1974 Cleveland Indians season

March 2026 November 2013 The 1974 Cleveland Indians season was the team's 74th season in Major League Baseball. It involved the Indians competing in the American League East, where they finished fourth with a record of 77–85. Cleveland Indians 1974 American League East Cleveland Municipal Stadium Cleveland, Ohio Nick Mileti Phil Seghi Ken Aspromonte WJW-TV WWWE (1100) Offseason December 12, 1973: Roger Freed was traded by the Indians to the Cincinnati Reds for Steve Blateric.Roger Freed Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/f/freedro01.shtml 2024-09-05 Baseball-Reference.com en March 19, 1974: Walt Williams and Rick Sawyer were traded by the Indians to the New York Yankees as part of a 3-team trade. The Detroit Tigers sent Jim Perry to the Indians. The Yankees sent Jerry Moses to the Tigers. The Tigers sent Ed Farmer to the Yankees.Walt Williams Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/w/williwa02.shtml 2024-09-05 Baseball-Reference.com en March 28, 1974: Mike Kekich was released by the Cleveland Indians.Mike Kekich Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/k/kekicmi01.shtml 2024-09-05 Baseball-Reference.com en Regular season During the season, Gaylord Perry became the last pitcher to win at least 20 games in one season for the Indians in the 20th century.Nemec David Great Baseball Feats, Facts and Firsts (2008 Edition) Flatow Scott 2008-04-01 SIGNET 978-0-451-22363-0 Expanded, Updated 99 Dick Bosman pitched a no-walk no-hitter against Oakland on July 19, winning 4–0. Only a throwing error by Bosman himself kept it from being a perfect game.https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CLE/CLE197407190.shtml Oakland Athletics at Cleveland Indians Box Score, July 19, 1974 Baseball-Reference.com en 2019-08-17 Ten Cent Beer Night Ten Cent Beer Night was an ill-fated promotion held by the American League's Cleveland Indians during a game against the Texas Rangers at Cleveland Municipal Stadium on June 4, 1974. The idea behind the promotion was to offer as many eight-ounce (237 mL) cups of Stroh's beer as the fans could drink for just 10¢ apiece, thus increasing ticket sales. However, the stunt also had the effect of slowly turning the calm and orderly baseball fans into a rowdy and raucous crowd devoid of inhibition. The game had a special significance for both clubs, as there had been a bench-clearing brawl in a Rangers/Indians game one week earlier at Arlington Stadium in Texas, during a "cheap beer night" there. Smiley Bobby Another Mistake By The Lake July 30, 2004 http://www.artmuck.com/archive/2004/07/another_mistake.html August 11, 2006 https://web.archive.org/web/20060713010334/http://www.artmuck.com/archive/2004/07/another_mistake.html July 13, 2006 dead In Texas, the trouble had started in the bottom of the fourth inning with a walk to the Rangers' Tom Grieve, followed by a Lenny Randle single. The next batter hit a double play ball to Indians third baseman John Lowenstein; he stepped on the third base bag to retire Grieve and threw the ball to second base, but Randle disrupted the play with a hard slide into second baseman Jack Brohamer. The Indians retaliated in the bottom of the eighth when pitcher Milt Wilcox threw behind Randle's head. Randle eventually laid down a bunt. When Wilcox attempted to field it and tag Randle out, Randle hit him with a forearm. Indians first baseman John Ellis responded by punching Randle, and both benches emptied for a brawl. During the melee, the intoxicated crowd became rowdy and threw beer on the Indians' players. Six days later, the Ten Cent Beer Night promotion induced over 25,000 fans to come to Municipal Stadium for the Rangers/Indians game. Early in the game, the Rangers took a 5–1 lead. Meanwhile, throughout the contest, the crowd in attendance continually misbehaved. A woman ran out to the Indians' on-deck circle and lifted her shirt and a naked man sprinted to second base as Grieve hit his second home run of the game. A father and son pair ran onto the outfield and mooned the fans in the bleachers one inning later.Robinson James G 10-Cent Beer Night http://www.baseballlibrary.com/baseballlibrary/features/flashbacks/06_04_1974.stm August 11, 2006 https://web.archive.org/web/20060813045158/http://www.baseballlibrary.com/baseballlibrary/features/flashbacks/06_04_1974.stm August 13, 2006 dead The ugliness escalated when Cleveland's Leron Lee hit a line drive into the stomach of Rangers pitcher Ferguson Jenkins, after which Jenkins dropped to the ground. The fans in the upper deck of Municipal Stadium cheered, then chanted "Hit 'em again! Hit 'em again! Harder! Harder!" The Rangers later argued a call in which Lee was called safe in a close play at third base, spiking Jenkins with his cleats in the process and forcing him to leave the game. The Rangers angry response to this call enraged Cleveland fans, who again began throwing objects onto the field. In the bottom of the ninth, the Indians managed to rally and tie the game at five runs apiece, but with a crowd that had been consuming as much alcohol as it could for nine innings, the situation finally boiled over. After Texas outfielder Jeff Burroughs violently reacted to a fan stealing his glove and cap, the Texas players, led by manager Billy Martin, charged onto the field with bats. A huge number of intoxicated fans, some armed with knives, chains, and portions of stadium seats that they had torn apart, surged onto the field; others hurled bottles from the stands. Realizing the Rangers might be in danger of their lives, Ken Aspromonte, the Indians' manager, ordered his players to grab bats and help the Rangers. As a result, umpire crew chief Nestor Chylak, realizing that order would not be restored in a timely fashion, forfeited the game to Texas. He too was a victim of the rioters as one struck him with part of a stadium seat, cutting his head. Johnson Scot This Week in Baseball History: Ten Cent Beer Night June 6, 2006 http://coffeyvillewhirlwind.wordpress.com/2006/06/06/this-week-in-baseball-history-ten-cent-beer-night/ August 11, 2006 His hand was also cut by a thrown rock. As Joe Tait and Herb Score called the riot live on radio, Score mentioned the lack of police protection; a riot squad from the Cleveland police department finally arrived to restore order. Season standings Record vs. opponents CLE Notable transactions April 1, 1974: Rich Hinton was released by the Indians.Rich Hinton Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/h/hintori01.shtml 2024-09-05 Baseball-Reference.com en April 26, 1974: Chris Chambliss, Dick Tidrow and Cecil Upshaw were traded by the Indians to the New York Yankees for Fritz Peterson, Steve Kline, Fred Beene, and Tom Buskey.Chris Chambliss Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/c/chambch01.shtml 2024-09-05 Baseball-Reference.com en June 5, 1974: Joe Lis was purchased by the Indians from the Minnesota Twins.Joe Lis Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/l/lisjo01.shtml 2024-09-05 Baseball-Reference.com en August 17, 1974: Rico Carty was purchased by the Indians from the Cafeteros de Córdoba (Mexican League).Rico Carty Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/c/cartyri01.shtml 2024-09-05 Baseball-Reference.com en September 12, 1974: Ken Suarez, Rusty Torres, and cash were traded by the Indians to the California Angels for Frank Robinson.Frank Robinson Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/r/robinfr02.shtml 2024-09-05 Baseball-Reference.com en Opening Day Lineup +Opening Day Starters # Name Position29 John Lowenstein LF23 Oscar Gamble DH20 George Hendrick CF7 John Ellis C24 Charlie Spikes RF14 Chris Chambliss 1B25 Buddy Bell 3B15 Frank Duffy SS4 Remy Hermoso 2B 36 Gaylord Perry P Cleveland Indians vs New York Yankees Box Score: April 6, 1974 https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYA/NYA197404060.shtml 2024-09-05 Baseball-Reference.com en Roster 1974 Cleveland Indians Roster Pitchers 41 Steve Arlin 47 Fred Beene 27 Dick Bosman 35 Tom Buskey 13 Bruce Ellingsen 32 Bill Gogolewski 40 Tom Hilgendorf 32 Bob Johnson 34 Jim Kern 38 Steve Kline 36 Gaylord Perry 31 Jim Perry 16 Fritz Peterson 47 Ken Sanders 41 Dick Tidrow 39 Tom Timmermann 35 Cecil Upshaw 43 Milt Wilcox Catchers  8 Alan Ashby 11 Dave Duncan Infielders 17 Luis Alvarado 52 Dwain Anderson 25 Buddy Bell 18 Ossie Blanco 10 Jack Brohamer  9 Rico Carty 14 Chris Chambliss 12 Ed Crosby 15 Frank Duffy  7 John Ellis 17 Jack Heidemann  4 Remy Hermoso 18 Duane Kuiper 30 Joe Lis 14 Tommy McCraw 20 Frank Robinson Outfielders 23 Oscar Gamble 20 George Hendrick 42 Johnny Jeter 22 Leron Lee 29 John Lowenstein 26 Tommy Smith 24 Charlie Spikes 28 Rusty Torres Other batters  9 Larry Johnson Manager  2 Ken Aspromonte Coaches  3 Clay Bryant (Pitching)  6 Larry Doby (First Base) 21 Tony Pacheco (Third Base) Game log Regular season Cleveland Indians 1974 regular season game log: 77–85 (Home: 40–41; Away: 37–44)https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CLE/1974-schedule-scores.shtml 1974 Cleveland Indians schedule and results Baseball Reference April 10, 2026 y Cleveland Indians April: 10–11 (Home: 7–4; Away: 3–7) # Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Win Loss Save Time of Game Attendance Record Box/Streak |- style="background:#bfb;" | 15 || April 23, 1974 || 1:00p.m. EST || Athletics || 2–1 || G. Perry (2–1) || Hunter (3–1) || — || 2:08 || 1,405 || 5–10 || W1 |- style="background:#fbb;" | 16 || April 24, 1974 || 1:00p.m. EST || Athletics || 2–9 || Holtzman (1–1) || Tidrow (1–3) || — || 2:47 || 1,564 || 5–11 || L1 |- y Cleveland Indians May: 12–14 (Home: 4–6; Away: 8–8) # Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Win Loss Save Time of Game Attendance Record Box/Streak |- style="background:#fbb;" | 22 || May 3, 1974 || 11:00p.m. EDT || @ Athletics || 1–3 || Holtzman (2–3) || J. Perry (2–2) || Fingers (2) || 1:43 || 4,460 || 10–12 || L1 |- style="background:#bfb;" | 23 || May 4, 1974 || 4:30p.m. EDT || @ Athletics || 8–2 || G. Perry (4–1) || Blue (0–4) || — || 2:22 || 4,884 || 11–12 || W1 |- style="background:#fbb;" | 24 || May 5, 1974 (1) || 4:30p.m. EDT || @ Athletics || 0–3 || Hunter (5–2) || Kline (3–3) || — || 1:49 || — || 11–13 || L1 |- style="background:#bfb;" | 25 || May 5, 1974 (2) || 6:44p.m. EDT || @ Athletics || 9–3 || Johnson (1–2) || Odom (0–2) || Buskey (2) || 2:25 || 10,100 || 12–13 || W1 |- y Cleveland Indians June: 16–9 (Home: 9–7; Away: 7–2) # Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Win Loss Save Time of Game Attendance Record Box/Streak |- y Cleveland Indians July: 14–15 (Home: 8–8; Away: 6–7) # Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Win Loss Save Time of Game Attendance Record Box/Streak |- style="background:#fbb;" | 80 || July 8, 1974 || 11:00p.m. EDT || @ Athletics || 3–4 (10) || Blue (9–8) || G. Perry (15–2) || — || 2:34 || 47,582 || 45–36 || L1 |- style="background:#fbb;" | 81 || July 9, 1974 || 11:00p.m. EDT || @ Athletics || 0–7 || Hunter (12–8) || Arlin (3–10) || — || 2:01 || 6,655 || 45–37 || L2 |- style="background:#fbb;" | 89 || July 18, 1974 || 7:30p.m. EDT || Athletics || 3–4 || Hunter (14–8) || G. Perry (15–3) || — || 2:19 || 41,848 || 46–43 || L6 |- style="background:#bfb;" | 90 || July 19, 1974 || 7:30p.m. EDT || Athletics || 4–0 || Bosman (2–0) || Hamilton (6–3) || — || 1:56 || 24,302 || 47–43 || W1 |- style="background:#bfb;" | 91 || July 20, 1974 || 2:15p.m. EDT || Athletics || 10–9 || Hilgendorf (2–2) || Fingers (7–3) || — || 3:09 || 19,126 || 48–43 || W2 |- style="background:#fbb;" | 92 || July 21, 1974 || 1:30p.m. EDT || Athletics || 3–6 || Blue (11–9) || J. Perry (9–8) || Lindblad (5) || 2:32 || 40,368 || 48–44 || L1 |- style="text-align:center; background:#bbcaff;" | ASG || July 23, 1974 || 8:15p.m. EDT || 45th All-Star Game in Pittsburgh, PA || 7 – 2 AL || — || — || — || 2:37 || 50,706 || — || ASG |- y Cleveland Indians August: 13–16 (Home: 6–7; Away: 7–9) # Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Win Loss Save Time of Game Attendance Record Box/Streak |- y Cleveland Indians September: 11–19 (Home: 6–9; Away: 5–10) # Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Win Loss Save Time of Game Attendance Record Box/Streak |- y Cleveland Indians October: 1–1 (Home: 0–0; Away: 1–1) # Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Win Loss Save Time of Game Attendance Record Box/Streak |- |- style="text-align:center;" | Legend:      #cfc darkgray = Win      #fbb darkgray = Loss      #933 darkgray = Eliminated from playoff race      #bbb darkgray = Postponement     Bold = Indians team member Detailed records American League Opponent Home Away Total Pct. Runs scored Runs allowed AL East Cleveland Indians — — — — — — Division Total 0–0 0–0 0–0 0 0 0 0 AL West Oakland Athletics 3–3 2–4 5–7 5 7 44 50 Division Total 3–3 2–4 5–7 5 7 44 50 Season Total 3–3 2–4 5–7 5 7 44 50 Player stats Batting Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; AVG = Batting average; SB = Stolen bases Player G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI AVG SB Luis Alvarado 61 114 12 25 2 0 0 12 .219 1 Dwain Anderson 2 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 .333 0 Alan Ashby 10 7 1 1 0 0 0 0 .143 0 Buddy Bell 116 423 51 111 15 1 7 46 .262 3 Ossie Blanco 18 36 1 7 0 0 0 2 .194 0 Jack Brohamer 101 315 33 85 11 1 2 30 .270 2 Rico Carty 33 91 6 33 5 0 1 16 .363 0 Chris Chambliss 17 67 8 22 4 0 0 7 .328 0 Ed Crosby 37 86 11 18 3 0 0 6 .209 0 Frank Duffy Frank Duffy (baseball) 158 549 62 128 18 0 8 48 .233 7 Dave Duncan Dave Duncan (baseball) 136 425 45 85 10 1 16 46 .200 0 John Ellis John Ellis (baseball) 128 477 58 136 23 6 10 64 .285 1 Oscar Gamble 135 454 74 132 16 4 19 59 .291 5 Jack Heidemann 12 11 2 1 0 0 0 0 .091 0 George Hendrick 139 495 65 138 23 1 19 67 .279 6 Remy Hermoso 48 122 15 27 3 1 0 5 .221 2 Johnny Jeter Johnny Jeter (baseball) 6 17 3 6 1 0 0 1 .353 1 Duane Kuiper 10 22 7 11 2 0 0 4 .500 1 Leron Lee 79 232 18 54 13 0 5 25 .233 3 Joe Lis 57 109 15 22 3 0 6 16 .202 1 John Lowenstein 140 508 65 123 14 2 8 48 .242 36 Tommy McCraw 45 112 17 34 8 0 3 17 .304 0 Frank Robinson 15 50 6 10 1 1 2 5 .200 0 Tommy Smith Tommy Smith (baseball) 25 31 4 3 1 0 0 0 .097 0 Charlie Spikes 155 568 63 154 23 1 22 80 .271 10 Rusty Torres 109 150 19 28 2 0 3 12 .187 2 Team totals 162 5474 662 1395 201 19 131 616 .255 79 Pitching Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; H = Hits allowed; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed Player W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER BB K Steve Arlin 2 5 6.60 11 10 0 43.2 59 34 33 22 20 Fred Beene 4 4 4.93 32 0 2 73.0 68 44 40 26 35 Dick Bosman 7 5 4.10 25 18 0 127.1 126 69 58 29 56 Tom Buskey 2 6 3.19 51 0 17 93.0 93 36 33 33 40 Bruce Ellingsen 1 1 3.21 16 2 0 42.0 45 21 15 17 16 Bill Gogolewski 0 0 4.61 5 0 0 13.2 15 7 7 2 3 Tom Hilgendorf 4 3 4.84 35 0 3 48.1 58 26 26 17 23 Bob Johnson Bob Johnson (pitcher) 3 4 4.38 14 10 0 72.0 75 42 35 37 36 Jim Kern 0 1 4.70 4 3 0 15.1 16 9 8 14 11 Steve Kline Steve Kline (right-handed pitcher) 3 8 5.07 16 11 0 71.0 70 44 40 31 17 Gaylord Perry 21 13 2.51 37 37 0 322.1 230 98 90 99 216 Jim Perry Jim Perry (baseball) 17 12 2.96 36 36 0 252.0 242 94 83 64 71 Fritz Peterson 9 14 4.36 29 29 0 152.2 187 89 74 37 52 Ken Sanders Ken Sanders (baseball) 0 1 9.82 9 0 1 11.0 21 12 12 5 4 Dick Tidrow 1 3 7.11 4 4 0 19.0 21 17 15 13 8 Tom Timmermann 1 1 5.40 4 0 0 10.0 9 6 6 5 2 Cecil Upshaw 0 1 3.38 7 0 0 8.0 10 4 3 4 7 Milt Wilcox 2 2 4.67 41 2 4 71.1 74 42 37 24 33 Team totals 77 85 3.80 162 162 27 1445.2 1419 694 611 479 650 Awards and honors All-Stars All-Star Game George Hendrick, reserve Gaylord Perry, pitcher, starter Farm system Minor League Baseball AAA Oklahoma City 89ers American Association Red Davis AA San Antonio Brewers Texas League Woody Smith A Reno Silver Sox California League Joe Azcue and Del Youngblood Rookie GCL Indians Gulf Coast League Wilfredo CalviñoJohnson Lloyd Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball Wolff Miles Baseball America 2007 978-1-93-239117-6 3rd Durham, North Carolina Notes 2 References 1974 Cleveland Indians team page at Baseball Reference 1974 Cleveland Indians team page at www.baseball-almanac.com Category:Cleveland Guardians seasons Cleveland Indians season Cincinnati Indians Category:1970s in Cleveland