The 2002 Cleveland Indians season was the 102nd season for the franchise. The 2002 Major League Baseball season began on March 31, 2002.The team finished third in the American League Central Division behind the Minnesota Twins and the Chicago White Sox. Offseason November 7, 2001: Chris Coste was signed as a free agent by the Indians. November 7, 2001: Jason Beverlin was signed as a free agent by the Indians. November 26, 2001: Donzell McDonald was signed as a free agent by the Indians. December 11, 2001: Roberto Alomar, Mike Bacsik and Danny Peoples (minors) were traded by the Indians to the New York Mets for Matt Lawton, Alex Escobar, Jerrod Riggan and players to be named later. The Mets completed the deal by sending Earl Snyder and Billy Traber to the Indians on December 13. December 18, 2001: John Rocker was traded by the Indians to the Texas Rangers for Dave Elder. February 9, 2002: Bruce Aven was signed as a free agent with the Cleveland Indians. March 28, 2002: Donzell McDonald was assigned by the Indians to the Kansas City Royals. Regular season Opening Day starters Matt Lawton – RF Omar Vizquel – SS Ellis Burks – DH Jim Thome – 1B Travis Fryman – 3B Ricky Gutiérrez – 2B Milton Bradley – CF Russell Branyan – LF Einar Díaz – C Bartolo Colón – SP Season standings American League Wild Card Record vs. opponents Notable transactions June 4, 2002: Jeremy Guthrie was drafted by the Indians in the 1st round (22nd pick) of the 2002 Major League Baseball draft. Player signed on October 3, 2002. June 7, 2002: Russell Branyan was traded by the Indians to the Cincinnati Reds for Ben Broussard. June 25, 2002: Bruce Aven was traded by the Indians to the Philadelphia Phillies for Jeff D'Amico. June 27, 2002: Bartolo Colón and Tim Drew were traded by the Indians to the Montreal Expos for Grady Sizemore, Cliff Lee, Brandon Phillips, and Lee Stevens. July 28, 2002: Paul Shuey was traded by the Indians to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Ricardo Rodríguez, Terry Mulholland, and Francisco Cruceta. August 16, 2002: Jason Beverlin was selected off waivers from the Indians by the Detroit Tigers. Roster Game log |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 1 || March 31 || @ Angels || 6–0 || Colón (1–0) || Washburn (0–1) || || Edison International Field of Anaheim || 42,697 || 1–0