| 2016 American League Championship Series | ||||||||||
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| Dates | October 14–19 | |||||||||
| MVP | Andrew Miller (Cleveland) | |||||||||
| Umpires | Laz Díaz (Games 1-2),Mike Everitt,Brian Gorman (crew chief),Jeff Nelson,Jim Reynolds,Mark Wegner (Games 3-5) andJim Wolf | |||||||||
| Broadcast | ||||||||||
| Television | United States: TBS(English) CNN en Español(Spanish) Canada: Sportsnet(English) RDS(French) | |||||||||
| TV announcers | Ernie Johnson Jr.,Ron Darling,Cal Ripken Jr., andSam Ryan(English) Pete Manzano and Fernando Palacios(Spanish) Alain Usereau andMarc Griffin(French) | |||||||||
| Radio | ESPN(English) ESPN Deportes(Spanish) | |||||||||
| Radio announcers | Jon Sciambi andChris Singleton(English) Cristián Moreno and Renato Bermúdez(Spanish) | |||||||||
| ALDS |
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The2016 American League Championship Series (ALCS) was abest-of-seven playoff inMajor League Baseball's2016 postseason pitting the fourth-seededToronto Blue Jays against the second-seededCleveland Indians for theAmerican League (AL)pennant and the right to play in the2016 World Series against theChicago Cubs. The Indians hadhome-field advantage for the series because the Blue Jays qualified as a wild-card team. The Indians defeated the Blue Jays four games to one.
The series was the 47th in league history.TBS televised all games in the United States, withSportsnet, a property of Toronto Blue Jays ownerRogers Communications, airing all games in Canada using the TBS feed.[1][2]
The Indians would go on to lose to theChicago Cubs in theWorld Series in seven games, after squandering a 3–1 series lead.
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This was Toronto's second consecutive ALCS appearance and seventh overall. The team lost the2015 American League Championship Series to the eventualWorld Series championKansas City Royals. The Blue Jays had previously made consecutive ALCS appearances in1991,1992 and1993, losing in the former but winning both the1992 and1993 World Series.
This was Cleveland's fifth appearance in the ALCS. The Indians won the ALCS in1995 and1997, but went on to lose the World Series both times. In their other two ALCS appearances, the Indians were defeated in1998 and2007.
This was the first postseason meeting between the Blue Jays and the Indians.
The Indians won the regular season series, 4–3. The two teams split a four-game series in Toronto in early July,[3][4][5][6] and the Indians won two of three games in Cleveland in mid-August.[7][8][9] Six of the seven games were decided by three runs or less, including four decided by one run. TheJuly 1 game between the two teams at theRogers Centre lasted 19 innings with the Indians winning that game.[10]
Canadian architect and indigenous activistDouglas Cardinal tried to file an injunctionbarring the Indians from using their name and logo for Games 3 and 4 in Toronto, but the application was dismissed by an Ontario judge.[11] Incidentally, this would be the last ALCS appearance for Cleveland with 'Indians' moniker, as they would change the name to 'Guardians in 2022.[12]
Cleveland won the series, 4–1.
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | October 14 | Toronto Blue Jays – 0,Cleveland Indians – 2 | Progressive Field | 2:44 | 37,727[13] |
| 2 | October 15 | Toronto Blue Jays – 1,Cleveland Indians – 2 | Progressive Field | 2:44 | 37,870[14] |
| 3 | October 17 | Cleveland Indians – 4, Toronto Blue Jays – 2 | Rogers Centre | 3:23 | 49,507[15] |
| 4 | October 18 | Cleveland Indians – 1,Toronto Blue Jays – 5 | Rogers Centre | 3:01 | 49,142[16] |
| 5 | October 19 | Cleveland Indians – 3, Toronto Blue Jays – 0 | Rogers Centre | 2:37 | 48,800[17] |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toronto | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Cleveland | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | x | 2 | 6 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:Corey Kluber (1–0) LP:Marco Estrada (0–1) Sv:Cody Allen (1) Home runs: TOR: None CLE:Francisco Lindor (1) Attendance: 37,727 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Corey Kluber pitched6+1⁄3 shutout innings, allowing six hits whileAndrew Miller struck out five batters in1+2⁄3 innings. Toronto'sMarco Estrada pitched a complete game, but took the loss whenFrancisco Lindor's two-run home run in the sixth after aJason Kipnis walk provided the only runs of the game.Cody Allen pitched a perfect ninth for the save.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toronto | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Cleveland | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | x | 2 | 4 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:Josh Tomlin (1–0) LP:J. A. Happ (0–1) Sv:Cody Allen (2) Home runs: TOR: None CLE:Carlos Santana (1) Attendance: 37,870 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Carlos Santana's leadoff home run in the second offJ. A. Happ gave the Indians a 1−0 lead, but the Blue Jays tied it in the third offJosh Tomlin whenDarwin Barney singled with one out, moved to second on a groundout and scored onJosh Donaldson's double. In the bottom of the inning,Rajai Davis reached first on a force-out, stole second, moved to third on a wild pitch, and scored onFrancisco Lindor's two-out single. Neither team scored for the rest of the game withAndrew Miller striking out five batters in two innings pitched andCody Allen pitching a perfect ninth for his second consecutive save. The Indians went up a perfect 2−0 in the series heading to Toronto.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Toronto | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:Bryan Shaw (1–0) LP:Marcus Stroman (0–1) Sv:Andrew Miller (1) Home runs: CLE:Mike Napoli (1),Jason Kipnis (1) TOR:Michael Saunders (1) Attendance: 49,507 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Indians struck first offMarcus Stroman whenCarlos Santana drew a leadoff walk in the first and scored onMike Napoli's two out double, but their starter,Trevor Bauer had to leave the game in the bottom of the inning after allowing two walks and throwing 21 pitches due to a bloody pinkie finger as a result of being cut from adrone a few days earlier.[18]Dan Otero in relief allowed a game-tying home run toMichael Saunders in the second. Napoli's home run in the fourth put the Indians back on top 2−1, but the Blue Jays tied it in the fifth offZach McAllister whenEzequiel Carrera hit a leadoff triple and scored onRyan Goins's groundout.Jason Kipnis's leadoff home run in the sixth gave the Indians a 3−2 lead. Stroman was taken out after walking Napoli with one out. Napoli moved to second on a wild pitch by relieverJoe Biagini and scored onJosé Ramírez's single to make it 4−2 Indians.Cody Allen andAndrew Miller combined to pitch three shutout innings, striking out five batters as the Indians took a 3–0 series lead.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Toronto | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | x | 5 | 9 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:Aaron Sanchez (1–0) LP:Corey Kluber (1–1) Home runs: CLE: None TOR:Josh Donaldson (1) Attendance: 49,142 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Josh Donaldson's two-out home run in the third offCorey Kluber gave the Blue Jays their first lead in the series. Kluber walked two straight to lead off the fourth beforeEzequiel Carrera's one-out RBI single made it 2−0 Blue Jays. The Indians cut it to 2−1 in the fifth offAaron Sanchez whenCoco Crisp walked with one out, moved to second on a wild pitch, and scored onRoberto Pérez's double. Their only other hit in the game came onTyler Naquin's leadoff double in the third. In the seventh, the Blue Jays loaded the bases with no outs off relieverBryan Shaw on a single, Shaw's fielding error, and intentional walk whenEdwin Encarnación's single scored two withJosh Donaldson being thrown out at third. Next inning, Carrera tripled with one out offMike Clevinger and scored onKevin Pillar's groundout to make it 5−1 Blue Jays.Roberto Osuna retired the Indians in order in the ninth, forcing a Game 5.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Toronto | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:Bryan Shaw (2–0) LP:Marco Estrada (0–2) Sv:Cody Allen (3) Home runs: CLE:Carlos Santana (2),Coco Crisp (1) TOR: None Attendance: 48,800 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Indians went up 1−0 in the first whenFrancisco Lindor singled with two outs offMarco Estrada and scored onMike Napoli's double. They added to their lead with home runs byCarlos Santana in the third andCoco Crisp in the fourth.Ryan Merritt,Bryan Shaw,Andrew Miller, andCody Allen shutout the Blue Jays as the Indians' 3−0 win gave them their first trip to the World Series since 1997. Allen earned his fifth save of the postseason asTroy Tulowitzki popped up tofirst baseman Santana in foul territory to end the game and series.
The Indians middle relieverAndrew Miller was voted the MVP of the series.[19] The Indians also set an MLB record with the lowest batting average by a winning team in a postseason series, hitting just .168 against the Blue Jays.
Cleveland became the first club to lock up the AL pennant on the road since theChicago White Sox did so atAngel Stadium of Anaheim in2005.
2016 ALCS(4–1):Cleveland Indians beatToronto Blue Jays.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland Indians | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 25 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Toronto Blue Jays | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 32 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Total attendance: 223,046 Average attendance: 44,609 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The2016 World Series between the Cubs and Indians was highly anticipated due to the historical ramifications; the two teams entered their matchup as the two franchises with the longest World Series title droughts, a combined 174 seasons without a championship. The Cubs defeated the Indians 4–3 to win their first World Series since1908. Game 7, an 8–7 victory in 10 innings atProgressive Field, marked the fifth time that a Game 7 had gone into extra innings and the first since1997 (which, coincidentally, the Indians also lost).
On December 23, 2016, the Cleveland Indians signedEdwin Encarnación, who had become afree agent after6+1⁄2 years with the Toronto Blue Jays, and had declined the team'squalifying offer.[20] At the 2018 trade deadline,Josh Donaldson also joined the Indians for a brief 16-game stint, as he was traded there from Toronto.[21]
Overall, this marked the end of the Blue Jays run from2015-2016, which was their most successful run as a franchise since the back-to-back championships in1992 and1993. By the time of their next postseason appearance in2020, there were no players from the 2015–2016 teams on the roster. Game 4 was Toronto's last postseason win, until Game 1 of the2025 American League Division Series against theNew York Yankees.
This was the last American League Championship Series not to feature theHouston Astros (who did not make the playoffs this year) until2024.
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