3 reasons why all the pressure is on Indians in Game 5

Well, this was unexpected.

The Cleveland Indians looked ready to waltz into the American League Championship Series without a care in the world. Up two games to none against the New York Yankees, it was a matter of "when" instead of "if" they would make it to the next round of the postseason.

A few days later, and the series is tied at two games apiece and the Indians head home after a pair of stunning losses in the Bronx. And whether they like it or not, all the pressure is on the Tribe. Here are three reasons why:

A history of being unable to seal the deal

Remember the 2016 World Series? The Indians do. They were up three games to one after winning a pair of games against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. With home field in their favor, they failed to stick the landing and lost three straight, heading into the offseason empty-handed.

This, apparently, isn't anything new:

Obviously, this kind of curious futility is happenstance. This franchise has only played one such winner-take-all postseason game with this core. Still, there will be a desperate desire to shake this supposed curse. Merely getting to the postseason is no longer good enough.

All eyes on Kluber after disastrous Game 2 start

Manager Terry Francona constructed his playoff rotation with Game 5 in mind. He gave Trevor Bauer the ball in Game 1, so he could roll Kluber out in Games 2 and 5 on normal rest. Bauer, for his part, worked out wonderfully in Game 1, if less so in Game 4.

Kluber was fine with it as long as it was in in the team's best interest. And it may very well be. No matter how poorly he pitched in his Game 2 start, and it was bad, this is the Klubot.

Baseball is a "what-have-you-done-for-me-lately" kind of game, however, so Kluber's most recent outing will raise some doubts. It all comes down to him, and whether or not Francona's instinct was correct. There is no other pitcher the Indians would rather have in this situation. Ideally, they wouldn't be in this position at all, and would instead be prepping to host the Houston Astros in the ALCS.

Kluber didn't have back-to-back stinkers in 2017, and he barely had any at all. Over his last 12 regular-season starts, he allowed more than two earned runs only once.

The Yankees have nothing to lose

Raise your hand if you believed this Yankees team would be this good and go this far. Yes? Liar!

While the Yankees weren't expected to be entering a full rebuild, challenging for a World Series was hardly on the to-do list for 2017. For a team with a history as rich and storied as the Yankees, their success has brought back the high standards, but this team is playing with found money at this point.

The absolute worst-case scenario for the Yankees is they lose a competitive series where they appeared to be dead in the water against the reigning AL Champions while having a chance to get even better in the offseason. This Yankees team is poised to potentially become a brand new dynasty, which should terrify fans of every other franchise.

The Indians are in danger of becoming the first team in MLB history to blow a two-game lead in consecutive seasons. With this group of players mostly entrenched for next year, losing will only generate more questions heading into 2018.

If Cleveland loses on Wednesday, it's not getting ousted from the postseason that stings the most, but how it happened. They had it made. Momentum was on their side. Just like last year.

(Photos courtesy: Action Images)