The Cleveland Indians are finally fun to watch again. After a rough start to the month of April, the Indians have put together their longest winning streak of the season at six. This is the longest streak since April/May of 2011.
With today’s victory over the Minnesota Twins, the Tribe is now a game over .500 with a record of 14-13.
The Indians are hot on the trail of the AL Central division-leading Detroit Tigers sitting just 2.5 games out of first place. The 2013 Indians have a sense of identity and purpose. Led by veteran, fun-loving manager, Terry Francona, the Indians clubhouse seems to be less stressed and at ease this season.
For years, the Indians have made zero moves in the off-season and spent the least amount of money. This is not the case this year. The Tribe has added some big names with Nick Swisher, Mark Reynolds, and Michael Bourne. However, this team reminds us a lot of the mid-1990’s when it was a different hero every night that brought fans to their feet. In last night’s bottom of the tenth victory, it was Drew Stubbs.
With starting pitching being the end-all in Major League Baseball, the Indians starting rotation has put together a pretty good run in the last six games. What’s even more interesting is in the last eight games before this winning streak, the Indians either won or lost five of those games by just one run. Of the last five teams that they have played, the “Comeback kids from the Cuyhoga” have either won or tied the series.
This is a long season and staying persistent will be the key to seeing our Tribe play in October. At this point with Cleveland sports teams, most of us wouldn’t mind just seeing a wildcard playoff birth. This town is due for a playoff team.
Ryan Ruiz is the Cleveland Sports Beat Writer for The Inscriber. You can follow him on Twitter @ryanpruiz24 and Facebook.