Chicago Cubs World Series: How they match up with the Cleveland Indians

Starting rotation

The Chicago Cubs send out the best pitching rotation in baseball. They will have Jon Lester taking the mound for Game One, Jake Arrieta for Game Two, Kyle Hendricks for Game Three and John Lackey for Game Four.

Lester is 2-0 with a minuscule 0.86 ERA in three postseason games this year. He opened every series for the Cubs, and got them off on the right foot. He also pitched a crucial Game Five of the NLCS that set up the series-clinching Game Six.

Hendricks was almost unbeatable at Wrigley Field, and that trend continued in the postseason. On three games (all at Wrigley) he is 1-1 with a 1.65 ERA.

Hendricks was almost unbeatable at Wrigley Field, and that trend continued in the postseason. On three games (all at Wrigley) he is 1-1 with a 1.65 ERA.

He had a no decision against the San Francisco Giants only because he got hit on the forearm by a line drive and had to leave the game before throwing five innings.

In his only loss, Hendricks pitched well enough to win, but went up against Clayton Kershaw and dropped the game 1-0. The two met again in Game Six, and Hendricks completely outpitched Kershaw.

Arrieta and Lackey haven’t dominated like they have, but pitched well enough to keep the Cubs in the game. They grinded out games. Lackey was especially big. His fiery demeanor on the mound for Game Four of the NLCS appeared to ignite the Cubs, who were down in the series at the time.

The Indians had one of the most dynamic rotations in baseball. They had some great young pitching with power arms. Then injuries hit them. Carlos Carrasco is out with a broken pinky, and Danny Salazar is on the roster but has not pitched since September 9th.

That leaves them with Corey Kluber, the 2014 Cy Young winner. He will start Game One. After that, they have Josh Tomlin, Trevor Bauer (who had to leave his last game early because of a bleeding finger cut while he was playing with his drones) and Ryan Merritt.

Advantage: Cubs