Yes, we know that this is taking a while!

As many of you know, we at Notinhalloffame.com are slowly generating the top 50 of each major North American sports team. That being said, we have existing Top 50 lists and consistently look to update them when necessary and based on necessity. As such, we are delighted to present our post-2024 revision of our top 50 Cleveland Guardians.

As for all of our top 50 players in baseball, we look at the following: 

1.  Advanced Statistics.

2.  Traditional statistics and how they finished in the American League.

3.  Playoff accomplishments.

4.  Their overall impact on the team and other intangibles that are not reflected in a stat sheet.

Please note that our algorithm has changed, which yielded minor changes throughout the baseball lists.

Last year, the Guardians entered the season as a World Series contender, and competed in the American League Championship Series, losing to the New York Yankees in five.  There was one new entry, though that was based on the new algorithm.   There were also changes on the list, based on 2024.

As always, we present our top five, which had a major change based on the algorithm.

1. Nap Lajoie

2. Bob Feller

3. Tris Speaker

4. Lou Boudreau

5. Bob Lemon

You can find the entire list here.

On the top five, we have a brand new number one, based on our adjustments.  Nap Lajoie takes over the pole position.

Jose Ramirez made a significant jump from #13 to #7.   

Pitcher Shane Bieber remained at #47.

With the new algorithm, Catcher Steve O’Neill enters at #48.

We thank you for your continued support of our lists on Notinhalloffame.com.

Yes, we know that this is taking a while!

As many of you know, we here at Notinhalloffame.com are slowly generating the 50 of each major North American sports team.  That being said, we have existing Top 50 lists out and we always consistently look to update them when we can and based on necessity.  As such, we are very happy to present our post 2022/23 revision of our top 50 Cleveland Guardians.

As for all of our top 50 players in baseball we look at the following:

1.  Advanced Statistics.

2.  Traditional statistics and how they finished in Major League Baseball.

3.  Playoff accomplishments.

4.  Their overall impact on the team and other intangibles not reflected in a stat sheet.

Last year, the Guardians failed to make the playoffs and there were no new entries to the Top 50.  However, two players did see moderate elevations on the list.

As always, we present our top five, which saw no changes:

1. Bob Feller

2. Nap Lajoie

3. Tris Speaker

4. Lou Boudreau

5. Bob Lemon

You can find the entire list here.

Jose Ramirez climbed to #13 from #16 and Shane Bieber moved up from #49 to #47.

We thank you for your continued support for our lists on Notinhalloffame.com.

Yes, we know that this is taking a while!

As many of you know, we here at Notinhalloffame.com are slowly generating the 50 of each major North American sports team.  That being said, we have existing Top 50 lists out and we always consistently look to update them when we can and based on necessity.  As such, we are very happy to present our post 2022 revision of our top 50 Cleveland Guardians.

As for all of our top 50 players in baseball we look at the following:

1.  Advanced Statistics.

2.  Traditional statistics and how they finished in the American League.

3.  Playoff accomplishments.

4.  Their overall impact on the team and other intangibles not reflected in a stat sheet.

Last year, Cleveland had a great year, making the playoffs, and showing that they have a roster that could go deep this year.  This resulted in two changes, one new entrant, and one elevation.

As always, we present our top five, which was not affected by the last season:

1. Bob Feller

2. Nap Lajoie

3. Tris Speaker

4. Lou Boudreau

5. Bob Lemon

You can find the entire list here.

Slugger, Jose Ramirez, climbed to #16 from #21.

The lone new entry is 2020 Cy Young winner, Shane Bieber, who debuts at #49.

We welcome your input and comments and as always, we thank you for your support.

Yes, we know that this is taking a while!

As many of you know, we here at Notinhalloffame.com are slowly generating the 50 of each major North American sports team. We have a new one to unveil today, that of the Cleveland Indians.

The origin of the Cleveland Indians begins in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 1894, where they played in the Western League.  The franchise relocated in 1900, becoming the Cleveland Lake Shores, and eventually were an inaugural team of the American League, going through multiple name changes (Bluebirds, Broncos, Naps) before becoming the Indians for over a decade.

Cleveland would become a great sports town, but the baseball team has not given them very much to cheer for over the years.  The Indians have only won the World Series twice (1920 and 1948), with three other appearances.  

The team has announced that they will soon drop the Indians nickname, though as of this writing, it is not sure what they will change it to and when precisely it will take place.

Our Top 50 lists in baseball look at the following:

1.  Advanced Statistics.

2. Traditional statistics and how they finished in the American League.

3. Playoff accomplishments.

4. Their overall impact on the team and other intangibles not reflected in a stat sheet.

Remember, this is ONLY based on what a player does on that particular team and not what he accomplished elsewhere and also note that we have placed an increased importance on the first two categories.

This list is updated up until the end of the 2019 Season.

The complete list can be found here, but as always, we announce our top five in this article.  They are:

1. Bob Feller

2. Nap Lajoie

3. Tris Speaker

4. Lou Boudreau

5. Stan Coveleski

We will continue our adjustments on our existing lists and will continue developing our new lists.  

Look for our more material coming soon!

As always, we thank you for your support.

When Tris Speaker was traded to Cleveland in 1916, it was the result of a legendary insult. Despite batting .322, the Red Sox asked their superstar centerfielder to take a pay cut. Speaker’s refusal sent him to Cleveland, where he immediately set about dismantling American League pitching. In his debut season with the Indians, he proved his point with a thunderous campaign, capturing the 1916 Batting Title with a .386 average and leading the league in hits, doubles, and on-base percentage. He arrived as a disgruntled star and instantly became the premier face for a city hungry for a winner.

The peak of his residency saw Speaker revolutionize the way center field was played. Known as "The Gray Eagle," he played a notoriously shallow center field, so shallow that he frequently functioned as a fifth infielder, recording unassisted double plays and picking off runners at second base.  He remains the all-time Major League leader in doubles, with 486 of his 792 career two-baggers coming in a Cleveland uniform. From 1916 to 1925, Speaker never batted below .310, serving as the most consistent high-volume producer in the organization's history.

The pinnacle of his leadership came in 1919, when he assumed the title of player-manager. Under the shadow of the tragic on-field death of teammate Ray Chapman in 1920, Speaker displayed a high level of leadership that willed the Indians to their first World Series title. He was a cerebral architect of the game, managing the rotation and the lineup while still batting .388 himself. He was the rare dual-threat who could out-think the opposing manager while simultaneously out-hitting the opposing pitcher.

However, the final walk toward the exit in 1926 was marked by a sudden resignation. While still a productive player, Speaker stepped down from his managerial post and was subsequently released, finishing his journey with brief stints in Washington and Philadelphia. He left Cleveland as a statistical titan, accumulating 1,965 hits and an incredible .354 average for the franchise, a mark that remains nearly untouchable in the record books.

Tris Speaker was a first-ballot immortal in the eyes of the baseball world, entering Cooperstown in 1937. Cleveland rightfully included him in their inaugural Hall of Fame class in 1951, forever cementing the "Gray Eagle" as the man who proved that loyalty is a two-way street, and that Boston’s loss was Cleveland’s eternal gain. He arrived as a man with a point to prove and left as a permanent monument to excellence on the lakefront.

The Hall of Fame career of Tris Speaker began in Boston, where he debuted in 1907 and quickly entrenched himself as the starting center fielder by 1909. Known as the "Grey Eagle," Speaker revolutionized the position by playing an exceptionally shallow center field, a defensive innovation that allowed him to turn triples into outs and lead the league in outfield assists. Offensively, he was just as dominant, batting .309 in his first full season and embarking on a decade-long stretch where he became a fixture at the top of the American League leaderboards.

Speaker’s 1912 campaign stands as one of the greatest individual seasons in Red Sox history. That year, he batted a staggering .383 and led the American League in Doubles (53), Home Runs (10), and On-Base Percentage (.464). This rare power-and-patience profile earned him the AL MVP (Chalmers Award) and propelled Boston to a World Series Championship. His discipline was legendary; after 1910, Speaker never produced an OBP under .400 during his tenure in Boston.

Speaker was the engine behind two World Series titles in Boston (1912 and 1915), providing the clutch hitting and leadership that defined the franchise's early golden age. However, a contract dispute before the 1916 season led to a blockbuster trade to the Cleveland Indians, a transaction that Boston fans and historians would regret for generations. Despite the change of scenery, Speaker's impact on the Red Sox record books remained, leaving the city with 1,327 hits and an elite slash line of .337/.414/.482.

Speaker continued his assault on the record books in Cleveland, amassing another 1,965 hits and retiring as the all-time MLB leader in Doubles with 792, a record that still stands today. His defensive metrics were equally historic, as he remains the all-time leader in assists and double plays among center fielders. 

Inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1937 (with the formal ceremony in 1939), Speaker was also honored as a charter member of the Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame.