Cleveland Indians: The oddly calm quest for 20 straight wins

The Cleveland Indians are going for a 20th straight win tonight, but the team seems to be treating it just like any other game.

The Cleveland Indians are making history with such ease it is hard to take in just how special the past three weeks have been.

When one thinks of a memorable MLB win streak, the first thought has to be the 2002 Oakland Athletics. Even for those who didn’t follow it closely when it happened, the streak was immortalized in Moneyball, bringing it to life in a whole new, emotional way. Thanks, Chris Pratt.

The A’s capped off their streak with a Scott Hatteberg walk-off home run, while several other wins came in close games.

That is the opposite of the Indians’ current 19-game streak.

The team has a +100 run differential in the last 19 games, logging six shutouts and only playing in three one-run games. They have scored at least 10 runs on six occasions and the list of feats goes on.

Wins have come so easy it has been hard to take in the magnitude of this achievement, although doing so is always difficult in the present.

Part of the reason it has been hard to get overly excited is because the Indians were so close to winning it all in 2016. If the Indians had rattled off 20 straight wins after years of being terrible, the hype may be more prevalent. But right now, fans just want the team to play well in October.

That doesn’t mean people aren’t excited, but there seems to be a general sense of appreciating the streak, while not overreacting.

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The fact we all knew this team was arguably the best in baseball is why this streak is so casual. Fans had been frustrated for months watching this team go on mini losing streaks, knowing they weren’t playing up to their potential.

But now, Indians fans are seeing a great team play up to its potential, and it is glorious.

The lack of high-stress divisional games also helps keep everyone grounded. What happened to Tigers?

The Indians are now looking for a 20th straight win tonight just one night after embarrassing the Tigers by the score of 11-0. And with Corey Kluber on the mound, a loss would be far more surprising than a win to extend the streak to 20 games.

Baseball is a sport where great teams lose to bad teams all the time, but Indians fans are lucky to be witnessing the Indians playing like a dominant NFL team. Bad teams walk in and walk out with losses. The benefit of baseball is that the bad team usually has to hang around for a few days while the Indians’ confidence only grows.

Next: Indians draft recap

This streak is not equivalent to a World Series title, but it sure has been a sight to behold. And one that shouldn’t be coming to an end tonight with the ace on the mound.