Cleveland Indians: The ideal matchup in the ALDS

For the Cleveland Indians, the postseason is right around the corner and with Boston’s magic number sitting at just one, the Yankees and Twins look to be the Wild Card Game participants this season.

With the Boston Red Sox one win away from the division crown, it will likely come down to Minnesota and New York for the last American League playoff spot.

The question for the Cleveland Indians now becomes, who would you rather play in a five-game series? We will take a look at that and determine who the more favorable matchup would be.

First off, we can look at the team stats to try to find a big gap. When looking at the offenses, there is not much of a gap.

Both offenses are top five in runs scored and runs per game in the AL. They are also top five in team batting average.

The better difference maker to determine a favorable matchup would be the team pitching. The Yankees have the third-best ERA in the AL while Minnesota sits at 10th.

The Twins also have the third-worst average against while the Yankees are number one in the AL. The Yankees’ staff is more well-rounded than Minnesota’s.

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The familiarity the Indians have with the Twins is a positive to facing them in the ALDS. They are a division opponent and the Indians did well against them this season. The two teams have played a total of 19 games with the Indians winning 12 of them. The Indians also outscored the Twins 93-56 on the season.

The Yankees and Indians played seven times with Cleveland winning five games. They outscored the Yankees 31-20 on the year.

The Indians have a dominant pitching staff for a five-game series. Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco and Trevor Bauer have been on a tear for most of the season and they are still as hot as ever.

The pitching will likely be the X-factor in all the games the Tribe will play in October. The offense will have to keep up their torrid pace and build on it heading into the ALDS.

Cleveland is well prepared and equipped to handle either of these teams but I think I would rather see Minnesota in the ALDS.

The Twins are the most familiar team to Cleveland. The Tribe will be able to form a better game plan for the series and move on to the ALCS.

Next: Postseason roster roundtable

Who would you rather have the Indians face in the ALDS?