Indians extend win streak to 19
CLEVELAND» Unrelenting and unbeatable at the moment, the Cleveland Indians refuse to lose.
With their latest overpowering win, they extended baseball’s longest winning streak since 2002 to 19 games with an 11-0 blowout of the Detroit Tigers on Monday night to move closer to a record that has stood for 101 years.
Francisco Lindor tripled home three runs off rookie Myles Jaye (0-1) in the second inning, and the Indians, who haven’t lost since Aug. 23, added another blowout to their growing list of lopsided conquests.
The defending AL champions aren’t just rolling, they’re steamrolling opponents, outscoring them 132-32 during a stretch that includes six shutouts.
Carlos Carrasco (15-6) struck out nine in six innings, Lindor had four RBIs and Jose Ramirez hit a two-run homer as the Indians lowered their magic number to clinch the Central to six.
Cleveland is the sixth team in history to win at least 19 straight, and the streak is the longest since the 2002 Oakland Athletics won 20 in a row — a run that was celebrated in the film “Moneyball.”
At this point, it hardly matters who’s on the mound.
Cleveland joined the 1906 Chicago White Sox (19), the 1947 New York Yankees (19), the 2002 A’s (20), the 1935 Chicago Cubs (21) and the 1916 New York Giants (26) as the only teams to reel off 19 consecutive wins.
The Giants’ record run is in the books as the major-league mark, although it did include a tie, which does not count as an official game in baseball.
Even tying these Indians during a game has been nearly impossible.
Cleveland has trailed in only four of 171 innings, scored first in 18 of 19 games and has hit 38 homers.
In a season where other teams have displayed dominance, the Indians stand alone.
“I think this is the most balanced team,” Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said, “and probably the biggest threat to anybody in baseball to win a World Series because they do kind of cover every facet of the game.”