CLEVELAND – Ten years ago, it would have been nearly impossible to believe that by 2020, the expectation would be for the Tribe to win the American League Central every single year.

Plenty of thanks can go to manager Terry Francona, who has earned two AL Manager of the Year Awards since joining the organization in 2013 and has led his team to a winning record in each of his seven seasons. But plenty of players have made his job a little bit easier. There were unsung heroes like Joe Smith and leaders like Yan Gomes. There were rookies who’d grow into enormous shoes and veterans who imparted their final bits of wisdom before calling it quits.

Many hands played a part in the franchise’s transformation over the past decade, but MLB.com picked the 10 best players who have donned an Indians uniform over the past 10 years.

1) Corey Kluber
Seasons: 2011-19

Mark this man down as one of the best pitchers to ever play in Cleveland, let alone just in this decade. Kluber is the only two-time Cy Young Award winner in franchise history and went 98-58 with a 3.16 ERA and 1,461 strikeouts over 1,341 2/3 innings. This past season snapped Kluber's five-year streak of tossing over 200 frames, as he dealt with two injuries that sidelined him since May 1, and he was traded to the Rangers this offseason.

2) Francisco Lindor
Seasons: 2015-present

There’s a reason that every trade rumor involving Lindor makes Indians fans hold their collective breath. In his five years in the big leagues, Lindor has emerged as the face of the Tribe’s franchise, becoming one of the best players in the game. Since his debut in 2015, the shortstop has hit .288 with an .840 OPS, 130 homers and 384 RBIs. He’s been selected to four consecutive All-Star Games and has won two Gold Glove Awards and Silver Slugger Awards.

3) Michael Brantley
Seasons: 2010-18

Francona said that there wasn’t a dry eye in the room when Brantley met with his manager and front-office personnel at the end of the 2018 season. Everyone knew that the outfielder had just wrapped up his last year with the Tribe after spending the past 10 in Cleveland. He hit .295, knocked in 528 runs, launched 87 homers and posted a .781 OPS. But his impact went far beyond his bat. Brantley was a leader in the Indians’ clubhouse, a presence that was greatly missed in 2019.

4) Cody Allen
Seasons: 2012-18

This list can’t be completed without the Indians’ all-time saves leader. Allen spent his first seven big league seasons with the Indians after getting drafted by Cleveland in the 23rd round of the 2011 Draft (having previously also been chosen by the Tribe in the 16th round of the '10 Draft). And even though he posted a 4.70 ERA for the Indians in ‘18, going 4-6 with 27 saves in 70 games, he left a footprint much larger than one bad year. Overall, he posted a 2.98 ERA with 149 saves and 564 strikeouts in 440 2/3 innings, holding opponents to a .217 average.

5) Andrew Miller
Seasons: 2016-18

He may have run into some injury trouble in 2018, but Miller was dominant in his first two seasons in Cleveland. After getting traded by the Yankees halfway through ’16, Miller pitched to a 1.55 ERA in 26 games (29 innings), allowing just two walks while striking out 46 batters. For those keeping track at home, that’s a whopping 23 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He returned in ’17 with a 1.44 ERA in 57 games. In 14 postseason appearances for the Tribe in those two seasons, Miller owned a 1.48 ERA with 38 strikeouts and a .188 opponent batting average.

6) Carlos Santana
Seasons: 2010-17, '19-present

No one was happier than Santana to come back home in 2019. He spent the first eight seasons of his big league career in Cleveland before playing in Philadelphia in '18. But somehow the slugger knew he’d find his way back to Northeast Ohio. The Phillies traded Santana to the Mariners last offseason for a quick five minutes before he was acquired by the Indians in a three-team deal that sent Edwin Encarnacion (who was a tough person to leave off of this list with his 70 homers and two 107-RBI seasons for the Tribe) to Seattle. With the Indians, Santana has hit .253 with an .823 OPS, and he put together a career year last season for a team that desperately needed a leader, posting career-bests in average (.281), OPS (.911), RBIs (93), homers (tied – 34) and hits (161).

7) José Ramírez
Seasons: 2013-present

Even though his slumping second half in 2018 carried over through the first three months of last season, Ramírez still posted the third-highest OPS (.837) of any member of the Tribe over the decade. He’s taken home two Silver Slugger Awards and has been named to two Midsummer Classics. In '17 and '18, the third baseman placed third in the American League MVP votes.

8) Carlos Carrasco Seasons: 2010-present

From Tommy John surgery in 2012 to a quick trip to the bullpen in '14 to overcoming cancer during the '19 season, Carrasco has been through just about everything a pitcher can endure in a 10-year span. After his relief stint in ’14 helped get him back on the right track, the right-hander went on to post four consecutive sub-4.00 ERA seasons until he ran into health issues this past year. And even during his leukemia treatments, Carrasco maintained his fun-loving spirit, continuing to be the life of the clubhouse.

9) Jason Kipnis
Seasons: 2011-19

Kipnis joked throughout his final year in Cleveland about the highs and lows of his relationship with Indians fans. But overall, the second baseman gave the Tribe nine seasons, two of which resulted in All-Star selections. The man who was a part of the worst and best of the 2010s ended his tenure with a .261/.333/.417 slash line and 123 home runs in more than 1,100 games played. When he fractured his hamate bone in September, Kipnis knew he had played his final game as a member of the Tribe and mentioned it would be hard to part ways, saying, “It’s been an absolute joy to play here.”

10) Trevor Bauer
Seasons: 2013-19

Whether it was cutting a finger on his drone or heaving a ball over the center-field wall from the pitcher’s mound, Bauer certainly made his time in Cleveland memorable. But the Bauer memories go beyond his antics. In 170 starts, he pitched to a 3.89 ERA with 1,094 K’s in 1,044 1/3 frames. The biggest reason his ERA with Cleveland dipped below 4.00 was his near Cy Young Award-worthy ’18 season. In 28 appearances (27 starts), he posted a 2.21 ERA with an AL-leading 2.44 FIP. If it wasn’t for a line drive to the lower leg, he would’ve been in a comfortable position to bring home the hardware, rather than placing sixth.