Indians Bats Silent as Yankees Win Game Three of the ALDS 1-0; Three Takeaways From The Loss

Game three of the ALDS was very different from the classic that the Indians and Yankees played on Friday night at Progressive Field, as the two teams waged war in a pitchers duel, with Carlos Carrasco and Masahiro Tanaka battling with just one run scored.

Sadly for the Tribe that only run came for New York, making the series go at least one game longer, as they took home the win in the Bronx 1-0 to make it a 2-1 series in favor of the Indians.

Cleveland had their chances which we will talk about in a bit, and the series will now have another twist, as there's rain expected for the Big Apple which could push the next game till Tuesday, with a possible fifth game on Wednesday at Progressive Field.

Here's three takeaways from the loss, as the Indians for the second time will look to end the series and move on to the ALCS.

1. One Critical Mistake

Andrew Miller clearly isn't the same dominant pitcher he was in 2016, and on Sunday night it was one huge mistake pitch that cost him and the team in the 1-0 loss in the Bronx.

For the second time in three days, Greg Bird got a hold of a mistake pitch, and put it in the stands for a solo homer which turned out to be the only run crossing home plate.

Miller allowed homers in back-to-back games against the Dodgers in losses back in June, and he's pitched in all three games in this series against the Yankees, and while he was able to get that first out to end a possible threat, he didn't survive the next inning.

You have to think that Miller, if a game is played Monday and there's a situation where he would normally be called upon, might not get that call from the pen, and instead would get a rest.

The knee injury that he's been working his way back from still isn't 100 percent, and Tom Hamilton said as much on Friday night.

He's still a solid part of what's going on with this pen and will be counted on again if the team advances, but he's not been nearly as sharp in the last 3 games versus New York as he was in the playoffs last season.

2. A Night to Forget at the Plate

The offense had their issues all night with Masahiro Tanaka, and other than the triple by Jason Kipnis who was stranded on third, the Tribe never put themselves in a position to get a run across.

Tanaka went seven innings, allowing just three hits and he struck out seven on the night, and there's was a number of out of the zone pitches that the Indians chased.

Jay Bruce had a tough night, as he had chances to have an impact in the game but went 0-for-4 with four K's, much like Aaron Judge in the opener for New York.

They will get Luis Severino in game four, and the team needs to find it's offense again after having a bad night at the plate in game three in order to not allow New York to force a game five back in Cleveland on Wednesday.

3. What's Ahead

Monday night the Tribe will give the ball to Trevor Bauer, who threw great in game one and held the Yankees at bay all night in dominant fashion.

It was originally thought they would go with Josh Tomlin, but Tomlin was forced to give two scoreless innings on Friday in the 12th and 13th innings of the eventual 9-8 win for the Tribe.

They feel that Bauer gives them the best shot to win, and with the fact Monday's game is being threatened with rain, who knows if the game is even going to get played.

Bottom line the Indians are going to have to score some runs this time to win this game, and can't assume that Bauer is going to give them another shutout performance.

As for New York, they will go with All-Star Luis Severino, who was a bust in the AL Wild Card game last Tuesday against the Twins, and was pulled quick as the Twins took an early lead.

He should be fresh and ready to go, and he's had a good track record against the Tribe in 2017, throwing a gem against them at Progressive Field back in the finale of the two teams four-game set in which he allowed a run on two hits with nine K's back on August 6th.

The Indians will have to have better AB's then they did that day in August, and also have to find a way to create more traffic on the bases than in game three Sunday loss.