CLEVELAND — Red Sox star Mookie Betts made a head-first slide into first base just so he could beat a throw from Indians shorstop Francisco Lindor.
That’s how tough it was for Boston to get a hit against Cleveland ace Corey Kluber in Game 2 of the ALDS on Friday. Kluber pitched seven shutout innings with seven strikeouts in leading the Indians to a 6-0 win at Progressive Field.
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The 2014 AL Cy Young Award winner is pitching for something more now, and it showed. He had been nursing a slight groin injury suffered in his last start, but he timed up the longer TV breaks between innings to stay loose.
“I didn’t take any precautions,” he said. “I think that I was able to get a couple of bullpens in between the last game I pitched and today, so I really didn’t have any concerns about it coming into today.”
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In the aftermath of Game 1, Indians manager Terry Francona joked that Kluber would be on a “tight 165-to-170” pitch count. Kluber needed just 104 pitches in his outing, which produced a three-pronged effect:
— The Indians rested their bullpen after maxing out Andrew Miller, Bryan Shaw and Cody Allen in Game 1. Dan Otero and ShaW got the final six outs.
— Kluber's start was the key one the rotation needed given injuries to Danny Salazar and Carlos Carrasco.
— Kluber is assured of another run-through against the Red Sox, if needed, in a Game 5.
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Cleveland couldn’t have a scripted a better two-game start to the series from a pitching standpoint.
Kluber only faced real trouble once, when he walked Dustin Pedroia and Betts in the third inning, but he closed the door by retiring David Ortiz on a popup and getting Hanley Ramirez on a called third strike.
Kluber didn’t allow much else. He gave up three singles through the first six innings, and none of those runners threatened to score.
“Once I do come out of the dugout it pretty much stays as normal as you can make it,” he said. “I think there’s obviously extra adrenaline stuff. It’s a bigger stage or whatever you want to call it.”
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Kluber finished strong on that stage by throwing just 16 pitches through the sixth and seventh innings. He cleared 100 as he allowed two baserunners on a walk and a hit batsman to lead off the eighth, then gave way to the bullpen. By then, Cleveland had a six-run lead.
The 104 was well below Francona’s tongue-in-cheek tight count, but Kluber won a must-win start in dominating fashion.
Kluber isn’t in Cy Young form. He’s in postseason form. Not bad for a first playoff start.
“We talked before the game about would be a little rusty or would he be really good,” Francona said. “I think he answered that question."
