By: Natalie Turk

It was a good weekend for baseball in Cleveland. The Tribe swept the Tigers in a three game homestand. Yes, it’s early but Cleveland sits atop the American League Central. Critics had all but given up on the team prior to the season. They’re still unwilling to admit the squad is solid. Detroit notoriously loses to Cleveland. The Indians will need to prove themselves against stiffer competition to keep the naysayers at bay. That chance comes this week as the Tribe heads to the windy city for a four-game series with the White Sox. 

The pitching against Detroit was excellent. Zach Plesac dominated game one. He pitched seven shutout innings striking out six. Aaron Civale followed up that performance in game two pitching seven innings and only giving up one run while fanning six. Logan Allen started game three and despite struggling in the first he allowed only one run through five innings. 

The back end of the pitching was just as consistent. Tribe relievers Bryan Shaw, Nick Wittgren, James Karinchak and Emmanuel Clase saw most of the work during the series. Logan Allen referred to Cleveland’s bullpen as “Uncle Bryan and the rest of the boys.” 

Clase appears to be settling in the closer role. He recorded two saves and hit triple digits on the gun with half of his pitches. 

The men on the mound were never a real concern going into season. The offense was another story. The Tribe’s lumber was hot against Detroit and most of the damage came from the long ball. Saturday’s game the Indians combined for five home runs. A sign of positivity is that the dingers were spread out amongst the lineup. From Jose Ramirez, Roberto Perez, Franmil Reyes, Cesar Hernandez to Jordan Luplow they all added to the Tribe’s home run total. The team’s 14 home runs are third in the league. 

There are statements such as “they won against the lowly Tigers” and “it’s early who cares?” Those same Tigers took two of three from the Indians a week ago. The games lost in April often come back to haunt Cleveland in September. It’s as important now to win as any time in the season.

As the Tribe takes on the White Sox it will be a test of how well they are playing as a team. They are noticeably having fun and that’s imperative for a young group to gel.