1998 Cleveland Indians season
The 1998 Cleveland Indians season was the franchise's 98th season. The Indians hoped to improve upon their American League pennant-winning season of 1997, but succumbed to the New York Yankees in the ALCS in six games. The Indians would lead the AL Central wire-to-wire in 1998, becoming the first team in franchise history (and as of 2020, the only team in franchise history) to do so.
1998 Cleveland Indians | |
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AL Central Champions | |
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Location | |
Other information | |
Owner(s) | Richard Jacobs |
General manager(s) | John Hart |
Manager(s) | Mike Hargrove |
Local television | WUAB Jack Corrigan, Mike Hegan FSN Ohio John Sanders, Rick Manning |
Local radio | WKNR (1220 AM) Tom Hamilton, Dave Nelson, Matt Underwood, Mike Hegan |
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Offseason
- November 12, 1997: Paul Assenmacher was signed as a Free Agent with the Cleveland Indians.[1]
- December 1, 1997: Matt Williams was traded by the Cleveland Indians to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Travis Fryman, Tom Martin, and cash.[2]
- December 8, 1997: Kenny Lofton signed as a Free Agent with the Cleveland Indians.
- December 8, 1997: Marquis Grissom was traded by the Cleveland Indians with Jeff Juden to the Milwaukee Brewers for Mike Fetters, Ben McDonald, and Ron Villone.
- December 8, 1997: Dwight Gooden signed as a Free Agent with the Cleveland Indians.
- December 20, 1997: Dave Weathers was selected off waivers by the Cincinnati Reds from the Cleveland Indians.[3]
Regular season
Season standings
AL Central | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
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Cleveland Indians | 89 | 73 | 0.549 | — | 46–35 | 43–38 |
Chicago White Sox | 80 | 82 | 0.494 | 9 | 44–37 | 36–45 |
Kansas City Royals | 72 | 89 | 0.447 | 16½ | 29–51 | 43–38 |
Minnesota Twins | 70 | 92 | 0.432 | 19 | 35–46 | 35–46 |
Detroit Tigers | 65 | 97 | 0.401 | 24 | 32–49 | 33–48 |
Record vs. opponents
1998 American League Records Sources: | |||||||||||||||
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Team | ANA | BAL | BOS | CWS | CLE | DET | KC | MIN | NYY | OAK | SEA | TB | TEX | TOR | NL |
Anaheim | — | 5–6 | 6–5 | 5–6 | 4–7 | 8–3 | 6–5 | 6–5 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 9–3 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 4–7 | 10–6 |
Baltimore | 6–5 | — | 6–6 | 2–9 | 5–6 | 10–1 | 5–6 | 7–3 | 3–9 | 8–3 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 5–11 |
Boston | 5–6 | 6–6 | — | 5–6 | 8–3 | 5–5 | 8–3 | 5–6 | 5–7 | 9–2 | 7–4 | 9–3 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 9–7 |
Chicago | 6–5 | 9–2 | 6–5 | — | 6–6 | 6–6 | 8–4 | 6–6 | 4–7 | 4–7 | 4–7 | 5–6 | 5–6 | 4–6–1 | 7–9 |
Cleveland | 7–4 | 6–5 | 3–8 | 6–6 | — | 9–3 | 8–4 | 6–6 | 4–7 | 3–8 | 9–2 | 7–3 | 4–7 | 7–4 | 10–6 |
Detroit | 3–8 | 1–10 | 5–5 | 6–6 | 3–9 | — | 6–6 | 8–4 | 3–8 | 7–4 | 3–8 | 5–6 | 3–8 | 5–6 | 7–9 |
Kansas City | 5–6 | 6–5 | 3–8 | 4–8 | 4–8 | 6–6 | — | 7–5 | 0–10 | 7–4 | 4–6 | 8–3 | 3–8 | 6–5 | 9–7 |
Minnesota | 5–6 | 3–7 | 6–5 | 6–6 | 6–6 | 4–8 | 5–7 | — | 4–7 | 4–7 | 2–9 | 7–4 | 7–4 | 4–7 | 7–9 |
New York | 5–6 | 9–3 | 7–5 | 7–4 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 10–0 | 7–4 | — | 8–3 | 8–3 | 11–1 | 8–3 | 6–6 | 13–3 |
Oakland | 7–5 | 3–8 | 2–9 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 4–7 | 4–7 | 7–4 | 3–8 | — | 5–7 | 5–6 | 6–6 | 5–6 | 8–8 |
Seattle | 3–9 | 5–6 | 4–7 | 7–4 | 2–9 | 8–3 | 6–4 | 9–2 | 3–8 | 7–5 | — | 6–5 | 5–7 | 4–7 | 7–9 |
Tampa Bay | 5–6 | 7–5 | 3–9 | 6–5 | 3–7 | 6–5 | 3–8 | 4–7 | 1–11 | 6–5 | 5–6 | — | 4–7 | 5–7 | 5–11 |
Texas | 7–5 | 5–6 | 5–6 | 6–5 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 8–3 | 4–7 | 3–8 | 6–6 | 7–5 | 7–4 | — | 7–4 | 8–8 |
Toronto | 7–4 | 7–5 | 7–5 | 6–4–1 | 4–7 | 6–5 | 5–6 | 7–4 | 6–6 | 6–5 | 7–4 | 7–5 | 4–7 | — | 9–7 |
Transactions
- April 14, 1998: David Bell was selected off waivers by the Cleveland Indians from the St. Louis Cardinals.[4]
- May 6, 1998: Mark Whiten was signed as a Free Agent with the Cleveland Indians.[5]
- June 2, 1998: C.C. Sabathia was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 1st round (20th pick) of the 1998 amateur draft. Player signed June 29, 1998.[6]
- July 2, 1998: Rex Hudler was signed as a Free Agent with the Cleveland Indians.[7]
- August 13, 1998: Cecil Fielder signed as a Free Agent with the Cleveland Indians.[8]
- August 31, 1998: David Bell was traded by the Cleveland Indians to the Seattle Mariners for Joey Cora.[4]
- September 18, 1998: Cecil Fielder was released by the Cleveland Indians.[8]
Roster
Game log
1998 Game Log: 89–73 (Home: 46–35; Away: 43–38) | ||||||||||
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March: 1–0 (Home: 0–0; Away: 1–0)
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April: 13–12 (Home: 6–7; Away: 7–5)
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May: 18–10 (Home: 10–3; Away: 8–7)
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June: 14–12 (Home: 7–8; Away: 7–4)
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July: 16–12 (Home: 7–6; Away: 9–6)
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August: 13–15 (Home: 8–7; Away: 5–8)
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September: 14–12 (Home: 8–4; Away: 6–8)
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Legend: = Win = Loss = Postponement Bold = Indians team member |
Player stats
Batting
Starters by position
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; R = Runs; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; Avg. = Batting average; Slg. = Slugging average; SB = Stolen bases
Pos. | Player | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | Avg. | Slg. | SB |
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C | Sandy Alomar Jr. | 117 | 409 | 45 | 96 | 6 | 44 | .235 | .352 | 0 |
1B | Jim Thome | 123 | 440 | 89 | 129 | 30 | 85 | .293 | .584 | 1 |
2B | David Bell | 107 | 340 | 37 | 89 | 10 | 41 | .262 | .424 | 0 |
3B | Travis Fryman | 146 | 557 | 74 | 160 | 28 | 96 | .287 | .504 | 10 |
SS | Omar Vizquel | 151 | 576 | 86 | 166 | 2 | 50 | .288 | .372 | 37 |
LF | Brian Giles | 112 | 350 | 56 | 94 | 16 | 66 | .269 | .460 | 10 |
CF | Kenny Lofton | 154 | 600 | 101 | 169 | 12 | 64 | .282 | .413 | 54 |
RF | Manny Ramirez | 150 | 571 | 108 | 168 | 45 | 145 | .294 | .599 | 5 |
DH | David Justice | 146 | 540 | 94 | 151 | 21 | 88 | .280 | .476 | 9 |
Other batters
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
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Pitching
Starting pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
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Other pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
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Relief pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
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Award winners
Minor league affiliates
Classification level | Team | League | Season article |
---|---|---|---|
AAA | Buffalo Bisons | International League | 1998 Buffalo Bisons season |
AA | Akron Aeros | Eastern League | 1998 Akron Aeros season |
Advanced A | Kinston Indians | Carolina League | |
A | Columbus RedStixx | South Atlantic League | |
A-Short Season | Watertown Indians | New York–Penn League | |
Rookie | Burlington Indians | Appalachian League |
References
- https://www.baseball-reference.com/a/assenpa01.shtml
- Matt Williams Statistics Baseball-Reference.com
- https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/w/weathda01.shtml
- https://www.baseball-reference.com/b/bellda01.shtml
- Mark Whiten Statistics Baseball-Reference.com
- C.C. Sabathia Statistics Baseball-Reference.com
- https://www.baseball-reference.com/h/hudlere01.shtml
- Cecil Fielder Statistics Baseball-Reference.com
- https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SEA/1998.shtml
- 1998 Cleveland Indians at Baseball Reference
- 1998 Cleveland Indians at Baseball Almanac