Jose Bautista says Indians’ rookie pitcher should be scared of Game 5

Almost no team makes it to the playoffs with their original plan intact. Whether that plan was developed at the beginning of the season or at the start of the postseason, something almost always goes wrong. The Cleveland Indians are living that reality right now.

First it was pitcher Danny Salazar, who went down in early September with a right forearm strain. Then it was Carlos Carrasco, who broke a bone his hand when it couldn’t get out of the way of a line drive in mid-September. Last week it was Trevor Bauer’s turn when the propeller of one of his hobby drones accidentally ate his finger. He tried to pitch Game 3, but the waterfall of blood from his pinkie finger put a stop to that after only two outs and the bullpen had to pick up the slack. Then Corey Kluber started Game 4 on short rest so he could be available for a possible Game 7.

You may have noticed by now that the Indians have almost completely run out of pitchers. And that’s where 24-year-old rookie Ryan Merritt comes in. Merritt is starting Game 5 (which could be a clincher for Cleveland) and he’s thrown just 11 major league innings. Not just this season, but in his career. He made one start in 2016, giving up one run in five innings against the Kansas City Royals on Sept. 30, and three relief appearances for an overall 1.64 ERA. So his start on Wednesday, in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series, is just the second of his career.

So this seems crazy, right? It definitely seems a little crazy. But the Indians don’t have much of a choice, and they’re not panicking. Merritt himself confessed that he feels more comfortable on a mound than answering questions in front of a camera and a small group of reporters. However Jose Bautista, who never runs out of things to say, thinks that Merritt should be pretty nervous.

Well then.

Bautista’s not wrong, though. The Toronto lineup can be pretty scary. Edwin Encarnacion hit 42 home runs in the regular season, and Josh Donaldson turned in another MVP-caliber performance. There’s Bautista and Troy Tulowitzki and Michael Saunders, and most of these guys have been stifled in the ALCS. Their bats showed signs of life in Game 4 on Tuesday, and a rookie pitcher to feast upon might be all they need to get back to full health.

Despite all this, there are some things in Merritt’s favor, which manager Terry Francona and other players pointed out to Cleveland.com. Even though Bautista and the Jays lineup might not be scared of Merritt, they’ve also never seen him before. His lack of major league experience actually works to his advantage because the Jays won’t really know what they’re facing. Another point in his favor is that he doesn’t issue many walks, which is great because free passes will kill a pitcher. He gave up just 23 walks in 143.1 innings in Triple-A Columbus this season, and zero walks in 11 major league innings.

Between the Indians’ pitching and the Jays’ offensive problems, both teams have a lot to worry about going into Game 5. Either Cleveland will clinch the ALCS crown, or Toronto will live to fight another day. You’ll just have to tune in to the game to find out what’s going to happen. You can catch it at 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday on TBS or Sportsnet.

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Liz Roscher is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at lizroscher@yahoo.com or follow her on twitter! Follow @lizroscher