Although the Tribe already has played in back-to-back difficult series against Detroit and Boston, the upcoming schedule doesn’t get any more favorable. Beginning with the start of this four-game road-and-home series against Cincinnati, the Indians have a very tough 19-game map ahead.
| Team | H/R | Opponent | Wins | Losses | Pct | # of Games |
| CLE | @ | CIN | 31 | 19 | 0.620 | 2 |
| CLE | CIN | 31 | 19 | 0.620 | 2 | |
| CLE | TBR | 25 | 24 | 0.510 | 3 | |
| CLE | @ | NYY | 30 | 19 | 0.612 | 3 |
| CLE | @ | DET | 28 | 20 | 0.583 | 3 |
| CLE | @ | TEX | 32 | 18 | 0.640 | 3 |
| CLE | WSN | 26 | 24 | 0.520 | 3 |
Overall, when factoring in number of games, the strength of schedule for the Indians over this 19-game stretch is .583. On the year, the team already has a combined record of 4-8 against Tampa Bay, New York and Detroit. When factoring away those games from the opponent’s season record, the strength of schedule still sits at .580.
This stretch will help to shape what direction the Tribe goes for the rest of 2013. The team is 27-22 right now. Last season, the team similarly started 26-18 and then collapsed en route to a 68-94 record, the worst such collapse for a team that started with that record.
[Related: The Diff: Historical finishes for 26-18 MLB teams]
