Only two other teams in the last 101 years have won at least 21 straight games, a mark Cleveland reached in their 5-3 win over the Detroit Tigers. The Indians’ victory snapped a tie with the Oakland Athletics, who won 20 consecutive games in 2002.
Advertisement
But the day still belonged to the Indians, who also tied with the 1935 Chicago Cubs for second longest winning streak since 1900.
Another noteworthy factor is all 26 games in the streak were played at New York’s Polo Grounds, the Giants’ home field. They’ve notched a run for all but one of their games in this 20-game streak.
During their streak, the Indians have been bulldozing teams, outscoring opponents 134-32 during a remarkable run that began on August 24 with a 13-6 win at Boston followed by three straight shutouts at home over Kansas City.
The Indians came into the game on an 18-game winning streak.
“I got one really good buddy, one of my best friends, but he’s notoriously bad luck”, Francona said.
However, it’s not just the numbers that have backed up Lindor’s recent surge; he’s also hitting when it matters for the Indians.
Throw those asterisked streaks out, and the Indians are tied for the fourth-longest pure winning streak ever in the majors. Francisco Lindor hit a lead-off home run for the Indians in the bottom of the first and the Indians never trailed again.
Clevinger was the winning pitcher September 1, tossing six scoreless innings on three hits and one walk with six strikeouts.
The Orioles got a run back in the seventh on a home run by Chris Davis, who hit Bauer’s 110th and final pitch of the game over the left field wall for his 24th home run, making it 3-2.
After securing their 20th consecutive victory, the Indians look unstoppable in their march toward a second consecutive World Series appearance. In fact, Lindor’s numbers are up nearly across the board; his OPS for the month of September so far (1.199) is higher than any other stretch this season, and he’s even walking more, with 7 base-on-balls in only 12 games. Carrasco struck out nine and walked one. The latest came from ace Corey Kluber, who handled the Tigers easily Tuesday with eight strikeouts and just five hits allowed in a complete-game victory.
Royals starter Eric Skoglund lasted only three innings and 66 pitches, giving up three runs on five hits.
That’s why I’m not taking this team, this win streak, hell, this season for granted.
Advertisement
LeMay identified the Indians’ pitching staff as one of its strong suits during the historic run. Trailing behind Cleveland are the Minnesota Twins with a record of 74-69. Manager Brad Ausmus and catcher James McCann were both ejected in the third inning for arguing balls and strikes, and McCann was replaced by utility player John Hicks.
