Cleveland keeps the wins coming
CLEVELAND (AP) — The Cleveland Indians share a record with a team celebrated by Hollywood. Moneyball has its sequel. Following a familiar script of scoring first, playing strong defence and riding dominant pitching, the Indians extended their winning streak to 20 games and matched the AL mark held by the 2002 Oakland Athletics, beating the Detroit Tigers 2-0 on Tuesday night.
Cleveland’s streak, which began on Aug. 24 in Boston, is tied for the majors’ second-longest in 82 years.
Corey Kluber (16-4) strengthened his Cy Young Award case with a four-hitter as Cleveland joined the 2002 A’s, 1935 Chicago Cubs (21) and 1916 New York Giants (26) as the only teams to win at least 20 in a row.
Francisco Lindor homered leading off the first inning against Matthew Boyd (5-10), and the crowd of 24,654 stood and roared when Kluber sprinted to the mound for the ninth.
Second baseman Jose Ramirez made a sensational diving stop in short right field to throw out Ian Kinsler for the second out. After allowing a double to Alex Presley, Kluber sealed win No. 20 — and Cleveland’s seventh shutout during the streak — by getting Miguel Cabrera on a grounder to third.
The Giants’ revered 101-year-old streak includes a tie that interrupted 12- and 14-game unbeaten runs. However, the Elias Sports Bureau, the official statistical custodian for Major League Baseball, has always regarded the Giants’ stretch as the top mark because tie games were replayed from the start back then.
Cleveland can equal the Cubs’ 21-game run this afternoon.
The Indians and A’s, whose unexpected run to the post-season 15 years ago was re-told in the film starring Brad Pitt, don’t have much in common besides their streaks.
Oakland was an overachieving squad loaded with pitching and a roster full of low-salaried players assembled by a front office that forced baseball to rethink how it evaluated talent. The Indians, on the other hand, have spent millions to get better, and have been expected to win — big.
BLUE JAYS 3, ORIOLES 2
TORONTO (CP) — Rookie Richard Urena has been showing he’s comfortable at the big league level ever since the Blue Jays called him up earlier this month.
He proved it again on Tuesday night.
The 21-year-old Urena hit a walkoff single in the bottom of the ninth to lift Toronto to a 3-2 win over the Baltimore Orioles, extending the Blue Jays’ winning streak to four games.
The rally began when Zach Britton (2-1) walked Kevin Pillar to start the ninth, then gave up a line drive single to Teoscar Hernandez. Luke Maile drove in Pillar with a single to tie the game and Urena followed with a line drive to centre-field to plate pinch hitter Darwin Barney, who had reached on a force out.
“I just think he’s relaxed and he’s confident — he looks like he belongs,” manager John Gibbons said of the young shortstop. “There’s really no panic, he just looks like he’s been playing here for awhile.”
Justin Smoak had an RBI double for the last-place Blue Jays (68-77) and Tim Mayza (1-0) pitched 1/3 of the ninth to earn his first win.
MARINERS 10, RANGERS 3
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Ben Gamel and Kyle Seager each hit threerun homers and the Seattle Mariners beat the Texas Rangers 10-3 on Tuesday in a matchup of wild card hopefuls.
Texas (72-72) and Seattle (72-73) have split the first two games of their fourgame series. The Rangers dropped three games behind Minnesota for the American League’s second wild card, while the Mariners remained 3 1/2 back after the Twins also won.