The ho hum performance of the Cleveland Indians in the 2008 season landed them squarely in the middle of the AL Central, but they’ve made some important acquisitions in the offseason that make them the early favorites to win the division in the 2009 season. Relief pitcher Joe Smith was brought in to add depth to the bullpen, Kerry Wood has signed on as their closer (quite an improvement over the recently retired Joe Borowski) and they also picked up Mark DeRosa, a much better fit at third base than Casey Blake. The Cleveland Indians are sure to be in top form for the 2009 season, so if you want to catch them in action, get your tickets to Progressive Field today!

Starting Out

The Cleveland Indians became a charter member of the American League in 1901. It wasn’t until 1920 that they reached and won their first World Series. The Indians then went into another long draught, finishing as high as 2nd only twice over the next 27 years. All of that changed in 1948 when player-manager Lou Boudreau became the youngest Manager to win the World Series. The Indians remained competitive over the next few years even setting an American League record of 111 wins in 1954 that stood for 44 years.