Pulled from Wikipedia
The Commissioner's Trophy is awarded each year by the commissioner of the MLB to the team that wins the World Series.
The Cleveland Indians and the Chicago Cubs are set to face off in the World Series, which starts Tuesday. Both teams own lengthy championship droughts, with the Cubs not having won since 1908 and the Indians since 1948. The Cubs finished with the best record in baseball, winning the National League Central division at 103-58. The Indians took home the American League Central division with a record of 94-67 before cruising through the playoffs to make it to the World Series.
Chicago
Pitching
The Cubs’ pitching staff is arguably the best in baseball. The team led the MLB with a staff ERA of 3.15 this year, which was over 40 points higher than the next closest team. Led by two Cy Young Award candidates in Kyle Hendricks and Jon Lester, along with reigning Cy Young winner, Jake Arrieta, the starting rotation has been the cornerstone of the team all season. Hendricks led all of baseball with a 2.13 ERA during the regular season, while Lester’s 19 wins were the second most in the National League.
The bullpen for the Cubs is anchored by flame-throwing lefty Aroldis Chapman, who the Cubs acquired at the trade deadline from the Yankees. Chapman has posted a 1.01 ERA and struck out 46 batters in 26.2 innings with the Cubs this year. Another key piece for the Cubs bullpen this year has been Pedro Strop. Opposing batters hit just .163 against Strop, and he only walked 15 batters compared to 60 strikeouts.
Offense
The Cubs scored 808 runs this year, the third highest number in the MLB. The team has a stacked lineup led by the combination of third baseman Kris Bryant and first baseman Anthony Rizzo. The duo combined for 71 home runs and 201 RBIs during the regular season. In front of these two superstars the Cubs have lead-off man Dexter Fowler, whose on-base percentage during the regular season was a team-best .393.
The spark for the Cubs this postseason has come from second baseman Javier Baez. He slashed .342/.366/.892 during the playoffs and has tallied a team-best seven RBIs. Baez was named NLCS Co-MVP, along with Lester, for his performance against Los Angeles. The Cubs have also gotten a huge boost in the playoffs from rookie catcher Willson Contreras, who is hitting .400 with four RBIs during the postseason.
Cleveland
Offense
Cleveland features a lineup with multiple switch-hitters and left-handers, holding the platoon advantage in most games through the regular and postseason. One such switch-hitter, shortstop Francisco Lindor, has had an excellent season, accumulating 6.3 wins above replacement and logging a .794 OPS. Jose Ramirez, another player who hits from both sides, has solidified third base for the Indians this year, slashing .312/.363/.462 and breaking out after a two rough seasons to start his career.
Despite the loss of star outfielder Michael Brantley for the majority of the season, the Cleveland outfield has remained productive. Rookie centerfielder Tyler Naquin has made up for Brantley’s absence, hitting .296 with 14 home runs in just 365 plate appearances on the season. Surprising contributions from outfielders Coco Crisp and Lonnie Chisenhall have also helped carry the Indians through the playoffs.
Pitching
When Cleveland lost two rotation mainstays toward the end of the year, its path to the World Series was clouded. Starters Carlos Carrasco (3.32 ERA) and Danny Salazar (3.87 ERA) were lost to injury before the playoffs, forcing the Indians to turn to the likes of veteran right-hander Josh Tomlin, who posted a 4.40 ERA and unproven rookie southpaw Ryan Merritt, who had only one career regular season start before getting the win against Toronto in the decisive sixth game of the American League Championship Series.
Cleveland’s bullpen shut down both Toronto and Boston in the postseason. Andrew Miller has been dominant throughout the postseason, posting 21 strikeouts in 11 2/3 innings while only walking two. Miller was named ALCS Most Valuable Player, as manager Terry Francona consistently deployed Miller in the middle innings of games to preserve leads, a change from the traditional closer’s role in which they come in for just the ninth inning.
With the World Series this year comes the opportunity for one of these long suffering fan bases to finally taste the glory of victory. For the other, it will bring the heartbreak of another year being added onto its drought.