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Home , Blake Parker, Chad Green (outfielder), Chad Green (pitcher), Dellin Betances, Jason Knapp (baseball), Joe Girardi

Girardi wishes he'd challenged crucial HBP By Bryan Hoch / MLB.com | @BryanHoch | 12:00 AM ET + 339 COMMENTS -- If could revisit the sixth inning of Friday's Game 2 of the Division Series presented by Doosan, rolling back time to the precise moment when the knob of 's bat was plunked by a , the Yankees now wishes he had issued a challenge. That will not happen, of course, and the Yankees will have to accept the 9-8, 13-inning loss to the Indians at . Immediately after Cleveland took a 2-0 series lead, Girardi said the Yankees had not received a super slow-motion replay in time to challenge and that he had not wanted to disrupt Green's rhythm. He expressed regret for that decision on Saturday. "I screwed up. And it's hard," Girardi said. "It's a hard day for me. But [I've] got to move forward and we'll be ready to go [tonight]." Had Girardi challenged the hit-by-pitch on Chisenhall, a replay official likely would have determined that the ball had been a foul tip, overturning the call on the field. Because it was hit sharply and directly into Gary Sanchez's glove, the play would have been an inning-ending . Instead, the bases were loaded and hit Green's second pitch off the right-field foul pole, trimming what had been an 8-3 Yankees lead to a single run. "Greeny had had success against Lindor, and that's why I left him in there," Girardi said. In the eighth inning, Jay Bruce hit a game-tying homer off David Robertson, and neither team scored again until Cleveland's lined a run-scoring single off in the 13th inning. "Obviously, I take responsibility for everything, and I feel horrible about it," Girardi said. Girardi said the non-challenge was not indicative of a lack of trust in Sanchez, who immediately signaled to the dugout for a review, nor did he believe replay coordinator Brett Weber to be at fault. "I know [Weber] feels really bad, too," Girardi said. "You know, we really care. Again, I take full responsibility. It's not Brett's fault. It's my fault." Weber's initial read was that the ball had changed directions and there was nothing to say it had not hit Chisenhall's hand. With Weber in charge, the Yankees' 75 percent success rate on replay challenges was the highest in the Majors this season. "When he tells me that something's not conclusive, I believe him, because he's been so good," Girardi said. "Now, knowing that I had two challenges, in hindsight, yeah, I wish I would have challenged it. But he never got that angle. He never got that super slow-mo. And, yeah, I should have challenged it, now that I think about it." The non-challenge was not the only decision by Girardi in that sixth inning now being questioned. He lifted starter CC Sabathia after just 77 pitches, with the lefty having retired 12 of 13 batters and facing the bottom of Cleveland's order. "I looked at it in the scenario, we needed two more outs in the sixth inning, right?" Girardi said. "I knew at some point he was possibly going to use Chisenhall. So I knew he had three right-handers in a row. He could only pinch-hit for one of them, so I looked at that, saying that Green was going to get two right-handers for sure, at some point. And that's what I looked at. "Now, if I wait one more hitter, the guy makes an out, maybe do I leave CC in still? Maybe. If he gets a hit, then it's maybe only one hitter that he sees that's right-handed and there are two outs to get." Girardi also stuck with Green after he could not put away Gomes. After getting ahead 0-2, he threw a ball, then Gomes fouled off three pitches before banging a loud double off the left-field wall. "I felt I kind of used the formula I had been using the last two or three months -- and last night, it doesn't work," Girardi said. "So I take responsibility for that. I mean, that's just who I am, and I did it as a player. And whenever we lose, I take it hard, and this one was really hard." The contest took place 10 years and one day after what would later call his greatest regret in a Major League dugout, which happened to take place on the same patch of turf. In Game 2 of the 2007 ALDS at what was then called Jacobs Field, Torre believed he should have pulled the Yankees off the field when a swarm of Lake Erie midges enveloped . The Yankees lost that game and the series, marking Torre's final tour as the team's manager. With the Yankees facing a potential elimination in tonight's Game 3, Girardi said he expects the outcome of this ALDS to determine how the non-challenge is remembered in franchise lore. "Let's just see what happens [tonight] and as we move forward," Girardi said. "That will probably determine the severity of it."

Encarnacion day to day with ankle sprain By Jason Beck / MLB.com | @beckjason | 12:40 AM ET + 19 COMMENTS NEW YORK -- The sight of Edwin Encarnacion hobbling to his locker on crutches, his right foot in a boot, looked dire as the Indians prepared to work out Saturday afternoon at . But the fact that neither Encarnacion nor manager has eliminated the slugger from Game 3 of their American League Division Series presented by Doosan tonight was a much better indication of his status. "I don't think he's going to start tomorrow," Indians manager Terry Francona said, "but he's not been ruled out, either. So we'll take our time and allow him to continue to get treatment. But if he's that close to being available, that's a really good sign." Encarnacion remains day to day with a right ankle sprain, but he was clearly relieved, saying he felt better on Saturday than he did immediately after the injury on Friday night. "I thought it was going to be worse," Encarnacion said, "but thank God I'm OK." An MRI on the ankle, Encarnacion said, confirmed the diagnosis. "There's no fracture. It's just the [sprained] ligaments," Encarnacion said, "and I'm going to be day to day." Even in a worst-case scenario, Encarnacion isn't expected to miss enough time to necessitate a roster move, though infielder Yandy Diaz traveled with the team just in case. If the Indians took Encarnacion off the roster due to injury, he wouldn't be eligible to return until -- and unless -- the Indians make the . For now, the Indians' medical staff is working on getting the swelling down. "We'll let them do their stuff tomorrow and then we'll see where he's at," Francona said. "He might be able to pinch-hit. He might not be able to pinch-hit. He might be able to DH. We'll see. There's no way to know yet." • Shop for postseason gear While Encarnacion received treatment on Saturday, Michael Brantley -- who pinch-hit for Encarnacion on Friday and stayed in Game 2 as the DH -- went through what he called a full workout on the field, shagging fly balls and running sprints as he works back from his own right ankle injury. Brantley's workout was originally supposed to determine if his ankle was strong enough to let him start in left field tonight. Encarnacion's status might render that moot. "It's kind of an easy one," Francona said. "If Edwin doesn't play, [Brantley] walks into the DH spot." It also sounds easy for Brantley, who said baserunning isn't an issue for him. He didn't have to test that in Friday's game, going 0-for-5. "I've been doing that a lot before the series even started, just making sure what I could handle, what I couldn't," Brantley said. "We had our limitations, but everything has been going great and I'm very happy where I'm at right now, and we just have to keep moving forward." If that leads him to DH tonight, Brantley said, "I'm up for whatever the team needs me to do." Considering Friday marked his first postseason appearance since the 2013 AL Wild Card Game, Brantley will take it. "For him to get an opportunity to be part of what we're doing is extra meaningful to him," Francona said.

Carrasco returning to scene of emergence By Jason Beck / MLB.com | @beckjason | 12:56 AM ET + 1 COMMENT CLEVELAND -- Carlos Carrasco took the mound on a hot August Sunday afternoon at Yankee Stadium with a similarly scorching fastball, but a lukewarm manager. It's something Terry Francona can smile about three years later as he awaits Carrasco's postseason debut there tonight in Game 3 of the American League Division Series presented by Doosan. Carrasco can pitch the Tribe into the AL Championship Series presented by Camping World after its 9-8 win in 13 innings in Friday's Game 2 gave it a 2-0 series lead. "I wish I could sit here and say, 'Oh, yeah, I saw it.' I didn't," Francona said on Friday. Carrasco spent most of the 2014 season in the Indians' bullpen, learning how to corral his electric repertoire, posting a 2.30 ERA and allowing a .217 batting average over 26 relief appearances. He had worked once in a week and a half thanks to off-days, but he had stretched out enough in a four-inning appearance that pitching and bullpen coach -- now the Rays' manager -- believed he was ready for a start. "I just thought we were too far into the year," Francona said. "I was hesitant. But those guys talked me into it." Carrasco mixed a 97-mph fastball and a sinker just shy of 96 mph for five scoreless innings on two hits with four . Six days later, he shut down the eventual AL East champion Orioles for seven innings. Carrasco fell one out shy of a shutout of the White Sox the next month, then tossed a two-hit shutout in Houston. "I think his time in the bullpen was the best thing for him ever," Francona said. "He got a chance to watch the game. I think Cashy was good for him. He got in attack mode, where I think when he was starting, when he was younger, he'd worry the four days in between." Carrasco was good enough in 2016 that few thought the Tribe could overcome his absence last postseason once an Ian Kinsler comebacker fractured his right pinkie finger. Now, as the Indians head to The Bronx, the big right-hander is a big reason why they can look at hitter-friendly Yankee Stadium unfazed. "You know what? We're up two games, but [that's] the only difference," Carrasco said of how he will approach the potential clincher, which doubles as his first postseason start. "Tomorrow, it's going to be the same game, the same guys. We're just going to go out there tomorrow, no pressure, nothing about that. So just go in there and pitch the way the way that I've been doing the whole year." That in and of itself has been impressive. "He has really taken off the last few years," teammate said. "His stuff is second to none. Just like Trevor [Bauer in Game 1], we love having him on the mound. I think there's 24 guys that have confidence in that game when he takes the ball. So we're pretty lucky to have the staff we do." Carrasco has remained stingy at Yankee Stadium, where he's 3-1 with a 1.40 ERA in four starts to go with 31 strikeouts over 25 2/3 innings. His turn didn't come up during the Indians' visit six weeks ago, but he has been dominant away from Cleveland, going 11-2 with a 2.65 ERA in 17 starts on the road, another good reason for Francona to start him in Game 3. By contrast, Carrasco's 7-4 record and 3.99 ERA at home this year includes a loss to the Yankees, who were held scoreless on three hits through four innings on Aug. 6 before a bases-clearing from fueled a five-run fifth. Carrasco has no explanation for why he has been so much better on the road. He is excited to pitch, period, tonight regardless of the venue. And the chance to help the Indians advance to the ALCS will be that much sweeter after watching from the sidelines last October. "It's a big difference," Carrasco said of coming into this year's postseason with a chance to help. "Last year, my team went to the postseason, the World Series, so I was with them last year, but I couldn't pitch because of my injury to my hand. "But now, I'm available to enjoy my team this year. I think this is going to be my first time [starting in the playoffs], and I just want to enjoy it."

Anthony Castrovince Swish had role in Yankees getting Judge By Anthony Castrovince / MLB.com | @castrovince | 12:03 AM ET + 13 COMMENTS NEW YORK -- That patch of grass out there in right field at Yankee Stadium, where the giant will once again roam during Game 3 of the Division Series presented by Doosan tonight? That used to be 's turf. From 2009-12, Swisher was a pretty productive presence in that Yankee lineup, with 105 homers, 134 doubles, an .850 OPS and countless utterances of "awesome" and "bro." Swisher's enthusiasm and output was, by and large, a very good thing for the Bronx Bombers. But in a funny twist of fate, Swish's greatest contribution to the Yanks might end up being Judge himself. And it's their October opponent, the Indians, who unwittingly supported the "swap." Judge, you see, was taken out of Fresno State with the No. 32 overall pick in the 2013 MLB Draft -- a pick the Yankees had received as compensation when Swisher signed with the Tribe as a free agent before the 2013 season. "Cash [Yankees general manager ] showed some confidence in the scouting department and the process that we're involved in," said Yankees scouting director Damon Oppenheimer, "to let a Major League player with really high value leave, hoping we would turn it into something that had as much or more value." Now, before you jump to conclusions, no, had the Indians not signed Swisher (or, for that matter, , another free-agent foray that cost them a pick that winter), they still wouldn't have landed Judge, a viable 2017 AL MVP candidate and as obvious an AL Rookie of the Year choice as any in the history of the honor. The Indians didn't directly surrender No. 32. The pick they gave up was in the second round. So Judge likely would not have fallen to them, though they did like him. "One of our scouts liked him over [No. 1 overall pick Mark] Appel, which is crazy to think about," Indians president of baseball operations said. "It's not necessarily how we had him on our board, but one of our scouts felt strongly about it. There were some questions about his size, but he also did a lot of things really well, and he was renowned for having a great makeup." Judge's 6-foot-7 frame in a game in which very few position players of that size have logged meaningful careers (Frank Howard, Richie Sexson and are the extent of the list) made him an unknown, even by baseball Draft standards. "People have a hard time dealing with things outside the norm when it comes to scouting in baseball," Oppenheimer said. "That's why the [Jose] Altuves of the world and Judges of the world aren't always the consensus." Judge wasn't even the Yankees' first choice in that general realm of selections in 2013. This is where the since-altered compensation system came into play. The Yankees' "real" pick in that Draft was at No. 26. They gained No. 32 because of the Swisher signing and No. 33 because reliever Rafael Soriano signed with the Nationals. This proliferation of picks made it easier for the Yanks to take the calculated gamble on Judge. With No. 26, they went with the seemingly safer selection of Notre Dame third baseman Eric Jagielo (who would later become fodder in the trade with the Reds for ). Then they nervously watched and waited through five more picks (Phillip Ervin to the Reds, Rob Kaminsky to the Cardinals, Ryne Stanek to the Rays, Travis Demeritte to the Rangers and Jason Hursh to the Braves) before, finally, Judge was sitting there waiting for them at No. 32. They took left-hander Ian Clarkin, who was later utilized in the trade for David Robertson, and Todd Frazier, with the following compensation pick for Soriano. "It's always nice to have the opportunity of multiple picks," Oppenheimer said. "But I think our process of evaluation and the depth of the evaluation gave us the comfort level [to pick Judge]." It has been pointed out how strange it is that, in this Division Series, it is the Indians who are the established AL elite and it is the Yankees who are, basically, the up-and-coming underdogs. But really, that offseason of 2012-13 represents how the role reversal runs deep, because the Indians' investment in Swisher was part of the grand-scale remodel that took place when Terry Francona came aboard that winter. The Indians had a protected pick at No. 5 overall (they went with , who would, of course, become a key piece in the blockbuster trade with the Yankees for Andrew Miller), which made giving up the second-rounder easier to swallow. For the Yankees, this was the beginning of a period of building from the ground up. The top-heavy payroll plan was no longer paying World Series dividends for the club, and Judge now stands as the cream of a deep and talented system. "In terms of the international department and what the guys in New York are doing with trades and waiver claims, the whole thing is coming together like it should," Oppenheimer said. "We're working together well." Clearly, the Swisher compensation pick worked out well. As dictated by the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, the compensation system is about to see a major change this winter. No longer will teams like the Yankees, who pay rather than receive revenue sharing, be eligible to reap a pick in the first round. The earliest these teams can receive compensation is after Competitive Balance Round B, which itself takes place after the second round. And that's only if the team was under the luxury tax threshold. In other words, it's a good thing the Yankees got Judge when they could. It still remains to be seen if he'll have a say in beating the Indians on this October stage. But in a strange way, Nick Swisher and the Indians helped put him in pinstripes.

Tribe sends Carrasco to mound eyeing clinch By Anthony Castrovince / MLB.com | 12:02 AM ET + 46 COMMENTS NEW YORK -- Where do we go from the draining drama of all that Game 2 tumult? Where do the Indians go after a win for the ages? Where do the Yankees go now that they've had their hearts ripped out? Yankee Stadium is the site for tonight's Game 3 of the American League Division Series presented by Doosan (7:30 p.m. ET, FS1), and it's the place where the Yankees, who had the best home record in the AL this year, will look to salvage this series after one of the most depleting postseason defeats of recent memory. The Yanks had Game 2 in hand after crushing , but their 8-3 lead and chance to steal the home-field edge from the clutches of the Tribe were wiped away by a stunning, stirring Cleveland comeback. So this will go one of two ways: Either the Yankees are about to get up off the mat with a remarkable uprising of their own, or the Indians are going to ride the momentum from their memorably magical Friday night into the AL Championship Series presented by Camping World. "They're playing well. They're a great team," Yanks reliever Dellin Betances said of the Tribe. "They went to the World Series last year. They were up 3-1, so hopefully we can win three games like the Cubs did. I like our chances." One X-factor that ought not go unnoticed, even after Cleveland's wild win, is Edwin Encarnacion's sprained right ankle. It took a terrible turn when Encarnacion jammed his foot on the second-base bag while trying to avoid being doubled up in the first inning. Encarnacion left Progressive Field on crutches and received an MRI. His status remains day to day, but the Indians are generally optimistic about his condition. "I don't know if remarkably better is a good word, but pretty close," Tribe manager Terry Francona said on Saturday. "He's doing much better. I don't think he's going to start [tonight], but he's not been ruled out, either. So we'll take our time and allow him to continue to get treatment. But if he's that close to being available, that's a really good sign. So we're obviously not going to do anything roster-wise." Michael Brantley has worked himself back from a right ankle sprain of his own and can slide right into DH duties if need be. Brantley tallied just three plate appearances in the final eight weeks of the regular season, and he went 0-for-5 in Encarnacion's stead in Game 2. Francona was hoping to give Brantley the start in left field tonight even before Encarnacion's injury, anyway. Whether or not the Indians' lineup is compromised, the Yankees are in obvious need of a strong start from . Their bullpen needed to get 26 outs in the AL Wild Card Game on Tuesday night. Between 's short start in Game 1 and the marathon that developed in Game 2, there were another 34 outs. The off-day between Games 2 and 3 helps, but there has already been a lot of exposure for that deep unit. David Robertson has pitched five innings, and Betances has delivered four. The Yanks can only hope they can turn to that bullpen with a lead tonight. The challenge there is Carlos Carrasco, a "Game 3 starter" only because of the depth of this Tribe team. Carrasco is coming off his first 200-inning season, in which he had an adjusted ERA+ 39 percent better than league average with a Major League-high 18 wins and 10.2 strikeouts per nine innings. "He's really taken off the last few years," Indians reliever Andrew Miller said of his teammate. "His stuff is second to none." And Carrasco's stuff was better on the road (2.65 ERA and .210/.266/.336 opponents' slash) than at home (3.99 and .263/.310/.441) this year, which is one reason the Indians opted for this arrangement. The Yankees were equally sensible with the splits. Tanaka posted a 6.48 ERA in 15 road starts but a 3.22 mark in 15 home starts. New York is banking on his second-half improvements (3.77 ERA) revealing themselves on this big stage in his first postseason start since the 2015 AL Wild Card Game loss to the Astros. "This is a team that's going to grind out at-bats," manager Joe Girardi said, "and he needs to grind out at-bats with them." As in 2015, the Yankees need to treat this game like a one-and-done. It's time to pull out all the stops and make a stop. Only 14.3 percent (seven of 49) of teams that have fallen into an 0-2 hole in the best-of-five Division Series have gone on to win it. Can the Yanks work their way back into this? "It's going to be a tough fight," CC Sabathia said. "But we can." If they can do it anywhere, it's in the Bronx.

Carrasco's objective: Avenge last year's postseason absence Jerry Crasnick CLEVELAND -- Corey Kluber is stoic to the point of sleep-inducing. But he's a two-time All-Star on the verge of his second career Award, so he stands front and center as the ace and acknowledged leader of the ' pitching rotation.

Trevor Bauer is attracting more attention these days, as well, as an idiosyncratic, drone-loving baseball geek who has reached a higher level by resisting the pressures to conform. He has a compelling story to share.

If Kluber and Bauer are the Luciano Pavarotti and Placido Domingo of the Cleveland rotation, that leaves Carlos Carrasco in the role of the third tenor, Jose Carreras. His teammates call him "Cookie," but on the national-recognition scale, he might as well be "the other guy."

That could all change Sunday night, when Carrasco tends to some potential résumé embellishment and profile enhancement in the Bronx.

Carlos Carrasco will get to do a lot more than provide high-fives when he takes the mound for the Indians this October. Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire After Bauer's shutdown performance in Game 1 and the Indians' impressive comeback from Kluber's inexplicably bad outing in Game 2, Carrasco will take the mound against Masahiro Tanaka with an opportunity to close out the best-of-five American League Division Series at Yankee Stadium.

It's the postseason debut for Carrasco, who is coming off his first 200-inning season and ranks among the AL's top five in WHIP (1.10), strikeouts (230) and FanGraphs WAR (5.5) this season. The only thing he lacks is a big "Q" rating.

"When you have somebody like Kluber in your rotation, everybody else gets overshadowed a little bit," said Indians general manager .

Carrasco can't be faulted if he's a little amped for this one. He suffered a broken right pinkie finger on an Ian Kinsler comebacker during the 2016 stretch run and spent October walking around in a splint as the Indians rode Kluber, Andrew Miller and Cody Allen to the seventh game of the World Series.

The motivation from that setback sustained Carrasco through his offseason workouts and some elbow concerns in , and he logged a 2.04 ERA and held opponents to a .175 batting average in April to quickly put the scars behind him. Carrasco's relatively limited exposure to Yankee Stadium suggests he'll be in his comfort zone in Game 3. In four career starts in the Bronx, he's 3-1 with a 1.40 ERA, 0.90 WHIP and 31 strikeouts in 25 ⅓ innings. He has also performed better on the road (11-2, 2.65 ERA) than at home (7-4, 3.99) this year.

Attack the heat The numbers show that opposing lineups have been much more successful against Carlos Carrasco's fastball than the other three pitches in his repertoire this season. PITCH BA OBP SLG Fastball .341 .405 .604 Slider .130 .168 .198 .134 .164 .157 Curveball .202 .225 .293 "You know what? I love to pitch everywhere," Carrasco told reporters Saturday. "Home, here, other stadiums. It's the postseason. There are going to be a lot of people [watching]. This is going to be my first time, but I always say, it's the same baseball." While Bauer is a work in progress at age 26, Carrasco's réesumé reflects the volatile and often unpredictable nature of player development. He was a perennial top-10 prospect in the Philadelphia system after signing for a $300,000 bonus out of his native Venezuela in 2003, but the results didn't quite match the physical gifts, and he was tagged with a label that came to define him in his formative years.

"For all his stuff, he lacks consistency and a killer instinct," wrote of Carrasco in 2009. "Opposing managers use words such as 'fold up' or 'soft' to describe Carrasco, who's prone to the big inning."

The Phillies traded Carrasco, Jason Knapp, and to Cleveland for and in July 2009, but the change of venues had a minimal effect on Carrasco's career advancement. He made three stops with Triple-A Columbus and was 27 years old when he finally made the major leagues for good.

By acclamation, the Indians trace Carrasco's breakthrough to 2014, when he began the season in the bullpen. Carrasco had a tendency to lose his composure and concentration with runners on base, and the switch to the pen freed him to think batter-to-batter rather than worry about pacing himself and looking three or four innings ahead. Francona was initially skeptical when pitching coach Mickey Callaway and former Indians bullpen coach Kevin Cash, now the ' manager, lobbied him to plug Carrasco back into the rotation in August 2014. But Francona gave it a shot, and Carrasco shut down the Yankees in New York in his first outing and logged a 5-3 record and a 1.30 ERA in 10 starts down the stretch. In hindsight, his exposure to relieving gave him the mental skills he needed to get over the hump as a starter.

"I think when he went to the bullpen and took that mentality of just going as hard as he could from pitch one and not worrying about getting deep into the game, that's when we saw things click for him," Chernoff said. "He carried that approach back into the rotation, and he's been that same way since."

Regardless of what happens Sunday or the rest of October, Carrasco's emergence is another tribute to Cleveland's pitcher development approach. Francona, Callaway, the Indians' front office and the organization's development staff have shown a knack for recognizing pitching talent, nurturing it and showing the requisite patience to achieve big results.

"We can't be an organization that pulls the plug on guys too quick," Francona said. "And we don't have a crystal ball, either. But with an arm like that, if you run out of patience too quickly, he's going to be doing this for another organization. We can't have that happen.

"And it wasn't just patience. I mean, it was a lot of hard work. I know Kevin Cash isn't here anymore, but he did a lot with Carrasco, sitting out in that bullpen, as far as mentality and embracing what's coming. There are a lot of people that deserve credit. Carlos is right at the top of that list. But it's a good story for us, because he's been one of the better in the game."

It will be an even better story if Carrasco can vanquish New York in Game 3 and carry the Indians into the Championship Series. The prime- time stage awaits in New York.

Indians took Yankees scraps and turned them into bullpen gold By Joel Sherman October 6, 2017 | 4:16pm Chad Green is the rare Yankee to come from the minors in the past three years to help the bullpen; his emergence a key in helping to form a dynamic pen.

However, the Yankees have cycled through a lot of arms to try to fill the 11th and 12th spots on their staff without much success. This season, relievers such as Jonathan Holder, , Gio Gallegos and Bryan Mitchell failed to fully earn Joe Girardi’s trust and, thus, hold a regular job.

In 2016 the group that failed included , James Pazos, Anthony Swarzak, Kirby Yates, Nick Goody and Tyler Olson. You know what all of those guys also have in common? They had good years elsewhere in 2017, Goody and Olson for the Indians team the Yankees are facing in the Division Series.

Brian Cashman said he had no theory on why this occurred. Perhaps it is that in New York there is a short leash and greater pressure, so a lack of quick, consistent success is met with demotion.

So when it came to Goody and Olson, did the Indians see something the Yankees didn’t?

“We didn’t say there was a 100-percent certainty they could contribute,” Indians GM Mike Chernoff said. “But they had items we liked.”

Cleveland obtained Goody from the Yankees last December for Yoiber Maquina. He had a 2.80 ERA in 56 games for the Indians, averaging just 6.4 hits plus 11.9 strikeouts per nine innings.

“Nick had good strikeout rates and a good breaking ball and we felt if we could increase his (breaking ball) usage, we could have something, especially against righties,” Chernoff said. Goody actually threw his slider the same 47.5 percent of the time this year as last year and was very good against righties, but terrific (.590 OPS) vs. lefties.

The Indian pen is so deep he was not put on the Division Series roster. Olson, after not yielding a run in 30 appearances (20 innings), is on the roster. The southpaw held lefties to a .460 OPS.

Olson has been through six organizations. He was in the Yankee organization twice, getting traded with from the Dodgers in January 2016 and being picked up on waivers in June of last year only to be lost a month later on waivers to the Indians.

“We put Olson through waivers last year and anybody could have had him and he cleared, so we’re not geniuses,” Chernoff said. “Lots of teams could have had him because he has a funky delivery and had the ingredients to get lefties out.”

Indians’ Edwin Encarnacion day-to-day, not yet ruled out for ALDS Game 3 Ryan Lewis NEW YORK: The news on Saturday regarding Edwin Encarnacion’s ankle wasn’t as gruesome as the video appeared to be from Friday night. Encarnacion appeared to badly turn his ankle in the first inning of the Indians’ thrilling 9-8 win over the in Game 2 of the American League Division Series. He walked off the field with the help of trainers and left the game. It was initially ruled a sprained ankle. Indians manager Terry Francona told reporters in New York on Saturday that Encarnacion’s ankle was doing much better, and that he hadn’t yet been ruled out of Sunday night’s Game 3 at Yankee Stadium, at least as a pinch-hitter. “I don’t know if remarkably better is a good word, but pretty close,” Francona said, adding that Encarnacion was on crutches. “He’s doing much better today. I don’t think he’s going to start [Sunday], but he’s not been ruled out either. So we’ll take our time and allow to him continue to get treatment. But if he’s that close to being available, that’s a really good sign.” The likely scenario is that if Encarnacion can get into the game, it will be as a pinch-hitter and that Michael Brantley will start as the . Francona had said on Friday that Brantley could potentially start the game in left field. If Encarnacion can’t go, it would make it easier to get Brantley into the lineup. “It’s kind of an easy one,” Francona said. “If Edwin doesn’t play, [Brantley] walks into the DH spot. That’s easy. As far as the lineup goes, I don’t know yet. I mean, one, we’ve got to check on Edwin. And then we’ll put it together.” Second-guessing Yankees manager Joe Girardi has come under fire for how he handled a potential replay situation with the Yankees still leading 8-3 in Game 2 Friday night. With two strikes, Lonnie Chisenhall was hit by a pitch delivered by Chad Green, loading the bases with two outs. Yankees catcher Gary Sanchez was calling for a replay, claiming the ball actually hit Chisenhall’s bat. Girardi chose not to challenge, and a few pitches later, Francisco Lindor launched the that kick-started the Indians’ improbable comeback for a 9-8 win in 13 innings. After the game, Girardi gave his reasoning for the decision as not wanting to mess up Green’s rhythm and their replay being inconclusive. He backtracked on that Saturday. “Obviously, I take responsibility for everything, and I feel horrible about it,” Girardi said. “Does it change the complexion of the game? Yeah, it sure could have. Do we know that for sure? No. But I’ve always taken responsibilities for a loss and I take them hard, too.” Regardless, the Indians pulled off one of the more memorable comebacks in Progressive Field history, one that Jay Bruce called the best game in which he’s ever played. Akron Beacon Journal LOADED: 10.08.2017 Marla Ridenour: Indians’ decision to pay Jay Bruce results in two-way victory over vaunted Yankees CLEVELAND: The Indians’ biggest victory over the New York Yankees this season seemed to come Friday night with a press-box rattling, frenzy-inducing 9-8, 13-inning walk-off win in Game 2 of the American League Division Series. But the postseason-altering triumph really occurred on Aug. 9 and it happened behind closed doors, not in the madhouse Progressive Field resembled not that many hours ago. The Indians’ willingness to pay the $3.7 million remaining on Jay Bruce’s $13 million contract when the Yankees balked has thus far been the difference in the ALDS and could dramatically impact the Indians’ World Series chances. Outspending the Yankees for a 30-year-old slugging right fielder deserves as much of a celebration as the one Yan Gomes’ 13th-inning RBI single wrought. Keeping the soon-to-be free agent would be worthy of fireworks, although that’s an issue for another day. Already on the plus side of the ledger when that decision comes is Bruce’s seamless transition into the clubhouse, his appreciation for his teammates’ resilient nature and joy with which they play the game, not to mention his playoff performance thus far. While most of the New York media were ripping manager Joe Girardi for his failure to challenge Lonnie Chisenhall being hit by a pitch one batter before Francisco Lindor’s sixth-inning grand slam, one saw the bigger picture. Frank Isola of the New York Daily News tweeted, “New York gifted Jay Bruce to the Indians just like we gifted J.R. Smith to the Cavs. You’re welcome Cleveland.” The Yankees wanted Bruce in August, but were only willing to give the Mets a couple of prospects. Indians owner put up the cash, just as he had when the Tribe signed designated hitter Edwin Encarnacion to a three-year, $60 million contract in January. After Bruce hit a two-run in the fourth inning of Game 1 Thursday, the Indians reminded the Twitterverse how the Tribe got him. “Jay Bruce is on our team because our owner wrote a check that competitors for Jay wouldn’t,” the Indians tweeted. They retweeted the message after Bruce’s solo home run in the top of the eighth Friday tied the game 8-8 as the Tribe rallied from an 8-3 deficit going into the bottom of the sixth. Bruce could become even more of a vital cog in the lineup after Encarnacion sprained his right ankle in the first inning of Game 2 attempting to get back to second base. Encarnacion’s bad luck gives Indians fans even more reason to cheer the victory over the Yankees for Bruce. He won’t have to carry the load, but he could move into the cleanup spot. “He’s been a really potent bat,” Indians manager Terry Francona said of Bruce before Friday’s game. “When you put a hitter of that magnitude in the lineup, it’s not just the numbers. It’s the guys in front, the guys behind, and they kind of elongate your lineup.” While Mike Napoli took Cleveland by storm with 34 home runs in 2016, he batted only .173 in the postseason with one home run and three RBI in 15 games. The Indians’ loss to the in Game 7 of the World Series can largely be attributed to the injury-ravaged pitching staff running out of gas, but more pop from Napoli would have helped. Bruce already has two home runs, four RBI and three runs scored in his first nine at-bats with the Indians in the ALDS. He hit just .191 from Aug. 25 until the end of the regular season, but has bounced back with a vengeance against the Yankees, his home run on Friday going to the opposite field. That one made him the fourth Indian to homer in consecutive postseason games, joining , Albert Belle and Juan Gonzalez, the last to do it in Games 3 and 4 of the 2001 ALDS against the . Bruce helped the Indians record the largest comeback in their playoff history. “Really with everything I do I’m pretty boring on the field,” Bruce said Friday. “But emotion overtook me when I rounded second base and saw the guys in the dugout. You understood at that moment what it took to get back in the game and have the opportunity to win.” Francona said the Indians have a very welcoming clubhouse, which helped Bruce’s transition. So, too, did the fact that he’d been traded before, leaving Cincinnati in August 2016 after playing more than nine years with the Reds. He’s one of five Indians on the playoff roster who live in Texas. But Bruce knows it didn’t have to be this way. “I’m very, very fortunate to be here,” Bruce said after Game 1. “I couldn’t have fallen into a better situation. Obviously, when you’re in trade rumors, it’s usually a contender. For whatever reason, I ended up here. This has been a blast so far. This team welcomed me with open arms. And for the transition to be so seamless, I can’t imagine that happens every time.” Whatever reason is really 3.7 million reasons. The fact that the Indians paid and the Yankees didn’t reflects well on the their personnel analysts and bodes well for the future. Dolan realizes that the core of the roster is locked up through 2020 and he must go all out to end the franchise’s 69-year championship drought. This isn’t laying out millions for free agents Nick Swisher and Michael Bourn, then diving back into the rabbit hole after being burned. This is spending money to make money. This is a front office commitment fans have long awaited. This is a series of smart decisions by president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti and General Manager Mike Chernoff not seen since the days of . Signing Bruce and watching him beat the vaunted Yankees in business as well as on the field makes it even more satisfying. Akron Beacon Journal LOADED: 10.08.2017 Game 3 starter Carlos Carrasco a study of Indians’ patience, development Ryan Lewis NEW YORK: Carlos Carrasco didn’t really need to come out for the ninth inning of his final start in the regular season against the . The Indians had the division wrapped up and Carrasco in that start had pitched eight scoreless innings, a strong way to enter the postseason. But at that moment, he was at 199 ⅔ innings pitched for the season. The 200-inning plateau is a special benchmark for starting pitchers, and he had never reached it. So, the Indians, even with the game in hand and an obvious reason to keep Carrasco healthy heading into October, decided to let him have one batter to give him a shot. He struck out Kennys Vargas looking and walked off the mound to a standing ovation. Two hundred innings, an 18-6 record, a 3.29 ERA, a 3.10 FIP and 226 strikeouts. Carrasco notched his highest win total, lowest ERA as a starter and the most strikeouts in single season in his career. Among qualified starting pitchers in the American League, Carrasco finished sixth in ERA, fourth in FIP, fifth in strikeouts and fourth in fWAR (5.5). He very well could end up in the top five in the Cy Young voting. And he’s come a long way from the Indians’ bullpen, a strong-armed 27-year- old who was still lacking the kind of attacking mentality needed on the mound. “I think his time in the bullpen was the best thing for him ever,” Indians manager Terry Francona said. “He got a chance to watch the game. I think [former bullpen coach Kevin Cash] was good for him. He got in attack mode, where I think when he was starting, when he was younger, he’d worry the four days in between. When he was in the bullpen, he didn’t know when he was going to pitch, but when he did pitch, he’d come out and just attack. And he took that mentality with him as a starter.” The Indians knew what could be in there. It just took time for Carrasco to find it. “We can’t be an organization that pulls a plug on guys too quick,” Francona said. “And we don’t have a crystal ball either. But with an arm like that, if you run out of patience too quickly, he’s going to be doing this for another team. Another organization. We can’t have that happen.” He has also dealt with some shoulder and elbow issues, as well as some freak accidents. He was hit in the face by a line drive in 2015 and then had his postseason hopes dashed last September when he was hit in the hand by a line drive in his last regular-season start and suffered a broken bone. This spring, Carrasco dealt with a sore right elbow that put his spot on the roster in jeopardy. He was able to get stretched out enough to throw five-plus innings, and apart from a brief stint with a pectoral issue in May, hasn’t looked back. “From there, I just built on myself,” Carrasco told reporters in New York ahead of Sunday’s Game 3 of the American League Division Series against the New York Yankees. “I went five innings, and the next game I think it was seven. But it is what it is. Each year is different. So this year was one of the best years that I’ve had in the major leagues. We have [had] some up and downs and that’s what happened with me in spring training. I thought it was going to be more than that, but I’m glad everything came out good.” Carrasco is scheduled to start Game 3 in Yankee Stadium with a chance to close out the series with a sweep and propel the Indians to the American League Championship Series for the second consecutive season. Carrasco has been at his strongest this season on the road, posting an 11-2 record and a 2.65 ERA. The Yankees knocked around Corey Kluber before the Indians rallied to win Game 2, but with Carrasco looming, their task of staving off elimination doesn’t get any easier. Akron Beacon Journal LOADED: 10.08.2017 Edwin Encarnacion’s ankle injury could push Indians’ Michael Brantley to the forefront in ALDS Marla Ridenour CLEVELAND: With one awkward Edwin Encarnacion step to get back to second base, the Indians’ Michael Brantley might have suddenly become an important part of the American League Division Series. Designated hitter Encarnacion was injured in the bottom of the first inning of Game 2 of the ALDS Friday night at Progressive Field and had to be helped off the field with a trainer on either side. The Indians announced it as a right ankle sprain, but said Encarnacion would undergo further evaluation. He was replaced by Brantley, plagued by a right ankle injury since Aug. 8. The Indians had tied the game in the bottom of the first and had Encarnacion on second base and Carlos Santana on first with one out. Jay Bruce lined out to shortstop , who was playing behind the second base bag, and he tagged the bag as Encarnacion tried to get back. Encarnacion was initially ruled safe, but the call was reversed by a replay review. Encarnacion jammed his right foot into the bag and it bent awkwardly at the ankle as he fell face down into the dirt. On Jan. 5, the Indians signed Encarnacion to a three-year, $60 million guaranteed contract with a $5 million signing bonus. The three-time All- Star and former Toronto Blue Jay responded with his sixth consecutive 30-home run season, finishing with 38 homers and 107 RBI, leading the Tribe in both categories. In the second half, he hit 20 home runs and drove in 59. He also had a career-high 104 walks this season. Encarnacion’s 38 home runs were the most by an Indian since Travis Hafner hit 42 in 2006. In Thursday’s ALDS , Encarnacion went 0-for-3 with a walk and a run scored. ESPN’s tweeted that Encarnacion left the Indians’ clubhouse on crutches and in a walking boot and had a suitcase and a backpack with him as he got into a cart. After the game, Indians manager Terry Francona said the news was as good as could be expected on Encarnacion and said how he feels Saturday will be the next indicator of his status. “He went and got an MRI, and the results came back that he has, obviously, an ankle sprain,” Francona said. “The severity of it, it’s going to depend on how he feels. Right now they say he’s day to day, which if that’s the case, that would be tremendous. So we don’t have to do anything.” The Indians left themselves versatility when they put together their postseason roster, and that will now be tested. Before Game 2, Francona was excited about the possibility that Brantley would play in Game 3 Sunday in New York. Francona said that would be determined after Saturday’s workout in Yankee Stadium. Brantley was summoned for designated hitter duty less than four hours later. It has been a tough two seasons for Brantley, who played only 11 games in 2016 following right shoulder surgery in November, 2015. He also needed biceps surgery in August, 2016 and was forced to watch the Indians’ raucous postseason celebrations from a distance. A two-time All-Star, Brantley hit .299 in 90 games this season, but was limited to 24 games (22 starts) in the second half. A right ankle sprain twice sent him to the disabled list, and he didn’t return from the second stint until the final weekend of the season. When he was hurt against the , Brantley stood 15th in the American League in batting (.299) and 20th in on-base percentage (.358). Brantley still reached base safely in 26 of his last 29 games. Brantley did not appear in Game 1 of the ALDS Thursday. His only other postseason appearance came in the AL Wild Card Game in 2013, when he went 1-for-4 in a loss to the Tampa Bay Rays. He went 0-for-5 and struck out twice after replacing Encarnacion on Friday. Bruce said losing Encarnacion was a blow but is hopeful he can return soon. “Baseball aside, I just want him to be OK,” Bruce said. “I hope he can help us. And we’ll see what happens. He’s one of the biggest parts of our lineup. All of our lineup is very important. But when your four-hole hitter goes down, it’s not fun. But we have guys that are going to step up. Hopefully he’s back very shortly.” The Indians were plagued by injuries during last year’s run to the World Series. The Indians’ rotation was reduced to three after Danny Salazar was shut down with a strained flexor muscle, his fourth arm injury of the season, and Carlos Carrasco fractured a bone in his right hand on Sept. 30. Then cut his pinkie finger trying to repair one of his drones before his scheduled start in the American League Championship Series, but the accident did not end his season. Akron Beacon Journal LOADED: 10.08.2017

Cleveland Indians Scribbles: Momentum, magic and the Tribe -- Terry Pluto Terry Pluto CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Scribbles in my notebook as the Cleveland Indians head to New York for Sunday's Game 3 of the American League Division Series against the Yankees: 1. "Your momentum is only as good as your next day's starting pitcher." I remember telling me that when I covered the in 1979. 2. The words came back to me when Corey Kluber had a miserable start, allowing six runs in 2 2/3 innings. He was probably destined to have a bad game. Kluber was 16-2 with a 1.68 ERA since June 1. The Yankees led the American League in homers and were second in runs scored this season. They can hit. 3. In Friday's Game 2, Kluber was a mess. Edwin Encarnacion left with an ankle injury. After five innings, the Indians were down, 8-3. So much for all the momentum of a team that has dominated baseball since August 1. It was going to be a long night for Tribe fans, right? 4. It was a long night. It was a 5-hour, 8-minute game. It covered 13 innings with 14 pitchers who made 405 heaves to home plate. But the Indians won. And I kept thinking, "The Tribe isn't riding momentum, it's a tidal wave!" 5. In New York, manager Joe Girardi is being blamed for everything wrong in the Big Apple, including stinky subway cars. OK, maybe not that, but you get the idea. Girardi didn't challenge an umpire's ruling that Lonnie Chisenhall was hit by a pitch. The count was 0-2. A replay made it appear the ball hit more of Chisenhall's bat than his hand. 6. Girardi didn't question the ruling. Chisenhall trotted to first base. Francisco Lindor followed with a stadium-shaking grand slam homer. Suddenly, it was an 8-7 game in the bottom of the sixth inning. My comment is perhaps Chad Green should not have thrown a fat pitch to Lindor. 7. But I thought the biggest break was Girardi pulling C.C. Sabathia earlier in that sixth inning after he walked a batter with one out. The former Indian had retired 12 of the last 13 hitters he faced. He had thrown only 77 pitches. 8. Back to momentum in baseball. The Yankees pulled their effective starter too early. An umpire made a favorable call. The opposing manager didn't challenge. The Indians kept being the Indians, the team that doesn't think it should lose ... ever. 9. The 13th inning heroes: Yan Gomes, Austin Jackson and Josh Tomlin. Who saw that trio combining to win an extra-innings playoff game? But it's that kind of year for the Tribe. 10. Tomlin's two scoreless innings in his first relief appearance of the season was HUGE! Manager Terry Francona often brags about Tomlin being "a great teammate." Once again, you saw why that's true -- and why Francona wants him in big games. 11. Gomes had a 10-pitch before he ripped the game-winning single down the right field line. Tribe fans know the struggles of Gomes at the plate in the past three years: .231/.167/.232. But there he was delivering the hit when it mattered the most. He also picked a runner off second base earlier in the game. 12. Since the start of the 22-game winning streak, the Indians are 35-4. That counts the two October victories over the Yankees. They haven't lost two games in a row since August 22-23. 13. I also know Weaver is right. The starting pitcher usually sets up the momentum -- good or bad. Tribe starters had a 1.64 ERA during the 22- game winning streak. But also, there is magic. Right now, the Tribe has it. 14. Would the Indians have come back from an 8-3 deficit in Yankee Stadium? I wonder. New York had the American League's best home record of 30-11 this season. I do know Progressive Field has become an incredible postseason advantage for the Tribe. They were 6-0 at home in 2016 before losing the final two World Series games. Now, they have won two more at home. 15. Two words: Jay Bruce. Just imagine where the Indians would be if owner Paul Dolan didn't green light spending $3.7 million in August for the Tribe's power-hitting outfielder. Bruce can get hot. With two HR and four RBI in the first two games, he appears to be sizzling. Cleveland Plain Dealer LOADED: 10.08.2017 Road warrior Carlos Carrasco ready for his first postseason start with Cleveland Indians Paul Hoynes NEW YORK - Carlos Carrasco missed out last year. He stood and watched, his broken right hand in a cast, while the Indians reached Game 7 of the World Series before losing to the Cubs. That will not be the case this year. Carrasco, coming off one of his best and healthiest seasons, will face the Yankees and Masahiro Tanaka on Sunday night in Game 3 of the AL Division Series at Yankee Stadium. The Indians enjoy a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five series, meaning Carrasco could advance the Indians to the AL Championship Series with a victory. "There's a big difference between this year and last year," said Carrasco on Saturday afternoon at Yankee Stadium. "Last year my team went to the postseason and World Series. I was with them, but I couldn't pitch because of my hand. "But now I'm available to enjoy my team this year. This is my first postseason. I want to enjoy it." Carrasco had an uneven spring training, missing time with a right elbow problem and having to go home to Florida for the birth of his child. There was a question about whether he'd be ready to start the season on time, but he turned that question into his best season. He set career highs with 18 wins, 32 starts, 200 innings and 226 strikeouts. He tied teammate Corey Kluber for the AL lead in wins. Not only was he consistent, but he finished strong, going 5-0 with a 1.48 ERA in six September starts. He was the first Tribe pitcher to go at least 5-0 with 50 strikeouts and an ERA below 1.50 in a calendar month since Sam McDowell went 6-0 with 50 punch outs and a 1.06 ERA in June of 1969. "I know there was a question of whether I'd make my first start of the season, but I went five innings and from there I just built on one start after the other," said Carrasco. "This has been one of my best years in the big leagues, but we all have ups and downs. That's what happened to me in spring training." The Indians have won 35 of their last 39 games, including the first two games of the ALDS. That kind of finishing kick allowed them to clinch the AL Central in plenty of time to manipulate their rotation. Most teams would have simply set it up this way - Kluber (18-4, 2.25) for Game 1, Carrasco (18-6, 3.29) for Game 2, Trevor Bauer (17-9, 4.19) for Game 3 and Josh Tomlin (10-9, 4.98) or Mike Clevinger (12-6, 3.11) for Game 4. But the Indians rarely do things the traditional way. Bauer started Game 1 and threw 6 2/3 scoreless inning in a 4-0 victory. Kluber started Game 2, but the Cy Young favorite struggled and was gone after 2 2/3 innings. The Indians bailed him out with a 9-8 win in 13 innings. Carrasco was moved to Sunday's start because he's 11-3 with a 2.65 ERA in 17 road starts this season. Carrasco is 0-1 with a 7.94 ERA against the Yankees this year. In his career, however, he's 3-1 with a 1.40 ERA in four starts at Yankee Stadium, whether the original building or today's newer model. Asked to explain his success on the road, Carrasco said, "I ask myself that question every day. I'm 11-3 on the road and 7-3 at home. It's still the same baseball, so I don't know what I can say about that." As for pitching in Yankee Stadium, Carrasco said, "You know what? I love to pitch everywhere - home, Yankee Stadium, other stadiums. This is the postseason. There's going to be a lot of people here. This is my first time in the postseason, but as I always say, it's the same baseball." The Indians acquired Carrasco from Philadelphia in the Cliff Lee trade in 2009. He's the only player left in the majors from that trade, but there were more than a few times when the Indians were close to parting ways with the talented, but erratic hurler. When he went to the bullpen in 2014, it seemed like only a matter of time before he was released. But with the help of former bullpen coach Kevin Cash, now Tampa Bay's manager, he found a spot in the bullpen. When he got a second chance in the rotation in 2014, he seized it. "We can't be an organization that pulls the plug on guys too quick," said manager Terry Francona. "And we don't have a crystal ball either. But with an arm like that, if you run out of patience too quickly, he's going to be doing this for another team. We can't have that happen." Carrasco, 30, is signed through 2018 with club options for 2019 and 2020. Cleveland Plain Dealer LOADED: 10.08.2017 Michael Brantley becomes 'common sense' option at DH for Cleveland Indians after Edwin Encarnacion injury Joe Noga NEW YORK -- Cleveland Indians manager Terry Francona confirmed that Michael Brantley will slide into the team's designated hitter role after a spot in the lineup opened thanks to Edwin Encarnacion's ankle injury. "It just kind of makes it easy," Francona said prior to Cleveland's workout Saturday at Yankee Stadium. "If you have a choice to make, and you have an open slot at DH, it just seems common sense to put (Brantley) there." Prior to Friday's Game 2, Francona had speculated that Brantley might be available to play left field on Sunday for the first time since re-injuring his right ankle Aug. 8 and missing the team's next 50 games. Francona would not offer a clue as to where Brantley will bat in the lineup, but said he and bench coach would evaluate their options following Saturday's workout. Brantley, whose inclusion on the 25-man postseason roster was a bit unexpected, says he feels comfortable already, despite playing in only two regular season games before Friday. "I've been doing a lot before the series even started," Brantley said. "Just making sure what I could handle and what I couldn't. Make sure we had our limitations. Everything's been going great, I'm very happy where I'm at right now." Brantley hit .299 in 90 regular season games with nine home runs and 52 RBI. He posted a 14-game hitting streak in May on his way to his second career All-Star appearance. Subbing for Encarnacion after the first inning Friday, Brantley went 0-for-5 with a pair of strikeouts, stranding four baserunners. Encarnacion was up-and-down at the plate during an early stretch of the season, but got hot late, posting his sixth straight year with at least 30 home runs, while driving in 100 for the fifth time in his career. Francona said in light of Brantley missing all of the Tribe's 2016 playoff run after shoulder surgery, the opportunity to contribute in place of an injured teammate this October would be extra meaningful for the veteran outfielder. "Every single day, whether everybody else was out doing interviews and the bright lights were on, he was in the back working hard," Francona said. "He never missed a day." Yankees manager Joe Girardi said Cleveland losing Encarnacion's consistency and production in the middle of the order could be a challenge, but he praised Brantley as more than capable of taking over. "It's going to change their lineup, but they're putting in a very good hitter to replace him," Girardi said. Cleveland Plain Dealer LOADED: 10.08.2017 The Indians are making opponents pay for mistakes big and small -- Bud Shaw Bud Shaw CLEVELAND, Ohio - The question of how many games a manager is worth in is difficult to quantify. But let's start by examining the smallest sample size possible. One. Game 2. Friday night at Progressive Field. Yankees manager Joe Girardi's best move would have been to challenge the umpire ruling that Lonnie Chisenhall was hit by a pitch in the sixth with two strikes, two out, two on and Girardi's team leading 8-3. He didn't. Francisco Lindor - as you might've heard if you live within sonic boom range of Progressive Field - followed with a grand slam to turn 8-3 into 8- 7. "There was nothing that told us he was not hit by the pitch," Girardi explained. "By the time we got the super slow-mo we are beyond a minute. It was way too late." Girardi's next best move of the night would have been to feign laryngitis at the post-game press conference and cut short his remarks. He didn't. He kept going. Girardi would have been better off using "fake news" argument and claiming Yankees won. -- Mark Whicker (@MWhicker03LANG) October 7, 2017 "And probably being a catcher, my thought is I never want to break a pitcher's rhythm," the manager said. "That's how I think about it." His third-best move would've been to stop talking about rhythm as soon as possible. For one, he removed CC Sabathia despite the big lefty having retired 12 of the previous 13 hitters he faced. Sabathia's rhythm was deemed entirely breakable by Girardi while reliever Chad Green's rhythm - he'd allowed a Yan Gomes double before the phantom hit-by-pitch - was something Girardi didn't dare interrupt? To quote Dennis Eckersley, "Wow." Indians fans celebrate after Tribe wins 9-8 in the bottom of the 13th inning in Game 2 of ALDS "I guess - in hindsight, yes, I could (have challenged), but as I said earlier, being a catcher, I think about rhythm and never want to take a pitcher out of rhythm and have them stand over there two minutes to tell me that he wasn't hit." The alternative: They stand over there two minutes, tell you Chisenhall wasn't hit, that the ball hit his bat handle and the inning is now over. Then you're still leading 8-3 and Lindor gets nowhere near the plate with the bases loaded. Oh? Only that? * Worst-case scenario for Girardi: the call doesn't get overturned. Lindor still hits it out. Best case: Lindor leads off the seventh. And the ALDS is tied 1-1. In hindsight, as Girardi said, he should've challenged. Or just owned his mistake. Or claimed the TV screen was covered in midges. Why the Yankees didn't challenge Lonnie Chisenhall's at-bat in the sixth inning Scott Patsko CLEVELAND, Ohio - It turns out, super slow-mo takes more time. And time was something the Yankees didn't have much of in the sixth inning of Friday's ALDS Game 2. As Lonnie Chisenhall jogged to first base after what looked like a hit by pitch at-bat, the clock was ticking on the Yankees, who had 30 seconds - according to Major League Baseball replay review rules - to invoke a challenge on the play. At first glance - and also from home plate umpire 's viewpoint - the ball seemed to glance off Chisenhall's hand and into catcher Gary Sanchez's glove. But a second look in slow-motion seemed to indicate the ball glanced off the knob of Chisenhall's bat. Lonnie Chisenhall foul tip that should have been called strike three. No challenge by Girardi, horrible call pic..com/H6025WqtVo -- Ideal Mkai (@Mkai__) October 7, 2017 "There was nothing that told us that he was not hit on the pitch," said Girardi. "By the time we got the super slow-mo, we are beyond a minute. It was way too late. They tell us we have 30 seconds." Without video that cast more doubt on the play, and not wanting to break the rhythm of pitcher Chad Green while the umpires took two minutes to potentially not overturn the call, Girardi let the game move on. After 30 seconds, Girardi told the umpires that he wasn't going to challenge. Chisenhall went to first, and Francisco Lindor followed with a two-out grand slam to pull the Indians within a run, 8-7, and kick-start one of the most memorable playoff victories in team history. As Lindor came to bat, Girardi was notified that the ball seemed to hit the knob of Chisenhall's bat and go into Sanchez's glove, a play that would've ended the inning. "And it's frustrating, you know, because if he calls that he's not hit, then nothing ever happens," said Girardi. "But (Chisenhall) made no signal that he was hit. I know Gary said it. We looked at it. We had no super slow-mo at that time. Again, I'm going to reiterate, I think about keeping a pitcher in rhythm. Maybe I'll think different now." Girardi said the Yankees were victimized by not having a replay in time earlier this season. "I'm not sure why it happens. You're at the mercy of the telecast, what replays you get," said Girardi. "You hope that the super slow-mo, you get it within the 30 seconds. But sometimes you don't get it for like a minute. It's something, I guess, we can talk about moving forward. Cleveland Plain Dealer LOADED: 10.08.2017 Indians once again prove when they’re down they’re never out | Jeff Schudel By Jeff Schudel, The News-Herald & The Morning Journal Knock the Indians down once, knock them down a second time, and all they do is bounce back ready for more.

The Indians lost their designated hitter, possibly for the rest of the playoffs, in the bottom of the first inning in Game 2 of the ALDS on Oct. 6. The Yankees made the Tribe’s best pitcher look like a mere mortal in building an 8-3 lead before game at Progressive Field was three innings old. But the Indians fought back — fought back from what looked like a devastating injury sustained when Edwin Encarnacion sprained his right ankle trying to get back to second base to avoid a and fought back from Corey Kluber’s shortest outing since May 2.

A grand slam by Francisco Lindor in the bottom of the sixth inning cut the New York lead to 8-7, a solo shot to left by Jay Bruce in the eighth tied it, and a single by Yan Gomes in the bottom of the 13th driving in Austin Jackson finished it. “We don’t just believe in one or two guys,” Indians manager Terry Francona said. “We believe in our entire team, and it took an entire team tonight to win. It was an honor to be a part of that game.”

Kluber gave up a two-run homer to Gary Sanchez in the first inning and a three-run dinger to in the top of the third. He was charged with six runs. He allowed six runs total in six starts in September while presumably locking up the Cy Young Award.

Josh Tomlin was penciled in as the Game 4 starter, but Francona will have to rethink that because he had to call on Tomlin to pitch the final two innings Oct. 6 to earn the win. Francona will decide on his Game 4 starter later. He won’t have to worry about it if the Indians win Game 3 on Oct. 8.

“We don’t have to name a starter three days from now,” Francona said. “We were just trying to win a game. We’re fortunate we did.

“The one thing I know is everybody in that room will volunteer to do something. And I think together, we’ll figure it out. That’s how we always do it.”

The Indians are not strangers to adversity. They overcame injuries to Brantley, Lonnie Chisenhall, and Brandon Guyer — all — and still won 102 games. They made it to Game 7 of the World Series last year without Brantley and without starting pitchers Carlos Carrasco and Danny Salazar.

Fans in Progressive Field, still riding high from beating the Yankees 4-0 in the series opener, were pumped before Game 2 began. They grew quiet when Sanchez homered, cringed when Encarnacion was injured, roared when a single by gave the Indians a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the second and then were stunned when Kluber coughed up four more runs in the top of the third.

Fans might have thought the Yankees would cower meekly with Kluber pitching Game 2. That did not happen.

The Indians showed by coming back from an 8-3 deficit to win dramatically that they aren’t going to roll over, either. As if anyone thought they would.

Indians Game 3 starter Carrasco doesn’t want to let Yankees off the mat By Jeff Schudel, The News-Herald & The Morning Journal The Indians want to finish off the Yankees by winning Game 3 of the ALDS, so manager Terry Francona is calling on the Muhammad Ali of his pitching staff to deliver the knockout punch.

Carlos Carrasco, the Indians’ starter when the series shifts to Yankee Stadium on Oct. 8 with the Tribe in command, two games to none, was 18-6 in 2017. Even more impressive than that is his 11-2 road record. His ERA away from home is more than a run better than it is at Progressive Field — 2.65 compared to 3.99.

Being up two games does not mean Carrasco thinks the Indians have a cushion. He wants to put the Yankees away and not give them a sliver of hope.

“You never take it easy,” Carrasco told reporters in New York on Oct. 7. “Those guys (the Yankees), they’re going to come tomorrow, play hard tomorrow. They’re down two games. “I think what’s really important is just go up there and do the same we’ve been doing the whole year and what we’ve been doing the last two games, too. No pressure, nothing like that. Just go over there and play good baseball.”

Francona set up his postseason rotation weeks ago with the idea of Carrasco finishing off a series sweep. Trevor Bauer did his job in the series opener Oct. 5, and though Corey Kluber got shelled in Game 2, the bullpen and bats still saved the day. Carrasco is coming off his best season as a pro. Just because he’s starting Game 3 doesn’t mean Francona views him as the Indians’ third best pitcher. That stellar road record has a lot to do with Francona’s thinking.

“He’s kind of seen it all and done it all,” Francona said on Oct. 6 before the Indians beat the Yankees, 9-8, in 13 innings. “My first year here (2013), we put him in the bullpen, and about halfway through the year — as a matter of fact, we were in New York — and Cashy and Mickey both said, ‘He’s ready to start.’ ”

Kevin Cash, now the manager of the Tampa Bay Rays, was the Indians bullpen coach at the time. Mickey Callaway was and remains the Indians pitching coach.

“We started (Carrasco) in New York,” Francona continued. “He hit the ground running. I think his time in the bullpen was the best thing for him ever. He got a chance to watch the game. I think Cashy was good for him. (Carrasco) got in attack mode, where I think when he was starting, when he was younger, he’d worry the four days in between.

“When he was in the bullpen, he didn’t know when he was going to pitch. But when he did pitch, he’d come out and just attack. And he took that mentality with him as a starter.”

Carrasco tied Kluber for the team lead with 18 victories. Only Kluber with 203 2/3 innings worked more than Carrasco, who pitched 200 innings exactly. Kluber led the team with 265 strikeouts. Carrasco had 226 strikeouts.

Carrasco is 4-5 lifetime against the Yankees. He lost to them, 8-1, in Cleveland on Aug. 6. He did not face the Yankees when the Tribe swept them in New York later in the month.

The Indians need Carrasco at his best because projected Game 4 starter Josh Tomlin pitched the final two innings in Game 2 on Oct. 6. Tomlin is unlikely to be ready to start Game 4 on Oct. 9.

A second ace up their sleeve: Carlos Carrasco on mound tonight as Indians go for sweep in New York Chris Assenheimer ByChris Assenheimer | The Chronicle-TelegramPublished on Oct. 8, 2017 | Updated 3:02 a. m. CLEVELAND — Though they will be in the most hostile of territories when the American League Division Series reconvenes tonight in New York for Game 3, the Indians will be in the most enviable of situations.

After overcoming an uncharacteristically poor outing from ace No. 1 Corey Kluber to take a 2-0 series lead Friday night at Progressive Field, Cleveland has the luxury of employing ace No. 2 Carlos Carrasco with the opportunity to sweep the Yankees.

Carrasco is no third starter, pitching like an ace all season in notching an AL-high 18 wins and posting a 3.29 ERA, while ranking fifth in the league with 226 strikeouts and reaching 200 innings for the first time in his career.

And if possible for an opposing pitcher, Carrasco has fond memories of facing the Yankees in New York. He is 3-1 with a 1.44 ERA in four starts at Yankee Stadium — one of them a brilliant outing in 2014 that resurrected his career as a starting pitcher.

Carrasco has pitched better on the road in general this year, posting an 11-2 record and 2.65 ERA in 17 starts.

“Like you say, yes, 11-2 on the road. And home is 6-4, 7-4, something like that. It’s still the same baseball,” Carrasco said. “I have success on the road, so I don’t know what I can say about that, but I just want to take advantage of that. And I’m going to pitch here in New York. Then a couple years ago, I’d been pitching here, my last couple starts, they’ve been good. But (tonight) I think is a really important game and I’m just going to go with my best stuff.”

Carrasco’s rise to stardom did not come quickly. He failed early as a starter, was sent to the bullpen and fought his way back into the rotation. All along, the Indians stayed patient.

“We can’t be an organization that pulls a plug on guys too quick,” Francona said. “And we don’t have a crystal ball either. But with an arm like that, if you run out of patience too quickly, he’s going to be doing this for another team. Another organization. We can’t have that happen.

“And it wasn’t just patience. I mean, it was a lot of hard work. I know (former Indians bullpen coach and current Rays manager) Kevin Cash isn’t here anymore, but he did a lot with Carrasco, sitting out in that bullpen, as far as mentality and embracing what’s coming. So I think there’s a lot of people that deserve credit. Carlos is right at the top of that list. But it’s a good story for us because he’s been one of the better pitchers in the game.”

With their season on the line, the Yanks will turn to right-hander Masahiro Tanaka (13-12, 4.74 ERA 30 starts), an All-Star in 2014 who flashed his former top-shelf ability during the regular season, but has battled injuries and inconsistency.

He is 6-4 with a 3.77 ERA in 12 second-half starts, including a dominant outing in his final regular-season appearance.

“He’s been a little inconsistent this year, mostly in the first half,” Francona said. “Second half, he’s been much better and his last start was really good.”

Francona said Tanaka has plenty of power but can also turn to a “split, change, whatever you want to call it. But at times it can be a huge weapon for him.”

“So we’re going to have to, one, you gauge how a guy is throwing. Is he pounding the zone with it? Is it in and out of the zone? And then either hit a mistake or lay off the ones that are down and out of the zone. The strike-to-ball is the hardest pitch of all because he’s got so much good deception with it, it’s easy to say lay off, but it’s another thing when it’s actually happening.”

“We need him to pitch like he pitched the other day, where he was — I think he had 15 strikeouts in the game,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said of Tanaka. “This is a team that’s going to grind out at-bats, and he needs to grind out at-bats with them.”

Unlike Tanaka, Carrasco has the luxury of entering the night with his team owning a 2-0 lead and riding momentum from a dramatic come-from- behind victory in Game 2.

“We’re up two games, but … it’s the same baseball,” Carrasco said. “I think it’s going to be the same game, the same guys. We’re just going to go out there, no pressure, nothing about that. So just go in there and pitch the way that I’ve been doing the whole year.”

Tribe notes: Edwin Encarnacion injury not looking too bad after all Chris Assenheimer ByChris Assenheimer | The Chronicle-TelegramPublished on Oct. 8, 2017 | Updated 2:39 a. m. CLEVELAND — There’s good news on the Edwin Encarnacion injury front.

Encarnacion, who sustained what looked like a serious right ankle injury in Game 2 on Friday, is not expected to be replaced on the ALDS roster.

Encarnacion likely won’t be in the lineup for Game 3 tonight, but could be available off the bench in a pinch-hitting role.

“He is, I would say, I don’t know if remarkably better is a good word, but pretty close,” Francona said. “He’s doing much better today. I don’t think he’s going to start (in Game 3), but he’s not been ruled out either. So we’ll take our time and allow to him continue to get treatment. But if he’s that close to being available, that’s a really good sign. So we’re obviously not going to do anything roster-wise.”

Encarnacion left Game 2 in the first inning when he turned his ankle stepping on second base in an attempt to avoid a double play and immediately fell to the ground and writhed in pain.

He needed assistance to leave the field and was seen leaving the clubhouse on crutches and in a walking boot.

Encarnacion was replaced Friday by Michael Brantley, who is expected to start at DH in Game 3.

“Obviously, he’s a very productive hitter and he’s been a productive home run hitter for a long, long time,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said of Encarnacion. “He hits right-handers and left-handers. We’re probably going to see Brantley (tonight), who is a very good hitter in his own right. So, yeah, it’s going to change their lineup, but they’re putting in a very good hitter to replace him, I’m sure.”

Wahoo, what a game Overcoming adversity has been a trademark of the Indians, who did it again in Game 2 on Friday, erasing their largest deficit in postseason history — five runs — while matching their longest postseason game ever with a 9-8, 13-inning victory.

“We were down 8-3 but there was never a down moment with this team,” left fielder Austin Jackson said. “The crowd was still into it and we were patting each other on the back, telling everybody not to give up. We kept chipping away and chipping away. That’s postseason baseball. This is the time of year when stuff like this happens.”

There were a number of pivotal moments throughout one of the most memorable postseason games in franchise history.

“There were so many big plays, do-or-die plays,” Cody Allen said. “The back pickoff (of pinch runner Ronald Torreyes by catcher Yan Gomes in the 11th inning), the grand slam (from Francisco Lindor in the sixth). There were quite a few that if any of them didn’t go our way, we wouldn’t have won the game.

“It was definitely our home-field advantage.”

Action Jackson

As spring training wound down, the Indians had to decide whether or not to add Jackson, an oft-injured veteran outfielder, to the Opening Day roster.

They made the right choice.

Jackson, 30, exceeded expectations during the regular season, batting .318 with seven homers and 35 RBIs in 85 games. He was a factor in Game 2, drawing a leadoff walk, stealing second and scoring the winning run on Gomes’ walk-off single in the 13th.

With the Indians outfield enduring a wealth of injuries, Francona has said on multiple occasions that Jackson has saved his club’s “butt.”

“He had done such a good job (during the exhibition season) that I think we felt like this is a guy, being a veteran leader-type guy he is, and a right-handed bat, whether he’s playing against lefties or whatever could really be a good fit on our team,” said Francona of Jackson, who has played for five teams over eight-plus season in the majors. “And every time — he got hurt twice, and then all the other guys got hurt, and he came back and just fit right in and played against righties and lefties and did a terrific job.”

Health issues have sidetracked Jackson, a projected star early in his career, who has been on the disabled list six times since 2012.

“It’s been great to really get back out on the field in general,” Jackson said. “When you’re sitting at home watching the postseason and rehabbing and trying to get yourself back healthy to show that you can still play, you know, it’s definitely rewarding when you’re able to make a team and contribute and step in when guys are hurt and just fill in that role.”

Roundin’ third

Start times for the final two games of the series — if necessary — have been announced. Game 4 at Yankee Stadium on Monday is scheduled for 7:08 p.m, while Game 5 in Cleveland on Wednesday is set for 8:08 p.m.

What Yankees and Girardi can learn from Indians’ review process By Ken Davidoff October 7, 2017 | 10:59PM Since the advent of extended instant replay in 2014, the Yankees have utilized the system better than any other team. That didn’t prevent a system failure from occurring Friday night at Progressive Field, one that appears destined to herd the Yankees into an imminent winter vacation. If there’s room for improvement here, the Yankees might want to take a page out of the Indians’ playbook. Joe Girardi’s decision to not challenge umpire Dan Iassogna’s sixth-inning call that Lonnie Chisenhall got hit by a pitch led to a 9-8, 13-inning loss to the Indians in American League Division Series Game 2, putting the Yankees in a 2-0 hole. The Yankees must win the next three games, starting with Game 3 Sunday night at Yankee Stadium, in order to eliminate the mighty Indians and advance to the AL Championship Series. Girardi and the Yankees lean on Brett Weber, their coaching assistant, who sits in a specially designed room, watches each play and reviews it within the 30-second allowance and recommends a challenge or lack thereof. “Basically, yes,” Girardi said, confirming the specifics of the Yankees’ process. Indians manager Terry Francona described a more nuanced operation for his team. , a former hitting coach for three teams and a Yankees baseball operations employee from 1982 through 1987, serves as major-league replay coordinator. He often receives assistance from Scott Atchison, who pitched for Mets and four other teams from 2004 through 2015 and now is Cleveland’s advance coach and staff assistant. Barnett, Francona said, “[will] call Millsy [bench coach Brad Mills], or Millsy will check with him, and he’ll give his opinion. And then Millsy is really good about deciphering that in a way where I can make a decision.” This year, baseball enforced a 30-second rule, one which thwarted the Yankees on Friday as they couldn’t find a convincing replay angle within 30 seconds to challenge Iassogna’s call. Francona said he has tried to push umpires as much as he can on that time limit as his staff works behind the scenes. “I’ve tried to hold umpires up,” Francona said. “Like, they start coming over at 30. The last thing they want to do is start a confrontation. They’ve been real clear with us about that. They have guidelines they have to work under. But when you see them starting to come to you, you know they want an answer.” To stall, he said, “I yell at Millsy to yell at Barney [Barnett]. That always helps.” Anything to buy more time would have helped the Yankees on Friday. New York Post LOADED: 10.08.2017 Yankees just want to extend season after epic Girardi failure By George A. King III October 8, 2017 | 2:45am If Joe Girardi had a second chance, he would have handled things differently in Game 2 Friday night against the Indians in Cleveland. In possession of two challenges and video coordinator Brett Weber notifying Girardi that Chad Green’s pitch to pinch-hitter Lonnie Chisenhall didn’t clearly show the ball hitting the knob of the bat or the left-handed hitter’s right hand, Girardi didn’t challenge what should have been an inning-ending strikeout. Instead it preceded Francisco Lindor’s grand slam that shaved an 8-3 Yankees lead to 8-7. Jay Bruce’s homer off David Robertson tied the score and Yan Gomes’ single lifted the Indians to a 9-8 victory in 13 innings. “I screwed up,” Girardi said Saturday at Yankee Stadium ahead of Sunday’s ALDS Game 3 with his club in a 0-2 hole in the best-of-five affair. “And it’s hard. It’s a hard day for me. But I’ve got to move forward, and we’ll be ready to go tomorrow. “Obviously, I take responsibility for everything and I feel horrible about it. Does it change the complexion of the game? Yeah, it sure could have. Do we know for sure? No. But I have always taken responsibility for a loss. and I take them hard, too.’’ Having slept on it, Girardi admitted a challenge was in order regardless of what Weber, who Girardi said never got the super slow-mo replay, said. “I think you can second-guess yourself, but here is the process I go through: Brett Weber has been so good at what he does that when he tells me that something is not inconclusive, I believe him because he has been so good,’’ Girardi said. “Now, knowing that I had two challenges, in hindsight, yeah, I wish I would have challenged it. But he never got that video clip, never got that angle. He never got the super slow-mo. And yeah, I should have challenged it, now that I think about it.’’ Weber’s 75 percent success rate on replay challenges this year (40 challenges; 30 overturned; two confirmed; eight stands) was the best in the majors. Since replay was installed in 2014, the Yankees’ 74 percent success rate is tops in baseball. Girardi taking the blame doesn’t change the daunting task the Yankees face entering Game 3 on Sunday night at Yankee Stadium. Yes, they are home, where they went an AL best 51-30 during the regular season and came back to beat the Twins in the AL wild-card game. Starter Masahiro Tanaka went 9-5 with a 3.22 ERA in 15 Bronx starts, and the Yankees posted a 10-5 record in those games. Yet, the Indians have won 35 of 39 games, and just six teams have come out of a 0-2 ditch to win a best-of-five series in MLB history. The Yankees are one of those six beating the A’s in the 2001 ALDS after losing the first two games. Of course 2001 has as much to do with 2017 as the two challenges Girardi left in his pocket. Always one to look at the glass being half full, Girardi expects his club will bounce back from one of the worst postseason losses in history and one that will follow Girardi for however long he remains in the game. “I believe our team will be ready to go and that’s who this team is,’’ Girardi said. “We have each other’s backs all year long. We will continue to have it and we will go out and play hard and go out and try to win the game.’’ Girardi played for the Yankees, coached for the Yankees and is in his 10th year as the manager so he knows the deal around here when it comes to criticizing the manager which was severe in the aftermath of Friday night’s outcome. “Let’s just see what happens [Sunday] as we move forward,’’ Girardi said. “That will probably determine the severity of it.’’ New York Post LOADED: 10.08.2017 Tanaka’s task: the Yankees’ season By Dan Martin October 8, 2017 | 2:39am Masahiro Tanaka will make his 107th — and perhaps final — start for the Yankees on Sunday night. None has been more important as the Yankees turn to the right-hander one loss away from a season-ending sweep by the Indians in the ALDS. “As far as feeling the pressure going into [Sunday’s] game, obviously, yes, there is pressure, but that can’t put me away from what I need to do on the mound,” Tanaka said through an interpreter Saturday at Yankee Stadium, where he prepared to face Cleveland. Tanaka will be called upon not just to extend the Yankees’ season, but also to help the team get over the crushing loss in Game 2 in Cleveland on Friday, when they blew a five-run lead in brutal fashion before falling in 13 innings. The Yankees could use another outing like the one he gave them in his last regular season start, when Tanaka struck out a career-high 15 batters in seven shutout innings against Toronto. Of course, he won’t be facing a Blue Jays lineup that was playing out the string, already having been eliminated from playoff contention. Instead, Tanaka will be up against a Cleveland offense that showed how potent it could be by storming back against the Yankees bullpen in Friday’s win, when Francisco Lindor took Chad Green deep for a grand slam and Jay Bruce tied the game off of David Robertson. “We need him to pitch like he pitched the other day,” Joe Girardi said. “This is a team that’s going to grind out at-bats, and he needs to grind out at-bats with them.” Tanaka also will be pitching on eight days’ rest. In seven starts on six or more days’ rest this season, he was 3-3 with a 4.60 ERA, but Girardi opted to go that route over bringing back on regular rest after he threw just 29 pitches in his ugly outing against the Twins in the wild-card game, in which he retired just one batter. Tanaka’s only other postseason appearance in the majors came two years ago, when he gave up two runs in five innings in a 3-0 loss to Houston, outpitched by Dallas Keuchel. The 28-year-old said he learned from that experience and other important games he has pitched in since then. The Yankees hope to provide more support for him against right-hander Carlos Carrasco, who has given up more than one run just once in his past seven starts. Just before that stretch began, though, the Yankees got to Carrasco for five runs in 5 ²/ ₃ innings. In 11 career appearances against the Yankees, Carrasco is 4-5 with a 4.12 ERA, while Tanaka is 1-2 with a 4.63 ERA in four starts against the Indians — none this season. Despite the lackluster numbers, Cleveland manager Terry Francona is wary of Tanaka and took more from his dominance in his last outing than the up-and-down nature of his entire season. “His last start was up,” Francona said. “Very up. He’s been a little inconsistent this year, mostly in the first half. [In the] second half, he’s been much better, and his last start was really good. … When he has power to his pitches, but also [his] split … it can be a huge weapon for him.” As for his future, Tanaka can opt out of the remaining three years and $67 million on his contract following this season. Once again Saturday, he declined to discuss any future plans. “I’ve mentioned this from Day 1 [of spring training]: I’ll have the whole offseason to think about what I’ll do moving forward,” Tanaka said. “And that has not changed.” It’s up to Tanaka to make sure the offseason doesn’t begin Sunday night. New York Post LOADED: 10.08.201 Girardi’s mea culpa buys him breathing room, not absolution By Ken Davidoff October 8, 2017 | 2:15am The day didn’t play to Joe Girardi’s strengths. He usually performs better in a uniform than in a golf shirt and jeans, looks more comfortable on a field flanked by coaches and players than in a press-conference room populated by reporters. Then again, the Yankees manager found himself in this stressful situation Saturday afternoon thanks to uncharacteristically gross incompetence on the field. So maybe it made sense, in a perverse way, Girardi succeeded where he often struggles. He didn’t fan the flames of Chisen-Hell. In a high-stakes question-and-answer session, Girardi did what he could to put the worst managing night of his career behind him and shift the focus toward Game 3 of American League Division Series on Sunday night, when the Yankees — down 2-0 in the best-of-five format — will try to keep their season going at Yankee Stadium. Though Girardi’s words don’t wipe the night from his legacy or the team’s history, they should at least dial down the current volume on it from an 11 on the “This Is Spinal Tap” scale to, say, an 8. “I screwed up,” an emotional Girardi said. “And it’s hard. It’s a hard day for me. But I’ve got to move forward, and we’ll be ready to go tomorrow.” He added: “Now I wish I would have challenged it.” “It” naturally is the faulty call by home-plate umpire Dan Iassogna on Chad Green’s 1-2 fastball to pinch hitter Lonnie Chisenhall, which replays show hit the knob of Chisenhall’s bat and went into Gary Sanchez’s glove for strike three. Iassogna ruled that the ball hit Chisenhall. The Yankees, best in the business at operating MLB’s replay-challenge system, let the play go without using one of their two challenges. The Indians’ next batter, Francisco Lindor, ripped a grand slam, cutting the Yankees’ lead to 8-7 and sparking Cleveland to an eventual 9-8 victory in 13 innings. “Does it change the complexion of the game? Yeah, it sure could have,” Girardi said. “Do we know that for sure? No. But I’ve always taken responsibilities for losses, and I take them hard, too.” It absolutely changed the complexion of the game. As the Yankees’ Game 2 starter, CC Sabathia, said late Friday night: “That kind of turned the game.” So Girardi didn’t execute a perfect news conference, which would have been a first for him. He also touted “the formula” on which he relied that prompted him to remove Sabathia for Green then to stick with Green against Lindor — and that will heighten the criticism of him, as illustrated by The Post’s Joel Sherman, that he relies too heavily on numbers and precedents and doesn’t read each situation as it comes. Pitching decisions cross each manager’s desk repeatedly, though, and no manager is immune to those shoulda/coulda/wouldas. The failure to call for a replay review qualifies as something else altogether. It’s an inexcusable system breakdown. And Girardi wholly fell on his sword regarding this primary issue. “I take full responsibility,” he said, and referring to coaching assistant Brett Weber, who makes the recommendations on challenging or not challenging, Girardi added: “It’s not Brett’s fault. It’s my fault.” He couldn’t leave this lingering. He had to let his team and the public know that the buck stopped with him. Indians manager Terry Francona, no stranger to being the object of passionate fan bases’ derision, said of these situations: “You do your homework, and you’re prepared, and you make your decisions. And then … after the game, you have to answer for it, which you’re supposed to. If you don’t have an answer, shame on you. “And then you’re confident enough in what you’re doing and you move on. You can’t rush to wake up to see how you’re being perceived because it’s just not helpful.” The playoffs can be different. They can give you a travel day like this one, when you must relive and own your mistake in the hopes of diminishing it. Girardi did that Saturday. It doesn’t grant him a permanent escape from his ghastly error. In the short term, however, it gives him and his team more brain space to focus on the highly challenging task ahead of them. New York Post LOADED: 10.08.2017 Encarnacion is in a walking boot, but may play vs. Yankees By October 8, 2017 | 12:46am Edwin Encarnacion showed up for the Indians’ workout at Yankee Stadium on Saturday on crutches and with his right foot in a walking boot. It was hardly ideal for a team that is looking to close out the Yankees in the Game 3 of ALDS on Sunday in The Bronx, but manager Terry Francona refused to say the slugger would be unavailable after Encarnacion left Game 2 on Friday with a sprained right ankle suffered when he tried to get back to second base in the bottom of the first inning and his foot bent awkwardly. “He is, I would say, I don’t know if remarkably better is a good word, but pretty close,” Francona said before the Indians held an optional workout in The Bronx. “He’s doing much better. I don’t think he’s going to start [Sunday], but he’s not been ruled out, either. So we’ll take our time and allow to him continue to get treatment.” Francona said was pleased with the progress the DH had made in less than 24 hours and called the situation “day-to-day.” “If he’s that close to being available, that’s a really good sign,’’ Francona said. “So we’re obviously not going to do anything roster-wise.” If they did, then Encarnacion would not only be out for the remainder of the ALDS, but the ALCS, as well. Francona said that if Encarnacion can’t go Sunday, Michael Brantley — who replaced Encarnacion in the second inning on Friday — would take his spot. “That’s easy,” Francona said. “As far as the lineup goes, I don’t know yet. I mean, one, we’ve got to check on Edwin. And then we’ll put it together.” The Yankees, one defeat away from elimination, would certainly benefit from Encarnacion’s absence. “Obviously, he’s a very productive hitter and he’s been a productive home run hitter for a long, long time,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. “He hits right-handers and left-handers. We’re probably going to see Brantley [Sunday], who is a very good hitter in his own right.’’ Brantley hasn’t started a game since injuring his right ankle Aug. 8. He went 1-for-3 in the Indians’ last two games of the regular season then 0- for-5 after taking over for Encarnacion in Cleveland’s 13-inning win in Game 2. Brantley is 3-for-7 with two doubles and a homer against Tanaka, though all of that production came in one game in 2014. Encarnacion is 10- for-22 versus the right-hander, also with two doubles and a homer. “It’s going to change their lineup, but they’re putting in a very good hitter to replace him, I’m sure,’’ Girardi said. New York Post LOADED: 10.08.2017