Cleveland Indians Baseball Company Limited Partnership history

In 1889 Cleveland fielded another NL team: the CLEVELAND SPIDERS, owned by Frank Robison and his brother, Stanley, who together owned and operated the horse-drawn trolley system in Cleveland.

Led by a local farm boy named DENTON TRUE "CY" YOUNG, the Spiders won the 1895 Temple Cup by defeating the Baltimore Orioles in 4 of 5 playoff games; they lost the cup to Baltimore in 4 straight games the following year.

In 1910 the Cleveland Amateur Baseball Assn. was formed to bring greater organization to amateur baseball in the area.

When Somers' finances soured, Lajoie was traded away after the 1914 season, and a new name for the team was needed.

In 1916 when Somers was in danger of losing the Indians to the bank, American League President Ban Johnson and a few of Somers' friends met at a Chicago bar to discuss the situation.

1920: Indians win first World Series.

Businessman and president of the Cleveland Chamber of Commerce, Alva Bradley became the front man for a group of investors that bought the team in 1928.

A new era for Indians baseball arrived in 1936 with the debut of Bob Feller, who made his first major-league start on 23 Aug.

In 1938 the amateur sport received a boost when night sandlot baseball was introduced.

Behind Feller's pitching exploits, the Indians were exciting and competitive, finishing the 1940 season just 1 game out of first place.

Following the 1941 season, the Indians were once again in need of a new manager.

The 'Boy Manager' took over the team in 1942 and wasted no time in showing that he had a lot to learn.

On June 21, 1946 the club was sold for $1.6 million to Bill Veeck, Jr., as part of a ten-member syndicate.

Robinson, who was 28, had been prepared for Brooklyn by playing a year with the Dodgers' minor league team in Montreal, as well as going through spring training in 1947; but two days after signing, Dolby was playing for the Indians.

Although the Indians would remain one of the top teams in the American League for the next several seasons, 1948 would prove to be the pinnacle of achievement for the Cleveland Indians in the twentieth century.

After the 1949 season Veeck was sued for divorce by his wife and was forced to sell the team to pay for the settlement.

The team advanced to its first World Series since 1954, but lost to the Atlanta Braves.

1956 local businessmen William R. Daley and Ignatius A. O'Shaughnessy bought the Tribe for $3.96 million.

Despite the addition of new stars such as Herb Score and Rocky Colavito, performance and attendance lagged: in 1959 attendance dropped below 1 million for the first time since Veeck had come on the scene.

1962; a 19-man syndicate that included VERNON STOUFFER, Thomas J. Burke, F. J. O'Neill, and Gabe Paul paid $6 million for the team.

1966; the team was then valued at $8 million.

In March 1972 Stouffer sold the Indians for $9.7 million to a group of local investors headed by Nick Mileti.

During these years, the Indians could boast of one achievement, at least: in 1974 it became the first major league team to hire an African-American manager, Frank Robinson.

By 1985 talk of moving the team resurfaced, countered by new proposals for a domed stadium; the team finished the year in last place (60-102), and its debt had grown to more than $11 million.

A New Beginning in 1986

Although the Indians moved to Jacobs Field in the new Gateway sports complex for the 1994 season, major league baseball was halted 12 Aug. by a players' strike.

Satisfied, the major league players returned for spring training and the start of the 1995 baseball season was delayed until 25 April.

In 1997 they lost the World Series to the Florida Marlins in the bottom of the eleventh inning of game seven.

Broadcast revenues for 1998 were only $19 million, compared to the Yankees' $50 million.

In November 1999 the club announced that the team had been sold for $323 million to Ohio lawyer Lawrence J. Dolan.