Unrelenting and unbeatable, the Cleveland Indians refuse to lose.
With their latest overpowering win on Monday they extended baseball’s longest winning streak since 2002 to 19 games with an 11-0 blowout of the Detroit Tigers 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 as the Indians, who have not lost since Aug. 23, added another blowout to their growing list of lopsided conquests.
Photo: Ken Blaze-USA Today
The defending American League champions are not just rolling, they are 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 Division to six.
Cleveland are 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.
The Indians could match those A’s yesterday and their chances of getting No. 20 were strong with American League Cy Young Award contender Corey Kluber due to start.
At this point, it hardly matters who is 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, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
Even tying these Indians during a game has been nearly impossible.
Cleveland have trailed in only four of 171 innings, scored first in 18 of 19 games and have hit 38 homers. In a season where other teams have displayed dominance, the Indians stand alone.
“No knock on the Dodgers or the Astros, they’re obviously both very good teams,” Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said. “I think this is the most balanced team 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.”
Cleveland’s streak has happened despite the Indians missing three of their best players — All-Star reliever Andrew Miller, All-Star left fielder Michael Brantley and second baseman Jason Kipnis. They are all on the disabled list.
“It’s just the next guy up,” Kipnis said. “It doesn’t matter who it is or what goes down. We like the depth that we have. We have the players that go out and compete each night, and you’re going to win a lot of games when guys play with that attitude.”
US track and field athletes have about four dozen pieces to choose from when assembling their uniforms at the Olympics. The one grabbing the most attention is a high-cut leotard that barely covers the bikini line and has triggered debate between those who think it is sexist and others who say they do not need the Internet to make sure they have good uniforms. Among those critical or laughing at the uniforms included Paralympian Femita Ayanbeku, sprinter Britton Wilson and even athletes from other countries such as Britain’s Abigail Irozuru, who wrote on social media: “Was ANY female athlete consulted in
Four-time NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins arrived in Taiwan with his family early yesterday to finish his renewed contract with the Taiwan Beer Leopards in the T1 League. Cousins initially played a four-game contract with the Leopards in January. On March 18, the Taoyuan-based team announced that Cousins had renewed his contract. “Hi what’s up Leopard fans, I’m back. I’m excited to be back and can’t wait to join the team,” Cousins said in a video posted on the Leopard’s Facebook page. “Most of all, can’t wait to see you guys, the fans, next weekend. So make sure you come out and support the Beer
Former US Masters champion Zach Johnson was left embarrassed after a foul-mouthed response to ironic cheers from spectators after a triple bogey at Augusta National on Friday. Johnson, the 2007 Masters winner, missed the cut after his three-over-par round of 75 left him on seven-over 151 for 36 holes, his six on the par-three 12th playing a big role in his downfall. Television footage showed Johnson reacting to sarcastic cheers and applause when he tapped in for the triple bogey by yelling: “Oh fuck off.” Such a response would be considered bad form in any golf tournament, but is particularly out of keeping
Taiwan’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan on Saturday won the men’s doubles bronze medal at the Badminton Asia Championships in Ningbo, China, after they were bested by the hosts in their semi-final. The Taiwanese shuttlers lost to China’s Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang, who advanced to yesterday’s final against Malaysia’s Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzudin. The Chinese pair outplayed Lee and Yang in straight games. Although the Taiwanese got off to a slow start in the first game, they eventually tied it 14-14, before Liang and Wang went on to blow past them to win 21-17. In the second game, Lee and