With 27 wins in 30 games, Red Sox in rare air

The Red Sox are cruising. They beat the Angels on July 3 and haven’t looked back, reeling off 15 straight wins to tie a franchise record set in 1946. But they didn’t stop there. Even with that streak ending, Boston has lost just three games since this stretch began.

Here are five stats and facts about a remarkable run so far for the Red Sox.

• The series-opening win on Friday was the 27th for the Red Sox in the last 30 games. They’re just the 10th team since 1900 to go 27-3 or better in a 30-game span within a season. They joined Cleveland in 2017, the 1977 Royals, 1953 Yankees, 1947 Yankees, 1941 Yankees, 1936 Giants, 1916 Giants, 1909 Pirates and 1906 Cubs.
• But it’s not just the wins in the span that makes this a fairytale stretch. The added context is important -- this is a turnaround. Entering that July 3 game, the Red Sox were 37-48 on the season. They are the first team in MLB history to win at least 27 games in a 30-game span while entering that span 10 or more games under .500, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Just two prior teams had a sub-.500 record entering such a 30-game stretch, with the worst being three games under: the 1916 Giants and 1887 St. Louis Browns.
• Backing up the span slightly, the Red Sox were a season-worst 14 games under .500 entering June 25, when they went on to win five in a row, lose two, then go on the 15-game streak. They’re 13 games over .500 entering Saturday. The Red Sox are the fastest team in MLB history to go from 14 games under .500 to 13 games over, at 44 days, per Elias. The previous quickest was 59 days by the 1914 Braves, known as the “Miracle Braves.” What nickname will this Sox team get?

• The Red Sox have won nine straight series starting with the three-game set beginning July 3 against the Angels. That’s the second-longest streak in franchise history, behind only an 11-series stretch from Aug. 4-Sept. 15, 1912, per Elias (min. two games per series).
• The Red Sox entered the month of July at 37-47. They entered August 58-51. The Red Sox became the first team in MLB history to enter a calendar month 10 or more games under .500 and leave said month at least seven games over .500, per Elias. Only two previous teams had even entered a month 10-plus games under and exited two over: the 2019 Giants in July and 1996 Red Sox in August. The Red Sox went 21-4 in July this year. That .840 winning percentage is the highest in a calendar month in franchise history, minimum 15 games.