Shhhh…don’t tell them, but the Indians will wake up Thursday morning a half game ahead of Minnesota for first in the Central.

The Indians are 2 games over .500 for the first time since game 2. On May 5th, the Tribe was 14-17, and found themselves plummeting to 17th in ESPN’s power rankings. Since then, all the Indians have done is gone 7-2, winning series against the Yankees, Blue Jays and A’s by a combined score of 38-13. In short, the Tribe has pitched their way into first.

Wednesday night was no exception. Sabathia was dominant once again, going the distance for the shutout, the Tribe’s league leading 7th of the season. The Hefty Lefty struck out 11 A’s en route to a 2-0 win. The numbers that you have probably seen in game recaps are staggering. Tribe starters have gone 43 and a third consecutive innings without allowing a single run. Not even an unearned run. Zip. Zero. Goose egg. How about a little perspective on the streak-

The consecutive scoreless streak is the longest by an Indians starting staff since they tossed 47 scoreless innings in August 1948. [Read more...]