# 1998 Cleveland Indians season

The 1998 Cleveland Indians season was the 98th season for the franchise and the 5th season at Jacobs Field. The Indians hoped to improve upon their American League pennant-winning season of 1997, but succumbed to the New York Yankees in the ALCS in six games. The Indians would lead the AL Central wire-to-wire in 1998, becoming the first team in franchise history (and as of 2020, the only team in franchise history) to do so.

## Offseason

* November 12, 1997: Paul Assenmacher was signed as a free agent with the Cleveland Indians.
* December 1, 1997: Matt Williams was traded by the Cleveland Indians to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Travis Fryman, Tom Martin, and cash.
* December 8, 1997: Kenny Lofton signed as a free agent with the Cleveland Indians.
* December 8, 1997: Marquis Grissom was traded by the Cleveland Indians with Jeff Juden to the Milwaukee Brewers for Mike Fetters, Ben McDonald, and Ron Villone.
* December 8, 1997: Dwight Gooden signed as a free agent with the Cleveland Indians.
* December 20, 1997: Dave Weathers was selected off waivers by the Cincinnati Reds from the Cleveland Indians.

## Regular season
### Season standings

vteAL Central :
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
| Cleveland Indians | 89 | 73 | .549 | — | 46‍–‍35 | 43‍–‍38 |
| Chicago White Sox | 80 | 82 | .494 | 9 | 44‍–‍37 | 36‍–‍45 |
| Kansas City Royals | 72 | 89 | .447 | 16½ | 29‍–‍51 | 43‍–‍38 |
| Minnesota Twins | 70 | 92 | .432 | 19 | 35‍–‍46 | 35‍–‍46 |
| Detroit Tigers | 65 | 97 | .401 | 24 | 32‍–‍49 | 33‍–‍48 |

### Record vs. opponents

1998 American League recordvte Sources: :
| Team | ANA | BAL | BOS | CWS | CLE | DET | KC | MIN | NYY | OAK | SEA | TB | TEX | TOR | NL |
| Anaheim | — | 5–6 | 6–5 | 5–6 | 4–7 | 8–3 | 6–5 | 6–5 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 9–3 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 4–7 | 10–6 |
| Baltimore | 6–5 | — | 6–6 | 2–9 | 5–6 | 10–1 | 5–6 | 7–3 | 3–9 | 8–3 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 5–11 |
| Boston | 5–6 | 6–6 | — | 5–6 | 8–3 | 5–5 | 8–3 | 5–6 | 5–7 | 9–2 | 7–4 | 9–3 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 9–7 |
| Chicago | 6–5 | 9–2 | 6–5 | — | 6–6 | 6–6 | 8–4 | 6–6 | 4–7 | 4–7 | 4–7 | 5–6 | 5–6 | 4–6–1 | 7–9 |
| Cleveland | 7–4 | 6–5 | 3–8 | 6–6 | — | 9–3 | 8–4 | 6–6 | 4–7 | 3–8 | 9–2 | 7–3 | 4–7 | 7–4 | 10–6 |
| Detroit | 3–8 | 1–10 | 5–5 | 6–6 | 3–9 | — | 6–6 | 8–4 | 3–8 | 7–4 | 3–8 | 5–6 | 3–8 | 5–6 | 7–9 |
| Kansas City | 5–6 | 6–5 | 3–8 | 4–8 | 4–8 | 6–6 | — | 7–5 | 0–10 | 7–4 | 4–6 | 8–3 | 3–8 | 6–5 | 9–7 |
| Minnesota | 5–6 | 3–7 | 6–5 | 6–6 | 6–6 | 4–8 | 5–7 | — | 4–7 | 4–7 | 2–9 | 7–4 | 7–4 | 4–7 | 7–9 |
| New York | 5–6 | 9–3 | 7–5 | 7–4 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 10–0 | 7–4 | — | 8–3 | 8–3 | 11–1 | 8–3 | 6–6 | 13–3 |
| Oakland | 7–5 | 3–8 | 2–9 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 4–7 | 4–7 | 7–4 | 3–8 | — | 5–7 | 5–6 | 6–6 | 5–6 | 8–8 |
| Seattle | 3–9 | 5–6 | 4–7 | 7–4 | 2–9 | 8–3 | 6–4 | 9–2 | 3–8 | 7–5 | — | 6–5 | 5–7 | 4–7 | 7–9 |
| Tampa Bay | 5–6 | 7–5 | 3–9 | 6–5 | 3–7 | 6–5 | 3–8 | 4–7 | 1–11 | 6–5 | 5–6 | — | 4–7 | 5–7 | 5–11 |
| Texas | 7–5 | 5–6 | 5–6 | 6–5 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 8–3 | 4–7 | 3–8 | 6–6 | 7–5 | 7–4 | — | 7–4 | 8–8 |
| Toronto | 7–4 | 7–5 | 7–5 | 6–4–1 | 4–7 | 6–5 | 5–6 | 7–4 | 6–6 | 6–5 | 7–4 | 7–5 | 4–7 | — | 9–7 |

### Transactions

* April 14, 1998: David Bell was selected off waivers by the Cleveland Indians from the St. Louis Cardinals.
* May 6, 1998: Mark Whiten was signed as a free agent with the Cleveland Indians.
* June 2, 1998: C.C. Sabathia was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 1st round (20th pick) of the 1998 amateur draft. Player signed June 29, 1998.
* July 2, 1998: Rex Hudler was signed as a free agent with the Cleveland Indians.
* August 13, 1998: Cecil Fielder signed as a free agent with the Cleveland Indians.
* August 31, 1998: David Bell was traded by the Cleveland Indians to the Seattle Mariners for Joey Cora.
* September 18, 1998: Cecil Fielder was released by the Cleveland Indians.

### Game log

1998 Game Log: 89–73 (Home: 46–35; Away: 43–38) :
March: 1–0 (Home: 0–0; Away: 1–0)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveStadiumAttendanceRecordStreak
1March 31@ Mariners10–9Mesa (1–0)Fossas (0–1)Jackson (1)Kingdome57,8221–0W1 :
April: 13–12 (Home: 6–7; Away: 7–5)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveStadiumAttendanceRecordStreak
2April 1@ Mariners9–7Wright (1–0)Moyer (0–1)Jackson (2)Kingdome24,5232–0W2
3April 3@ Angels6–2Burba (1–0)McDowell (0–1)–Edison International Field of Anaheim26,2403–0W3
4April 4@ Angels11–0Colon (1–0)Watson (0–1)–Edison International Field of Anaheim34,8344–0W4
5April 5@ Angels6–4Nagy (1–0)Dickson (0–1)Jackson (3)Edison International Field of Anaheim35,6285–0W5
–April 6@ AthleticsSuspended (curfew, continuation April 8)
6April 8@ Athletics6–5Krivda (1–0)Candiotti (0–2)Jackson (4)Network Associates Coliseum6,9636–0W6
7April 8@ Athletics1–3Rogers (1–0)Burba (1–1)Taylor (1)Network Associates Coliseum8,3616–1L1
8April 10Angels8–5 (10)Plunk (1–0)Percival (0–1)–Jacobs Field42,7077–1W1
9April 11Angels8–5Nagy (2–0)Dickson (0–2)Jackson (5)Jacobs Field42,8028–1W2
10April 12Angels1–12Finley (2–0)Wright (1–1)–Jacobs Field42,5558–2L1
11April 13Mariners6–5Burba (2–1)Cloude (1–1)Jackson (6)Jacobs Field42,7939–2W1
12April 14Mariners8–3Assenmacher (1–0)Slocumb (0–2)–Jacobs Field40,49010–2W2
13April 15Mariners3–5Spoljaric (1–0)Assenmacher (1–1)Ayala (1)Jacobs Field40,52710–3L1
14April 17@ Red Sox2–3 (10)Gordon (2–1)Assenmacher (1–2)–Fenway Park26,92410–4L2
15April 18@ Red Sox7–4Martin (1–0)Eckersley (1–1)Jackson (7)Fenway Park31,73511–4W1
16April 19@ Red Sox0–2Saberhagen (3–0)Burba (2–2)Gordon (4)Fenway Park31,84611–5L1
17April 20@ Red Sox5–6 (11)Gordon (3–1)Plunk (1–1)–Fenway Park33,00111–6L2
18April 21White Sox14–6Mesa (2–0)Baldwin (2–2)–Jacobs Field42,83612–6W1
19April 22White Sox7–14Sirotka (3–1)Nagy (2–1)–Jacobs Field42,84012–7L1
20April 23White Sox5–4Plunk (2–1)Castillo (0–1)Jackson (8)Jacobs Field42,86513–7W1
21April 24Red Sox5–7Wakefield (1–1)Burba (2–3)Gordon (6)Jacobs Field40,57013–8L1
22April 25Red Sox2–3Saberhagen (4–0)Colon (1–1)Gordon (7)Jacobs Field40,57113–9L2
–April 26Red SoxPostponed (rain, makeup July 21)
23April 27@ White Sox3–10Sirotka (4–1)Ogea (0–1)–Comiskey Park13,57513–10L3
24April 28@ White Sox4–1Nagy (3–1)Karchner (0–1)Jackson (9)Comiskey Park13,20814–10W1
25April 29Athletics4–11Rogers (4–1)Wright (1–2)–Jacobs Field42,19014–11L1
26April 30Athletics2–5Mathews (3–3)Assenmacher (1–3)Taylor (6)Jacobs Field42,85514–12L2 :
May: 18–10 (Home: 10–3; Away: 8–7)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveStadiumAttendanceRecordStreak
27May 1Devil Rays7–5Colon (2–1)Springer (1–4)Jackson (10)Jacobs Field42,71215–12W1
28May 2Devil Rays5–1Ogea (1–1)Saunders (1–3)–Jacobs Field42,52516–12W2
29May 3Devil Rays10–8Mesa (3–0)R. Hernandez (0–2)–Jacobs Field42,59717–12W3
30May 5Orioles6–5Assenmacher (2–3)Benitez (1–1)–Jacobs Field40,70618–12W4
31May 6Orioles14–5Burba (3–3)Erickson (3–3)–Jacobs Field40,67219–12W5
32May 7@ Rangers7–2Colon (3–1)Sele (5–2)–The Ballpark in Arlington28,50420–12W6
33May 8@ Rangers3–6X. Hernandez (1–0)Mesa (3–1)Wetteland (8)The Ballpark in Arlington38,06720–13L1
34May 9@ Rangers3–7Oliver (2–4)Nagy (3–2)–The Ballpark in Arlington46,35520–14L2
35May 10@ Rangers3–5Burkett (3–4)Wright (1–3)Wetteland (9)The Ballpark in Arlington31,23220–15L3
36May 11@ Devil Rays2–4Arrojo (5–2)Burba (3–4)R. Hernandez (4)Tropicana Field27,09720–16L4
37May 12@ Devil Rays5–6 (14)Santana (1–0)Jackson (0–1)–Tropicana Field27,08420–17L5
38May 13@ Orioles1–8Drabek (3–4)Ogea (1–2)–Oriole Park at Camden Yards43,37920–18L6
39May 14@ Orioles5–4Nagy (4–2)Rhodes (2–2)Jackson (11)Oriole Park at Camden Yards43,03921–18W1
40May 15Rangers3–2 (14)Krivda (2–0)Levine (0–1)–Jacobs Field41,12822–18W2
41May 16Rangers10–3Burba (4–4)Witt (4–2)–Jacobs Field40,92523–18W3
42May 17Rangers0–1Sele (7–2)Colon (3–2)Wetteland (12)Jacobs Field42,24723–19L1
43May 19@ Royals16–3Ogea (2–2)Rapp (3–4)–Kauffman Stadium13,36724–19W1
44May 20@ Royals14–5Nagy (5–2)Belcher (2–6)–Kauffman Stadium13,57525–19W2
45May 21@ Royals6–2Wright (2–3)Rosado (0–4)–Kauffman Stadium17,24326–19W3
46May 22Blue Jays9–7Burba (5–4)Hanson (0–2)Jackson (12)Jacobs Field43,26927–19W4
47May 23Blue Jays2–7Clemens (5–5)Colon (3–3)–Jacobs Field43,30627–20L1
48May 24Blue Jays0–5Williams (5–2)Gooden (0–1)–Jacobs Field43,19427–21L2
49May 25Tigers7–4Nagy (6–2)Castillo (2–2)–Jacobs Field43,34228–21W1
50May 26Tigers9–2Wright (3–3)Worrell (2–6)–Jacobs Field42,37229–21W2
51May 28@ Blue Jays6–2Burba (6–4)Carpenter (1–1)–SkyDome30,28230–21W3
52May 29@ Blue Jays7–3Colon (4–3)Clemens (5–6)–SkyDome29,08531–21W4
53May 30@ Blue Jays2–4Williams (6–2)Gooden (0–2)Myers (13)SkyDome37,17931–22L1
54May 31@ Blue Jays8–3Nagy (7–2)Hentgen (7–4)Mesa (1)SkyDome30,09032–22W1 :
June: 14–12 (Home: 7–8; Away: 7–4)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveStadiumAttendanceRecordStreak
55June 1@ Tigers2–0Wright (4–3)Florie (3–1)–Tiger Stadium18,23033–22W2
56June 2@ Tigers8–3Burba (7–4)Thompson (3–6)–Tiger Stadium16,35134–22W3
57June 3@ Twins2–3Swindell (1–2)Colon (4–4)Aguilera (10)Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome8,89734–23L1
58June 4@ Twins3–2Gooden (1–2)Radke (7–4)Jackson (13)Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome9,41735–23W1
59June 5@ Reds1–2Harnisch (6–1)Nagy (7–3)Shaw (17)Cinergy Field43,53235–24L1
60June 6@ Reds10–1Wright (5–3)Remlinger (3–7)–Cinergy Field51,79636–24W1
61June 7@ Reds6–1Burba (8–4)Klingenbeck (0–1)–Cinergy Field49,58937–24W2
62June 8Pirates8–0Colon (5–4)Peters (1–4)–Jacobs Field43,06838–24W3
63June 9Pirates4–7Lieber (4–7)Morman (0–1)Rincon (6)Jacobs Field41,76238–25L1
64June 10Pirates3–4 (11)Loaiza (4–3)Mesa (3–2)Loiselle (12)Jacobs Field43,10138–26L2
–June 12@ YankeesPostponed (rain, makeup September 21)
–June 13@ YankeesPostponed (rain, makeup September 22)
65June 14@ Yankees2–4Cone (9–1)Wright (5–4)Rivera (13)Yankee Stadium42,94938–27L3
66June 15Royals6–7 (10)Montgomery (1–3)Mesa (3–3)Whisenant (1)Jacobs Field43,24638–28L4
67June 16Royals9–1Colon (6–4)Pichardo (2–6)–Jacobs Field43,18439–28W1
68June 17Royals3–4Rosado (3–5)Gooden (1–3)Montgomery (12)Jacobs Field43,19639–29L1
69June 18Yankees2–5Nelson (4–3)Assenmacher (2–4)Rivera (15)Jacobs Field43,09639–30L2
70June 19Yankees7–4Wright (6–4)Cone (9–2)Jackson (14)Jacobs Field43,18040–30W1
71June 20Yankees3–5Wells (9–2)Burba (8–5)Rivera (16)Jacobs Field43,25940–31L1
72June 21Yankees11–0Colon (7–4)Irabu (6–3)–Jacobs Field43,10441–31W1
73June 22@ Cubs3–1Gooden (2–3)Tapani (8–6)Jackson (15)Wrigley Field39,55642–31W2
74June 23@ Cubs5–4Plunk (3–1)Adams (6–4)Jackson (16)Wrigley Field39,00643–31W3
75June 24Cardinals14–3Wright (7–4)Petkovsek (5–4)–Jacobs Field43,32144–31W4
76June 25Cardinals8–2Burba (9–5)Aybar (3–4)–Jacobs Field43,30945–31W5
77June 26Astros4–2Colon (8–4)Magnante (3–3)Jackson (17)Jacobs Field43,22246–31W6
78June 27Astros5–9 (11)Wagner (2–2)Mesa (3–4)–Jacobs Field43,13246–32L1
79June 28Astros3–12Reynolds (9–5)Nagy (7–4)Nitkowski (3)Jacobs Field43,04746–33L2
80June 30@ Brewers4–5Eldred (4–5)Wright (7–5)Wickman (11)County Stadium16,01246–34L3 :
July: 16–12 (Home: 7–6; Away: 9–6)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveStadiumAttendanceRecordStreak
81July 1@ Brewers5–2Burba (10–5)Juden (7–7)Jackson (18)County Stadium19,55847–34W1
82July 2@ Brewers7–2Colon (9–4)Woodall (4–3)–County Stadium21,02248–34W2
83July 3@ Royals2–1Shuey (1–0)Rosado (3–6)Jackson (19)Kauffman Stadium27,66149–34W3
84July 4@ Royals3–5Rapp (8–7)Nagy (7–5)Montgomery (18)Kauffman Stadium34,27049–35L1
85July 5@ Royals12–3Wright (8–5)Rusch (6–10)–Kauffman Stadium15,50750–35W1
–July 769th All-Star GameNational League vs. American League (Coors Field, Denver, Colorado)
86July 9Twins0–3Tewksbury (5–9)Burba (10–6)Aguilera (19)Jacobs Field43,23650–36L1
87July 10Twins6–5Jackson (1–1)Trombley (3–3)–Jacobs Field43,18251–36W1
88July 11Twins12–2Gooden (3–3)Radke (9–7)–Jacobs Field43,14052–36W2
89July 12Twins6–11Milton (5–7)Nagy (7–6)–Jacobs Field43,05352–37L1
90July 13Yankees4–1Wright (9–5)Hernandez (3–2)Jackson (20)Jacobs Field43,17753–37W1
91July 14Yankees1–7Pettitte (12–5)Burba (10–7)–Jacobs Field43,16453–38L1
92July 15@ Red Sox0–1Martinez (12–3)Colon (9–5)–Fenway Park33,50153–39L2
93July 16@ Red Sox5–15Wakefield (11–4)Gooden (3–4)Lowe (1)Fenway Park33,56853–40L3
94July 17@ White Sox3–4Simas (4–3)Shuey (1–1)–Comiskey Park27,73353–41L4
95July 18@ White Sox15–9Shuey (2–1)Karchner (2–4)Jackson (21)Comiskey Park26,06754–41W1
96July 19@ White Sox1–8Sirotka (9–9)Burba (10–8)–Comiskey Park23,54354–42L1
97July 20@ White Sox5–4Colon (10–5)Navarro (8–11)Jackson (22)Comiskey Park27,16055–42W1
98July 21 (1)Red Sox7–10Martinez (13–3)Gooden (3–5)Gordon (27)Jacobs Field42,87455–43L1
99July 21 (2)Red Sox4–2 (8)Ogea (3–2)Wakefield (11–5)Jackson (23)Jacobs Field43,22756–43W1
100July 22Red Sox4–3Nagy (8–6)Garces (1–1)Jackson (24)Jacobs Field43,07357–43W2
101July 23Tigers2–3Castillo (3–6)Wright (9–6)Jones (18)Jacobs Field43,08557–44L1
102July 24Tigers2–1 (11)Reed (3–1)Bochtler (0–1)–Jacobs Field43,15658–44W1
103July 25Tigers6–5Colon (11–5)Greisinger (1–5)Jackson (25)Jacobs Field43,09459–44W2
104July 26Tigers1–8Moehler (11–7)Gooden (3–6)–Jacobs Field43,05559–45L1
105July 28@ Mariners4–3Nagy (9–6)Johnson (9–10)Jackson (26)Kingdome31,12460–45W1
106July 29@ Mariners8–7Ogea (4–2)McCarthy (0–1)Jackson (27)Kingdome25,95361–45W2
107July 30@ Mariners9–8 (17)Shuey (3–1)Wells (0–2)–Kingdome31,08162–45W3
108July 31@ Athletics2–12Candiotti (6–13)Colon (11–6)–Network Associates Coliseum14,09662–46L1 :
August: 13–15 (Home: 8–7; Away: 5–8)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveStadiumAttendanceRecordStreak
109August 1@ Athletics5–6 (10)Mathews (5–4)Karsay (0–1)–Network Associates Coliseum48,24162–47L2
110August 2@ Athletics5–7Mohler (3–2)Nagy (9–7)Taylor (23)Network Associates Coliseum27,71262–48L3
111August 3@ Angels4–11Sparks (5–2)Wright (9–7)–Edison International Field of Anaheim25,33962–49L4
112August 4@ Angels4–5Hasegawa (6–1)Jones (3–5)Percival (30)Edison International Field of Anaheim29,91662–50L5
113August 5@ Angels6–5Shuey (4–1)Percival (2–5)Assenmacher (1)Edison International Field of Anaheim43,10463–50W1
114August 7@ Devil Rays5–1Gooden (4–6)Alvarez (5–10)–Tropicana Field29,59064–50W2
115August 8@ Devil Rays6–2Nagy (10–7)Rekar (1–4)–Tropicana Field35,28365–50W3
116August 9@ Devil Rays1–2Mecir (4–2)Assenmacher (2–5)–Tropicana Field34,66665–51L1
117August 11Rangers1–2Loaiza (7–7)Karsay (0–2)Wetteland (32)Jacobs Field42,99265–52L2
118August 12Rangers6–3Colon (12–6)Burkett (7–12)Jackson (28)Jacobs Field43,24766–52W1
119August 13Orioles4–7 (12)Smith (5–5)Reed (3–2)Benitez (17)Jacobs Field43,21766–53L1
120August 14Orioles3–15Mussina (11–6)Nagy (10–8)–Jacobs Field43,16966–54L2
121August 15Orioles8–9 (10)Benitez (5–3)Jones (3–6)–Jacobs Field43,23866–55L3
122August 16Orioles5–3Wright (10–7)Kamieniecki (2–5)Jackson (29)Jacobs Field43,06967–55W1
123August 17Devil Rays4–3Colon (13–6)Alvarez (5–12)Jackson (30)Jacobs Field43,13968–55W2
124August 18Devil Rays4–2Gooden (5–6)Rekar (1–5)Jackson (31)Jacobs Field42,96769–55W3
125August 19@ Rangers1–3Sele (14–10)Nagy (10–9)Wetteland (33)The Ballpark in Arlington26,14669–56L1
126August 20@ Rangers2–8Stottlemyre (12–10)Burba (10–9)Patterson (2)The Ballpark in Arlington37,09469–57L2
127August 21@ Orioles6–3Wright (11–7)Kamieniecki (2–6)–Oriole Park at Camden Yards48,37470–57W1
128August 22@ Orioles3–6Erickson (14–9)Colon (13–7)–Oriole Park at Camden Yards48,13870–58L1
129August 23@ Orioles4–1Gooden (6–6)Ponson (7–7)Jackson (32)Oriole Park at Camden Yards48,27271–58W1
130August 25Mariners10–4Nagy (11–9)Swift (10–8)–Jacobs Field43,11372–58W2
131August 26Mariners5–3Burba (11–9)Fassero (10–10)Jackson (33)Jacobs Field43,09173–58W3
132August 27Mariners4–10Moyer (11–8)Wright (11–8)–Jacobs Field43,14273–59L1
133August 28Athletics6–14 (10)Heredia (2–0)Reed (3–3)–Jacobs Field43,19173–60L2
134August 29Athletics6–11Haynes (10–6)Martin (1–1)Taylor (28)Jacobs Field43,02073–61L3
135August 30Athletics9–4Nagy (12–9)Rogers (12–7)Jackson (34)Jacobs Field42,95174–61W1
136August 31Athletics15–6Burba (12–9)Stein (5–8)Jones (13)Jacobs Field42,89775–61W2 :
September: 14–12 (Home: 8–4; Away: 6–8)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveStadiumAttendanceRecordStreak
137September 1Angels7–6Reed (4–3)DeLucia (2–5)–Jacobs Field43,18476–61W3
138September 2Angels5–13Sparks (9–2)Colon (13–8)–Jacobs Field43,20076–62L1
139September 3@ Tigers2–1Gooden (7–6)Thompson (10–13)Jackson (35)Tiger Stadium14,60577–62W1
140September 4@ Tigers10–2Nagy (13–9)Greisinger (4–8)–Tiger Stadium23,13978–62W2
141September 5@ Tigers5–4Burba (13–9)Powell (3–6)Jackson (36)Tiger Stadium30,03179–62W3
142September 6@ Tigers2–3Florie (7–9)Wright (11–9)Jones (23)Tiger Stadium32,81579–63L1
143September 7@ Blue Jays1–15Escobar (5–2)Ogea (4–3)–SkyDome31,08979–64L2
144September 9@ Blue Jays6–3 (13)Jones (4–6)Almanzar (1–2)Jackson (37)SkyDome32,15780–64W1
145September 11White Sox2–3Abbott (2–0)Nagy (13–10)Howry (6)Jacobs Field43,21080–65L1
146September 12White Sox4–6Baldwin (11–5)Shuey (4–2)Howry (7)Jacobs Field43,17080–66L2
147September 13White Sox6–3Shuey (5–2)Ward (1–2)Jackson (38)Jacobs Field43,17881–66W1
148September 14Blue Jays6–3Gooden (8–6)Sinclair (0–2)Jackson (39)Jacobs Field43,15282–66W2
149September 15Blue Jays7–5Ogea (5–3)Stieb (1–2)Assenmacher (2)Jacobs Field43,32383–66W3
150September 16Twins8–6Nagy (14–10)Tewksbury (7–11)Assenmacher (3)Jacobs Field43,27784–66W4
151September 17Twins9–1Burba (14–9)Milton (7–13)–Jacobs Field43,29985–66W5
152September 18Royals4–1Wright (12–9)Appier (1–1)Shuey (1)Jacobs Field43,26086–66W6
153September 19Royals6–7Service (6–3)Shuey (5–3)Montgomery (35)Jacobs Field43,18286–67L1
154September 20Royals5–3Colon (14–8)Rapp (12–13)Jackson (40)Jacobs Field43,08287–67W1
155September 21@ Yankees4–1Nagy (15–10)Pettitte (16–11)Shuey (2)Yankee Stadium21,44988–67W2
156September 22 (1)@ Yankees4–10Mendoza (10–2)Burba (14–10)–Yankee Stadium14,84088–68L1
157September 22 (2)@ Yankees1–5Irabu (13–9)Ogea (5–4)–Yankee Stadium32,31588–69L2
158September 23@ Yankees4–8Bradley (2–1)Jacome (0–1)–Yankee Stadium32,36788–70L3
159September 24@ Twins0–2Radke (12–14)Wright (12–10)Aguilera (38)Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome7,80088–71L4
160September 25@ Twins4–5Aguilera (4–9)Shuey (5–4)–Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome11,94088–72L5
161September 26@ Twins9–5Burba (15–9)Tewksbury (7–13)–Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome28,76489–72W1
162September 27@ Twins2–6Milton (8–14)Colon (14–9)Trombley (1)Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome12,04989–73L1 :
Legend:        = Win        = Loss        = Postponement Bold = Indians team member :

## Player stats
### Batting
#### Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; Avg. = Batting average; Slg. = Slugging average; SB = Stolen bases
| Pos | Player | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | Avg. | Slg. | SB |
| C | Sandy Alomar Jr. | 117 | 409 | 45 | 96 | 6 | 44 | .235 | .352 | 0 |
| 1B | Jim Thome | 123 | 440 | 89 | 129 | 30 | 85 | .293 | .584 | 1 |
| 2B | David Bell | 107 | 340 | 37 | 89 | 10 | 41 | .262 | .424 | 0 |
| 3B | Travis Fryman | 146 | 557 | 74 | 160 | 28 | 96 | .287 | .504 | 10 |
| SS | Omar Vizquel | 151 | 576 | 86 | 166 | 2 | 50 | .288 | .372 | 37 |
| LF | Brian Giles | 112 | 350 | 56 | 94 | 16 | 66 | .269 | .460 | 10 |
| CF | Kenny Lofton | 154 | 600 | 101 | 169 | 12 | 64 | .282 | .413 | 54 |
| RF | Manny Ramirez | 150 | 571 | 108 | 168 | 45 | 145 | .294 | .599 | 5 |
| DH | David Justice | 146 | 540 | 94 | 151 | 21 | 88 | .280 | .476 | 9 |

#### Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
| Mark Whiten | 87 | 226 | 64 | .283 | 6 | 29 |
| Richie Sexson | 49 | 174 | 54 | .310 | 11 | 35 |
| Pat Borders | 54 | 160 | 38 | .238 | 0 | 6 |
| Shawon Dunston | 62 | 156 | 37 | .237 | 3 | 12 |
| Jeff Branson | 63 | 100 | 20 | .200 | 1 | 9 |
| Enrique Wilson | 32 | 90 | 29 | .322 | 2 | 12 |
| Joey Cora | 24 | 83 | 19 | .229 | 0 | 6 |
| Gerónimo Berroa | 20 | 65 | 13 | .200 | 0 | 3 |
| Einar Díaz | 17 | 48 | 11 | .229 | 2 | 9 |
| Jeff Manto | 15 | 37 | 8 | .216 | 2 | 6 |
| Cecil Fielder | 14 | 35 | 5 | .143 | 0 | 0 |
| Torey Lovullo | 6 | 19 | 4 | .211 | 0 | 1 |
| Alex Ramírez | 3 | 8 | 1 | .125 | 0 | 0 |
| Russell Branyan | 1 | 4 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 |
| Jolbert Cabrera | 1 | 2 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 |
| Matt Luke | 2 | 2 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 |
| Jacob Cruz | 1 | 1 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 |

### Pitching
#### Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
| Charles Nagy | 33 | 210.1 | 15 | 10 | 5.22 | 120 |
| Bartolo Colón | 31 | 204.0 | 14 | 9 | 3.71 | 158 |
| Dave Burba | 32 | 203.2 | 15 | 10 | 4.11 | 132 |
| Jaret Wright | 32 | 192.2 | 12 | 10 | 4.72 | 140 |
| Dwight Gooden | 23 | 134.0 | 8 | 6 | 3.76 | 83 |
| Jason Jacome | 1 | 5.0 | 0 | 1 | 14.40 | 2 |

#### Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
| Chad Ogea | 19 | 69.0 | 5 | 4 | 5.61 | 43 |

#### Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
| Mike Jackson | 69 | 1 | 1 | 40 | 1.55 | 55 |
| Paul Assenmacher | 69 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 3.26 | 43 |
| José Mesa | 44 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 5.17 | 35 |
| Paul Shuey | 43 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 3.00 | 58 |
| Eric Plunk | 37 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4.83 | 38 |
| Alvin Morman | 31 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5.32 | 16 |
| Ron Villone | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6.00 | 15 |
| Doug Jones | 23 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3.45 | 28 |
| Steve Reed | 20 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6.66 | 23 |
| Tom Martin | 14 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 12.89 | 9 |
| Jim Poole | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.14 | 11 |
| Rick Krivda | 11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3.24 | 10 |
| Steve Karsay | 11 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5.92 | 13 |
| Tim Worrell | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.06 | 2 |
| Mark Whiten | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9.00 | 3 |
| Jason Rakers | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9.00 | 0 |

## Award winners

All-Star Game

## Minor league affiliates

| Classification level | Team | League | Season article |
| AAA | Buffalo Bisons | International League | 1998 Buffalo Bisons season |
| AA | Akron Aeros | Eastern League | 1998 Akron Aeros season |
| Advanced A | Kinston Indians | Carolina League | |
| A | Columbus RedStixx | South Atlantic League | |
| A-Short Season | Watertown Indians | New York–Penn League | |
| Rookie | Burlington Indians | Appalachian League | |