It's over- Cleveland's Soul Crushing Game Five loss

A tremendous season came to a crushing end as Didi Gregorius hit two homers off Cleveland starter Corey Kluber in the first three innings and the New York Yankees won game five of the ALDS 5-2 in Cleveland, taking the series with them to Houston to play the Astros.
The Indians would cut the lead to 3-2 in the fifth on consecutive RBI singles by Roberto Perez and Giovanni Urshela but would threaten no more against the Yankee bullpen.
Back with more soon from the Hot Stove.

Smoke Signals

1) Not a lot of excuses, but there were some reasons for this loss.
It really did come down to two balls hit in game three.
The Yankees Greg Bird's hit left the ballpark and stayed out.
Francisco Lindor's left the park, but Aaron Judge brought it back in.
Difference between moving on and moving out.

2) Now, I cannot explain how Corey Kluber pitched so well all season and then came up very short in his two playoff starts.
Kluber just didn't have it when they needed him and I'm not sure why.
I can give Kluber a mild pass for game two on somewhat short rest, but Kluber had no such excuse on this day.

3) The Indians did score twice and had the tying run on second with just one out in the fifth.
Francisco Lindor then banged into a double play and that essentially ended the Cleveland offense/

4) Cleveland just wasn't patient at the plate as they swung way too early in the count and allowed Joe Girardi to stick with just David Robertson and Aroldis Chapman from the bullpen.
Yankee pitchers threw 130 to Indian pitchers 177 and the difference was most glaring in the Yankee ninth when Brett Gardner wore Cody Allen down before singling home one run with the final run scoring on the same play on an error on an overthrow.

5) Top three hitters in the Indians lineup for the series-Francisco Lindor .111, Jason Kipnis .182 and Jose Ramirez .100.
Tough time of the year to have the top of your lineup get that cold and other than Lindor's homer in game two, the Indians received next to nothing from those players.

6) It didn't have an effect on the game, but what in the world when you are down to your final five outs and the season is on the line, why is lefty hitter Jason Kipnis being allowed to face the fearsome lefty Aroldis Chapman?
Chapman predictably dispatched Kipnis easily.
Not on Kipnis, being placed in that situation is on Terry Francona.

7) So many are now wondering about the record-setting winning streak contributing to the loss and I'd hesitate to blame that completely, but I would say this, sometimes it is possible for a team to use things up.
Not like karma or anything like that, but players are streaky and in an unusual run such as that, several Indians played great and all players have their good runs and bad runs.
Sometimes it's as simple as you are due.

8) And sometimes, there are no explanations other than the other team was better.
Maybe it's just that simple this time- The Yankees were the better team over five games.

9) And this is sour grapes of course, but this is one of the reasons that I hate the Wild Card among many.
I hate the Wild Card, to begin with, but baseball makes it far too easy for the Wild Card to overcome any obstacles.
I was talking about how to fix things after baseball inevitably moves to 32 teams with Fred Landucci and I think the best way is 4 four-team divisions in each league and punt the wild card.

10) I might be doing a pre-Hot Stove series for the Indians, Giants and Pirates, but for now- here are the Indians free agents. We'll see who stays and who goes.
Hitters: Jay Bruce, Carlos Santana, Austin Jackson, Michael Brantley
Pitchers: Bryan Shaw, Joe Smith, Craig Breslow, Boone Logan
Brantley and Logan are team options.
Logan is unlikely at seven million, if picked up with a one million buyout.
Brantley is a maybe at eleven million and it might depend on who they can keep of Bruce and/or Santana.