Cleveland Indians: Where the team stands in ESPN’s misery index

ESPN.com released its 2018 sports misery index and after a few years of reaching the postseason, the Cleveland Indians don’t rank too high.

Even though the Cleveland Indians haven’t won a title since 1948, there has been a lot to cheer about since then.

The problem is that the ending to all the stories haven’t been too cheerful.

ESPN.com released its 2018 version of the sports misery index, ranking the fan bases of all 123 teams from the four major professional sports leagues from most to least miserable.

The Indians may have appeared higher before 2016, but are down at No. 44 overall in this year’s rankings. The San Diego Padres are the highest MLB team on the list at No. 2 overall.

It is hard to win the World Series. That is why it is important to enjoy the fun moments every year, regardless of the final result. If you only find joy in the team winning the World Series, it would be impossible to be an Indians fan.

The entire misery index is an interesting concept. The Sacramento Kings are at the top of the list, while the New England Patriots show up as the least miserable.

But it is easy to make change. For example, a World Series win for the Indians in 2019 would shoot them down to the bottom of the list. One season can change it all and make fans feel great after so much dedication and tears over the years.

Just look at how the Cleveland Cavaliers went from never winning it all to having fans jumping in the streets after win the 2016 NBA Finals.

I love baseball so much it is hard for me to ever say I am miserable being an Indians fan. That may change if decades pass and the team hasn’t won a World Series yet. I can worry about that later.