In the latest episode of The East Bank Sports Show: At The Office, my fellow hosts John, Erik, and I discussed who is on the Mount Rushmore of Cleveland sports. We all had different answers as well as some similar and obvious ones. Today, I will discuss this question, picking four Cleveland athletes to put on the Mount Rushmore of Cleveland sports to match the four presidents on the actual Mount Rushmore. I will note that I took a more modern approach to this, so historical greats like Cy Young are unfortunately not on the list. With that being said, let’s get on the list!

LeBron James

Let’s start with the most obvious member of the Cleveland sports Mount Rushmore, the king himself, LeBron James. LeBron brought a championship home to Cleveland after a 52-year championship drought, and until another player or team comes around and brings a championship to Cleveland, LeBron will continue to be the “face” of the Cleveland Sports Mount Rushmore. On top of this, the charity and business LeBron brought and continues to bring to the Northeast Ohio region must be spoken for, as the amount of positive influence LeBron has had on the area is exponential.

Jim Brown

Jim Brown has had some controversy in his history, and I understand this. That being said, Jim Brown has long been labeled as “the” Cleveland Brown. A tough runner and hard worker, his on-the-field output will never be denied. Add in his civic work as an African American NFL star in the ’50s and ’60s as well as his continued input into the Cleveland Browns organization and the Northeast Ohio community, it is only right he is immortalized on the Cleveland Sports Mount Rushmore, much like the jersey patch the team wore for him following his death this year.

Jim Thome

So picking a Cleveland baseball player was hard for me as the rich history of Cleveland baseball has so many faces that could take up this position. I settled on Jim Thome for two reasons. First, he is still beloved in Cleveland today as you can still find individuals wearing his jersey on game day. The second reason is the fact his 511-foot home run is immortalized in Progressive Field today; you can see the location where the ball hit to this day in Progressive Field. Thome was the face of Cleveland baseball for many years and even made a return in 2011. Because of all of these facts, Thome is my Cleveland Baseball pick for Mount Rushmore.

Joe Thomas

This pick is personal for me, yet I think no man deserves to be on the Cleveland Sports Mount Rushmore. Joe Thomas was the face of the Cleveland Browns for many, many years of horrible play by the rest of the Cleveland Browns roster. Joe was the face of the Browns, a beacon of hope, and when he could have tucked tall and moved to another team that was much more competitive, he embraced the city with open arms. Joe Thomas played a staggering 10,363 consecutive snaps before retiring as well as recently being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Joe Thomas has 100% earned his place in the Cleveland Sports Mount Rushmore.

Who do you think is on the Cleveland Sports Mount Rushmore? Also, check out the episode of The East Bank Sports Show: At The Office this article is inspired by below!