Here we go, Tribe fans!
The Cleveland Indians are opening the home portion of their 2018 schedule this afternoon at Progressive Field against the Kansas City Royals. Today is the 25th home opener in the history of this ballpark.
FINAL--CLEVELAND INDIANS DEFEAT KANSAS CITY ROYALS, 3-2
Not a bad way to open up Progressive Field for 2018. The Indians defeated the Royals 3-2, scoring all three of their runs in the first inning. Michael Brantley had the game's biggest hit with a bases-loaded single, plating a pair of runs.
It's fitting that Brantley had the game-winning RBI hit today after also having the game-winning RBI in last year's home opener, an extra inning double in the victory over the White Sox.
The offensive output in the first was all the Tribe's pitching staff would need. After a shaking opening inning, Carlos Carrasco settled down and picked up his second victory of the season. Nick Goody, Andrew Miller, and Cody Allen each pitched a scoreless inning of relief as Allen recorded his second save of the season.
Matt Florjancic and yours truly broke down the victory on WKYC's Facebook Live
Here's how the rest of the game played out:
6:37 p.m.--MILLER TIME!
When Andrew Miller is on point, he is unhittable. That was not the case to start the 8th as the Tribe's All-Star reliever allowed the first two men to reach.
Not to worry, kids.
Miller struck out Kansas City's 3-4-5 hitters: Mike Moustakas, Lucas Duda, and Cheslor Cuthbert to end the Royals' threat. Wow.
(By the by, that's Stephanie Metzger killing it for us on Twitter today)
The Tribe still leads 3-2. Cody Allen is warming up to pitch in the 9th.
6:09 p.m.--BOTH STARTERS DONE AS WE MOVE TO 7TH INNING
Carlos Carrasco's day is over after his high-wire act in the 6th inning. He finishes with 6 IP, 2 R, 5 H, 1 BB, 4 K and is in line to get his second victory of the season. Nick Goody is now in for the Tribe.
Danny Duffy departed with two outs in the 6th. Like Carrasco, he did a nice job bouncing back after a tough first inning. He allowed 3 runs on 3 hits with 3 walks and 3 strikeouts.
Still a 3-2 lead for the Indians as Kansas City bats in the 7th.
5:56 p.m.--CARRASCO GETS OUT OF JAM TO KEEP INDIANS AHEAD 3-2
Carlos Carrasco pulled the proverbial rabbit out of the hat in the 6th inning to maintain the Tribe's 3-2 lead over Kansas City. Drew Butera singled to start the inning, ending a streak of 13 in a row put down by Cookie. A John Jay single, a sacrifice bunt, and a walk followed to load the bases with one out.
With his pitch count climbing over 90 and Nick Goody warming up in the bullpen, Carrasco struck out Lucas Duda, then induced a flyout to left from Cheslor Cuthbert to end the threat. Nice work by Carrasco, who is more than likely done for the afternoon.
5:17 p.m.--COOKIE IS IN A GROOVE
After a shaky first inning, Carlos Carrasco has really settled in nicely. He has retired the last 10 batters and has kept the Tribe on top of the Royals, 3-2, heading into the bottom of the 4th. What I like most about Cookie's performance so far has been his economical approach, throwing just 56 pitches (most of those in the 1st).
The strikeouts will be there with Carlos. What will help make him into a Cy Young Award-caliber pitcher is being able to pitch deep into games. He's headed in that direction this afternoon.
5:00 p.m.--CATCH OUR PREGAME SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
The Indians hold a 3-2 lead as we move to the 3rd inning. If you missed our coverage from Progressive Field before today's game, you can check out some of these photos of batting practice and the pregame festivities:
PHOTOS: Cleveland Indians take batting practice before 2018 home opener
PHOTOS: Cleveland Indians celebrate 2018 home opener at Progressive Field
We also got some pictures of our Channel 3 team on the field:
PHOTOS | WKYC crew celebrates Opening Day at Progressive Field
Also, I had the chance to host our digital preview from the ballpark at noon today. Our guests included U.S. Senator (and die-hard Indians fan) Sherrod Brown. Watch our Facebook Live show below:
4:40 p.m.--WELCOME BACK, DR. SMOOTH
When Michael Brantley is healthy, he is very good at hitting a baseball. After Danny Duffy walked three and gave up an RBI single from Jose Ramirez, Brantley hit a two-run single with the bases loaded to give the Indians a 3-2 lead.
Keep in mind, it was Brantley who was the hero of last year's home opener with a walk-off double against the White Sox.
Duffy did well to contain the damage after the Brantley single, retiring Brandon Guyer, Yonder Alonso, and Yan Gomes with two men on to keep it a 3-2 Tribe edge.
4:21 p.m.--ROYALS STRIKE FIRST, LEAD 2-0
Kansas City didn't hit the ball hard against Carlos Carrasco in the top of the 1st, but their flares found holes in the Indians outfield. Lucas Duda's RBI single and and an RBI groundout by Mike Moustakas have put the Royals ahead 2-0 as the Indians come to bat in the bottom of the 1st.
One thing to watch: The Indians have Michael Brantley hitting 5th today behind Edwin Encarnacion. Rajai Davis and Brandon Guyer are also starting today against the lefty Danny Duffy.
GAME PREVIEW
The Tribe checks in with a 2-4 record, losing 2 out of 3 games to the Mariners and Angels to open the season. Kansas City is 1-3. Cleveland will turn to right-hander Carlos Carrasco to make the start in front of a sellout crowd this afternoon. The 31-year-old won his first start of the season in Seattle, allowing five runs on seven hits in 5.2 innings. He struck our four and did not walk a batter. Lefty Danny Darwin will be the starter for Kansas City. He is 0-1 after an opening day loss to the White Sox in which he gave up 5 runs on 7 hits, including three home runs, in his four innings of work.
Today's game will be highlighted by the 2018 debut of Indians outfielder Michael Brantley. The two-time All-Star returns to the lineup after offseason ankle surgery. Injuries have limited Brantley to only 101 games over the past two seasons.
You can follow tweets from Dave DeNatale, Matt Florjancic, Dave Chudowsky, and the rest of our WKYC team and interact with us using the hashtag #3Indians.
