Cleveland Indians: Ranking Terry Francona among the team’s best managers

4. Terry Francona

It is often hard to appreciate all-time greatness when it is happening in the present. However, there is no question that Terry Francona belongs in the discussion as one of the best managers in team history.

The Indians have won the World Series twice, making it to the Fall Classic six times. Francona has taken the team once, and was a game away from making himself arguably the greatest manager in Cleveland sports history.

But even without a title, Francona has done some great things in his five seasons. He already ranks sixth in team history with 454 wins, while his 12 postseason wins are second in team history.

Francona came to Cleveland and took a stagnant group to the postseason in his very first season. He has never had a losing season in town and has already won two division titles, with his team poised to win a third in 2018.

The pressure to win a World Series will continue to mount until his team can achieve that ultimate goal, but I still don’t see a scenario in which Francona is fired in the near future, given his team continues to reach the postseason. Winning it all is the goal, but we all know that postseason baseball is the most random tournament in professional sports.

The title talk will continue all year, but in terms of all-time greats, Francona is an easy choice. Hopefully he can continue to move up this list with more accomplishments in the coming years.