Cleveland Guardians are a professional baseball team that plays in the American League Central division of Major League Baseball (MLB). The Guardians play their home games at Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio.
Cleveland was an original member of the American League when it was established in 1901. The team was first called the Blues, then the Bronchos, and then the Naps, after its star second baseman, Napoleon Lajoie. In 1915, the team was renamed the Indians in honor of Louis Francis Sockalexis, a former Cleveland player and one of the first Native Americans to play Major League Baseball. In 2021, the team changed its name from the Indians to the Guardians.
Early stars of the club included pitcher Addie Joss and outfielder Joe Jackson. Cleveland won the World Series in 1920, led by center fielder and manager Tris Speaker and pitchers Jim Bagby and Stan Coveleski. During that season, Cleveland shortstop Ray Chapman died after being struck in the head by a pitch. Chapman is the only MLB player to have died from an injury suffered in a game. Batting helmets were commonly worn starting in the 1950’s, but they did not become mandatory for all MLB players until 1971.
Cleveland defeated the Boston Braves in the 1948 World Series. Cleveland stars included shortstop and manager Lou Boudreau, pitcher Bob Feller, and outfielder Larry Doby. In 1947, Doby had become the first African American player in the American League. The 1954 team won a then-American League record 111 games, but were swept in the World Series by the New York Giants. That Cleveland ball club featured such stars as Doby, second baseman Bobby Avila, third baseman Al Rosen, outfielder Al Smith, and first baseman Vic Wertz. The team had the league’s best pitching staff in Early Wynn, Bob Lemon, Mike Garcia, Art Houtteman, and Feller.
Loading the player...World Series 1948
Cleveland went more than 40 years before returning to the World Series in 1995. The team did produce a few stars during that period, notably slugging outfielder Rocky Colavito and pitcher Sam McDowell in the 1960’s, and pitchers Dennis Eckersley and Gaylord Perry in the 1970’s.
From 1932 to 1993, the team played home games at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, a cavernous ballpark with seating for more than 70,000 fans. The team moved to Jacobs Field (now called Progressive Field) in 1994 and soon became a dominant team in the league. The team reached the World Series in 1995, 1997, and 2016, but lost each time. Stars of those teams included outfielders Manny Ramirez, Kenny Lofton, and Albert Belle; infielders Francisco Lindor, José Ramírez, and Jim Thome; pitchers C. C. Sabathia and Corey Kluber; and catcher Sandy Alomar, Jr.
