From time to time, the St. Louis Cardinals actually lose, but not to something special like Corey Kluber in a unique 18-strikeout performance to give the Cleveland Indians a rare 2-0 win.
Kluber struck out 18 batters off of the best team in Baseball this season, the most by an AL pitcher since Roger Clemens in 1998. He allowed just one hit in his eight innings and finally got his first win of the season thanks to a couple of runs by Brandon Moss and David Murphy, both getting their RBIs in the first inning, setting the stage for Kluber’s great performance.
The 18 strikeouts are a tie with the Indians’ record from 1938, as Bob Feller struck out 18 in a nine-inning performance. Kluber didn’t walk anyone in his performance, and could have made an attempt at the Major League record of 20 strikeouts (held by Kerry Wood and Clemens), but he was pulled before the ninth after throwing 113 pitches.
It is just the second time since 1900 that a team has recorded 19 or more strikeouts while allowing one or fewer hits in a game, as closer Cody Allen picked up a K as well. Since Len Barker’s perfect game in 1981, the Indians haven’t had the chance to celebrate a no-hitter. Their 12-20 record this season is nothing to be too happy about either. Only 12,313 were in attendance to watch them beat the Cardinals.