I am a fan.

I am a Cleveland sports fan. I was raised that way. I’m not the only one. I know that around Ohio, and scattered around the country, people were hurting as I was yesterday. I feel like Victor does in this photo. I could hardly watch at the end either. I never saw the last half inning of the game. If I hadn’t seen something about it when searching for photos, I’d have never known that Casey Blake was the last out. It was too painful to watch.

The last 12 months have been pretty brutal for those of us that follow the teams that this blog is primarily about. The Browns were abysmal last season. But the Buckeyes put on an unbelievable show. They won game after game after game, including the most monumental rivalry game of my lifetime. And then, they completely fell to pieces. The Cavs and Buckeye basketball teams had great regular seasons. Mike Conley came to life and along with superstar Oden propelled the team into the Championship game. And got beaten soundly.

heartbroken. again.

(not my original choice for song. apparently Billy Joel doesn’t allow embedding. link here.)

I’m kind of numb right now…

Watching last night’s game was very painful. Kind of like last year’s National Championship game. I thought Sizemore’s rocket foul ball/could have been a home run might be a sign of good things to come. Kind of like Ginn’s kick return. In both instances I spent the next 3 hours getting punched in the gut. The Indians have one game to win. 172 games into the season, and if they don’t win today they are finished.

Now, ESPN is reporting about Paul Byrd and HGH use back in 2002. I don’t even want to talk about that today. I’ll post in the next week sometime concerning that issue. The more pressing trouble is a game 7 at Fenway Park. Here’s hoping the Indians get back on track today behind Jake Westbrook.

GAME TIME!!

The Buckeyes came through, so we’ll be talking soon with our buddies over at Wayne Fontes. But for now…It’s Tribe Time!

Beckett better, series returns to Boston

How do you kill zombies again?

Seriously, Lugo looks dead in this photo! We gave up a bunt single to a corpse!

(No, I did not alter this photo in any way!)

If you are looking for me to make excuses for Thursday’s loss you will be disappointed. Josh Beckett beat the Indians. That’s it. Should Sabathia have pitched in the seventh? No. Did that cost us the game? No. The Indians will travel to Boston and have a 1 in 2 chance to go to the World Series. And honestly, I like our chances. Fausto Carmona vs Bloody Sock, then Jake Westbrook/Paul Byrd vs Dice K/Tim Wakefield. I think we end it in game 6. I really do.

Fausto will get ahead of hitters with the fastball, then make them swing at the sinker. The same recipe he used all season. Jake Westbrook should be his guide, and the Tribe wins at Fenway. That’s my prediction. Remember the pressure is still on the Red Sox. They are facing elimination, not the Tribe.

Byrd, Bats haunt Red Sox!

The Indians beat Boston 7-3 Tuesday night, on the strength of good pitching and a seven run 5th inning. Hmmm, 7. That’s a good number for the Indians. How about a recap in seven parts, or more specifically the 7 reasons the Indians are 1 win away from a date with Colorado.

#7 Outstanding Defense

Not really known as a good defensive team, the Indians have made the plays in this series. In game 4, there were outstanding plays by Asdrubal Cabrera, who went high in the air to snatch a base hit away, plus Victor Martinez made a couple of really nice plays at first. Kenny Lofton and Franklin Gutierrez are providing outstanding coverage flanking Sizemore in the outfield. Then there are the double plays. 1 tonight, 3 last night, 3 Saturday night, even 1 in Friday’s loss. 4 games and 8 double plays. More than just the number of doubles turned, 6 of those were in key situations. The defense so far has been the pitching staff’s friend.

1 MORE WIN!!!

The Indians win 7-3 to take a 3 games to 1 advantage!!! Another 7 run inning does in the Sox! Complete breakdown tomorrow!

Tribe, Red Sox better bundle up

Last night the game time temperature was in the high 60’s. There was a slight breeze, and most players were wearing short sleeves. Um, there won’t be many tonight. Look for temperatures to drop, and rain to fly early. In short- it could be a messy game. Here’s hoping that favors the Indians over the dancing knuckleball of Tim Wakefield. A win tonight and the pressure on Boston is enormous. Pour it on Cleveland!

Westbrook sinks Sox in game 3

Jake Westbrook pitched the Indians into a 2-1 lead in the ALCS tonight. Inducing 13 ground ball outs, and 3 double plays Westbrook put gave the Tribe faithful more than could be expected. The bullpen was excellent as usual. In fact, this game looked more like the 96 wins we saw over the course of the regular season. Jensen Lewis replaced Westbrook in the seventh and shut the door on a Sox rally. Rafael Betancourt was tremendous, striking out Youkilis, and getting Ortiz and Ramirez in the eighth. Borowski even recorded a rare 1-2-3 ninth for the save.

Providing the spark for the Tribe offense was again Kenny Lofton. Kenny hit a 2 run shot in the second, giving Westbrook room a little room to breathe. Cabrera came through with an rbi single, and Hafner added an rbi of his own in the 5th. The Indians managed only 6 hits, but they capitalized on those hits.