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The penultimate post in my month-long series:
#2: Cleveland Indians (2019 rank: #4)
The Indians jump up two spots to #2 in my rankings thanks to the Pirates' and Astros' falls from grace. For me, Cleveland isn't so much the Reds' rival (that Ohio Cup stuff is nonsense) but rather the Reds' "sister team" in the other league. I have no problem rooting for both teams (except during the aforementioned Ohio Cup when of course I root for Cincinnati). Heck, even the Reds and Indians teams seem to get along - both on the field and in the front office (as evidenced by their recent big trade last summer).
Another thing working in the Indians' favor is that one of the most fun times that I've ever had at a professional ballpark happened in Cleveland. It was a Reds vs. Indians game (Reds lost but that's okay). The fans all around us were super fun and I went with my dad (Reds fan) and friend (who rooted for the Indians). The game was a back and forth affair and everyone in the entire seating section seemed jovial and threw plenty of jokes/barbs back and forth. So much fun and it makes me wish all my ballpark experiences were that good (except ideally with the Reds winning instead).
That basically does it for my countdown of 2020 teams since we all know what the #1 team happens to be. That said, I'll still write a post (and give away another card) tomorrow so feel free to get another "free" guess in!
2020 Rankings:
#30: New York Yankees
#29: Boston Red Sox
#28: St. Louis Cardinals
#27: San Francisco Giants
#26: Washington Nationals
#25: Miami Marlins
#24: Chicago Cubs
#23: Milwaukee Brewers
#22: Houston Astros
#21: Pittsburgh Pirates
#20: Atlanta Braves
#19: Los Angeles Angels
#18: Los Angeles Dodgers
#17: Texas Rangers
#16: San Diego Padres
#15: Baltimore Orioles
#14: Colorado Rockies
#13: Kansas City Royals
#12: Toronto Blue Jays
#11: Oakland Athletics
#10: Chicago White Sox
#9: Minnesota Twins
#8: Philadelphia Phillies
#7: Arizona Diamondbacks
#6: Tampa Bay Rays
#5: Detroit Tigers
#4: New York Mets
#3: Seattle Mariners
#2: Cleveland Indians
#1: ??
Contest entries to date (see here for details):
31 John Sharp
31 P-Town Tom
28 bbcardz
22 hockey kazi
37 Brett Alan
29 Fuji
1 acrackedbat
1 Wilson
33 Matt
4 Trevor P.
1 friend11
1 Adam Kaningher
1 CrazieJoe
1 Brian
7 OhioTim
1 Jon
#2: Cleveland Indians (2019 rank: #4)
The Indians jump up two spots to #2 in my rankings thanks to the Pirates' and Astros' falls from grace. For me, Cleveland isn't so much the Reds' rival (that Ohio Cup stuff is nonsense) but rather the Reds' "sister team" in the other league. I have no problem rooting for both teams (except during the aforementioned Ohio Cup when of course I root for Cincinnati). Heck, even the Reds and Indians teams seem to get along - both on the field and in the front office (as evidenced by their recent big trade last summer).
Another thing working in the Indians' favor is that one of the most fun times that I've ever had at a professional ballpark happened in Cleveland. It was a Reds vs. Indians game (Reds lost but that's okay). The fans all around us were super fun and I went with my dad (Reds fan) and friend (who rooted for the Indians). The game was a back and forth affair and everyone in the entire seating section seemed jovial and threw plenty of jokes/barbs back and forth. So much fun and it makes me wish all my ballpark experiences were that good (except ideally with the Reds winning instead).
That basically does it for my countdown of 2020 teams since we all know what the #1 team happens to be. That said, I'll still write a post (and give away another card) tomorrow so feel free to get another "free" guess in!
2020 Rankings:
#30: New York Yankees
#29: Boston Red Sox
#28: St. Louis Cardinals
#27: San Francisco Giants
#26: Washington Nationals
#25: Miami Marlins
#24: Chicago Cubs
#23: Milwaukee Brewers
#22: Houston Astros
#21: Pittsburgh Pirates
#20: Atlanta Braves
#19: Los Angeles Angels
#18: Los Angeles Dodgers
#17: Texas Rangers
#16: San Diego Padres
#15: Baltimore Orioles
#14: Colorado Rockies
#13: Kansas City Royals
#12: Toronto Blue Jays
#11: Oakland Athletics
#10: Chicago White Sox
#9: Minnesota Twins
#8: Philadelphia Phillies
#7: Arizona Diamondbacks
#6: Tampa Bay Rays
#5: Detroit Tigers
#4: New York Mets
#3: Seattle Mariners
#2: Cleveland Indians
#1: ??
Contest entries to date (see here for details):
31 John Sharp
31 P-Town Tom
28 bbcardz
22 hockey kazi
37 Brett Alan
29 Fuji
1 acrackedbat
1 Wilson
33 Matt
4 Trevor P.
1 friend11
1 Adam Kaningher
1 CrazieJoe
1 Brian
7 OhioTim
1 Jon
Cleveland at #2, huh? Not a bad choice. I think they might be in my top 5 if I did this exercise.
ReplyDeleteThanks for all the reading material. It's been a fun countdown.
The Indians are A-Ok with me, because of the movie, Major League, and of course those awesome offensive teams they had back in the 90's.
ReplyDeleteAs a Tigers fan, the Tribe are definitely low on my list of teams.
ReplyDeleteSince the middle 90s the Indians must've easily won 65-70% of the games, or do it seems.
I did have the honor of meeting the greatest Indian of All-Time, Bob Feller, at a JAX Suns game back in the 1980s.
Being your Redlegs are #1, I'm thinking of the '75 World Series, still the best Fall Classic (not involving my '68/'84) Tigers, in my 54 years as a baseball fan.
Good Job! 👍
So glad to see the Indians ranked so high on your list. It is about the only love the Indians are getting this spring. I am still expecting big things from the boys of Cleveland this season. I think your number one team would be the Indians I-71 rival...the Cincinnati Reds. As anyone who has a favorite team in any sport, they would rank their team at the top of their list. Congrats on finishing your rankings. Already looking forward to your 2021 rankings.
ReplyDeleteLet's guess the Reds
ReplyDeleteI will take the free guess here and guess the Reds.
ReplyDeleteI never much cared for the Indians. The color scheme never appealed to me. I suppose the teams have often not been very relevant, and some of their stars weren't so likeable (Albert Belle, for instance). And although my feelings were probably formed long before I became aware of the issue, I don't like the way they held onto Chief Wahoo long after it was clear that many Native people were offended by it. Oh, and wearing the navy uniforms throughout the 2016 World Series...no respect for tradition!
ReplyDeleteAs for next time...wait, you mean your URL doesn't mean "Fan O' Freds"? Who knew? Poor Fred. Guess it's the Reds then!
Because the Indians are in the American League, I don't really pay much attention to the Indians, except for Indians baseball cards. I do think it would be pretty cool to visit Cleveland. It would be even better to go see a Dodger game in Cleveland.
ReplyDeleteI'll take a wild guess and predict Cincinnati is up next.
My first MLB game was in Cleveland's old stadium. I got to watch Roger Clemens win his 20th game of the year (1990 - the last time he would win 20 for the Red Sox). The Indians also earn points for their manager Terry Francona! Sadly, we must see this fun series end with your write up on the Reds!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the freebie
ReplyDelete