# 2016 Cleveland Indians season

The 2016 Cleveland Indians season was the 116th season for the franchise and the 23rd season at Progressive Field. The Indians won the American League Central for the first time since 2007 and also beat the Boston Red Sox in the ALDS for their first playoff win in nine years. They defeated the Toronto Blue Jays in five games in the ALCS before losing to the Chicago Cubs in seven games in the World Series, despite holding a 3–1 series lead. This was their first appearance in the World Series since 1997.

## Regular season
### Opening day starting lineup

Tuesday, April 5, 2016, vs Boston Red Sox
| Name | Pos. |
| Rajai Davis | CF |
| Jason Kipnis | 2B |
| Francisco Lindor | SS |
| Mike Napoli | 1B |
| Carlos Santana | DH |
| Yan Gomes | C |
| Marlon Byrd | LF |
| Juan Uribe | 3B |
| Collin Cowgill | RF |
Starting Pitcher: Corey Kluber

### April

The Cleveland Indians opened up their 2016 season with a three-game series against the Boston Red Sox at Progressive Field. Opening Day was scheduled for April 4, but was postponed due to a mixture of rain and snow until April 5. The Indians lost the opener 6–2. They would get their first win a day later, as newly acquired 1B Mike Napoli hit the go-ahead home run in a 7–6 victory over his former team.
The Indians struggled during the month of April, going just 10-11 during the month. On April 24, SP Carlos Carrasco left a game with a hamstring injury. He would miss the next six weeks. Trevor Bauer, who started the year in the bullpen, would take Carrasco's spot in the rotation. SP Josh Tomlin was a bright spot for April, as he went 3-0 throughout the month.

### May

Outfielder Michael Brantley came back from a shoulder injury he suffered late in 2015. He would only play 11 games before re-aggravating his shoulder. He would not return the rest of the season. The Indians won 12 of 17 games between May 2–20, to close to within two games of the division leading Chicago White Sox. The Indians would take three of four in Chicago later in the month to take the division lead. The team finished the month 16–3.

### June

The Indians continued their success into June, as they would win their first six games of the month. Later in the month, the Indians would win a franchise record 14 straight games from June 17 through July 1. The Indians were a perfect 11–0 at home in June. They spent the month battling with the Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals, and fading Chicago White Sox atop the AL Central. The Indians finished the month two games ahead of Kansas City.
SP Danny Salazar, who went 5–0 with a 1.91 ERA and a .177 opponent's batting average, was named the American League Pitcher of the Month for June. OF Tyler Naquin was named the AL Rookie of the Month after batting .338 with an AL-best 1.219 OPS.

### July

The Indians won their game on July 1, 2–1 over the Toronto Blue Jays, in 19 innings - the longest game of the 2016 season - to extend their winning streak to 14 games, but it would end the next day with a 9–6 loss to the Blue Jays. The Indians would maintain a 5–7 game lead over the Detroit Tigers throughout much of July. However the team struggled near the end of the month and the lead slipped down to 4 games. Adding to the struggle was an injury to C Yan Gomes, who would not return until the final game of the season.
The Indians were active at the trade deadline. On July 31, they acquired RP Andrew Miller from the New York Yankees for four prospects including OF Clint Frazier and P Justus Sheffield, widely considered two of the top four prospects in the Indians' farm system. The Indians also had a deal on the table for Milwaukee Brewers C Jonathan Lucroy, but Lucroy exercised his no-trade clause and vetoed the trade to Cleveland. He would later be traded to the Texas Rangers.
On July 5, SP Danny Salazar and SS Francisco Lindor were named to the All Star team. On July 8, SP Corey Kluber was also named to the team as an injury replacement. OF Tyler Naquin was named the AL Rookie of the Month for the second straight month.

### August

The Indians struggled in early August, going just 3–6 in their first nine games. Their lead over the Tigers decreased to just 2 games. However, On August 11, the team opened an 11-game home stand - its longest of the season - that would put them on the winning track. The Indians swept a four-game series from the Anaheim Angels to open up the home stand and took two out of three games from the Toronto Blue Jays to end the home stand. The Blue Jays series, which was believed to be a potential playoff preview, featured three one-run games including a walk-off inside-the-park home run by OF Tyler Naquin. The Indians' lead over Detroit was back to 71⁄2 games by August 22.
The Indians would then go on a west-coast trip that saw them go 2–5, and score one run or less in six of the seven games. However, the team returned home to sweep the Minnesota Twins to end the month. On August 31, the team acquired OF Coco Crisp from the Oakland Athletics for cash considerations. The acquisition of Crisp added outfield depth for the pennant race and postseason run.

### September/October

The Indians won six of their first eight games in September to maintain a sizable lead over the Detroit Tigers. However, the team's rotation, widely believed to be their biggest strength, suffered two major injuries during the month. All-Star SP Danny Salazar left the game on September 9 with a strained elbow, resulting in a 3-4 week recovery time. On September 17, SP Carlos Carrasco left the game with a broken hand as the result of a line-drive. This injury ended Carrasco's season. The Indians would put the Tigers away in September by winning two of three September 16–18. On September 26, the Indians clinched the division title - the team's first since 2007 - with a win over the Tigers.
The Indians would end the season with a record of 94–67, earning the No. 2 seed in the American League.

## Roster
### Season standings
#### American League Central

vteAL Central :
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
| Cleveland Indians | 94 | 67 | .584 | — | 53‍–‍28 | 41‍–‍39 |
| Detroit Tigers | 86 | 75 | .534 | 8 | 45‍–‍35 | 41‍–‍40 |
| Kansas City Royals | 81 | 81 | .500 | 13½ | 47‍–‍34 | 34‍–‍47 |
| Chicago White Sox | 78 | 84 | .481 | 16½ | 45‍–‍36 | 33‍–‍48 |
| Minnesota Twins | 59 | 103 | .364 | 35½ | 30‍–‍51 | 29‍–‍52 |

#### American League Wild Card

vteDivision Leaders :
| Team | W | L | Pct. |
| Texas Rangers | 95 | 67 | .586 |
| Cleveland Indians | 94 | 67 | .584 |
| Boston Red Sox | 93 | 69 | .574 |
vteWild Card teams (Top 2 teams qualify for postseason) :
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 89 | 73 | .549 | — |
| Baltimore Orioles | 89 | 73 | .549 | — |
| Detroit Tigers | 86 | 75 | .534 | 2½ |
| Seattle Mariners | 86 | 76 | .531 | 3 |
| New York Yankees | 84 | 78 | .519 | 5 |
| Houston Astros | 84 | 78 | .519 | 5 |
| Kansas City Royals | 81 | 81 | .500 | 8 |
| Chicago White Sox | 78 | 84 | .481 | 11 |
| Los Angeles Angels | 74 | 88 | .457 | 15 |
| Oakland Athletics | 69 | 93 | .426 | 20 |
| Tampa Bay Rays | 68 | 94 | .420 | 21 |
| Minnesota Twins | 59 | 103 | .364 | 30 |

#### Record against opponents

2016 American League recordvte Source: MLB Standings Grid - 2016 :
| Team | BAL | BOS | CWS | CLE | DET | HOU | KC | LAA | MIN | NYY | OAK | SEA | TB | TEX | TOR | NL |
| Baltimore | — | 8–11 | 4–3 | 5–1 | 5–2 | 1–6 | 4–2 | 4–2 | 5–1 | 10–9 | 3–4 | 1–6 | 13–6 | 3–4 | 9–10 | 14–6 |
| Boston | 11–8 | — | 3–4 | 4–2 | 2–5 | 5–2 | 2–4 | 4–3 | 4–3 | 11–8 | 5–1 | 4–3 | 12–7 | 3–3 | 9–10 | 14–6 |
| Chicago | 3–4 | 4–3 | — | 8–11 | 7–12 | 3–3 | 5–14 | 2–5 | 12–7 | 3–3 | 5–2 | 4–3 | 4–3 | 4–2 | 5–1 | 9–11 |
| Cleveland | 1–5 | 2–4 | 11–8 | — | 14–4 | 3–4 | 14–5 | 6–1 | 10–9 | 2–5 | 4–2 | 3–4 | 5–1 | 2–5 | 4–3 | 13–7 |
| Detroit | 2–5 | 5–2 | 12–7 | 4–14 | — | 4–2 | 7–12 | 2–4 | 15–4 | 3–3 | 4–3 | 4–3 | 6–1 | 2–4 | 3–4 | 13–7 |
| Houston | 6–1 | 2–5 | 3–3 | 4–3 | 2–4 | — | 3–4 | 13–6 | 5–2 | 2–4 | 13–6 | 11–8 | 3–3 | 4–15 | 2–5 | 11–9 |
| Kansas City | 2–4 | 4–2 | 14–5 | 5–14 | 12–7 | 4–3 | — | 1–5 | 15–4 | 2–5 | 1–6 | 3–4 | 5–2 | 1–6 | 2–4 | 10–10 |
| Los Angeles | 2–4 | 3–4 | 5–2 | 1–6 | 4–2 | 6–13 | 5–1 | — | 2–4 | 1–6 | 12–7 | 8–11 | 3–4 | 9–10 | 4–3 | 9–11 |
| Minnesota | 1–5 | 3–4 | 7–12 | 9–10 | 4–15 | 2–5 | 4–15 | 4–2 | — | 2–5 | 2–4 | 4–2 | 3–4 | 5–2 | 1–6 | 8–12 |
| New York | 9–10 | 8–11 | 3–3 | 5–2 | 3–3 | 4–2 | 5–2 | 6–1 | 5–2 | — | 4–3 | 3–3 | 11–8 | 3–4 | 7–12 | 8–12 |
| Oakland | 4–3 | 1–5 | 2–5 | 2–4 | 3–4 | 6–13 | 6–1 | 7–12 | 4–2 | 3–4 | — | 7–12 | 5–2 | 9–10 | 3–3 | 7–13 |
| Seattle | 6–1 | 3–4 | 3–4 | 4–3 | 3–4 | 8–11 | 4–3 | 11–8 | 2–4 | 3–3 | 12–7 | — | 4–2 | 7–12 | 3–3 | 13–7 |
| Tampa Bay | 6–13 | 7–12 | 3–4 | 1–5 | 1–6 | 3–3 | 2–5 | 4–3 | 4–3 | 8–11 | 2–5 | 2–4 | — | 4–2 | 11–8 | 10–10 |
| Texas | 4–3 | 3–3 | 2–4 | 5–2 | 4–2 | 15–4 | 6–1 | 10–9 | 2–5 | 4–3 | 10–9 | 12–7 | 2–4 | — | 3–4 | 13–7 |
| Toronto | 10–9 | 10–9 | 1–5 | 3–4 | 4–3 | 5–2 | 4–2 | 3–4 | 6–1 | 12–7 | 3–3 | 3–3 | 8–11 | 4–3 | — | 13–7 |

### Game log

2016 Game Log: 94–67 (Home: 53–28; Away: 41–39) :
April: 10–11 (Home: 3–5; Away: 7–6)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
—April 4Red SoxPostponed (rain). Makeup date: April 5.
1April 5Red Sox2–6Price (1–0)Kluber (0–1)–34,4930–1L1
2April 6Red Sox7–6McAllister (1–0)Tazawa (0–1) Allen (1)10,2981–1W1
—April 7Red Sox Postponed (rain). Makeup date: August 15.
3April 8@ White Sox7–1Salazar (1–0)Danks (0–1)—38,0192–1W2
4April 9@ White Sox3–7Sale (2–0)Shaw (0–1)—20,1922–2L1
—April 10@ White Sox Postponed (rain). Makeup date: May 23 (Game 1).
5April 12@ Rays1–5Cedeño (1–0)Kluber (0–2)—10,2832–3L2
6April 13@ Rays4–1Carrasco (1–0)Smyly (0–2)Allen (2)10,1173–3W1
7April 14@ Rays6–0Salazar (2–0)Archer (0–3)—10,7154–3W2
8April 15Mets5–6Colón (1–1)Anderson (0–1)Familia (3)15,3654–4L1
9April 16Mets7–5Tomlin (1–0)Harvey (0–3)Allen (3)20,1655–4W1
10April 17Mets0–6Matz (1–1)Kluber (0–3)—17,6215–5L1
11April 19Mariners3–2Carrasco (2–0)Miley (0–2)Allen (4)9,3936–5W1
12April 20Mariners1–2Walker (1–0)Salazar (2–1)Cishek (2)9,9806–6L1
13April 21Mariners7–10 (10)Zych (1–0)Allen (0–1)Cishek (3)11,5256–7L2
14April 22@ Tigers2–1Tomlin (2–0)Verlander (1–2)Allen (5)25,0867–7W1
15April 23@ Tigers10–1Kluber (1–3)Sánchez (2–2)—31,1638–7W2
16April 24@ Tigers6–3Bauer (1–0)Greene (1–2)Allen (6)31,9479–7W3
17April 25@ Twins3–4Jepsen (1–3)McAllister (1–1)—17,5039–8L1
18April 26@ Twins5–6Jepsen (2–3)Allen (0–2)—17,4939–9L2
19April 27@ Twins6–5Tomlin (3–0)Berríos (0–1)Allen (7)17,74610–9W1
20April 29@ Phillies3–4 (11)Hernandez (1–1)Allen (0–3)—18,67710–10L1
21April 30@ Phillies3–4Bailey (1–0)Hunter (0–1)Gómez (8)23,63610–11L2 :
May: 16–13 (Home: 9–7; Away: 7–6)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
22May 1@ Phillies1–2Velasquez (5–2)Salazar (2–2)Neris (1)23,80910–12L3
23May 3Tigers7–3Tomlin (4–0)Verlander (2–3)—11,02211–12W1
24May 4Tigers4–0Kluber (2–3)Sánchez (3–3)—8,76612–12W2
25May 5Tigers9–4Bauer (2–0)Fulmer (1–1)—10,35013–12W3
26May 6Royals7–1Salazar (3–2)Ventura (2–2)—13,58714–12W4
27May 7Royals0–7Kennedy (4–2)Anderson (0–2)—17,30214–13L1
28May 8Royals5–4Tomlin (5–0)Vólquez (3–3)Allen (8)14,46315–13W1
29May 9@ Astros1–7Fiers (3–1)Kluber (2–4)—20,22215–14L1
30May 10@ Astros4–0Bauer (3–0)Devenski (0–2)—23,97616–14W1
31May 11@ Astros3–5 (16)Feliz (1–0)Anderson (0–3)—24,45316–15L1
32May 13Twins7–6McAllister (2–1)May (0–2)Allen (9)17,80317–15W1
33May 14Twins3–6Santana (1–2)Kluber (2–5)—15,42817–16L1
34May 15Twins1–5Duffey (1–2)Bauer (3–1)—13,23617–17L2
35May 16Reds15–6Hunter (1–1)Lamb (0–1)—12,18418–17W1
36May 17Reds13–1Salazar (4–2)Simón (1–4)—13,09519–17W2
37May 18@ Reds8–7 (12)Allen (1–3)Sampson (0–1)Otero (1)22,81520–17W3
38May 19@ Reds7–2Tomlin (6–0)Cotham (0–3)—21,17321–17W4
39May 20@ Red Sox4–2Kluber (3–5)Buchholz (2–4)Allen (10)37,35422–17W5
40May 21@ Red Sox1–9Kelly (2–0)Bauer (3–2)—37,25422–18L1
41May 22@ Red Sox2–5Porcello (7–2)Salazar (4–3)Kimbrel (12)36,02122–19L2
42May 23@ White Sox6–7Latos (6–1)Clevinger (0–1)Robertson (12)22–20L3
43May 23@ White Sox5–1Anderson (1–3)Johnson (0–2)—18,32323–20W1
44May 24@ White Sox6–2Tomlin (7–0)Sale (9–1)—21,55024–20W2
45May 25@ White Sox4–3Kluber (4–5)Quintana (5–4)Allen (11)22,56125–20W3
46May 27Orioles4–6Bundy (1–1)McAllister (2–2)Britton (13)21,05425–21L1
47May 28Orioles11–4Salazar (5–3)Jiménez (2–6)—21,11026–21W1
48May 29Orioles4–6Tillman (7–1)Manship (0–1)Britton (14)18,56526–22L1
49May 30Rangers2–9Holland (4–4)Tomlin (7–1)Ramos (1)14,51426–23L2
50May 31Rangers3–7Lewis (5–0)Kluber (4–6)Dyson (6)10,42826–24L3 :
June: 22–6 (Home: 11–0; Away: 11–6)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
51June 1Rangers5–4 (11)Gorzelanny (1–0)Claudio (1–1)—10,52427–24W1
52June 2Royals5–4Hunter (2–1)Soria (2–2)—11,13128–24W2
53June 3Royals6–1Salazar (6–3)Vólquez (5–5)—24,75329–24W3
54June 4Royals7–1Tomlin (8–1)Kennedy (4–4)—23,25830–24W4
55June 5Royals7–0Kluber (5–6)Young (2–6)—16,74731–24W5
56June 6@ Mariners3–1Bauer (4–2)Paxton (0–2)Allen (12)15,82432–24W6
57June 7@ Mariners1–7Miley (6–2)Anderson (1–4)—16,94432–25L1
58June 8@ Mariners0–5Walker (3–6)Carrasco (2–1)—15,33732–26L2
59June 9@ Mariners5–3Otero (1–0)Benoit (1–1)Allen (13)19,90133–26W1
60June 10@ Angels6–2Kluber (6–6)Santiago (3–4)—39,48734–26W2
61June 11@ Angels3–4Salas (3–2)Shaw (0–2)—38,29634–27L1
62June 12@ Angels8–3Salazar (7–3)Huff (0–2)—36,38335–27W1
63June 13@ Royals1–2Vólquez (6–6)Carrasco (2–2)Davis (18)31,26935–28L1
64June 14@ Royals2–3Soria (3–2)Shaw (0–3)—29,29335–29L2
65June 15@ Royals4–9Kennedy (5–5)Kluber (6–7)—33,54635–30L3
66June 17White Sox3–2Allen (2–3)Jones (2–2)—27,91236–30W1
67June 18White Sox13–2Salazar (8–3)Shields (2–9)—31,06637–30W2
68June 19White Sox3–2 (10)Otero (2–0)Robertson (0–1)—25,26938–30W3
69June 20Rays7–4Shaw (1–3)Ramírez (7–5)Allen (14)13,81139–30W4
70June 21Rays6–0Kluber (7–7)Snell (0–2)—15,62940–30W5
71June 22Rays6–1Bauer (5–2)Archer (4–10)—21,21641–30W6
72June 24@ Tigers7–5Salazar (9–3)Zimmermann (9–4)—37,88642–30W7
73June 25@ Tigers6–0Carrasco (3–2)Sánchez (4–8)—39,02843–30W8
74June 26@ Tigers9–3Tomlin (9–1)Verlander (7–6)—36,50244–30W9
75June 27@ Braves8–3Bauer (6–2)Jenkins (0–1)—15,53845–30W10
76June 28@ Braves5–3Kluber (8–7)Vizcaíno (1–3)Allen (15)19,20646–30W11
77June 29@ Braves3–0Salazar (10–3)De La Cruz (0–1)Allen (16)16,60047–30W12
78June 30@ Blue Jays4–1Carrasco (4–2)Dickey (5–9)Allen (17)41,36548–30W13 :
July: 12–12 (Home: 7–5; Away: 5–7)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
79July 1@ Blue Jays2–1 (19)Bauer (7–2)Barney (0–1)—45,82549–30W14
80July 2@ Blue Jays6–9Grilli (2–2)Otero (2–1)Osuna (16)46,19749–31L1
81July 3@ Blue Jays1–17Happ (11–3)Kluber (8–8)—45,96249–32L2
82July 4Tigers5–3Manship (1–1)Rondón (2–1)Allen (18)34,16350–32W1
83July 5Tigers12–1Carrasco (5–2)Sánchez (5–9)—19,44851–32W2
84July 6Tigers2–12Fulmer (9–2)Tomlin (9–2)—24,09851–33L1
85July 7Yankees4–5Nova (6–5)Bauer (7–3)Chapman (17)23,84851–34L2
86July 8Yankees10–2Kluber (9–8)Green (1–2)—34,04552–34W1
87July 9Yankees6–7 (11)Chapman (3–0)Hunter (2–2)—32,95152–35L1
88July 10Yankees7–11Eovaldi (7–6)Carrasco (5–3)—29,08952–36L2
87th All-Star Game in San Diego, California
89July 15@ Twins5–2Carrasco (6–3)Santana (3–8)Allen (19)27,07453–36W1
90July 16@ Twins4–5 (11)May (1–2)Colón (0–1)—29,44753–37L1
91July 17@ Twins6–1Tomlin (10–2)Gibson (2–6)—25,69254–37W1
92July 18@ Royals3–7Hochevar (2–2)Shaw (1–4)Davis (20)38,04254–38L1
93July 19@ Royals7–3Salazar (11–3)Flynn (1–1)—31,14455–38W1
94July 20@ Royals11–4Carrasco (7–3)Kennedy (6–8)—33,45556–38W2
95July 22@ Orioles1–5Bundy (3–2)Bauer (7–4)Britton (31)39,35856–39L1
96July 23@ Orioles2–5Gausman (2–7)Tomlin (10–3)Britton (32)31,94656–40L2
97July 24@ Orioles3–5O'Day (3–1)Allen (2–4)—37,82156–41L3
98July 26Nationals7–6Shaw (2–4)Papelbon (2–4)—23,71157–41W1
99July 27Nationals1–4Strasburg (14–1)Carrasco (7–4)Treinen (1)26,60757–42L1
100July 29Athletics5–3Anderson (2–4)Graveman (7–7)Allen (20)33,13458–42W1
101July 30Athletics6–3Tomlin (11–3)Overton (1–2)—32,85059–42W2
102July 31Athletics8–0Kluber (10–8)Gray (5–10)—23,73960–42W3 :
August: 16–14 (Home: 12–6; Away: 4–8)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
103August 1Twins5–12Berríos (2–1)Salazar (11–4)—15,01860–43L1
104August 2Twins6–10Pressly (6–5)Carrasco (7–5)—15,83560–44L2
105August 3Twins5–13Duffey (6–8)Bauer (7–5)—17,17660–45L3
106August 4Twins9–2Otero (3–1)Santiago (10–5)—19,19361–45W1
107August 5@ Yankees7–13Pineda (6–10)Tomlin (11–4)—39,25261–46L1
108August 6@ Yankees5–2Kluber (11–8)Sabathia (6–9)Miller (10)37,26462–46W1
109August 7@ Yankees2–3Tanaka (8–4)Carrasco (7–6)Betances (2)39,72062–47L1
110August 9@ Nationals3–1Bauer (8–5)Scherzer (12–7)Allen (21)30,97863–47W1
111August 10@ Nationals4–7Gonzalez (8–9)Tomlin (11–5)Melancon (32)30,18563–48L1
112August 11Angels14–4Kluber (12–8)Chacín (2–6)—16,65264–48W1
113August 12Angels13–3Carrasco (8–6)Skaggs (1–1)—27,01465–48W2
114August 13Angels5–1Clevinger (1–1)Shoemaker (6–13)—30,40966–48W3
115August 14Angels5–4Bauer (9–5)Weaver (8–10)Allen (22)18,97967–48W4
116August 15Red Sox2–3Pomeranz (9–9)Tomlin (11–6)Kimbrel (20)19,17467–49L1
117August 16White Sox3–1Kluber (13–8)Quintana (9–9)Allen (23)13,85768–49W1
118August 17White Sox7–10Turner (0–2)Allen (2–5)Robertson (30)14,37168–50L1
119August 18White Sox5–4Miller (7–1)Turner (1–2)—12,98269–50W1
120August 19Blue Jays3–2Manship (2–1)Osuna (2–2)—30,66570–50W2
121August 20Blue Jays5–6Biagini (4–2)Tomlin (11–7)Osuna (28)33,60470–51L1
122August 21Blue Jays3–2Clevinger (2–1)Cecil (1–7)Allen (24)26,69671–51W1
123August 22@ Athletics1–0Carrasco (9–6)Dull (5–4)Miller (11)10,11472–51W2
124August 23@ Athletics1–9Manaea (5–8)Salazar (11–5)—13,14172–52L1
125August 24@ Athletics1–5Graveman (10–8)Bauer (9–6)—12,79572–53L2
126August 25@ Rangers0–9Hamels (14–4)Tomlin (11–8)—23,76872–54L3
127August 26@ Rangers12–1Kluber (14–8)Pérez (8–10)—31,85373–54W1
128August 27@ Rangers0–7Griffin (6–3)Carrasco (9–7)—44,94473–55L1
129August 28@ Rangers1–2Holland (6–6)Salazar (11–6)—35,22573–56L2
130August 29Twins1–0 (10)McAllister (3–2)Kintzler (0–1)—11,32774–56W1
131August 30Twins5–4Otero (4–1)Wimmers (0–1)Miller (12)11,93775–56W2
132August 31Twins8–4Kluber (15–8)Dean (1–5)Shaw (1)11,81176–56W3 :
September/October: 18–11 (Home: 11–5; Away: 7–6)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
133September 2Marlins6–2Carrasco (10–7)Cashner (4–11)—24,41577–56W4
134September 3Marlins8–3Bauer (10–6)Fernández (13–8)—27,48378–56W5
135September 4Marlins6–5Allen (3–5)Rodney (2–4)—25,91079–56W6
136September 5Astros2–6Fiers (10–6)Clevinger (2–2)—13,06279–57L1
137September 6Astros3–4Hoyt (1–0)Kluber (15–9)Giles (9)11,02379–58L2
138September 7Astros6–5Carrasco (11–7)Fister (12–11)Allen (25)12,06380–58W1
139September 8Astros10–7Bauer (11–6)Paulino (0–1)Allen (26)15,27581–58W2
140September 9@ Twins5–4Colón (1–1)Duffey (8–11)Allen (27)20,17382–58W3
141September 10@ Twins1–2 (12)Chargois (1–1)Colón (1–2)—23,58482–59L1
142September 11@ Twins7–1Kluber (16–9)Berríos (2–6)—20,30183–59W1
143September 12@ White Sox4–11González (4–6)Carrasco (11–8)—12,58883–60L1
144September 13@ White Sox1–8Quintana (12–10)Bauer (11–7)—15,58883–61L2
145September 14@ White Sox6–1Tomlin (12–8)Rodon (7–9)—15,80884–61W1
146September 15@ White Sox1–2Robertson (5–3)Shaw (2–5)—14,19084–62L1
147September 16Tigers11–4Kluber (17–9)Fulmer (10–7)—29,13785–62W1
148September 17Tigers1–0 (10)Miller (8–1)Wilson (4–5)—26,65486–62W2
149September 18Tigers5–9Norris (3–2)Bauer (11–8)Rodríguez (43)21,38286–63L1
150September 20Royals2–1Miller (9–1)Flynn (1–2)—13,62387–63W1
151September 21Royals4–3Kluber (18–9)Kennedy (11–10)Allen (28)13,88888–63W2
152September 22Royals5–2Otero (5–1)Gee (7–9)Allen (29)15,25389–63W3
153September 23White Sox10–4Bauer (12–8)González (4–8)—18,93790–63W4
154September 24White Sox1–8Quintana (13–11)Anderson (2–5)—32,08890–64L1
155September 25White Sox0–3Rodon (8–10)Tomlin (8–10)Robertson (36)24,11890–65L2
156September 26@ Tigers7–4Miller (10–1)Farmer (0–1)Allen (30)24,98191–65W1
157September 27@ Tigers0–12Verlander (16–8)Clevinger (2–3)—25,69691–66L1
158September 28@ Tigers3–6 (5)Hardy (1–0)Colón (1–3)—26,93491–67L2
—September 29@ TigersCancelled (rain).
159September 30@ Royals7–2Merritt (1–0)Ventura (11–12)—24,74192–67W1
160October 1@ Royals6–3Clevinger (3–3)Strahm (1–2)Allen (31)28,56993–67W2
161October 2@ Royals3–2Tomlin (13–9)Kennedy (11–11)Allen (32)29,47594–67W3 :
Legend:        = Win        = Loss        = Postponement Bold = Indians team member :

## Player stats
### Batting

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases; BB = Walks; AVG = Batting average; SLG = Slugging average
| Player | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | AVG | SLG |
| Jason Kipnis | 156 | 610 | 91 | 168 | 41 | 4 | 23 | 82 | 15 | 60 | .275 | .469 |
| Francisco Lindor | 158 | 604 | 99 | 182 | 30 | 3 | 15 | 78 | 19 | 57 | .301 | .435 |
| Carlos Santana | 158 | 582 | 89 | 151 | 31 | 3 | 34 | 87 | 5 | 99 | .259 | .498 |
| José Ramírez | 152 | 565 | 84 | 176 | 46 | 3 | 11 | 76 | 22 | 44 | .312 | .462 |
| Mike Napoli | 150 | 557 | 92 | 133 | 22 | 1 | 34 | 101 | 5 | 78 | .239 | .465 |
| Rajai Davis | 134 | 454 | 74 | 113 | 23 | 2 | 12 | 48 | 43 | 33 | .249 | .388 |
| Lonnie Chisenhall | 126 | 385 | 43 | 110 | 25 | 5 | 8 | 57 | 6 | 23 | .286 | .439 |
| Tyler Naquin | 116 | 321 | 52 | 95 | 18 | 5 | 14 | 43 | 6 | 36 | .296 | .514 |
| Yan Gomes | 74 | 251 | 22 | 42 | 11 | 1 | 9 | 34 | 0 | 9 | .167 | .327 |
| Juan Uribe | 73 | 238 | 19 | 49 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 25 | 0 | 15 | .206 | .332 |
| Abraham Almonte | 67 | 182 | 24 | 48 | 20 | 1 | 1 | 22 | 8 | 8 | .264 | .401 |
| Roberto Pérez | 61 | 153 | 14 | 28 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 17 | 0 | 23 | .183 | .294 |
| Chris Gimenez | 67 | 139 | 17 | 30 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 11 | 0 | 10 | .216 | .331 |
| Marlon Byrd | 34 | 115 | 11 | 31 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 19 | 0 | 11 | .270 | .452 |
| Michael Martínez | 59 | 95 | 15 | 23 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 3 | .242 | .316 |
| Brandon Guyer | 38 | 81 | 12 | 27 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 14 | 1 | 7 | .333 | .469 |
| Coco Crisp | 20 | 53 | 9 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 3 | 9 | .208 | .377 |
| Michael Brantley | 11 | 39 | 5 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 3 | .231 | .282 |
| Erik González | 21 | 16 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .313 | .313 |
| Collin Cowgill | 9 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .083 | .083 |
| Jesús Aguilar | 9 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 |
| Adam Moore | 9 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 |
| Pitcher Totals | 161 | 21 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .143 | .238 |
| Team Totals | 161 | 5484 | 777 | 1435 | 308 | 29 | 185 | 733 | 134 | 531 | .262 | .430 |
Source:

### Pitching

Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; H = Hits allowed; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | W | L | ERA | G | GS | SV | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
| Corey Kluber | 18 | 9 | 3.14 | 32 | 32 | 0 | 215.1 | 170 | 82 | 75 | 57 | 227 |
| Trevor Bauer | 12 | 8 | 4.26 | 35 | 28 | 0 | 190.0 | 179 | 96 | 90 | 70 | 168 |
| Josh Tomlin | 13 | 9 | 4.40 | 30 | 29 | 0 | 174.0 | 187 | 97 | 85 | 20 | 118 |
| Carlos Carrasco | 11 | 8 | 3.32 | 25 | 25 | 0 | 146.1 | 134 | 64 | 54 | 34 | 150 |
| Danny Salazar | 11 | 6 | 3.87 | 25 | 25 | 0 | 137.1 | 121 | 61 | 59 | 63 | 161 |
| Dan Otero | 5 | 1 | 1.53 | 62 | 0 | 1 | 70.2 | 54 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 57 |
| Cody Allen | 3 | 5 | 2.51 | 67 | 0 | 32 | 68.0 | 41 | 23 | 19 | 27 | 87 |
| Bryan Shaw | 2 | 5 | 3.24 | 75 | 0 | 1 | 66.2 | 56 | 26 | 24 | 28 | 69 |
| Cody Anderson | 2 | 5 | 6.68 | 19 | 9 | 0 | 60.2 | 85 | 45 | 45 | 13 | 54 |
| Mike Clevinger | 3 | 3 | 5.26 | 17 | 10 | 0 | 53.0 | 50 | 31 | 31 | 29 | 50 |
| Zach McAllister | 3 | 2 | 3.44 | 53 | 2 | 0 | 52.1 | 53 | 21 | 20 | 23 | 54 |
| Jeff Manship | 2 | 1 | 3.12 | 53 | 0 | 0 | 43.1 | 40 | 20 | 15 | 22 | 36 |
| Andrew Miller | 4 | 0 | 1.55 | 26 | 0 | 3 | 29.0 | 14 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 46 |
| Tommy Hunter | 2 | 2 | 3.74 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 21.2 | 21 | 10 | 9 | 5 | 17 |
| Joba Chamberlain | 0 | 0 | 2.25 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 20.0 | 12 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 18 |
| Austin Adams | 0 | 0 | 9.82 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 18.1 | 27 | 22 | 20 | 7 | 17 |
| Kyle Crockett | 0 | 0 | 5.06 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 16.0 | 16 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 17 |
| Ryan Merritt | 1 | 0 | 1.64 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 11.0 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6 |
| Shawn Armstrong | 0 | 0 | 2.53 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 10.2 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 7 |
| Joe Colón | 1 | 3 | 7.20 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 10.0 | 12 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 10 |
| Perci Garner | 0 | 0 | 4.82 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 9.1 | 12 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 12 |
| Ross Detwiler | 0 | 0 | 5.79 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 4.2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 |
| Shawn Morimando | 0 | 0 | 11.57 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4.2 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 |
| Adam Plutko | 0 | 0 | 7.36 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3.2 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| Tom Gorzelanny | 1 | 0 | 21.00 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 4 |
| Chris Gimenez | 0 | 0 | 12.00 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| TJ House | 0 | 0 | 3.38 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2.2 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Team Totals | 94 | 67 | 3.84 | 161 | 161 | 37 | 1445.0 | 1330 | 676 | 617 | 461 | 1398 |
Source:

## Postseason
### American League Division Series

By virtue of winning the AL Central, the Indians were placed in the American League Division Series against the AL East champion Boston Red Sox. Because the Indians had the better regular season record, they had home field advantage in the best-of-five series.
The Indians won Game 1, 5–4, thanks in part to a three-run 3rd inning that featured home runs by Roberto Perez, Jason Kipnis, and Francisco Lindor, the first postseason home run in each of their careers. The Indians' pitching was led by starter Trevor Bauer and relievers Andrew Miller and Cody Allen, who each threw over 40 pitches, to clinch the victory. Indians' ace Corey Kluber went seven shutout innings in Game 2, a 6-0 Indians' win. The big blow for the Indians was a Lonnie Chisenhall 3-run home run.
The Indians and Red Sox then had two days off - a regularly scheduled travel day and rainout as the remnants of Hurricane Matthew affected Boston. When the teams got back to baseball on October 10, Josh Tomlin and the Indians' bullpen would lead the team to a 4–3 victory and a sweep of the division series. The Red Sox mounted a rally in the bottom of the 9th, but Cody Allen was able to close out the game. The Indians would advance to the American League Championship Series for the first time since 2007.

### American League Championship Series

The Indians would face the Toronto Blue Jays in the American League Championship Series, again having home-field advantage. The Indians would win a pair of pitchers' duels in Games 1 and 2, 2-0 and 2–1. In Game 1, the Indians scored their only runs on a Francisco Lindor home run in the sixth inning. Indians' starter Corey Kluber went six shutout innings and relievers Andrew Miller and Cody Allen completed the shutout. In Game 2, Carlos Santana's leadoff home run in the second off of Toronto pitcher J. A. Happ gave the Indians a 1−0 lead, but the Blue Jays tied it in the third with a Josh Donaldson RBI double. Cleveland responded with a Lindor RBI single in the third. Starter Josh Tomlin, along with Bryan Shaw, Miller, and Allen, would make that 2–1 lead stand up the rest of the game.
The series shifted to Toronto for Game 3. Indians' starter Trevor Bauer left the game in the bottom of the inning due to a bloody finger as a result of being cut from a drone before the series started. The bullpen answered the call and gave up two runs in more than 8 innings of work. Led by Mike Napoli and Jason Kipnis home runs, the Indians won this game 4–2, to take a 3–0 series lead.

### Postseason game log

2016 Postseason Game Log: 10–5 :
American League Division Series: 3–0
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceSeriesBox Score
1October 6Red Sox5–4Miller (1–0)Porcello (0–1)Allen (1)37,7631–0Box
2October 7Red Sox6–0Kluber (1–0)Price (0–1)—37,8422–0Box
—October 9@ Red SoxPostponed (rain). Makeup date: October 10.
3October 10@ Red Sox4–3Tomlin (1–0)Buchholz (0–1)Allen (2)39,5303–0Box :
American League Championship Series: 4–1
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceSeriesBox Score
1October 14Blue Jays2–0Kluber (1–0)Estrada (0–1)Allen (1)37,7271–0Box
2October 15Blue Jays2–1Tomlin (1–0)Happ (0–1)Allen (2)37,8702–0Box
3October 17@ Blue Jays4–2Shaw (1–0)Stroman (0–1)Miller (1)49,5073–0Box
4October 18@ Blue Jays1–5Sanchez (1–0)Kluber (1–1)—49,1423–1Box
5October 19@ Blue Jays3–0Shaw (2–0)Estrada (0–2)Allen (3)48,8004–1Box :
World Series: 3–4
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceSeriesBox Score
1October 25Cubs6–0Kluber (1–0)Lester (0–1)—38,0911–0Box
2October 26Cubs1–5Arrieta (1–0)Bauer (0–1)—38,1721–1Box
3October 28@ Cubs1–0Miller (1–0)Edwards Jr. (0–1)Allen (1)41,7032–1Box
4October 29@ Cubs7–2Kluber (2-0)Lackey (0-1)—41,7063–1Box
5October 30@ Cubs2–3Lester (1–1)Bauer (0–2)Chapman (1)41,7113–2Box
6November 1Cubs3–9Arrieta (2–0)Tomlin (0–1)–38,1163–3Box
7November 2Cubs7–8 $_{(10)}$Chapman (1–0)Shaw (0–1)Montgomery (1)38,1043–4Box :
Legend:        = Win        = Loss        = Postponement Bold = Indians team member :

### Postseason rosters

Playoff rosters :
American League Division Series
Pitchers: 24 Andrew Miller 27 Bryan Shaw 28 Corey Kluber 37 Cody Allen 43 Josh Tomlin 47 Trevor Bauer 52 Mike Clevinger 53 Jeff Manship 56 Cody Anderson 61 Dan Otero
Catchers: 10 Yan Gomes 38 Chris Gimenez 55 Roberto Pérez
Infielders: 1 Michael Martínez 11 José Ramírez 12 Francisco Lindor 22 Jason Kipnis 26 Mike Napoli
Outfielders: 4 Coco Crisp 6 Brandon Guyer 8 Lonnie Chisenhall 20 Rajai Davis 30 Tyler Naquin
Designated hitters: 41 Carlos Santana :
American League Championship Series
Pitchers: 24 Andrew Miller 27 Bryan Shaw 28 Corey Kluber 34 Zach McAllister 37 Cody Allen 43 Josh Tomlin 47 Trevor Bauer 52 Mike Clevinger 53 Jeff Manship 54 Ryan Merritt 56 Cody Anderson 61 Dan Otero
Catchers: 10 Yan Gomes 55 Roberto Pérez
Infielders: 1 Michael Martínez 11 José Ramírez 12 Francisco Lindor 22 Jason Kipnis 26 Mike Napoli
Outfielders: 4 Coco Crisp 6 Brandon Guyer 8 Lonnie Chisenhall 20 Rajai Davis 30 Tyler Naquin
Designated hitters: 41 Carlos Santana :
World Series
Pitchers: 24 Andrew Miller 27 Bryan Shaw 28 Corey Kluber 31 Danny Salazar 34 Zach McAllister 37 Cody Allen 43 Josh Tomlin 47 Trevor Bauer 52 Mike Clevinger 53 Jeff Manship 54 Ryan Merritt 61 Dan Otero
Catchers: 10 Yan Gomes 55 Roberto Pérez
Infielders: 1 Michael Martínez 11 José Ramírez 12 Francisco Lindor 22 Jason Kipnis 26 Mike Napoli
Outfielders: 4 Coco Crisp 6 Brandon Guyer 8 Lonnie Chisenhall 20 Rajai Davis 30 Tyler Naquin
Designated hitters: 41 Carlos Santana :

## Farm system

| Level | Team | League | Manager |
| AAA | Columbus Clippers | International League | Chris Tremie |
| AA | Akron RubberDucks | Eastern League | David Wallace |
| A-Advanced | Lynchburg Hillcats | Carolina League | Mark Budzinski |
| A | Lake County Captains | Midwest League | Tony Mansolino |
| A-Short Season | Mahoning Valley Scrappers | New York–Penn League | Edwin Rodríguez |
| Rookie | AZL Indians | Arizona League | Anthony Medrano |
| Rookie | DSL Indians | Dominican Summer League | Jose Mejia |
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Akron