After opening the season against each other 184 days ago, the Boston Red Sox and Cleveland Indians will start a best-of-five divisional series Thursday at Progressive Field. Here’s eight things to know before the series gets started:

1: Red Sox have health of their side

The Indians are victims of bad timing. Injuries hit the pitching staff late in the year: Carlos Carrasco (hand) is done for the season, while Danny Salazar (forearm) and Corey Kluber (quad) are both dealing with nagging ailments. Kluber, Cleveland’s No. 1 pitcher, is scheduled to go Game 2 but he suffered the quad strain just last week. Carrasco, Salazar and Kluber combined for a 3.39 ERA this season, yet Trevor Bauer (12-8, 4.26 ERA) will start Game 1 against Rick Porcello (22-4, 3.15 ERA). In comparison, Boston has four healthy starters ready to go.

2: Playoff wins are not aplenty in this bunch

No starting pitcher on either team has a postseason victory to his name. In fact, David Price (eight starts), Clay Buchholz (five) and Porcello (two) are the only three listed on either roster with multiple postseason starts. Salazar, who accounts for all of Cleveland’s postseason experience, pitched the 2013 wild card game against Tampa Bay. He gave up three earned runs in four innings in the 4-0 loss. As the Boston Herald’s Jason Mastrodonato wrote: “(It would) be the first previously winless playoff rotation to lead the Sox to a championship since 1915.”

3: Price needs to shake postseason ghosts

I’m sure Price has heard this one before but it’s worth noting that he’s 0-7 with a 5.27 ERA over eight playoff starts. It’s not as if these numbers come as a surprise to the Red Sox front office. When Price signed his $217 million contract this offseason, everyone was well aware of his postseason ghosts. But it was assumed that his regular-season dominance might help overshadow past playoff incapacities. No one expected Price to post the second highest regular-season ERA of his career at 3.99, or give up a career-high 30 home runs, all while making $31 million. The run he went on in September was solid but not solid enough to erase those early struggles. An uncharacteristically good run in the playoffs would ease the minds of some on the “Price is Overpaid” Express. And putting those ghosts to bed would only benefit Price in the future.

4: Red Sox triple Indians in playoff at-bats

When it comes to postseason experience for position players, Boston should be heavily favored. Boston’s projected starters have 545 playoff at-bats, which more than triples Cleveland’s 167. Dustin Pedroia alone has more than everyone (178) in the Indians projected starting lineup combined. This experience will, at some point, play a role in the series. Whether it be a miscue in the field or a bad swing at an even worse pitch, Boston will benefit from its playoff expertise. It may seem unfair to put any of David Ortiz’s numbers up against players like Francisco Lindor or Tyler Naquin. But the reality is: having Ortiz even suit up automatically gives the Red Sox an advantage – one that has helped Boston to three World Series championships since 2004.

5: That being said, Boston’s young guys need to show up

The lights will be a little brighter for Mookie Betts, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Andrew Benintendi. All three are expected to make their first career postseason starts this series. And how they respond to the added pressure will reflect on the success of this team going forward. Xander Bogaerts’s emergence in 2013 played a major role in Boston’s title run. Jacoby Ellsbury’s emergence had a comparable effect for the 2007 team. It would be very beneficial to have Betts, Bradley Jr. or Benintendi take on a similar role for this team. My money is on Betts but all three are more than capable. And just imagine if they all get hot …

6: Kimbrel’s leash needs to be extremely short

One blown save, even an appearance with multiple walks, and it’s time to pull the plug on Craig Kimbrel as the closer in 2016. Believe it or not, I try and keep the knee-jerk reactions to a minimum but there’s no way around this one. I understand that Kimbrel is an All-Star with an absolutely disgusting fast ball, but there’s no time to tinker with a delicate closing situation in a five-game ALDS. If it was a seven-game series, it would be a different situation. But Kimbrel’s recent regression in the control department is not something to mess with. It’s one thing to blow a save in a throwaway loss to the Yankees. A blown save in a playoff game could swing the momentum of an entire series. (See 2004 ALCS). If control continues to be an issue, the ball needs to be in Koji Uehara’s hand in the ninth inning. Uehara is no chump in the postseason, either. He posted a 0.66 ERA with seven saves in the 2013 playoffs.

7: It’ll be good to see old friends

It seems fitting that Ortiz’s final postseason will start with a series against Terry Francona and Mike Napoli. Ortiz and Francona, also a close friend of Red Sox Manager John Farrell, famously led the Red Sox to their curse-reversing title in 2004. And Napoli was a key cog on the 2013 championship team. Don’t expect emotions to weigh heavily on Ortiz, though. He’s admitted that this season has been somewhat of an emotional roller coaster as far as the farewell tour goes, but it didn’t seem to affect his play on the field. This series shouldn’t be any different but it would be nice to hear Francona say once more: “I wish David Ortiz would’ve retired last year.”

8: The pick is in, Red Sox in four

The Indians have had a great season, claiming their first AL Central title since 2007. But it would be hard to bet against David Ortiz in his final season. The combination of Boston’s exciting, young position players and a reliable, healthy pitching staff may be too much for the Tribe to overcome. Porcello, Price and Rodriguez hang ones in the win column and the Red Sox end this series in Boston on Monday.

(Michelle Berthiaume can be reached at 369-3338, mberthiaume@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @MonitorMichelle.)