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The Chicago Cubs extended the 2016 World Series with a win in Game 5 on Sunday night, so the series will head back to Progressive Field as the Cleveland Indians look to wrap up the Fall Classic.

According to Odds Shark, the Indians are 5-4 underdogs despite having home-field advantage. Going by the pitching matchup, Chicago would likely be favored by most neutral fans.

The Cubs will be relying on 2015 Cy Young Award winner Jake Arrieta, who finished the regular season 18-8 with a 3.10 earned run average and a 3.52 FIP, according to Baseball-Reference.com. Arrieta‘s postseason has been slightly underwhelming, with the right-hander allowing seven earned runs in 16.2 innings.

Opposing him will be Josh Tomlin, who has been the opposite of Arrieta in that his work in the playoffs has exceeded his regular-season performance. Tomlin was 13-9 this year but had a 4.40 ERA. In 15.1 postseason innings, he has surrendered three earned runs.

MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian noted that Tomlin’s strong pitching goes back to the end of the regular season:

Kyle Schwarber‘s inclusion in Chicago’s lineup is likely to be a big key in Game 6. The 23-year-old wasn’t medically cleared to play in the outfield, so he was relegated to pinch-hitting duties in the last three games.

As Baseball Prospectus’ Craig Goldstein joked, baseball fans have looked for any reason to get Schwarber in the batter’s box again:

Being able to count on Schwarber for at least three at-bats will be huge for a Cubs offense that has been spotty throughout the Fall Classic.

For the Indians, their biggest task will be getting to Arrieta early. If they can grab a two- or three-run lead by the third or fourth inning, they’ll only need Tomlin to pitch into the fifth before manager Terry Francona can turn things over to the bullpen.

One of the silver linings from Sunday’s defeat was that Cleveland didn’t use Andrew Miller. After throwing 44 pitches between Games 3 and 4, he’ll have two nights off before he may be needed again.

As a result, Miller should be able to go two innings Tuesday, depending on his pitch count. 

A loss for the Indians in Game 6 wouldn’t be the end of the world. They’d still have a decisive Game 7 at home with their ace on the mound. If Miller has been Cleveland’s best player in the playoffs, then Corey Kluber is right behind him.

On Sunday night, Indians second baseman Jason Kipnis said he doesn’t want to keep the Cubs alive any longer than necessary to secure the Indians’ third title, per USA Today‘s Bob Nightengale: “You don’t want to give lineups like that momentum, or teams to start feeling good about themselves. So the best thing to do is kind of put them away before they can do that.”

Kipnis may not get his wish. The middle of the Cubs order is getting back to form and will be even stronger with Schwarber. Tomlin’s tendency to give up the long ball—1.86 home runs per nine innings, according to FanGraphs—could be a problem Tuesday.

While Chicago may be able to even up the series, the Indians would still get the edge in Game 7 with their hopes resting on Kluber‘s right arm.

World Series prediction: Indians in seven games.

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Spending sprees may be a few weeks away for Major League Baseball teams, but impending free agents are already appraising their worth on the open market.

When it comes to the likes of Rich Hill, Yoenis Cespedes and Wilson Ramos, there should be plenty of money tossed around when general managers descend on the winter meetings in National Harbor, Maryland.

As free agency approaches, here’s a rundown of the latest rumors regarding some of this year’s biggest names.

Rich Hill Looking to Capitalize on Surging Value

Hill split his 2016 season between the Oakland Athletics and Los Angeles Dodgers, but a change of scenery didn’t prevent him from posting gaudy numbers.

Over the course of 20 starts, Hill went 12-5 with a 2.12 ERA, a 0.997 WHIP and 10.5 strikeouts per nine innings.

Thanks to those stellar numbers, the 36-year-old is eyeing a major payday this winter. 

“Could a three-year, $45 million deal be far-fetched for the 36-year-old lefty? It’s the figure major league sources often reference,” the Boston Globe‘s Nick Cafardo reported. “The Dodgers could also make Hill a $17.2 million qualifying offer, which he would likely reject given the limited pitching market.”

A deal that pays out $15 million annually would justify what Hill did throughout the 2016 season, but committing that much money to a pitcher who will be 37 when the 2017 season starts is a risky proposition.

With that said, pitchers of Hill’s caliber are never short on offers when free agency opens. 

A deal approaching $50 million would feel a tad rich, but Hill should be able to field a multiyear offer that exceeds $40 million.

Prediction: Hill signs a three-year deal worth just north of $40 million.

Giants Seeking to Steal Cespedes from Mets?

Cespedes will be one of the hottest names on the free-agent market this year, assuming he opts out of his deal with the New York Mets, and he will reportedly have no shortage of suitors if he chooses to do so. 

One team stands out as a primary competitor for his services.

That would be the San Francisco Giants, according to the New York Daily News‘ Kristie Ackert:

Long before they ended the Mets’ season in the National League wild-card game, industry sources were talking about the Giants as the natural landing spot for Cespedes. They were ranked 28th in the majors in home runs with just 130 and 25th in slugging percentage last year, something that signing Cespedes would quickly resolve. With Angel Pagan a free agent and not likely to be re-signed, they have a vacancy in left field, where Cespedes prefers to play. 

Ackert also noted the Giants have never been afraid to spend on free agents, with Johnny Cueto’s $130 million deal standing out as a primary example.

However, the Mets are still in a good spot even if the Giants pursue a lucrative, long-term deal with the Cuban power hitter.

According to ESPN.com’s Buster Olney, “The Mets’ perception is that, all things being equal, Cespedes would prefer to play for them, something he demonstrated by taking their deal last winter, with less guaranteed money than what Washington offered.”

Considering the success Cespedes has experienced since arriving in New York (48 total home runs, 130 RBI, .554 slugging percentage), he should give the team that gambled on him in July 2015 some preferential treatment as the Mets seek another National League East title.

Prediction: Cespedes re-signs with Mets following intense pursuit by the Giants.

Wilson Ramos Eyeing Long-Term Pact

Ramos had a fantastic 2016 season, hitting .307/.354/.496 with a career-high 22 home runs and 80 RBI. 

However, things came to a screeching halt when he suffered a torn ACL at the tail end of the regular season. Now Ramos is expected to miss a good chunk of the 2017 season as he rehabilitates. 

Despite the setback, Ramos is still looking for a serious commitment from a team in free agency.

Although the Washington Post‘s Jorge Castillo reported the Washington Nationals not offering Ramos a qualifying offer worth $17.2 million “is unlikely but possible,” the catcher’s agent has been adamant that his client is seeking a long-term deal.

According to Castillo, agent Wil Polidor has indicated the catcher “is seeking a four- to five-year contract, which he could secure only if he were to reject the qualifying offer.”

It’s no surprise that Ramos’ camp wants to maximize his value on the open market, but it’s hard to envision a team offering him such a deal.

Rather, it’s more feasible that a team would offer Ramos a prove-it deal that has one guaranteed year and some club options on the back end as protection.

Plus, if Ramos is amenable to signing with an American League club, he could wind up easing a prospective employer’s concerns by serving as a designated hitter.

Prediction: Ramos signs a one-year deal including club option with American League team.

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.

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It’s rare for the National League team in a World Series to be disadvantaged in the games it plays at home.

The theory, after all, is that an American League team, which uses a designated hitter throughout most of the year, is forced to sit one of its regulars. But in the case of Kyle Schwarber’s miraculous return to the Chicago Cubs lineup during the World Series—he tore his ACL and LCL on April 7 and was ruled out for the season—his team found itself in that AL-like conundrum.

Though Schwarber has been cleared to hit, doctors prohibited him from playing in the field. So, the left-handed slugger was relegated to duties as a pinch hitter in Games 3, 4 and 5, forced to watch his team struggle offensively at Wrigley Field.

But thanks to the Cubs’ Game 5 win Sunday night, the series heads back to AL champion Cleveland for the final two games, giving Schwarber the opportunity ignite Chicago’s offense.

Over those three home games, Schwarber played spectator while his team scored only four runs. Manager Joe Maddon tried every which way to spark the offense.

But aside from Anthony Rizzo—center fielder Dexter Fowler and outfielder Ben Zobrist are switch-hitters—Maddon couldn’t find capable left-handed hitting, which is of utmost importance against the right-handed-dominant Cleveland Indians pitching staff. Reliever Andrew Miller is the only southpaw among the Indians’ key pitchers.

It was as though Maddon walked into his kitchen intent on making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich only to find he was out of jelly.

Except there’s no running to the store in the World Series. The roster is set.

Left-handed-hitting outfielder Chris Coghlan is hitless in three at-bats this series. Right fielder Jason Heyward, another lefty, has struggled all year (.230/.306/.325 this season). He has three hits in this series, two of them seeing-eye singles that wouldn’t even make the NL’s worst-hitting pitchers jealous.

Maddon had nowhere to turn, except to try to adeptly pinch hit with Schwarber when it appeared advantageous.

That’s like telling Picasso to paint with only two primary colors.

Schwarber is hitting .375/.500/.500 in the World Series, which makes him a superhero among Cubs fans given that he only had five MLB plate appearances prior to starting as the team’s designated hitter in Game 1.

But the superhuman nature of Schwarber’s comeback will be judged after the series is over. And in a loss, it may not matter anyway.

As it pertains to Tuesday’s Game 6, another series-clinching opportunity for the Indians, he has a chance to give his team a boost.

It should be noted that in 10 plate appearances during the World Series, Schwarber has struck out four times. It’s irrelevant, though.

With his power, Schwarber can change the game with one swing. So if he strikes out four times, it doesn’t matter as long as he gets that timely hit.

But it’s not just the AL format that benefits Schwarber and the Cubs in Game 6.

According to ESPN’s “MLB Park Factors,” a statistical measure that determines which stadiums are friendly to hitters, Cleveland’s Progressive Field ranks third in runs, fourth in hits and fifth in home runs.

Those are the three most relevant categories for a hitter like Schwarber.

Furthermore, it’s 325 feet to right field in that stadium. By comparison, Wrigley Field is 353 feet to right field. Though the distance to Progressive Field’s left field is also 325 feet, there is a 19-foot-high wall. That makes it more difficult for right-handed hitters to homer.

For lefties, though, the right field fence is only nine feet high.

According to FanGraphs, Schwarber pulled the ball 46.8 percent of the time in 2015, which makes him, along with Rizzo, the likeliest on the Cubs roster to homer Tuesday and, if the Cubs should win, in Wednesday’s decisive Game 7.

With Schwarber in the lineup at Progressive Field, we should see the best of Chicago’s lineup.

Sure, the Indians also had to maneuver Wrigley Field’s NL rules. But it seemed through the last three games that Chicago’s offense was hurt more by them, as Cleveland scored 10 runs over that span.

The Cubs and their tortured fanbase are now embracing the most unpredictable of circumstances. Since 1945, fans have waited for a World Series to return to Chicago’s North Side.

Fans needed to write four-figure checks to get into the ballpark for one of the three games. Others gathered en masse outside Wrigley Field and packed the surrounding bars.

But now that the games are over and the World Series is leaving Wrigley for the 2016 season, those rooting for the Cubs to win this year might want to collectively wish the ballpark good riddance.

Because their home field didn’t turn out to be such an advantage.

Seth Gruen is a national baseball columnist for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @SethGruen.

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This time, it was the Chicago Cubs that got the lead in the early going, and this time, it was Chicago’s ace out of the bullpen that had the extended relief session and helped his team gain the victory.

The Cubs have lived to fight another day in the World Series, as they beat the Cleveland Indians 3-2 in Game 5 of the World Series. The Indians lead the series by a 3-2 margin, and the two teams will head to Cleveland for Game 6 of the series Tuesday night.

The Cubs got excellent starting pitching from Jon Lester, who gave up a second-inning home run to Jose Ramirez and little else in his six innings of work. Carl Edwards Jr. came on in the seventh inning to record one out and give up one hit, and that’s when Chicago manager Joe Maddon brought in fire-balling closer Aroldis Chapman.

Chapman has been anything but a sure thing for the Cubs since he was acquired from the Yankees, and he has usually done his best work when closing out games by pitching just the ninth inning.

But this time, Chapman pitched 2.2 innings, and he closed the game with a flourish, as he struck out Ramirez.

The Cubs scored three runs in the fourth inning to take the lead. Kris Bryant sparked the rally with a leadoff home run, his first of the series.

While all the Indians need to do is win one of the final two games at home to win their first World Series since 1948, the Cubs will send 2015 Cy Young Award winner Jake Arrieta to the mound in Game 6 against Josh Tomlin.

Arrieta has a 1-1 record in this year’s postseason, and he was victorious for the Cubs in Game 2 of the World Series in Cleveland. He pitched 5.2 innings of two-hit, one-run baseball, and when he is on his game, he is as difficult to hit as any pitcher in the game.

Tomlin was in top form in Game 3 when he pitched 4.2 innings of one-hit baseball without giving up a run. The Indians eventually picked up the 1-0 win in that game, as relief pitchers Andrew Miller, Bryan Shaw and Cody Allen finished the job for the Indians.

If Cleveland manager Terry Francona holds onto that strategy, Tomlin probably won’t pitch more than five innings in Game 6.

Arrieta can pitch longer than that, but Maddon may not ask him for much more than the six innings Lester pitched Sunday.

While the final two games will be played in Cleveland’s Progressive Field under American League rules, it may help the Cubs because they will be able to use slugger Kyle Schwarber as the designated hitter.

Schwarber, who tore two ligaments in his knee in early April, has not been cleared to play the field and was only able to pinch hit in the games at Wrigley Field. He had three hits in the two earlier games in Cleveland and is a major force in the lineup.

Prediction

Arrieta may have a more difficult time in his second World Series start because he has not been as consistent in the second half of the season as he was in the first half.

Tomlin will also have a hard time matching what he did at Wrigley field. Look for both teams to come through offensively.

Look for Schwarber to come through with his first World Series home run, and the Cubs should pick up the victory in Game 6 and extend the World Series to a seventh and decisive game Wednesday night.

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CHICAGO — They scratched. They clawed. They flipped. They nearly flopped.

So close to expiration, the 2016 Chicago Cubs were, that sometimes it seemed literal.

“It was hard, man,” David Ross, Grandpa Rossy, the retiring and most beloved figure of all those wearing a Cubs uniform, said. “I kept running in here [the clubhouse] between innings and telling the security guard I don’t know how much more of this I can take.

“[Anthony] Rizzo was telling me, ‘I don’t know how your old you-know-what can take this, because I can barely take it.'”

The Cubs survived, nudging the Indians back to Cleveland for Game 6 on Tuesday with a thrilling, chilling and ultimately fulfilling 3-2 Game 5 win. Times were so desperate that Chicago manager Joe Maddon called on closer Aroldis Chapman in the seventh inning. He responded with a career-high 2.2 innings, danced the high wire and lived to tell about it.

So did the Cubs.

And as Ross talked, there were tears of joy running down his face.

As the words tumbled forth, so did the water. Several times, he reached up, wiped his right eye, and continued. Then he’d wipe his left eye.

What a night. What a scene.

They sweated. They grunted. They swung, finally they swung, stringing together three hits for the first time in this World Series in a three-run, fourth-inning outburst that the Cubs think maybe can turn this thing around for them.

“Four in a row, right?” observed veteran Ben Zobrist, who doesn’t miss a thing.

How could he? The Cubs came into Game 5 hitting .204 as a team. Two Oh Four.

Through Game 5, the Cubs had collected two hits in a row exactly three times, all in their Game 2 win in Cleveland. Three in a row? Pffft. Forget it.

“We’ve got to do that more and more,” Zobrist said after Kris Bryant cracked a leadoff homer in the fourth to tie the game at 1-1, Rizzo doubled and then Zobrist and Addison Russell singled. “That’s such a key to our offense. K.B. had the big hit, but for Riz to back that up with a double, and then the bunt hit was huge.”

That was Javier Baez, whose one-out drag bunt down the third-base line in the fourth sent Zobrist scooting to third, positioning him to score. It was the only time the struggling Baez put the bat on the ball; he whiffed in his other three plate appearances.

“Sometimes our greatest strength is our youth,” Ross said. “And sometimes our greatest weakness is our youth.”

Kid Cubbies, take note, this is how you do it: After Baez’s bunt single loaded the bases with one out, and with the Cubs paddling for runs like a man in the deep end of the pool desperately trying to stay afloat, up stepped Ross. He immediately fell behind 1-2 before battling through a six-pitch at-bat that ended with him launching a sacrifice fly to left field that scored the Cubs’ third run.

“Fantastic at-bat,” Zobrist praised. “You can’t say enough about it.”

“Big, big at-bat,” Rizzo said. “Down 1-2, he chokes up and puts the ball in play.”

“Two-strike approach,” Ross said of his battle with Cleveland starter Trevor Bauer. “He threw me a backup slider and I fouled it back.”

That was the first pitch Ross saw, and it was the one Ross wanted back. He felt like that was his pitch. But persistence and grit carried the moment.

Truthfully, persistence and grit carried the night for the Cubs. Facing elimination, they bird-dogged outs so desperately that, surely, a DVD of Cubs Catching Foul Balls in Game 5 would sell like a Bill Murray film.

Second inning, Ross tracked a Carlos Santana foul ball into the little alcove at the mouth of the Indians dugout, came back as the wind blew the ball back, tipped over a railing, caught it, and as he went rear end over teacup, the ball popped out…only to be caught by Rizzo. Your basic foul-pop 2-3 out.

“Tip drill,” Ross quipped.

Third inning, right fielder Jason Heyward looked like Spiderman racing over to the right field wall, climbing it and then spring-boarding off it back toward the field to catch a Bauer foul pop.

You will not see a more amazing play in foul territory.

“Off the bat I saw the ball going like I would have a chance to catch it,” Heyward said. “But it was going toward the stands, and I was going to have a reach up into the stands to get it.

“I was prepared to do that, but having the ability to get to the wall early enough allowed me to make the adjustment. It was tough to tell if it was the wind or the way the ball was cutting.”

Fourth inning, Mike Napoli skied a high foul pop-up behind the plate, Ross was under it and then caught it…just as Rizzo, also tracking the ball, slammed into him.

It was that kind of night. There was little to no margin for error, and the Cubs climbed all over themselves to make sure their magical season didn’t end.

How badly did each team want this game? Both had their closers in by the seventh inning. Cleveland’s Cody Allen kept the Cubs scoreless, giving the Indians a chance. And after everyone’s gotten a load of what Cleveland’s Andrew Miller can do over multiple innings this fall, Maddon summoned Chapman after six solid Jon Lester innings and an out from Carl Edwards Jr.

Despite the fact that he’s never entered a game that early for the Cubs, they believed.

“Unbelievable,” Rizzo said of Chapman, who recorded the first eight-out save in a World Series elimination game since another dominant left-hander, Madison Bumgarner, did so for San Francisco in Game 7 of the 2014 World Series in Kansas City.

“Gutsy.”

“He came up big, man,” outfielder Dexter Fowler said.

Fowler didn’t see Chapman warming up early, but he knew.

“Anytime you’ve got a power arm like that, you can hear him warming up,” Fowler quipped.

Chapman made everyone sweat even more by failing to cover first base in the eighth when Rajai Davis drilled a one-out smash down the first-base line that Rizzo grabbed with a diving stop. But when he looked toward first, no Chapman.

“Especially with a guy like Davis, that’s the last guy you want on base in the situation,” Zobrist said.

But as he stole second and then third, the tying run threatening and the 41,711 in Wrigley Field agonizing, Chapman induced a harmless fly to left field from Jason Kipnis and then blew 102 mph heat past Francisco Lindor for a called third strike.

Now, Game 6.

And with Jake Arrieta facing Josh Tomlin, though they still need to play from behind, the Cubs like the way things are setting up.

“We feel like the momentum is on our side now,” Zobrist said. “This would have been a really tough one to take home.

“For them to celebrate on our field would be terrible.

“For us to go back to Cleveland and snuff out Game 6 and then get a third chance at [Corey] Kluber, that’s why we’re excited to go back to Cleveland.”

They will change nothing. On the clubhouse information board was the message: “7 p.m. Bus Departure” for Cleveland on Monday night.

Under that was another message: “Halloween Costumes are Encouraged on the Plane.”

For the Cubs, it is not yet the night of the living dead. Having survived Sunday, they believe there are still some treats up ahead.

Scott Miller covers Major League Baseball as a national columnist for Bleacher Report.

Follow Scott on Twitter and talk baseball.

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Chicago Cubs closer Aroldis Chapman always brings the heat.

In Game 5 of the World Series on Sunday, he indelibly singed his mark.

With the Cubs trailing three games to one and staring at a crushing, curse-affirming elimination loss to the Cleveland Indians at Wrigley Field, Chapman gave the Cubbies the 2.2 shutout innings they desperately needed.

Postseason-tested starter Jon Lester lasted six frames, yielding two runs and exiting with the lead. After right-hander Carl Edwards Jr. entered, recorded an out and allowed a hit in the seventh, Cubs manager Joe Maddon summoned Chapman.

It was early. It was also time.

The flame-throwing Cuban went two innings or more just three times in the regular season with the New York Yankees and the Cubs, who acquired him as a rental at the trade deadline.

In fact, he’s endured more than two innings only once in his career, on July 9, 2016, against—you guessed it—the Indians.

In an all-or-nothing scenario, Maddon rolled the dice, betting on the most dominant power arm in his arsenal.

Chapman beaned Brandon Guyer in the seventh to put two aboard but got Indians catcher Roberto Perez to ground out to end the threat.

In the eighth, Rajai Davis reached on an infield single and stole second and third, yet he failed to score.

After that, Chapman worked a perfect ninth.

In the end, he logged four of his eight outs via strikeout and flashed his trademark triple-digit heater and intermittently unhittable breaking pitches.

He stretched himself further than he’s accustomed to going and pushed the Fall Classic back to Cleveland.

It didn’t lessen his influence on the radar gun, as ESPN The Magazine‘s Buster Olney noted:

“Chapman, that was a big ask,” Indians manager Terry Francona said of the Cubs closer’s Game 5 showing, per Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald. “And he answered. That was impressive.”

It’s not as if Chapman has been terrible in the playoffs thus far. Still, the cheddar-slinging southpaw has given up some big hits, such as this one to the San Francisco Giants’ Conor Gillaspie in Game 3 of the National League Division Series:

Where his former Yankees colleague, Andrew Miller, has been untouchable for the Indians, Chapman has vacillated between godlike and mortal. His seven hits, three earned runs, five walks and 18 strikeouts through 13 innings attest to that.

But as Mike Puma of the New York Post noted, “Chapman arrived at the trade deadline from the Yankees exactly for nights like this. The Cubs still have a chance to win their first World Series since 1908 largely because they grabbed an early lead and let two of their horses, Jon Lester and Chapman, handle the bulk of the preservation work.”

He’s right. Chapman will be a free agent this winter, and while the Cubs may attempt to re-sign him, they shouldn’t be as concerned with his long-term durability as the Indians should be about Miller, who is inked through 2018.

Essentially, Chicago can ride Chapman into the ground and let the 2017 chips fall where they may, which is what the Cubbies did in Game 5.

“That’s exactly the reason we got him,” third baseman Kris Bryant said of Chapman, per Rick Morrissey of the Chicago Sun-Times.

With the series heading back to Cleveland, the Cubs have Jake Arrieta, who turned in a resilient start in Game 2, slated to go Tuesday. If it goes to Game 7, Chicago can trot out MLB ERA king Kyle Hendricks.

The Indians, meanwhile, will lean on Josh Tomlin and Corey Kluber on short rest.

Cleveland is the favorite, clearly, as it needs to win only one of two at home. But thanks to some timely offense—shout out to Bryant and his momentum-shifting solo homer in Game 5—and Chapman’s late-inning performance, these Cubs are alive and kicking.

The heat will only intensify in Game 6.

Now, we wait and see if Chapman and Chicago can ratchet it up.

All statistics current as of Sunday and courtesy of MLB.com unless otherwise noted.

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The Chicago Cubs will live to fight another day after beating the Cleveland Indians 3-2 at home Sunday night at Wrigley Field in Game 5 of the 2016 World Series.

After a somewhat shaky start in Game 1 of the Fall Classic, Jon Lester went six strong innings for Chicago. He allowed two earned runs on four hits and struck out five.

Trevor Bauer started well but lasted only four innings after giving up three runs. Although he struck out seven, a couple of critical mistakes allowed the Cubs to take control.

Jose Ramirez got the Indians on the board in the top of the second with a solo home run to left field. The 24-year-old third baseman hadn’t homered on the road since getting two during a doubleheader on May 23 against the Chicago White Sox.

MLB.com’s Daren Willman showed that Lester couldn’t have placed his fastball much better in the strike zone:

Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan thought the most impressive part of the sequence was the throwing of the home run ball back into the field of play:

Getting the first run was big for Cleveland, considering it hadn’t surrendered a lead throughout the postseason.

Bauer couldn’t maintain the advantage, though, surrendering three runs in the bottom of the fourth.

Kris Bryant led off with a solo home run to left field to tie the game at 1. MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian tweeted the homer brought the Wrigley Field crowd to its feet:

Anthony Rizzo stepped to the plate next and doubled to right field. A single from Ben Zobrist put runners on the corners with nobody out, and Addison Russell plated Rizzo with an infield single. After Jason Heyward struck out, the Cubs loaded the bases on a bunt single by Javier Baez. David Ross then made it a 3-1 game with a sacrifice fly.

Bauer struck out Lester to end the inning. The Ringer thought the Indians dodged a bullet having allowed the right-hander to finish out the inning:

The Cubs rode their luck with Lester a half-inning later and appeared to get a helping hand from home plate umpire Tony Randazzo.

Carlos Santana led off the fifth with a double, and the left fielder moved to third on a groundout by Ramirez. Brandon Guyer came up next and struck out looking on a 3-2 fastball. FanGraphs’ Jeff Sullivan showed the pitch looked off the plate, and he added how much the call impacted the game:

Roberto Perez grounded out to end the threat and maintain Chicago’s two-run lead.

An inning later, Francisco Lindor trimmed the deficit with an RBI single to center field to bring home Rajai Davis. The 22-year-old shortstop has had a great postseason, and Baseball America‘s Ben Badler believes he’s a great ambassador for the game:

MLB Network’s Jon Morosi also shared words of admiration toward Lindor from Cubs manager Joe Maddon:

Lindor got caught trying to steal second to end the inning. Ross made a great throw, and Baez’s quick tag nailed Lindor.

Lester’s issues throwing over to first are well-documented, and the Indians have exploited that in both of his World Series starts. The New York Post‘s Joel Sherman tweeted that Ross and Baez are the perfect combination to eliminate the problem:

The Indians mounted another offensive charge in the top of the seventh, which prompted a surprising move by Maddon.

Carl Edwards Jr. replaced Lester to start the inning. He allowed a single to Mike Napoli, and a passed ball moved Napoli to second base. After Santana flied out for the first out of the seventh, Maddon brought on his closer, Aroldis Chapman.

Chapman struck out Ramirez. He then hit Brandon Guyer with a pitch to put runners on first and second but got Perez to ground out for the final out.

As ESPN’s Jayson Stark noted, the left-hander got out of the jam with blunt force:

Chapman was in another jam in the eighth after allowing Davis to single with one out. The veteran outfielder stole second and then third, putting the tying run 90 feet away from home plate. But Lindor stranded Davis at third after striking out on a 101 mph fastball.

Lindor had little chance of reaching the pitch at the bottom of the zone, as Sullivan argued:

Chapman stayed out for the ninth and sent Napoli, Santana and Ramirez down in order to earn the win.

The series will head back to Cleveland for at least one more game. First pitch in Game 6 is scheduled for 8:08 p.m. ET on Tuesday.

Josh Tomlin will take the mound for the Indians, with Jake Arrieta going for the Cubs. Tomlin went 4.2 scoreless innings in his first World Series start, while Arrieta allowed one run in Game 2 as Chicago picked up its first win.

A key for the Indians will be that Andrew Miller had Sunday night off, giving him two rest days before Game 6. That should allow the dominant left-hander to potentially go two innings if need be Tuesday.

Of course, Chicago will have the luxury of Kyle Schwarber in the lineup with the designated hitter back in play.

While the Indians remain in the driver’s seat, the Cubs can change that with a victory in Game 6.

Postgame Reaction

Indians manager Terry Francona praised Chapman for pitching the final 2.2 innings, per the Boston Herald‘s Jason Mastrodonato: “Chapman, that was a big ask. And he answered. That was impressive.”

Maddon had prepared for the potential of using his closer earlier than expected.

“I talked to Chapman before the game, and he was aware of being ready in the seventh inning,” he said, according to Jon Heyman of Today’s Knuckleball.

The Indians have a bit of a buffer in the event they lose Game 6; Corey Kluber would take the mound if necessary in Game 7. Kluber has been excellent in the postseason, allowing three earned runs in 30.1 innings.

Jason Kipnis would rather Cleveland not have to rely on the 2014 Cy Young Award winner.

“You don’t want to give lineups like that momentum, or teams to start feeling good about themselves,” he said of the Cubs, according to USA Today‘s Bob Nightengale. “So the best thing to do is kind of put them away before they can do that.”

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The Indians are on the precipice of the seemingly impossible: bringing a second championship to Cleveland in the span of four months.

(OK, Cleveland Monsters faithful—third championship to Cleveland.)

Behind some surprisingly brilliant pitching and clutch hitting, the Indians have taken each of the first two games in Chicago and can wrap up the 2016 World Series later Sunday night with a win in Game 5. The Indians will hand the ball to Trevor Bauer, the only Cleveland pitcher to take a loss so far in this series.

Bauer has had a difficult go during the playoffs, injuring his pinkie finger while fixing his custom drone and struggling with his effectiveness. He had trouble finding his location despite being give a clean bill of health in Game 2, and some fans have clamored for Bauer to be replaced by Ryan Merritt—the unlikely hero for Cleveland in the ALCS.

“Ryan did a really good job in his game in Toronto, but Trevor’s been a really good pitcher for us for four years,” Indians manager Terry Francona told reporters. “If we thought that the finger was getting in the way, I understand it. But he’s come so far and battled this thing so much that I think his better game is ahead of him.”

The Cubs will hand the ball to Jon Lester, who gave up three runs in 5.2 innings and took the loss in Game 1. The Indians had a field day running on Lester and will likely look to do the same Sunday. Throwing to first base has become a nonstarter for Lester, and the Cubs have to contend with his inability to check runners every start. 

Hall of Fame pitcher John Smoltz spoke to Teddy Greenstein of the Chicago Tribune about Lester’s issues:

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After a brilliant season that saw them dominate the National League in the regular season, the Chicago Cubs are one loss away from elimination as they prepare for Game 5 of the World Series Sunday night.

The American League champion Cleveland Indians have jumped out to a 3-1 lead after winning back-to-back games at Wrigley Field. Cleveland won a nail-biting 1-0 game in Game 3 Friday night and then had a big offensive outing in a 7-2 victory in Game 4. Carlos Santana and Jason Kipnis bashed home runs to lead the Cleveland attack.

While the Cubs are up against it right now, they are sending ace left-hander Jon Lester to the mound against Cleveland’s Trevor Bauer. Lester was not at his best in Game 1 of the series against Cleveland ace Corey Kluber. Meanwhile, in Game 2, the Cubs touched up Bauer, who was tagged with the loss.

If the Cubs can find a way to win Game 5 and send the World Series back to Cleveland, it could be significant. While they would still have to win two games in enemy territory to win their first world championship since 1908, they would get slugger Kyle Schwarber back in the lineup. 

Schwarber had three hits in the first two World Series games as the designated hitter, but he has not been cleared to play defensively as a result of the torn knee ligaments he suffered in April.

Schwarber‘s approach at the plate has been polished and powerful. Unlike many of the Cubs hitters, he does not swing at bad pitches, and when he gets the pitch he likes, he is capable of doing damage. His Game 1 double just missed going out of the park, while both of his Game 2 singles drove in runs.

Since Schwarber has not been cleared to play the field, he can only be used as a pinch hitter in Chicago. Cubs manager Joe Maddon told ESPN.com’s Bradford Doolittle the ideal situation is to use him against Cleveland reliever Bryan Shaw. 

“Right there the better matchup, according to our work, is even Shaw over (Cody) Allen, and I just wanted to get him out there,” Maddon said. “There were no guarantees that we’re going to get to the bottom part of the batting order.”

The Indians never know what to expect from Bauer. He won 12 games in the regular season, but he has a 5.00 ERA in nine postseason innings.

“We expect a Trevor start,” Kipnis told the Associated Press’ Tom Withers. “We’re not sure what that means, but we expect Trevor to go out there. He’s a competitor. Don’t let him fool you. He’s a guy who competes and never makes a moment too big. Whether he has it or not, it isn’t because the situation’s too big.”

On the other hand, the Cubs have confidence in Lester to give them a strong start, as evidenced by Kris Bryant’s remarks. 

“Jon is going to give us a good game,” Bryant told Doolittle. “He’s our ace for a reason.”

Maddon is tired of watching his team flail away at the plate against Cleveland’s bullpen. 

“We’ve just got to grab a lead,” Maddon told Doolittle. “We’ve got to grab a lead [before] the latter part of the game and avoid those [bullpen] guys with either being tied or them having a lead. That’s what we have to do.”

If the Cubs can do that, they should have an excellent chance of sending the World Series back to Cleveland for Game 6 Tuesday night.

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With a 7-2 victory Saturday night, the Cleveland Indians took a commanding 3-1 series lead over the Chicago Cubs, and they’ll be looking to wrap up a World Series title Sunday.

Game 1 starter Jon Lester gets the ball for the Cubs after turning in a less-than-spectacular start his last time out when he allowed six hits, three walks and three earned runs in 5.2 innings to take the loss.

Meanwhile, the Indians will turn to Trevor Bauer on three days’ rest after doing the same with ace Corey Kluber Saturday night. Bauer made it just 3.2 innings in Game 2, allowing six hits and two earned runs to earn the loss.

Ahead of what could be a decisive Game 5 in Chicago, let’s take a look at some keys to success for both teams.

Indians: Get just enough from Trevor Bauer

The Indians have ridden the three-headed bullpen monster of Bryan Shaw, Andrew Miller and Cody Allen hard this postseason, and the formula has worked.

When Game 5 starter Trevor Bauer lasted just 3.2 innings in Game 2, however, it meant digging deeper into the relief corps, which quickly turned into an advantage for the Cubs.

Zach McAllister was the first to follow Bauer, and he promptly allowed two runs in his two-thirds of an inning of work as the Cubs managed to come away with a 5-1 victory to tie the series at one game apiece.

The Indians aren’t asking for a complete game out of Bauer, who will be working on three days’ rest. They simply need him to pitch deep enough that the questionable middle relief is a non-factor, allowing them to go straight to that lights-out trio.

For that to happen, Bauer will need to survive the opening frame.

During the regular season, the right-hander worked to a 6.43 ERA in the first inning, and those early-game struggles have continued in the playoffs.

The Boston Red Sox got on the board in the first inning with a run against Bauer in Game 1 of the American League Division Series, and the Cubs did the same in Game 2 of the World Series when Anthony Rizzo doubled home Kris Bryant.

Cubs: Get an ace-caliber start from Jon Lester

Leading up to the World Series this year and throughout his postseason career, Jon Lester has been mostly brilliant when the lights are brightest.

In 124.2 career playoff innings, he’s pitched to a 2.60 ERA and 1.04 WHIP, including three terrific starts in the division series and championship series this postseason.

He wasn’t at his best in Game 1, though.

Too much nibbling on an outside corner where he wasn’t getting strike calls meant falling behind against a lot of hitters, and by the time his night was over, he had thrown just 57 strikes among his 97 pitches.

It was the first time that the 32-year-old failed to pitch at least six innings in a playoff game since 2013—a run of eight starts dating back to his time in Boston.

Sunday will be the biggest start Lester has made in a Cubs uniform, and with the offense sputtering once again in Game 4, Chicago needs the ace version of the left-hander to show up.

“He has been lights-out,” shortstop Addison Russell told reporters after the Game 4 loss. “He has been our ace this year. We have all the faith in the world in him. I can’t wait to play (Sunday) and I know these guys can’t wait to play (Sunday) and hopefully get back at (the Indians).”

Both Teams: Capitalize with runners in scoring position

Clutch hits breed heroes during the postseason, and capitalizing with runners in scoring position remains an obvious key to success for both teams.

That’s been easier said than done this World Series, though.

The Indians are hitting .231 with runners in scoring position so far during the Fall Classic, while the Cubs have managed a meager .135 clip.

In fact, the Cubs have struck out a staggering 17 times in 39 such plate appearances, so their offensive shortcomings have not been for lack of opportunity.

Early October hero Javier Baez has seen a team-high nine at-bats with runners in scoring position, failing to drive in a single run and going 1-for-9 with four strikeouts.

The home run ball has not been a weapon for the Cubs so far this series, so finding a way to manufacture a run or stringing together some base hits may be what it takes to break through.

On the other side, a dialed-in Lester could make things difficult on the Indians, so cashing in the chances they do have will be that much more important.

It sounds easy enough, but the difference in Game 5 could be who comes up with that one clutch hit.

All stats courtesy of MLB.com, unless otherwise noted.

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