Corey Kluber Is as Good as Ever, so Beware the AL's Most Dominant Big-Game Ace

In his August 3 outing against the New York Yankees, Corey Kluber spun nine innings of three-hit, one-run, 11-strikeout ball, overshadowing Yankees trade-deadline acquisition Sonny Gray in the process. 

Kluber looked like an ace. He threw like an ace.

He is an ace.

That's a comforting, undeniable truism for the defending American League champion Cleveland Indians as they enter the stretch run and seek to end baseball's longest active title drought (68 years).

Kluber has eclipsed 200 innings and 200 strikeouts every season since 2014, when he won the AL Cy Young Award. 

Last year, he authored a postseason tour de force by putting up a 1.83 ERA with 35 strikeouts across 34.1 frames. This season, there was a blip in the Klubot's programming. On May 2, he owned a 5.06 ERA and subsequently landed on the disabled list with a back injury.

Since returning to action June 1, however, he's been an absolute beast. During that span, as FanGraphs' Travis Sawchik noted: "Kluber has struck out a ridiculous 40.7 percent of batters. He owns a sparkling 36 percent K-BB%, 1.61 FIP and 40 ERA-. Since coming off the disabled list, Kluber has been [Los Angeles Dodgers closer] Kenley Jansen—only Jansen as a starting pitcher."

With his 11 punchouts against the Yankees, Kluber joined Randy Johnson, Nolan Ryan and Pedro Martinez on an elite list of pitchers who have fanned at least eight batters in 12 consecutive starts. 

Not coincidentally, those other three dudes are Hall of Famers.

Michael Ivins/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images

"Pretty cool isn't it? Pretty cool," Indians skipper Terry Francona said of his stud's accomplishment, per Ryan Lewis of the Akron Beacon Journal. "He won't say anything about it. There's nothing wrong about being modest, but that's why we like to brag about him a little bit because he probably won't."

Humility aside, there's no denying Kluber's stature.

At age 31, his average fastball velocity has ticked down from a career high of 94.6 mph in 2014 to 93.1 mph this year.

He's learned to wield his breaking and off-speed offerings, however, to devastating effect.

"Sometimes you'll see some of his pitches start to back up, but he's able to come up with another pitch and make it the best pitch of his day," catcher Yan Gomes said, per Zack Meisel of Cleveland.com.

Then there's Kluber's affordability. The Indians owe him a scant $7.7 million this season, and he's locked into a bargain contract that could run through 2021 with a couple of club options. 

Add it up and you've got one of the best bang-for-your-buck hurlers in either league, a decorated No. 1 on a legitimate World Series contender with October bona fides already under his belt.

At 59-50 entering play Tuesday, the Indians aren't running away with anything. They do, however, hold a three-game lead over the Kansas City Royals in the AL Central.

Assuming Cleveland climbs back on baseball's autumn stage and makes another run at a long-overdue champagne-and-confetti celebration, Kluber will be the backbone. 

Lefty relief whiz Andrew Miller can build on his own playoff legend. On offense and defense, shortstop Francisco Lindor will have his chance to shine.

Kluber, though, is the only established Indians starting pitcher with an ERA south of 4.00 (it sits at 2.77).

David Dermer/Associated Press

The Junior Circuit features multiple aces. Chris Sale of the Boston Red Sox leads the pack with 216 strikeouts but has never made a playoff start. The Houston Astros' Dallas Keuchel sports a 2.15 ERA but has battled injuries and is coming off a down 2016 campaign.

If you go by FanGraphs' WAR calculation, only Sale (23.1) has been more valuable than Kluber (22.4) since 2014. And, again, there's the matter of postseason experience to consider.

Kluber is the guy who combines the numbers and track record. He's the horse you want to ride with everything on the line. 

"We rely on him so much, and he knows that," Francona said, per Matthew Florjancic of WKYC.com. "It's nice to put his name in there every five days."

Nice, in this case, being a truism and an understatement. 

All statistics current as of Monday and courtesy of MLB.com and FanGraphs.