The Best and Worst Individual 60-Game Runs in Cleveland Indians History

60-game stretches can be great for some players. It can also be a brutal slump. Who endured both during their time with the Cleveland Indians?

The thing about the 162-game baseball season is that is tones down on the randomness of the game and parses out what is most true. In such a stat-driven sport, sample sizes are key. In baseball, the larger the sample, the better.

As baseball starts a 60-game season, fans should prepare to see some outliers when it comes to statistics and standings. Getting hot or cold early, and how long those runs last, will shape the awards and playoff races.

Thanks to FanGraphs, we can see some of the best and worst possible outcomes in any 60-game stretch to date. In terms of WAR, George Brett racked up 6.5 fWAR from late May to late August in 1980. That’s George Springer’s whole 2019 campaign, but in 60 games, and with pine tar instead of trash cans. From a purely offensive standpoint, Barry Bonds’ 1.585 OPS from July 24 to October 7, 2001, is the best.

So, who has posted the best 60-game stretches in Cleveland baseball history? What about the worst? Come with us now on a journey through time and space:

Best Hitting Performances

Albert Belle’s 1995 season is among the greatest offensive seasons in baseball history, and his 4.9 WAR from July 29 to October 1 of that year is tied for the 24-best stretch of 60 games. Because he was a corner outfielder, his WAR will not truly reflect his pure offensive output, an .876 SLG (4) and 1.309 OPS (8).

Belle’s 32 home runs over that 60-game stretch are the second most ever, one shy of Giancarlo Stanton in 2017 and Mark McGwire in 1996.

Cleveland went 42-18 during that stretch, in which Belle homered and walked (31) more times than he struck out (30). He posted eight multi-homer games, including five dingers over eight plate appearances against the White Sox on September 18 and 19. One of the three non-homers as an intentional walk to load the bases for Eddie Murray.

The next two 60-game showcases overlapped with each other, as Francisco Lindor and José Ramírez posted 4.7 and 4.6 fWAR respectively in the early portion of 2018. Lindor’s best run was from April 27 to July 3, while Ramírez showed out from May 13 to July 22. During that total span of 74 games, Cleveland only went 40-34.

For his portion, Lindor slashed .332/.403/.660 (1.063 OPS), homering 20 times and doubling 22 times. Ramírez only homered 19 times and hit 17 doubles but posted the better slash line at .320/.429/.680 (1.109).

Other standout 60-game stretches include Jim Thome in 2002 (.790 SLG, 10), Grady Sizemore in 2008 (4.3 WAR, 105), Kenny Lofton in 1994 (4.2 WAR) and Jason Kipnis in 2015 (4.2 WAR). Statistical outliers include Alex Cole’s rookie season in 1990, stealing 40 bases (4) from July 27 to October 3, and Mike Hargrove’s .504 OBP (13) from July 20 to September 18, 1979, after being traded from Texas to Cleveland.

Worst Hitting Performance

By WAR, one of Cleveland’s more celebrated players posted its worst stretch of 60-games: Andre “Thunder” Thornton.

After moving to designated hitter full-time, thus accruing plenty of negative WAR, Thornton posted an abysmal .149/.211/.207 slash from April 25 to July 4, 1985. That offensive slump at DH amounted in -1.9 fWAR in just 47 games total, the only player in the worst 125 stretches to play fewer than 50 games.

It turns out that Thornton underwent knee surgery two weeks before the 1985 season, and hit anyway. Indians president and COO at the time, Peter Bavasi, told the New York Times three days after this 60-game stretch ended, “'He historically is a slow starter. Compounding that is his recovery from surgery. It's like he's still going through spring training.''

Thornton’s .417 OPS is 27 worst of any 60-game stretch.

Best Pitching Performance

Gaylord Perry’s 1975 stretch from July 18 to September 10 is 5 all-time for a 60-game (12-start) span in terms of fWAR, racking up 4.8 in that span. For reference, Hyun-Jin Ryu and Patrick Corbin each put up 4.8 fWAR in 2019.

Of course, Perry started the season with Cleveland in 1975 but was dealt to the Texas Rangers on June 13 for Jim Bibby, Jackie Brown, Rick Waits, and $100,000. Perry was roughed up by his old club to the tune of five earned runs on 10 hits over six innings just two days later.

For players who were actually wearing an Indians uniform, the best 12-start stretch came from Corey Kluber in 2017. From June 9 to August 8, Kluber posted a 4.3 fWAR, tied for 11-best all-time. By FIP-, Kluber’s 36 (100 being league average, smaller numbers being better) is 8 ever.

During that stretch, Kluber threw three complete games in 12 starts, including a shutout, with only three outings under seven full innings. He struck out 132 hitters in that stretch along, including games of 14 Ks against Toronto, 13 against Minnesota, three instances of 12 Ks, and three more 11 K games. He struck out no fewer than eight in a game, doing so twice, the only instances of sub-10 strikeout games during that time.

Kluber allowed just 18 earned runs on 53 hits in 89 1/3 innings (1.81 ERA), going 6-1, though the team was 7-5 in those 12 games. Hitters slashed .170/.210/.276 (.485 OPS) during the run, as the righty lowered his ERA from 4.38 on June 9 to 2.65 on August 8.

Worst Pitching Performance

After an ML-leading 17 losses for Atlanta in 2011, the Braves dealt righty Derek Lowe to the Indians for minor league pitcher Chris Jones. Jones, who attended Gaither High School, alma mater of current Cleveland center fielder Oscar Mercado, never pitched in a major league game.

Meanwhile, Lowe managed to put up the worst 12-start run in MLB history by ERA-, at 221, from May 26 to July 21, 2012.

Lowe allowed 59 earned runs on 91 hits in 60 1/3 innings (8.80 ERA) over that stretch, going 2-8. Opposing hitters slashed .351/.411/.502 (.913 OPS) in that time. He allowed seven-or-more runs four times, never made it seven innings, and was pulled after three-or-fewer innings three times.

Lowe’s run ended after allowing seven earned on eight hits over 2 1/3 innings against the Royals on July 31 and was released on August 10. He signed with the New York Yankees on August 13, appearing three times out of the bullpen in the postseason, allowing two home runs and three earned in three innings.

The two-time all-star allowed 13 runs in 13 innings for the Rangers in 2013 before being released and retiring. Qualifying for the 2019 Hall of Fame ballot, Lowe did not receive a vote.