After a tumultuous season that was riddled with skepticism and many fans calling for Charlie Manuel's job, the Indians showed perseverance in defeating the Royals in a division tiebreaker that enabled them to play a home series against the Angels.
Against his own cousin, Brenden proved he would not be denied his first Championship Series appearance since Season 10.
The Angels knew their offense didn't have the same star power the Indians had, so their plan to send the series to a game five finale was to call on the services of their ace, Emil Gross, who possessed a 2.49 ERA and league-leading 157 strikeouts during the regular season.
Their plan backfired.
On the game's first pitch, Trever Crotta rifled the ball into right field for a single. In the second inning, they scored their first run and already had amassed four hits. While the Angels managed a valiant fight and continued tying the game, the Indians utilized some unique strategy that ultimately gave them the edge the Angels were incapable of overcoming.
In the eighth inning, with the game deadlocked at three runs, the Indians singled in their first two at-bats. They then sent prominent hitter Hi Berger out to bunt, which led to an infield single as it was executed to perfection. Mauricio Aguilo, known for his uncanny ability to produce in the clutch, launched the ball into left-center field for a two-RBI single -- handing Cleveland a 5-3 lead late.
That ended up being the defining play of the game, as the Angels were unable to muster up any more offense of their own after the sixth inning, leaving the door wide open for Cleveland to return to the ALCS.
The Indians finished the game with an astounding 16 hits, 20 runners total who reached base, and five runs. Their pitching did a swell job themselves, giving up a mere three runs on five hits en route to the 5-3 victory.
The Cleveland Indians now have a date with the Baltimore Orioles in a potential seven-game Championship Series duel. The anticipation for game one of this series is reverberating throughout the country as we speak.
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