It was a “Catch-22” kind of night for the Cleveland Indians. And thanks to Francisco Lindor and Jay Bruce, something happened again for the defending American League champions.
Lindor hit a game-tying double with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, and Bruce hit an RBI double in the 10th as the Indians rallied for their 22nd consecutive victory to extend their AL record. With the victory, the Indians moved to within four wins of matching the 1916 New York Giants for the longest winning streak in major-league history.
Lindor connected on a two-strike pitch to send the game into extra innings.
"This was probably the toughest one we've had," Bruce told reporters after the game.
Jose Ramirez led off the 10th inning with a double and Edwin Encarnacion walked. Bruce then smacked a 2-0 pitch into the right-field corner to score Ramirez with the winning run. It was Cleveland’s first walk-off win of the streak.
The victory snapped a tie with the 1935 Chicago Cubs for the second-longest winning streak. The 1916 Giants won 26 straight games -- all at home. The Giants won 12 straight, played a 1-1 tie, and then won 14 in a row. But because the tied game was replayed from the start the next day, it did not count and therefore prolonged New York's streak.
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