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Maybe the Cleveland Indians really are allergic to being over .500

Someone grab an EpiPen and stab this team in the thigh.

By Matt Lyons
The last time the Indians had a winning record Nick Hagadone recorded the final out.
The last time the Indians had a winning record Nick Hagadone recorded the final out.
Bob Levey/Getty Images

With the Cleveland Indians constantly being on the cusp of a playoff run for so long, one would think they had some recent winning streaks. One would be wrong. Despite winning 10 games in the month of September, the Tribe only has two winning "streaks" – twice they won two games in a row. They have also never had a winning record their playoff push.

They have made it to .500 exactly several times, starting back on September 12. Well, the first half of September 12 to be exact. The first game was a scheduled 1:00 p.m. game against the Detroit Tigers while the second was a makeup game for an earlier rainout. The Tribe took the first with a convincing 7-2 win and found themselves at that mythical .500 mark with their 70-70 record. Less than 12 hours after the first game’s conclusion, they lost the second and were back to a sub-.500 tally.

Since then, the Indians have infuriatingly gone in a win-loss-win-loss-win pattern for the past seven games. Blowouts, close games, everything has happened, but never two losses or two wins a row. It's been a roller-coaster of emotions over the past week.

Even back in May, when the Indians were arguably at their hottest, they still did not obtain a winning record. The closest they came was on May 30 when they were 24-26; a winning percentage of .480. The last time the Indians did have a winning record was on April 9 when they were 2-1. Lonnie Chisenhall was still a third baseman, Cody Anderson was just some Double-A pitcher, and the Indians still owed a ton of money to Nick Swisher.

Fast forward to today, and with the Tribe only 4.0 games back of the Wild Card thanks to some help from other teams, it is painful to think of how easily they could be leading the whole thing if they managed a winning streak or two. Last night's win over the Chicago White Sox gives them a chance to start another streak, as well as another shot at a winning record. The Tribe's next series is also against a team ahead of them in the Wild Card hunt, the Minnesota Twins, so it is pretty much make or break time now for a winning streak to occur. There is no one left to bail this team out, either they rattle off several wins in a row, or it's over.

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