View source for 1953 Cleveland Indians season

{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2013}}
{{Infobox baseball team season
| name = Cleveland Indians
| season = 1953
| misc = 
| league = American League
| ballpark = [[Cleveland Stadium|Cleveland Municipal Stadium]]
| city = [[Cleveland, Ohio]]
| owners = [[Myron H. Wilson]]
| general_managers = [[Hank Greenberg]]
| managers = [[Al López]]
| television = [[WJW (TV)|WXEL]]<br>([[Bob Neal (Cleveland sportscaster)|Bob Neal]], [[Red Jones (umpire)|Red Jones]])
| radio = [[WJMO|WERE]]<br>([[Jack Graney]], [[Jimmy Dudley]])
|}}
The '''1953 [[Cleveland Indians]] season''' was a season in American [[baseball]]. The team finished second in the [[American League]] with a record of 92–62, {{frac|8|1|2}} games behind the [[1953 New York Yankees season|New York Yankees]].

== Offseason ==
* December 11, 1952: [[Earl Averill, Jr.]] was signed as an amateur free agent by the Indians.<ref>[https://www.baseball-reference.com/a/averiea02.shtml Earl Averill, Jr.] at ''Baseball-Reference''</ref>

== Regular season ==
[[Al Rosen]] became the first third baseman in the history of the American League to win the MVP Award.<ref>''Great Baseball Feats, Facts and Figures'', 2008 Edition, p. 152, David Nemec and Scott Flatow, A Signet Book, Penguin Group, New York, {{ISBN|978-0-451-22363-0}}</ref>

=== Season standings ===
{{1953 American League standings}}

=== Record vs. opponents ===
{{1953 AL Record vs. opponents|team=CLE}}

=== Notable transactions ===
* May 1953: [[Brooks Lawrence]] was acquired from the Indians by the [[Cincinnati Reds]].<ref>[https://www.baseball-reference.com/l/lawrebr01.shtml Brooks Lawrence] at ''Baseball-Reference''</ref>
* June 15, 1953: [[Ray Boone]], [[Al Aber]], [[Steve Gromek]], and [[Dick Weik]] were traded by the Indians to the [[Detroit Tigers]] for [[Art Houtteman]], [[Owen Friend]], [[Bill Wight]], and [[Joe Ginsberg]].<ref>[https://www.baseball-reference.com/b/boonera01.shtml Ray Boone] at ''Baseball-Reference''</ref>

=== Roster ===
{| class="toccolours" style="font-size: 95%;"
|-
! colspan="10" style="background-color: #990000; color: white; text-align: center;" | 1953 Cleveland Indians
|-
| colspan="10" style="background-color: #023456; color: white; text-align: center;" | '''Roster'''
|-
| valign="top" | '''Pitchers'''
{{MLBplayer|29|[[Al Aber]]}}
{{MLBplayer|12|[[Lou Brissie]]}}
{{MLBplayer|20|[[Bob Chakales]]}}
{{MLBplayer|19|[[Bob Feller]]}}
{{MLBplayer|25|[[Mike Garcia (AL pitcher)|Mike Garcia]]}}
{{MLBplayer|27|[[Steve Gromek]]}}
{{MLBplayer|26|[[Bob Hooper]]}}
{{MLBplayer|41,29,11|[[Art Houtteman]]}}
{{MLBplayer|21|[[Bob Lemon]]}}
{{MLBplayer|28|[[Dick Tomanek]]}}
{{MLBplayer|18,27|[[Bill Wight]]}}
{{MLBplayer|28|[[Ted Wilks]]}}
{{MLBplayer|24|[[Early Wynn]]}}
| width="25px" | 
| valign="top" | '''Catchers'''
{{MLBplayer|15|[[Dick Aylward]]}}
{{MLBplayer|16|[[Hank Foiles]]}}
{{MLBplayer|15|[[Joe Ginsberg]]}}
{{MLBplayer|&nbsp;4|[[Jim Hegan]]}}
{{MLBplayer|18|[[Joe Tipton]]}}
'''Infielders'''
{{MLBplayer|&nbsp;1|[[Bobby Ávila]]}}
{{MLBplayer|&nbsp;8|[[Ray Boone]]}}
{{MLBplayer|&nbsp;9|[[Luke Easter (baseball)|Luke Easter]]}}
{{MLBplayer|&nbsp;8|[[Owen Friend]]}}
{{MLBplayer|14,6|[[Bill Glynn (baseball)|Bill Glynn]]}}
{{MLBplayer|&nbsp;5|[[Hank Majeski]]}}
{{MLBplayer|&nbsp;7|[[Al Rosen]]}}
{{MLBplayer|&nbsp;2|[[George Strickland (baseball)|George Strickland]]}}
| width="25px" | 
| valign="top" | '''Outfielders'''
{{MLBplayer|6,14|[[Larry Doby]]}}
{{MLBplayer|33|[[Bob Kennedy]]}}
{{MLBplayer|17|[[Jim Lemon]]}}
{{MLBplayer|&nbsp;3|[[Dale Mitchell (baseball)|Dale Mitchell]]}}
{{MLBplayer|35|[[Harry Simpson]]}}
{{MLBplayer|32|[[Al Smith (outfielder)|Al Smith]]}}
{{MLBplayer|31|[[Wally Westlake]]}}
'''Other batters'''
{{MLBplayer|32|[[Barney McCosky]]}}
{{MLBplayer|37|[[Dick Weik]]}}
| width="25px" | 
| valign="top" | '''Manager'''
{{MLBplayer|10|[[Al López]]}}
'''Coaches'''
{{MLBplayer|44|[[Tony Cuccinello]]}} <small>(Third Base)</small>
{{MLBplayer|43|[[Mel Harder]]}} <small>(Pitching)</small>
{{MLBplayer|42|[[Red Kress]]}} <small>(First Base)</small>
{{MLBplayer|40|[[Bill Lobe]]}}<small>(Bullpen)</small>

|}

== Player stats ==
{|
|-
| style="background:#fc0; border:1px solid #aaa; width:2em;"|
| = Indicates team leader
|}
{|
|-
| style="background:#DDFFDD; border:1px solid #aaa; width:2em;"|
| = Indicates league leader
|}
=== 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''
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="5%" | Pos
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="16%" | Player
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | G
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | AB
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | H
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | Avg.
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | HR
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | RBI
|- align="center"
| C || {{sortname|Jim|Hegan}} || 112 || 299 || 65 || .217 || 9 || 37
|- align="center"
| 1B || {{sortname|Bill|Glynn|Bill Glynn (baseball)}} || 147 || 411 || 100 || .243 || 3 || 30
|- align="center"
| 2B || {{sortname|Bobby|Ávila}} || 141 || 559 || 160 || .286 || 8 || 55
|- align="center"
| SS || {{sortname|George|Strickland|George Strickland (baseball)}} || 123 || 419 || 119 || .284 || 5 || 47
|- align="center"
| 3B || {{sortname|Al|Rosen}} || style="background:#fc0;|155 || style="background:#fc0;|599 || style="background:#fc0;|201 || style="background:#fc0;|.336 ||style="background:#DDFFDD;| 43 || style="background:#DDFFDD;|145
|- align="center"
| OF || {{sortname|Larry|Doby}} || 149 || 513 || 135 || .263 || 29 || 102
|- align="center"
| OF || {{sortname|Harry|Simpson}} || 82 || 242 || 55 || .227 || 7 || 22
|- align="center"
| OF || {{sortname|Dale|Mitchell|Dale Mitchell (baseball)}} || 134 || 500 || 150 || .300 || 13 || 60
|}

==== Other batters ====
''Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in''
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="16%" | Player
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | G
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | AB
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | H
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | Avg.
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | HR
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | RBI
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Wally|Westlake}} || 82 || 218 || 72 || .330 || 9 || 46
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Luke|Easter|Luke Easter (baseball)}} || 68 || 211 || 64 || .303 || 7 || 31
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Bob|Kennedy}} || 100 || 161 || 38 || .236 || 3 || 22
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Al|Smith|Al Smith (outfielder)}} || 47 || 150 || 36 || .240 || 3 || 14
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Ray|Boone}} || 34 || 112 || 27 || .241 || 4 || 21
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Joe|Tipton}} || 47 || 109 || 25 || .229 || 6 || 13
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Joe|Ginsberg}} || 46 || 109 || 31 || .284 || 0 || 10
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Owen|Friend}} || 34 || 68 || 16 || .235 || 2 || 13
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Hank|Majeski}} || 50 || 50 || 15 || .300 || 2 || 12
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Jim|Lemon}} || 16 || 46 || 8 || .174 || 1 || 5
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Barney|McCosky}} || 22 || 21 || 4 || .190 || 0 || 3
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Hank|Foiles}} || 7 || 7 || 1 || .143 || 0 || 0
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Dick|Aylward}} || 4 || 3 || 0 || .000 || 0 || 0
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Dick|Weik}} || 1 || 0 || 0 || ---- || 0 || 0
|}

=== Pitching ===

==== Starting pitchers ====
''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="16%" | Player
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | G
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | IP
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | W
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | L
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | ERA
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | SO
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Bob|Lemon}} || 41 || style="background:#fc0;|286.2 || style="background:#fc0;|21 ||style="background:#fc0;| 15 || 3.36 || 98
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Mike|Garcia|Mike Garcia (baseball, born 1923)}} || 38 || 271.2 || 18 || 9 || style="background:#fc0;|3.25 || 134
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Early|Wynn}} || 36 || 251.2 || 17 || 12 || 3.93 || style="background:#fc0;|138
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Bob|Feller}} || 25 || 175.2 || 10 || 7 || 3.59 || 60
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Dick|Tomanek}} || 1 || 9.0 || 1 || 0 || 2.00 || 6
|}

==== Other pitchers ====
''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="16%" | Player
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | G
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | IP
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | W
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | L
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | ERA
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | SO
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Dave|Hoskins}} || 26 || 112.2 || 9 || 3 || 3.99 || 55
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Art|Houtteman}} || 22 || 109.0 || 7 || 7 || 3.80 || 40
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Bob|Chakales}} || 7 || 27.0 || 0 || 2 || 2.67 || 6
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Steve|Gromek}} || 5 || 11.0 || 1 || 1 || 3.27 || 8
|}

==== Relief pitchers ====
''Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="16%" | Player
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | G
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | W
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | L
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | SV
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | ERA
! bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="9%" | SO
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Bob|Hooper}} || style="background:#fc0;|43 || 5 || 4 || style="background:#fc0;|7 || 4.02 || 16
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Bill|Wight}} || 20 || 2 || 1 || 1 || 3.71 || 14
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Lou|Brissie}} || 16 || 0 || 0 || 2 || 7.62 || 5
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Al|Aber}} || 6 || 1 || 1 || 0 || 7.50 || 4
|- align="center"
| {{sortname|Ted|Wilks}} || 4 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 7.36 || 2
|}

== Awards and records ==
* [[Al Rosen]], American League MVP

== Farm system ==
{{See also|Minor League Baseball}}

{{MLB Farm System|level14=[[Triple-A (baseball)|AAA]]|team14=[[Indianapolis Indians]]|league14=[[American Association (20th century)|American Association]]|manager14=[[Birdie Tebbetts]]
|level15=[[Class A (baseball, 1946–62)|A]]|team15=[[Reading Indians]]|league15=[[Eastern League (1938–2020)|Eastern League]]|manager15=[[Kerby Farrell]]
|level16=[[Class B (baseball)|B]]|team16=[[Spartanburg Peaches]]|league16=[[Tri-State League]]|manager16=[[Jimmy Bloodworth]]
|level17=[[Class C (baseball)|C]]|team17=[[Fargo-Moorhead Twins]]|league17=[[Northern League (baseball, 1902–71)|Northern League]]|manager17=[[Zeke Bonura]] and [[Santo Luberto]]
|level18=[[Class C (baseball)|C]]|team18=[[Sherbrooke Indians]]|league18=[[Provincial League (baseball)|Provincial League]]|manager18=[[Pinky May]]
|level19=[[Class D (baseball)|D]]|team19=[[Daytona Beach Islanders]]|league19=[[Florida State League]]|manager19=[[Ed Levy]]
|level20=[[Class D (baseball)|D]]|team20=[[Green Bay Blue Jays]]|league20=[[Wisconsin State League]]|manager20=[[Phil Seghi]]
}}
<small>LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Fargo-Moorhead, Daytona Beach, Green Bay</small><ref>Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., ''The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3rd edition''. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 2007</ref>

* On May 6, 1953, the Fargo-Moorhead Twins defeated [[Sioux Falls Canaries|Sioux Falls]] in their Opening Day game by a score of 12–3. A record crowd of 10,123 fans came to Barnett Field. In the game, [[Roger Maris]] got his first professional baseball hit.<ref>''Roger Maris: Baseball's Reluctant Hero'', p. 54, Tom Clavin and Danny Peary, Touchstone Books, Published by Simon & Schuster, New York, 2010, {{ISBN|978-1-4165-8928-0}}</ref> That season, Twins player [[Frank Gravino]] would hit 52 home runs.<ref>''Roger Maris: Baseball's Reluctant Hero'', p. 55</ref> The Twins would host the Northern League All-Star game and defeat the Northern League All-Stars by a score of 8–4.<ref name=p56>''Roger Maris: Baseball's Reluctant Hero'', p. 56</ref> The Twins finished with a record of 86–39 (improving from their record of 44–80 in 1952<ref name=p56/>) and bested [[Duluth Dukes|Duluth]] to win the Northern League championship.<ref name=p58>''Roger Maris: Baseball's Reluctant Hero'', p. 58</ref> Roger Maris was selected as the 1953 Northern League Rookie of the Year.<ref name=p58/>

== Notes ==
{{Reflist|2}}

== References ==
*[https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CLE/1953.shtml 1953 Cleveland Indians season at Baseball Reference]

{{1953 MLB season by team}}
{{Cleveland Indians}}
{{Major League Baseball on ABC}}

[[Category:Cleveland Guardians seasons]]
[[Category:1953 Major League Baseball season|Cleveland Indians season]]
[[Category:1953 in sports in Ohio|Cleveland Indians]]