CHICAGO — The Cleveland Indians set a franchise record with their 15th consecutive win Thursday night, beating the Chicago White Sox 11-2 behind another terrific outing for Corey Kluber.
CHICAGO — The Cleveland Indians set a franchise record with their 15th consecutive win Thursday night, beating the Chicago White Sox 11-2 behind another terrific outing for Corey Kluber.
Cleveland also belted five homers while becoming the first major league team with a 15-game winning streak since Oakland won 20 in a row in 2002. Edwin Encarnacion hit a three-run drive in the first, Francisco Lindor connected in the second, Erik Gonzalez went deep twice and Greg Allen hit his first major league homer in the seventh.
Kluber (15-4) struck out 13 in seven innings. Yolmer Sanchez and Jose Abreu homered in the first for Chicago, but Kluber allowed only one more hit — a fifth-inning single for Omar Narvaez.
The right-hander retired 20 of his last 22 batters on his way to double-digit strikeouts for the 14th time this season and 38th of his career.
The Indians closed out an 11-0 road trip and begin a 10-game homestand Friday night against Baltimore. The reigning American League champions have outscored their opponents 109-28 during the win streak.
The last-place White Sox turned to Mike Pelfrey after left-hander Carlos Rodon was scratched with shoulder stiffness. Pelfrey (3-11), who threw 40 pitches in 2 1/3 relief innings on Tuesday night, allowed seven runs and eight hits in four innings.
The Indians surpassed the 14-game winning streak they recorded last season. They are the first team to win at least 14 in a row in consecutive seasons since the 1935-36 Chicago Cubs.