1974 Cleveland Indians season


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.

Offseason

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.
Dick Bosman pitched a no-walk no-hitter against Oakland on July 19, winning 4-0. Only a throwing error kept Bosman from a perfect game.

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 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.
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.
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. 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

Notable transactions

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
PosPlayerGABHAvg.HRRBI
1B128477136.2851064
2B10131585.270230
LF140508123.242848

Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
PlayerGABHAvg.HRRBI
7923254.233525
5710922.202616
176722.32807
23313.09700

Pitching

Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
PlayerGIPWLERASO
37322.121132.51216
3625217122.9671
29152.29144.3652
25127.1754.1056
1143.1256.6020
419137.118

Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
PlayerGIPWLERASO

Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
PlayerGWLSVERASO
5126173.1940
412244.6733
324424.9335
161103.2116

Awards and honors

All-Stars

All-Star Game