Overall the Cleveland Indians have had some of the best teams and best players ever. Traditionally the Indians have possessed a staff of hard-hitting outfielders and fast ball artists. The 1954 Cleveland Indians team is highly regarded by many as one of the best of all time. The 1954 Indians team won a league record 111 games. This was due in part to a strong and dominating starting pitching staff. The main members of this pitching rotation were Hall of Fame right-handers Bob Feller, Bob Lemon, and Early Wynn.

The Cleveland Indians were the first American League team to integrate in the summer of 1947. This was just a mere few months after Jackie Robinson first debuted for the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Many consider the greatest player in Cleveland Indian's history to be Napoleon Lajoie. Napoleon is by far one of the game's all-time greats and a Hall of Famer. Lajoie is considered to be the first true American League star and was so adored by Cleveland that the team was known as the Naps during and after his playing days. The acquisition of Napoleon by Cleveland can be compared to the Babe Ruth trade in the sense that the Oakland Athletics owner/manager Connie Mack is considered to have perhaps made one of the greatest blunder in MLB history when he let Lajoie slip in the 1902 season. In the previous season Lajoie had hit an amazing .426 with a .643 SLG, and a .463 OBP. Napoleon also had 232 hits, scored 145 runs, and led the league with 14 home runs. Lajoie's magic continued in Cleveland when he had ten .300 seasons. His best year was a batting average of .384 in 1910 when he barely lost the batting title to Ty Cobb.

Others who do not consider Lajoie to be the best Cleveland Indians player in franchise history more than likely consider Tris Speaker to be. Speaker played with the Indians from 1916-1926 and he even managed them to their first World Series title in 1920. The left-handed batter began his career with the Red Sox, but as usual the Red Sox loved to hurt themselves when it came to trades just like the Babe Ruth fiasco. When it came to hitting, Tris Speaker is considered one of the top players in history. He possesses an amazing lifetime batting average of .345 which is one of the best in history. Furthermore, Tris even holds the all-time MLB record for doubles with 792 and his 3,514 hits are among the all-time leaders. Amazingly nine times he hit .350 or higher and collected more than 200 hits four times.

The Indians won the pennant in 1948 behind playing manager Lou Boudreau. In the World Series they defeated the Braves to win their second World Series title. The 1950s were very successful, largely due to the pitching staff. From 1951 to 1956 they finished 2nd five times and won the pennant with the great 1954 team. In the World Series the New York Giants pulled one of the greatest upsets in history, sweeping the Tribe.

From 1969 to 1993 the Cleveland Indians finished no higher than 4th place. The strike season of 1994 finally ended that curse when manager Mike Hargrove had the ammunition to win. The Cleveland Indians ended up winning every AL Central title from 1995 to 1999. They advanced to the World Series in 1995 and 1997 but came up short both times. Thus the Tribe still await their first championship since 1948. Only the Red Sox and White Sox suffer a longer drought among original AL franchises.

A new stadium and sellout after sellout made the Indians one of the most lucrative franchises in sports. In 2000 a poor start halted the Tribe's string of post-season appearances, but in 2001 the Indians returned, winning the AL Central behind their potent offense.

In the 2001 playoffs Cleveland had Seattle on the ropes but lost in a crushing Game Five loss. Rookie pitcher C.C. Sabathia and Bartolo Colon anchored an improving pitching stable, but Colon was sent to Montreal in 2002 as the Tribe began a rebuilding process. Veterans Manny Ramirez, Kenny Lofton, Travis Fryman, Roberto Alomar and Jim Thome were all dealt away by the start of the 2003 campaign, leaving Omar Vizquel and Sandy Alomar Jr. as the only remnants of the 1990s juggernaut.