Game #16 Observations: Reyes and Luplow Go Deep, Plesac Earns First Win as Indians Top White Sox 7-1

Cleveland Indians bats the last 72 hours have had more twists and turns than your favorite roller coaster at Cedar Point.

13 runs on Thursday in a 13-0 win over the Cincinnati Reds at Progressive Field was followed up by no runs Friday in a 2-0 loss to the White Sox in Chicago.

Saturday the bats got hot again, as the team put up seven runs in a 7-1 win over the White Sox to move to 9-7 on the season.

The ups and downs the offense are at least a little more interesting than the storyline fans have been use to for most of the season to date, which is just the team struggling to score even 2-3 runs.

The offensive output was due in part to some pitching and catching mistakes in the Tribe's six-run fourth frame, which we will get to in a bit.

Zach Plesac earned his first win of 2020, going six solid enough innings to move to 1-1 on the young season.

Here are some observations from the win and some takeaways as the Indians keep the heat on the Twins for the top spot in the AL Central.

The "O" Does it Again

The six-run fourth for the Indians were helped out by some Sox mistakes, including a wild pitch and a passed ball, both which allowed runs to cross home plate to make it 2-0.

Then it was time for the bats to come alive, as Franmil Reyes hit a 92 MPH high fastball deep into the seats in center to make it 4-0.

Delino DeShields then got on with a sharply hit single to third, and Jordan Luplow, who as the fourth inning Saturday had not gotten a hit the entire season, hit a laser shot to the seats to make it 6-0.

✅1 Hit
✅1 Home Run@J_Luppp gets in the hit column with this two-run shot to left. Tribe have scored six in the fourth!#OurTribe pic.twitter.com/zTHE3RbfAe
— Bally Sports Cleveland (@BallySportsCLE) August 8, 2020

"It felt like the entire world just came off my shoulders," Luplow said of his feelings after the homer.

"It was nice seeing the smiles in the dugout. They were so happy for me."

Many felt that Luplow and his 14 homers in 2019 were enough to earn an extended shot in the outfield in 2020, but sadly he had yet to get a hit entering play Saturday, going 0-for-20.

Acting manager Sandy Alomar Jr. wanted to keep putting Luplow out there, which finally on Saturday paid off.

"I just don’t want him to lose his confidence. I want him to be the guy that we had last year," Alomar said prior to the game.

"Sitting on the bench is not gonna do that. I need to put him out there."

It worked, as Luplow raised his average to .043. Let's see if Saturday's homer is the lift that Luplow needs to finally get going.

Domingo Even Got in on the Action

When the Indians picked up outfielder Domingo Santana via free agency they were hopeful he would do enough from a power standpoint at the plate to make it worth it.

Again entering Saturday he had struggled, going 4-for-24 (.167) with seven walks and 10 strikeouts.

He finally got a hold of one Saturday against the Sox, depositing his first homer of the season to push the Tribe lead to 7-0 in the 8th inning.

Santana didn't get cheated on the homer either, as he put it out 454 feet as the dugout with his teammates went wild for the long blast.

Should I stay, or should I (Domin)go?#OurTribe pic.twitter.com/fntN70aOZI
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) August 8, 2020

The Indians outfield went 5-for-11 Saturday with two homers, three RBI and three strikeouts.

The way the threesome has been playing thus far in 2020, a 5-for-11 day would be welcome anytime.

The team is hopeful a couple of these guys at the bottom of the order can get hot, and would welcome Santana being one of those guys.

Just like Luplow, maybe Saturday's shot for Domingo can get him going.

Plesac Gets His First "W"

Indians number five starter Zach Plesac was very good Saturday, holding the Sox at bay over six innings, not allowing a run on five hits with a walk with seven K's.

The starter threw 95 pitches, 65 of which were strikes. He also lowered his ERA down to 1.29 this season.

"I think I used the slider more. It was working good for me off the fastball plane," Plesac said.

"I threw some good curveballs too and think I had a good, steady mix. I had guys guessing."

He did have guys swinging and missing quite a bit, and the Sox aggressive style at the plate played right into his hands.

The starting pitching of the Indians continues to be the story of the 2020 season, and again the bottom line is if you give this unit 3-4 runs they are going to win a lot of games.

The matchup for Sunday is a couple of All-Stars as Shane Bieber looks for his 4th win of 2020 against Lucas Giolito for the Sox.

Sunday's game also is now on national TV as ESPN picked up the game.