Keys to the game (5/9)

Keys to the game-

1.) Rise to the occasion. With Cory Kluber sidelined with a sore back, we look to Carlos Carrasco to step up and lead until Kluber can return to the rotation. The good news, Carlos Carrasco is exactly the guy we want to fill in. He currently has a 3-2 record with a 2.18 ERA and a 0.82 WHIP. He has been our most reliable pitcher, and he has consistently made quality starts. His last start was 6 innings of solid pitching, giving up just 2 runs on 5 hit. Pretty good, right? But he did that while sick, fighting a fever. He is one tough cookie (see what I did there J). With our struggling offense, we need him to keep Toronto off the board and give our guys a chance to put some runs on the board. Look for him to shut them down.

2.) Score some runs. Yep, it was a key yesterday… and it was more then likely one the day before. Our offense has done well with getting hits, but they have struggled to convert those hits into runs. Clutch hits have been pretty much nonexistent lately, and base runners have been left stranded. I don’t have to tell you all that though, because you know all that. You have seen the double plays that squash offensive momentum. You have seen the over-swinging and expansion of the strike zone. It is frustrating. But I have seen that sometimes all it takes is one. One player that breaks out of their funk with a clutch hit that is a game changer… and it opens the floodgates. Michael Bolsinger takes the mound for Toronto tonight making his very first start of the 2017 season. He was acquired by the Blue Jays last season from LA, and has an 8-16 record with a 4.61 ERA in his 37 game Major League career. He gets the start because the Toronto starting rotation is all kinds of beaten up. Between Sanchez’s blister, and Happ’s elbow… what was once a pretty solid rotation is now struggling to have any sort of consistency.

3.) One game at a time. I am going to say something that may ruffle a few feathers…. But hey… I am feeling feisty today. I have noticed that there are some that are putting the cart before the horse. Guys, there is no guarantee that we will go back to the World Series this year. The truth of the matter is that the odds are stacked against us to do so because it has been proven to be difficult to repeat a post season run. Difficult, but not impossible. Why? Because the post season is 100% unpredictable. The team with the best record in the regular season could get knocked out in the first round. A team that just squeaks in with a wild card spot could end up winning the whole thing. It is truly all about who gets hot at the right time. But one thing I am absolutely certain of… if you don’t make it into the post season, there is absolutely no way to win the World Series. So our focus should be on winning the series we are playing right now, one game at a time. We are struggling right now offensively, and if this were September/October, I would be worried. But it is not October, it is May. We are still managing to win games, we are still an above .500 team. So we need  focus on winning one game at a time. When we lose, don’t panic. Don’t give up on the rest of the season. We try to do better the next game. Keep things in perspective, Tribe fans. Nobody said it was going to be easy!