<P> The new - look Athletics experienced a bumpy start to the 2002 regular season . The team followed a respectable 15 - 10 start with an abysmal 5 - 16 run; at the end of their slump, on May 23, the team's record stood at 20 - 26 . From this point forward, the Athletics' fortunes improved significantly . In a prelude to the team's famous late - season winning streak, the Athletics went 16 - 1 from June 6 to June 24 . The surge propelled the club within two games of first place . For now, this was as close as the team would get; a prolonged funk saw the A's play roughly . 500 baseball for the next month - and - a-half . This period ended with an unremarkable 2 - 1 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays on August 12 . </P> <P> On August 13, the Athletics began their then - AL - record 20 - game win streak . The streak's first win came courtesy of Barry Zito, who allowed three runs (one earned) over eight innings in a 5 - 4 victory over the Jays . Over the next several weeks, stellar pitching, hitting, and defense all played a significant role in the Athletics' surge . Most notable were the efforts of fourth starter Cory Lidle . During the month of August, Lidle went 5 - 0 while posting a scant 0.20 earned run average (he allowed one run his final start of the month); three of his five winning decisions fell within the confines of the streak . Even still, many of the Athletics' victories were by narrow margins; closer Billy Koch recorded either a win or save in twelve of the streak's twenty wins . </P> <P> The Athletics' 18th and 19th wins came courtesy of Miguel Tejada game ending hits . On September 4, Oakland sought to win its 20th consecutive game; in doing so, the team hoped to break the 1947 New York Yankees' American League record of nineteen consecutive wins . The opponent was the Kansas City Royals . Over the first three innings of the game, Oakland shelled Kansas City pitchers Paul Byrd and Darrell May for a total of 11 runs while building a seemingly insurmountable 11 - 0 lead . Sloppy play down the stretch, however, allowed the Royals to score five runs apiece in the fourth and eighth innings . In the ninth, Billy Koch surrendered a two - out single to Royals pinch hitter Luis Alicea; the single allowed pinch runner Kit Pellow to score the tying run . As such, the Athletics entered the bottom of the ninth inning with the score tied at 11 - 11 . In one of the most famous moments in Oakland Athletics history, pinch hitter Scott Hatteberg then hit a one - out solo home run off of Kansas City reliever Jason Grimsley . The home run clinched an AL - record 20th consecutive victory for the Athletics . </P> <P> Oakland's streak came to an end with a 6 - 0 loss to the Minnesota Twins on September 5 . The A's continued to play well down the stretch, as evidenced by their final record of 103 - 59 . The club's late - season surge allowed it to hold off the Anaheim Angels, who finished only four games behind them at 99 - 63 . Oakland's regular season exploits, however, once again failed to translate into postseason success . The team again lost the American League Division Series (this time to the Twins, who also ended the 20 - game streak) in five games . </P>

What is the number of consecutive games the a's win (in the film) to set the american league record
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