By Pete Cava
PBR Indiana Correspondent

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INDIANAPOLIS – Major League Baseball’s regular season ended Sunday, with ten teams still standing.  

The Houston Astros square off Tuesday against the Yankees in New York to determine the American League wild card team, while the Pittsburgh Pirates host the Chicago Cubs Wednesday for the National League wild card berth. 

The winner of the Astros-Yankees contest moves on to the AL Division Series, where they’ll meet the Kansas City Royals.  The Toronto Blue Jays will play the Texas Rangers in the other ALDS matchup.  

In the NL, it’s the St. Louis Cardinals against the winner of the Pittsburgh-Chicago tilt, and the New York Mets versus the Los Angeles Dodgers. 

Rosters haven’t been finalized, but eight Indiana natives could be in uniform for postseason play. 

Kansas City Royals:   The backup for regular catcher Salvador Perez, Drew Butera (Evansville) saw action in 46 contests this season and hit .196. 

Butera, 32, has no previous postseason experience.  He played for the Twins (2010-2013), Dodgers (2013-2014) and Angels (2015) and came to Kansas City in a May 7 trade for infielder Ryan Jackson. 

Drew’s father, Sal Butera, caught for the Twins (1980-82, 1987), Tigers (1983), Montreal Expos (1984-1985) and Blue Jays (1988).  Drew was born in Evansville while his father was playing for the Evansville Triplets of the American Association.  

Toronto Blue Jays:  Forty-two-year-old LaTroy Hawkins (Gary), a right-handed reliever, has been around the Major Leagues since 1995 and could see post-season action for a fourth time.

Hawkins has pitched for the Twins (1995-2002), Cubs (2004-2005), Giants (2005), Orioles (2006), Rockies (2007), Yankees (2008), Astros (2008-2009), Brewers (2010-2011), Angels (2012), Mets (2013) and Rockies again (2014-2015). 

The Blue Jays acquired him in the five-player deal on July 28 that also brought shortstop Troy Tulowitzki to Toronto.

Hawkins,a  graduate of Gary’s West Side High School, is no stranger to postseason play.  He’s been there with the Twins (2002 ALDS, ALCS;  2003 ALDS), Rockies (2007 NLDS, NLCS, World Series) and Brewers (2011 NLDS, NLCS). 

In 19 postseason appearances, Hawkins is 1-0 with a 3.45 ERA.  He beat the Yankees in the 2003 ALDS.

Hawkins, who announced the 2015 campaign would be his last, was 1-0 with a 2.76 ERA in 18 outings for Toronto, and 3-1, 3.26 overall in 42 contests. 

Texas Rangers:  In his seventh professional season, outfielder Ryan Strausborger (Elkhart) made the jump to the Rangers from Round Rock (AAA/Pacific Coast).  The former Elkhart Memorial High School and Indiana State University standout made his Major League debut on August 5.

Strausborger, 27, can play all three outfield positions.  ”He’s a high-energy guy with some speed, defense and has been swinging the bat pretty good off the lefthanders,” Texas manager Jeff Banister told reporters. 

Strausborger batted .278 in 86 games for Round Rock and .200 in 31 appearances with the Rangers.  

Houston Astros:  Lefty reliever Joe Thatcher (Indianapolis), a product of Kokomo High School and Indiana State University, is a nine-year big-league veteran who turned 34 on October 4.

Thatcher has pitched for the Padres (2007-2013), Diamondbacks (2013-2014) and Angels (2014).  He signed with the Astros as a free agent last February and divided the year between Houston (going 1-3 with a 3.18 ERA in 43 games) and Fresno (AAA/Pacific Coast).  He rejoined the Astros on September 1. 

Thatcher has no postseason experience.  He was left off the roster for last year’s ALDS when the Angels won the AL West title.  

New York Yankees:  none

New York Mets: none 

St. Louis Cardinals:  Right-hander Lance Lynn (Indianapolis) joined the Cardinals in 2011 and has been a member of the starting rotation since 2012.  Lynn, 28, went 18-7 in 2012, 15-10 in 2013 and again in 2014, and 12-11 this season.  He has a 3.37 career ERA.

Lynn has seen action in the NLCS (2011, 2012, 2013, 2014), NLDS (2012, 2013, 2014) and World Series (2011, 2013).  He’s 5-4 with a 4.41 ERA in 23 postseason games, including a 1-1, 5.56 slate in the World Series.

In 2005 Lynn starred for an undefeated Brownsburg High School that won the state championship.  A standout at the University of Mississippi, he won a silver medal with the USA Team at the 2007 Pan American Games.

The Cardinals took Lynn in the supplemental first round (39^th overall) of the 2008 draft. 

Los Angeles Dodgers:  The greatest Yankee never to play in the World Series, Don Mattingly (Evansville) is in his fifth year as Dodgers manager.  Mattingly has led L.A. to three consecutive NL West titles, and the Dodgers are 446-363 with him at the helm.  Mattingly’s teams are 6-8 in postseason play, reaching the 2013 NLCS and the LDS in 2014.   
A standout first baseman, Mattingly batted .307 in 14 big league seasons with the Yankees from 1982 to 1985.  New York failed to make it to the World Series during that stretch.  He finally made it to the postseason at age 34 in 1995, when he batted .417 in the ALDS against Seattle.   

In 1978 Mattingly led undefeated Evansville Reitz Memorial High School to an IHSAA title.  

Pittsburgh Pirates:  none.

Chicago Cubs:  Skipper Joe Maddon’s bullpen for postseason play could include a pair of Hoosiers – right-hander Tommy Hunter (Indianapolis) and southpaw Clayton Richard (Lafayette).

Hunter, who starred for Cathedral High School and the University of Alabama, was a supplemental first-round pick (54^th overall) by the Rangers in 2007.  He’s pitched for Texas (2008-2011) and the Orioles (2011-2015), and came to the Cubs in a July 31 deadline deal. 

Over eight big league seasons, the 29-year-old Hunter is 46-33 with 16 saves and a 4.31 ERA.  He’s been to postseason with the Rangers (ALDS, ALCS and World Series in 2010) and twice with Baltimore (ALDS in 2012 and 2014;  ALCS in 2014).  He’s 0-2 with a 4.40 ERA in postseason play, including a World Series loss to the Giants in 2010.

Hunter went 4-2 with a 4.18 ERA this year (2-2, 3.63 in 39 games for Baltimore;  2-0, 5.74 with one save for the Cubs in 19 appearances). 

As a pre-teen, Hunter won a pair of Junior Olympic national judo titles. 

Richard was also a multi-sport star, earning Mr. Football and Mr. Baseball titles while playing for McCutcheon High School.  He pitched and played quarterback at the University of Michigan before the White Sox selected him in the eighth round of the 2005 draft.

Richard broke into the big leagues in 2008 and pitched for the White Sox (2008-2009) and Padres (2009-2013).  A shoulder operation sidelined him in 2013 and in 2014 he underwent thoracic outlet syndrome surgery. 

Richard, 32, signed a minor league contract with Pittsburgh prior to 2015 and opened the season with Indianapolis (AAA/International).  The Pirates sent him to the Cubs on July 3, and in 12 games for Chicago (all but one in relief) he was 4-2 with a 3.83 ERA.

Over seven big league seasons, Richard is 50-49 with 4.30 ERA.  His lone trip to the postseason came in 2009, when he had a 1.42 ERA in two ALDS appearances for the White Sox. 

Three more players with Indiana ties are expected to see postseason action:  Astros right-handed relief pitcher Pat Neshek, Cubs catcher/outfielder Kyle Schwarber and Kevin Plawecki, who catches for the Mets

Neshek, 35, a native of Madison, Wis., was a three-year letter-winner at Butler University who was drafted by the Twins in 2002.  He’s pitched for Minnesota, the Padres, Athletics and Cardinals, and joined Houston this season.  Neshek is 0-2, 2.89 in 11 games over three postseasons with the Twins (2006 ALDS), A’s (2012 ALDS) and Cardinals (2014 NLDS and NLCS).  Neshek’s wife Stephanee gave birth to their first son, Gehrig John, on October 2, 2012, the day Oakland won the AL Division title.  The infant died less than 24 hours later.  Their second son, Hoyt Robert, was born in 2014. 

Schwarber, 22, is a Middletown, Ohio, native, who terrorized Big Ten pitching while playing for Indiana University. The Cubs took him in the first round (fourth overall) of the 2014 draft and he quickly advanced through Chicago’s minor league system.  The Cubs promoted him on June 16 for six games as designated hitter during interleague play.  He joined Chicago for good on July 16, batting .246 with 16 homers in 69 contests.

Plawecki, 24, is a native of Hinsdale, Ill., who starred for Purdue after graduation from Westfield High School.  The Mets made him a first-round draft pick (35^th overall) in 2012 and he batted .290 over his first four minor league seasons.  New York promoted him from Las Vegas (AAA/Pacific Coast) last April when Travis d’Arnaud went on the disabled list.  Optioned to Las Vegas in August, he rejoined the Mets before the summer ended and batted .219 in 73 big league contests.   

Pete Cava is the author of Indiana-Born Major League Baseball Players:  A Biographical Dictionary, 1871-2014, now available from McFarland Publishers.