CLEVELAND: On the second biggest night in Cleveland sports history, Indians right-hander Corey Kluber delivered a performance that matched all the pageantry, all the fanfare, all the excitement.
When he left Game 1 of the World Series with one on and none out in the top of the seventh inning, he handed manager Terry Francona the ball and pursed his lips. It was almost as if Kluber wanted to avoid showing an ounce of pleasure in his effort before he marched to the dugout.
He did share a slight smile with Mike Napoli on the mound before Francona’s arrival.
Because of Kluber and his record-breaking nine strikeouts, along with a two-homer night from catcher Roberto Perez, the Indians produced an emphatic 6-0 victory Tuesday over the Chicago Cubs before a delirious crowd of 38,091 in Progressive Field.
All of a sudden, the nation’s darlings look vulnerable.
Downtown was abuzz with the Cavaliers raising their NBA championship banner and receiving their rings across the plaza about an hour before the Indians made their first appearance in the World Series since 1997.
The Cubs won 103 games in the regular season, eerily reminiscent of the Golden State Warriors, who set an NBA record with 73 victories before the Cavs vanquished them in the NBA Finals. The Cubs were nearly 2-1 betting favorites and the talk of every town in 49 of the 50 states.
That set up another “Cleveland Against the World” scenario, the new favorite phrase of Cavs star LeBron James.
There might be no one better to carry that torch than Kluber.
Kluber set a World Series record for strikeouts in the first three innings with eight, besting the mark held by Orlando Hernandez and hall of famers Bob Gibson and Randy Johnson. Kluber obliterated the Indians’ World Series record of seven, numbers posted by Jaret Wright (Game 7, 1997) and Orel Hershiser (Game 1, 1995).
From the first inning, when Kluber got the first two batters looking, it was evident he was not the same pitcher who took the mound for Game 1 of the American League Division Series against the Boston Red Sox.
Coming off a strained quadriceps that evening, Kluber posted good numbers. But second baseman Jason Kipnis pointed out that Kluber’s pinpoint accuracy was a bit off.
The Cubs found out what Kluber looked like when it was on. Kluber, 30, pitched the game of his life, limiting the hot-hitting Cubs to four hits in six innings and didn’t walk a batter.
His two-seam fastball was a thing of beauty, and right-hander Trevor Bauer, slated to pitch Wednesday, had to be salivating. Before the game, Bauer said he was fascinated by that pitch.
“A pitch I started throwing mostly by studying his, and figuring out exactly why it moves and all the science behind it,” Bauer said of Kluber. “I enjoy watching that because sometimes it moves a lot, and it’s really fun to see the reactions to it.”
Imagine the fun Bauer had watching the Cubs’ stares as they retreated to their dugout. Six Chicagoans were caught looking, four of those on the two-seamer, according to MLB.com.
All told, Kluber struck out six of nine with Bauer’s favorite pitch, according to the website.
Kluber won the AL Cy Young Award in 2014, but he’s still improving, Francona said. That might be a frightening thought for the Cubs, who could see him again in Game 4, especially since Kluber threw only 88 pitches.
“He’s really quiet. There’s a fire, though, that burns in there that maybe people don’t see,” Francona said before the game. “His work ethic is probably second to none. His routines are impeccable during the year. His gas tank doesn’t ... the needle doesn’t start going down because he just gets after it every day.
“He’s kind of grown up into this pitcher right in front of us, and it’s been fun to watch.”
On Tuesday night, Kluber’s fire was on display in a performance worthy of a second Cy Young if the postseason awards votes weren’t already in.
If Kluber can keep that intensity burning through the rest of the World Series, the other 49 states might be in for disappointment. The king of “Cleveland Against the World” seems to have found his perfect prince.
Marla Ridenour can be reached at mridenour@thebeaconjournal.com. Read her blog at www.ohio.com/marla. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MRidenourABJ.