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Cleveland Indians
From BR Bullpen
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Previously known as Toledo Black Pirates (1892), Toledo White Stockings (1894-95), Terre Haute Hottentots (1895), Columbus Buckeyes (1896). Columbus Senators (1897-99), Grand Rapids Furniture Makers (1899), Cleveland Blues (1900-01), Cleveland Bronchos (1902), and Cleveland Naps (1903-1914) Franchise Record: (through 2012) 8,839-8,543-104-2 Post Season Record: 43-41 World Series Titles: 2 (1920, 1948) American League Pennants: 5 (1920, 1948, 1954, 1995, 1997) Playoffs: 10 (1920, 1948, 1954, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2007) Franchise Players: Nap Lajoie, Tris Speaker, Earl Averill, Lou Boudreau, Bob Feller, Bob Lemon, Larry Doby, Albert Belle, Sandy Alomar, Jr. Ball Parks: Olympic Park, Toledo, OH (1892); White Stocking Park, Toledo, OH (1894-95); Bay View Park (Sun), Toledo, OH (1894-95); Athletic Park, Terre Haute, IN (1895); Recreation Park II, Columbus, OH (1896-99); Ramona Park, Grand Rapids, MI (1899), League Park I (1900-1909); Fairview Park, Dayton, OH (6/8/1902); Mahaffey Park, Canton, OH (6/15/1902; 5/10/1903); Jailhouse Flats, Ft. Wayne, IN (6/22/1902; 8/31/1902); Neil Park I, Columbus, OH (8/3/1902; 5/17/1903; 6/21/1903); League Park II (1910-1932, 1934-46); Cleveland Stadium (1932-33, 1947-93); Jacobs Field aka (Progressive Field) 1994-Present; Miller Park, Milwaukee, WI (4/10-12/07) |
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[edit] The Cleveland Indians
One of the American League's original teams, the Cleveland Indians have had a history of intermittent success and long periods of ineptitude. The team won their first World Series in 1920, then didn't make the Fall Classic again for 28 years. The 1948 season is the most fondly remembered by Indians fans, as the team won the American League's first ever tiebreaking playoff game (against the Boston Red Sox) and took the World Series in six games from the Boston Braves. They won the pennant again in 1954 with a then AL-record 111 wins, but were swept in the World Series by the New York Giants.
There followed a period of horrible doldrums. Team management traded slugger Rocky Colavito for Harvey Kuenn before the 1960 season. Colavito had led the league in home runs in 1959, Kuenn in batting average. Kuenn had a decent season in 1960, but missed 28 games and was traded after the season ended. Colavito went on to be a star with other teams, playing in the All-Star Game in four of the next five years. Only six times between 1960 and 1993 did the team have a winning record; only once in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s did they finish as high as third (Of the 24 teams in existence when the leagues went to divisional play in 1969, only the Washington Senators/Texas Rangers franchise went longer before making postseason play).
Over time, Municipal Stadium was allowed to deteriorate and there were rumors that the team would be moved to another city. However, new ownership sparked a revival of interest, and the team moved into new Jacobs Field in 1994. Though the 1994 season was unfinished because of the MLB labor dispute, in 1995 the Indians won the AL Central Division title, and won it again in five of the next six seasons. They won the AL pennant in 1995 and 1997, but lost the Series in both years. The loss was particularly excruciating in 1997, as closer Jose Mesa blew a late lead in the deciding 7th game of the Series against the Florida Marlins. The team's hitting stars were Albert Belle, Kenny Lofton, Jim Thome and Omar Vizquel, while the top pitchers were Charles Nagy and Bartolo Colon.
The Indians continued to be competitive for the remainder of the 1990s, then fell back a notch in the 2000s. However, in 2007, they came within one game of returning to the World Series, before losing the ALCS to the Boston Red Sox after taking a 3 game to 1 lead. The team's stars during the 2000s were pitchers CC Sabathia and Cliff Lee, who won back-to-back Cy Young Awards and C Victor Martinez. They were all gone via trade as the team headed into the 2010s.
[edit] Hall of Famers who played or managed for Cleveland
- Earl Averill
- Lou Boudreau
- Steve Carlton
- Stan Coveleski
- Larry Doby
- Dennis Eckersley
- Bob Feller
- Elmer Flick
- Joe Gordon
- Walter Johnson
- Addie Joss
- Ralph Kiner
- Nap Lajoie
- Bob Lemon
- Al Lopez
- Eddie Murray
- Hal Newhouser
- Phil Niekro
- Satchel Paige
- Gaylord Perry
- Sam Rice
- Frank Robinson
- Joe Sewell
- Billy Southworth
- Tris Speaker
- Hoyt Wilhelm
- Dick Williams
- Dave Winfield
- Early Wynn
- Cy Young
[edit] Retired Numbers
- 3 Earl Averill
- 5 Lou Boudreau
- 14 Larry Doby
- 18 Mel Harder
- 19 Bob Feller
- 21 Bob Lemon
- 42 Jackie Robinson
[edit] Awards
- Al Rosen 1953
- Lou Boudreau 1948
- "Tioga" George Burns 1926
American League Cy Young Award:
- Cliff Lee 2008
- C.C. Sabathia 2007
- Gaylord Perry 1972
American League Rookie of the Year Award:
- Sandy Alomar Jr. 1990
- Joe Charboneau 1980
- Chris Chambliss 1971
- Herb Score 1955
American League Manager of the Year Award:
- Eric Wedge 2007
- Mike Hargrove 1995
[edit] Famous Feats
- Asdrubal Cabrera 2008
- Bill Wambsganss 1920 - World Series Game 5
- Neal Ball 1909
Two Home Runs in the Same Inning:
- Carlos Baerga 1993 (One batting right-handed, one batting left-handed)
[edit] Further Reading
- Peter Filichia: Green Cathedrals: The Ultimate Celebrations of All 273 Major League and Negro League Ballparks Past and Present, Addison Wesley Publishing Company (March 1993)
- John R. Husman: Baseball in Toledo, Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, SC, 2003.
- Jonathan Knight: Classic Tribe: The 50 Greatest Games in Cleveland Indians History, Kent State University Press, Kent, OH, 2009.
- Franklin Lewis: The Cleveland Indians, Kent State University Press, Kent, OH, 2006 (first edition 1949).
- Stephanie M. Liscio: Integrating Cleveland Baseball: Media Activism, the Integration of the Indians and the Demise of the Negro League Buckeyes, McFarland, Cleveland, OH, 2010.
- James E. Odenkirk: "A Bitter Rivalry recalled: The Cleveland Indians and the New York Yankees, 1947-1956", in The National Pastime, SABR, Volume 28 (2008), pp. 78-86.
- Terry Pluto: The Curse of Rocky Colavito: A loving look at a thirty-year slump, Fireside Books, Simon & Schuster, New York, NY, 1995.
- Terry Pluto: Dealing: The Cleveland Indians' New Ballgame, Gray & Company, Publishers, Cleveland, OH, 2007.
- Russell Schneider: Whatever Happened to Super Joe?: Catching Up with 45 Good Old Guys from the Bad Old Days of the Cleveland Indians, Gray & Company, Publishers, Cleveland, OH, 2007.
- Russell Schneider: The Cleveland Indians Encyclopedia, Temple University Press, Philadelphia, PA, 1996.
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