MILWAUKEE — Runs were hard to come by in the first half for the Cleveland Indians, who went into the All-Star break 12th in the American League with 363.
Things could be changing, and quickly, for Cleveland, as center fielder Michael Brantley’s bat is starting to heat up.
Brantley wasn’t playing poorly in the first half, when he hit .295 with five home runs and 46 RBIs. However, since the second half started Friday, he is 9-for-19, including a four-hit performance Wednesday in a 7-5 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers. He wound up a triple shy of the cycle.
“He’s back to doing what he does,” Indians manager Terry Francona said. “He can hit the ball out of the ballpark, he can hit the ball to left field.
“He’s a really good hitter, and he doesn’t need to do more. He realizes that. He’s smart and knows how guys are going to attack him. He doesn’t take balls that are outside and try to pull it or something off-speed and try to roll it over. He stays on balls and stays through the ball probably even more when runners are in scoring position.”
Brantley leads Cleveland with 55 RBIs this season, and he is .364 (32-for-88) with seven doubles, three home runs and 47 RBIs when batting with runners in scoring position.
“Get the runners in,” Brantley said when asked what he’s thinking when he comes to the plate with a chance to drive in runs. “Plain and simple, do whatever I can to get the runners in. The more runs we have, the better chance we have to win. It’s no secret.”
Francona is optimistic that Brantley’s second-half success will spread throughout the team.
“It would be nice to see us get four, five or six guys going at once,” he said. “That would be really nice to see because we’re seeing some really good pitching coming up.”