo home run to Roberto Perez in the bottom of the fourth. The left-hander was visibly upset at times with calls from the umpire and took several innings before settling in, finishing with a stat line of 5.2 innings pitched with three earned runs on six hits.
At the plate, Perez and Francisco Lindor led Cleveland the entire night. Perez, long viewed as the ‘soft spot’ in Cleveland’s lineup, went 2-4 with two home runs and four RBI’s. Lindor was a tough out all night, going 3-4. Jose Ramirez also performed well against the Cubs’ pitchers, going 3-4 with a run batted in.
The Cubs struggled all night to string together hits in order to manufacture runs, as the deep ball was nowhere to be found this night in Cleveland. The Cubs trio of homegrown all-stars in Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, and Addison Russell went a combined 0-11 with one walk in the game. Fellow all-star Ben Zobrist was a bright spot, however, as the versatile fielder hit 3-4 in the game.
The Cubs will look to regather while the Indians will look to take a commanding 2-0 lead in the series. Game 2 is Wednesday night in Cleveland with the opening pitch set for 5:08 p.m. MST.