You don’t need me to tell you the 2018 season is over, or that it was a miserable conclusion to a story that was six months in the making. This isn’t how the Indians were supposed to finish, with one of the best pitching staffs ever, two Cy Young candidates, multiple MVP candidates, and the newly acquired Josh Donaldson ready to run over October.
None of it mattered in the only three games of the season that counted. The offense disappeared, Corey Kluber imploded, and the bullpen was even worse than anyone could have imagined. The Astros proved they were the better team over the course of three games, and if this series was any indication they are rocketing toward their second consecutive World Series title.
A number of core Indians players are free agents after this season — not neccesarily the current core of greatness, but the old guard of Michael Brantley, Cody Allen, and Josh Tomlin are likely on the way out, while the Indians might be considering how to relieve themselves of Jason Kipnis’ costly contract when they have another, better second baseman ready to keep the position in Jose Ramirez.
There will be plenty of time to plan for the future, and to discuss on the podcast, but for now Merritt and I just wanted to take a good 40 minutes and vent our frustrations. It felt good, and hopefully it helps you to listen to it a little bit.
Thanks for checking out the latest episode of Let’s Talk Tribe! If you enjoyed that episode and want to hear more, please consider subscribing to us on iTunes and YouTube and maybe leaving a nice little review or comment. Every little bit helps us keep this bad boy going.
Intro and outro music: Inner Cell by King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard.