Cleveland Indians' 20- and 30-something fans have no reason to fret, compared to older fans

Cleveland Indians' 20- and 30-something fans have no reason to fret, compared to older fans
by Mike Peticca, The Plain Dealer Tuesday July 14, 2009, 2:52 PM

Associated Press
Yes, Jose Mesa couldn't save Game 7 of the 1997 World Series, but the big right-hander had some highlight moments, too. Here, he pitches against the Atlanta Braves in Game 3 of the 1995 World Series, when he earned credit for the Tribe's 7-6, 11-inning win.
Any Cleveland Indians fan can find recent disappointment in, for instance, the Tribe's failure to turn its 3-1 American League Championship Series lead over the Boston Red Sox into a 2007 World Series berth.

Or, in the Indians' uninspiring 2008 season followed by the team's current malaise.

But, if you're just 20 years old, you may have some recall of 1995, when Cleveland played in the World Series for the first time in 41 years, and more memories of the Indians' improbable run to the 1997 Fall Classic. So what if Atlanta's Tom Glavine got the corner, and more, on almost every close pitch, and that Jose Mesa insisted on throwing that slider to Florida's Charles Johnson? At least, things got to that point.

You were in your mid- to late teens during the compelling - if ultimately frustrating - finishes of 2005 and 2007.

And, if you're 30, you could fully appreciate one of the best eras in Cleveland baseball from 1995 to 2001.

You've got it all over the older Indians fans, those who watched the Tribe finish at least 11 games out of first place in every season from 1960 through 1993, excluding the 1981 season, when a two-month players' strike broke the pennant races into two halves.

During the 34-season stretch, the Indians lost 387 games more than they won, and they finished a combined 768 1/2 games out of first place. They had just six winning seasons, the best at 87-75 in 1965, when they finished fifth in the 10-team American League, 15 games behind the Minnesota Twins.

Cleveland's second-best record during the span was 86-75 in 1968, 16 1/2 games behind the Detroit Tigers. The Indians finished third, their best standing in the 34 seasons. It was the last season before the American and National Leagues divided into divisions of six, and later seven teams. Yet, Cleveland was able to finish third just the one time, and fourth six times from 1960 through 1993.

Following are a few instances when Indians fans had something to cheer for, only to have their hopes stilled.

Yawn

Indians fans never saw their team play big games deep into the season. Probably the biggest September games the Indians played were in a twi-night doubleheader against the Baltimore Orioles at Cleveland's Municipal Stadium on Sept. 6, 1974. Despite having just a 67-67 record, the 1974 Indians were just 4 1/2 games out of first place in the mediocre AL East when the night began.

Here, thanks to baseball-reference.com, is what happened in the opener, a 2-0 Tribe loss, and the nightcap of the twinbill, a 1-0 Indians' defeat before 27,341 fans.

The Tribe finished the campaign 77-85, in fourth place, 14 games behind the Orioles.

Look out, Yankees

The New York Yankees of Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, Whitey Ford and Roger Maris were still a powerhouse, but the 1962 Indians swept a four-game series from them in mid-June. A Sunday, June 17 doubleheader capped the series and drew 70,918 to Municipal Stadium to watch the Indians down New York, 6-1, in the opener and 6-3 in the second game.

The Indians spent 19 days in first place from June 16 through July 13, but they lost 34 of 47 games in one stretch and finished sixth, 80-82, 16 games behind the Yankees.

Looked good

The 1965 Indians were fun to watch, in part because of the return of favorite Rocky Colavito. The Indians were 46-28, tied for first place with the Minnesota Twins on July 4.


Tony Tomsic, Plain Dealer file photo
Slugging outfielder Rocky Colavito led the American League in RBI in 1965.Here's the Indians' July 4 game, a 4-2 win over the Orioles with a crowd of 32,756 at the Stadium.

Alas, the Tribe faded to their 87-75, fifth-place finish, 15 games behind the Twins.

Total fold

The 1966 Indians opened with 10 straight wins and were in first place with a 4 1/2 game lead and 27-10 record on May 28. They were still 45-29, although 6 1/2 games shy of the lead, on July 2, but went on a 28-48 skid through Sept. 16. Cleveland finished 81-81, 17 games behind Baltimore, in fifth place.

A highlight was Sonny Siebert's no-hitter, a 2-0 win over the Washington Senators in Cleveland on June 10.

Never close

In 1968, when the Indians went 86-75 to place third, 16 1/2 games behind Detroit, they were within 2 1/2 games of first on June 6, but never got on a real roll. Pitcher Luis Tiant did, though, including his 19-strikeout, 1-0 10-inning win over Minnesota before 21,135 at the Stadium on July 3.

Over-rated

When Sports Illustrated put the Indians' Joe Carter and Cory Snyder on the cover of their 1987 season preview issue, they ignored that the pitching-poor Indians of 1986 were at least 7 1/2 games - and as many as 16 1/2 - out of first after August 7. They rallied to finish 84-78, in fifth place behind the Boston Red Sox in the AL East. The 1987 fiasco ended with the Tribe 61-101.

The 1986 Indians peaked at 51-41, five games out of the division lead, with a 7-2 win over the Chicago White Sox in front of 20,524 Cleveland fans on July 23.

The Indians promptly lost 26 of their next 40 games.