A Busy Week-in-Review

Big week in sports. Between Brett Favre being a little bitch and not just retiring. Josh Hamilton putting on a display in the homerun contest Monday night. The Rays demise in the AL East. Life after CC. And training camp opens in a week!

Where to start where to start???

I guess we'll get the bad out of the way. Apparently Brett Favre is waging a media war against the Packers. He's now claiming that he was forced to retire. Or something, I can't stand to listen to him anymore. Just go away. Why wait until now to try and wage this battle? Why not 4 months ago. Maybe at that point they would have been more open to the idea of him coming back. You don't think the coaching staff and the management teams have been feverishly working on a game plan with Aaron Rogers?

Which brings me to my next point. Why does he have to be given the starting role? Why shouldn't he fight for the starting job. If he's the better man, then he's starts. Isn't this usually how things work? I think it's ridiculous the way he's acting! Don't get me wrong, I think Farve is a great QB. I love his intensity, the fun he has on the field, and just the way he plays the game. But this is just an old, tired act.

And the real kicker. He went on Greta's On the Record to whine about all this. How many different places could he have gone to vent? When I worked nights I watched Greta just about every night. And if you've never watched the show, you can just watch one and you've seen them all. She always has the same guests and asks the same questions. I didn't watch the interview, but I would not be the least bit surprised if she asked him if he knew where Natalee Holloway was.

Life without CC is much better than originally thought. They're somehow hitting and they just swept the Rays in Cleveland. This really shouldn't be too surprising. They're lineup is exactly the same, they just have Sowers or some other lackey pitching every 5th day. And the offense started producing. So, they swept the Rays. Stranger things have happened.

Which brings me to the fact that the Rays have collapsed. They were 7 games up in the loss column about 2 weeks ago. Now they're down a game. The All-Star break could not have come at a better time. They need this break to get back on track and start again dominating the AL East like they did for most of the first half of the season. They've got a great young team. And there's nothing more I would love to see than both the Yankees and Sox out of the postseason. I'm not holding my breath that this is going to happen, but miracles do happen.

Monday night at the "House that Ruth Built" was simply amazing. Did you know that they were tearing it down at the end of this season? Yeah, me either. Anyhow, Josh Hamilton put on an amazing display. It looked like he was hitting balls off a tee the way he was launching them out of Yankee Stadium. It looked effortless. He made it look like anybody could hit a baseball 400 feet.

It's a great story about him also. Got rid of the drugs, got his life back on track, and is now an all-star putting on a display nobody is going to forget about anybody anytime soon. It was amazing. I enjoyed watching the competition and all of the fun that the other major leaguers were having sitting and watching.

I'm not going to get into A-Rod not entering the competition.

And lastly, the Browns open training camp next Wednesday. Where did the summer go??? But I, along with most of the rest of the country, have very high hopes for the Browns this season. Let's hope they don't collapse and pull what the Indians did this summer. From what I hear, Brady is playing some good football and DA is playing better. The O-line is back together. They got some help on the D-line. The linebackers have matured, Jamal Lewis has revitalized his career. And the recieving corps is going to be 2nd to none! And with my purchase of the Sunday ticket this season, I can't wait for football to start!!

Is This Really What All The Fuss Is About???

So I caught a little of the MMA thing on CBS last night. I had never really watched this except for when I was in Cancun on spring break when I was in college and something similar was playing on the TV in the bar I was at. Anyhow, I don't think I'll be tuning in anytime soon.

I flipped it on pretty late and got to see the final 2 fights of the night. When I turned it on, I was hoping that I hadn't missed this Kimbo Slice guy I kept hearing about on Sportstalk Radio and PTI. All I heard was about how much a beast this guy was and he's apparently the greatest fighter in MMA history. He was dominant. He was unbeatable. He's never lost. He knocks guys out in mere seconds. He IS what MMA is all about.

Well, when he was announced they commentators told me he was 2-0 in his MMA history with 2 KOs. Wait, I thought this guy was the greatest ever in the history of the sport?? How can he possibly be 2-0?? Shouldn't he be something like 40-0 if he's the supposed greatest the sport has ever seen??? Since this is broadcast on network TV, and not the Versus network, or ESPN 14 or some other no-name channel, this has to be the real deal, right? I must have heard wrong, no way he could be 2-0.

Apparently his claim to fame is his YouTube videos of him street brawling. Whatever.

So the fight finally gets started and I watch these 2 guys proceed to pummel each other for the first 5 minute round. There were about 4 times that I said to myself, "...this is over, no way this guy is going to stand up to the greatest ever Kimbo Slice..." But this guy, whoever he is, just kept fighting back.

By the end of the 2nd round the 2 were completely winded. They were lying on the ground, Kimbo was taking about 60 seconds worth of forearms to the head. Neither of them could move. I kept waiting for something amazing to happen, but they both just stayed in the corner of the ring, Kimbo getting pounded on. The announcers were more exciting than the fight. Sure, they were beating the shit out of each other, but nothing was really happening. The great Kimbo was just lying there taking the beating. The other guy was just, well, I don't know what he was doing??

To end the misery, Kimbo put about 4 solid shots to the head of the other guy and the ref jumped in to end the fight. All the announcers kept saying was that "...this was sooooo controversial...." What?? This guy was about to get killed!!!! 2 more shots to the head, and he still would have no idea what his name was!!

In conclusion, I'm not really impressed. I just don't have that much aggression in my body to watch 2 guys in a ring beating the hell out of each other. But I have also heard, from a couple of different sources, that this was a horrible display of what MMA is all about. Kimbo Slice is nothing more than a circus act. The other guys that were shown on the telecast were not the top notch guys in MMA. And I also read that CBS completely f'd up the show, it ran an hour too long, they were introducing people twice, and they were doing way too much talking and way too little fighting.

I'm not saying that Kimbo isn't a complete bad-ass. He is! The guy is huge. Quite a fighter. But apparently in the realm of MMA he's got quite a bit of work to do. Maybe I'll tune in again, I guess it depends on how good or bad my day has been until that point?? Who knows??

TV is real bad these days.

Oh, and one other thing I noticed about the fight last night. When Kimbo was getting acknowledged as the winner, there was some dude in his corner. This guy was fucking HUGE!!! I mean, HUGE!!!!!! I wish I could find a picture of him, this dude was enormous!! He was like the SNL skit about the All-Drug Olympics when Kevin Nealon pulls his arms off when he's trying to clean 1500 pounds! He was comic book huge!

In better news, Manny Ramirez hit his 500th homerun and is a .312 lifetime hitter. Impressive. He just hits. A lot of fun to watch!

The Indians just lost 2 of 3 to the Royals, they've scored 3 runs in the last 2 games. I don't even know what to say? I guess I should be happy I no longer live in Cleveland because I'm sure I would have watched every miserable AB this season and be even more upset than I already am about their dismal season.

Four God Damn Hits?? Is that all we got??

Yep, that's all the Indians could muster up against the Cy Young caliber Gil Meche today. The Cy Young thing was meant to be a joke. But the four hits sadly is not. No runs either. This is just sad... I apparently can't cut and paste the Indians side of the box score but I can sum it up pretty easily.

THE INDIANS ARE FUCKING HORRIBLE

Excuse the language, but they are. They're fucking horrible! They can't hit. They can't field. They can't pitch. And that's pretty much all you do in baseball. Soooo.

Looks like Manager Wedge has decided to try and shake things up by changing the lineup a bit by placing Gutierrez in the 2 spot, followed by Dellucci. Yes, you read that right. David f'n Dellucci is now hitting in the 3 spot for a major league team. Hafner has been dropped to the 6 spot, Garko to the 7th. Hafner has really responded well by going 2 for his last 10 including 2 straight games without a hit.

Earlier this season I was contemplating getting the MLB package so I could watch the Indians every night. Am I glad I opted to not spend the money.

I don't know what they can do? They should have good pitching. They should have good hitting. Victor is leading the league in hitting right now, but when you hit singles with nobody on base, what's the point? He's got 6 extra base hits and no homers. Awesome!

CC is starting to get things figured out. But when Gutierrez can't catch a fly ball and the O only scores 2 runs a game, not many pitchers are going to be good. He's now 1-5. Maybe you should have signed that deal in the off-season, eh CC??

A couple of weeks ago, I thought they needed another bat in the outfield to hit behind Victor, in front of Garko. Now, the only thing another outfielder is going to do for them is suck up payroll.

Asdrubal Cabrera?? Seriously? Is this really the best you can do?

These guys are struggling to hit .200!

Alright, I suppose I should have something good to say. Cliff Lee is having a good season. And the future on the mound should look bright with Carmona, Laffey, who pitched real well today, and Sowers.

Enough flowers and puppies. As I look at this lineup I see their 5-9 guys. Peralta, Hafner, Garko, Blake, and Cabrera. They're hitting .216, .209, .242, .202, .191. Not going to win very many baseball games with a lineup like that.

Makes me sick. You know what else makes me sick? Roger Clemens. Now it has come out that he was sticking John Daly's ex-wife on the side too. I'm sure he's sitting in a lawyers' office denying that one too.

I hope everybody watched last weeks' episode of The Real World. It was simply amazing.

I also read that Wedge is planning on putting Borowski back into the closer's role when he gets healthy. I guess it doesn't really matter if you can't score any runs, huh???

Another Rainy Chicago Day

I've missed some things over the last week.

The Browns had a pretty uneventful draft since they traded all of their picks. Which is fine with me. I think Shawn Rogers and Cory Williams are better than anything else they were going to get out of the draft. But apparently the MLB that they got from UNLV is pretty solid. So good for them. Not sure why they got another TE in the 5th round, but I've decided it's not a good thing to second guess Phil Savage these days, so I will not.

As for the rest of the draft, I just don't get it. I watch a solid share of college football and I could not tell you the positions or schools of half of the first round. I just don't get it. Especially in a year that the Browns first pick is in the 4th round, I really don't care. Not to mention the Day 2 coverage. I think it's the worst TV on TV. and this is a bad time for TV. I actually having the threat of having Mel Kiper talking really makes the draft that much more unappealing.

The Indians are starting to play some good baseball. CC figured out that he does actually have to show up for the games in order to pitch. So this is good. They're presently in 2nd place, 2.5 behind the Sox for the division lead.

I would like it to be known that the D-Rays are leadin the AL East. Wouldn't it be a wonderful thing if they made the playoffs and kept both the Yanks and Red Sox out?? I'm not going to hold my breath, but that would be a good day!

Saturday Afternoon Roundup

It's a beautiful Saturday afternoon and I get to sit around the house and clean. How exciting, I know. But I'm golfing for the first time this season tomorrow. And I'm really looking forward to it. So I don't feel so bad about not really getting out of the house today.

The NBA playoffs started today. The Cavs and the Wizards are on now. Whatever.

The Indians still suck. Cliff Lee is off to a real solid start, so is Westbrook. And if I'm not mistaken, those were the 2 question marks going into the season. Whevever CC and Fausto would like to start pitching, that would be great. But you know, no rush. It's not as though the AL Central is the best league in baseball or anything. So, whenever you guys are ready. After all, combined you did win almost 40 games last year. So I hope you didn't work too hard over the winter to get ready for the season.

Have you seen the first episode of The Real World Hollywood??? I am really not sure if I'm going to be able to watch this whole season. The people that they have for the show is just amazing. The guys are something else. A roided up Johnny Bravo. A guy that's a bigger douchebag than Adam from Paris, he's already told 2 of the girls that he's all into them. They've been there 2 days. A guy who is just, "that guy that fills the last spot". And a guy that was chosen off the internet that appears, from the first hour of the show, to be the biggest ass MTV has ever had on any of their shows. And that's really saying something. This guy makes Puck look like a pretty cool dude. Think of all the Sweet 16s, True Lifes, Made, the dating shows. This guy takes the cake. And the girls. There's the southern belle that doesn't know her left foot from her right. The hot girl that seems pretty well rounded. And the stripper that has serious anger issues and a warrant out for her arrest. Yes, you read that right. Stripper. Arrest warrant. Anger issues. Should be an amazing season!

Closing Time????

We've been able to figure out a couple of things about the Indians in this early season.

1. CC Sabathia thought that since he won the Cy Young last season, batters were going to just lie down at the plate and "fear the Cy Young Winner." Well, this certainly hasn't happened, not even close. Actually, he's having more problems finding the plate than anything else. So far he's 0-2, his only no-decision came when he gave up 7 runs to the White Sox opening day when the Indians were up 7-0. ERA is up to 11.57. His cupcake intake must be through the roof too.

2. Fausto Carmona, Cy Young contended in 07, walked 8 batters in 3.1 innings the other night. The only performance that was worse in the history of the Indians was when Clarence Wright walked 8 in 2.2 innings, in '03. If you don't remember Clarence Wright there's probably a good reason for that, it was 1903 when he walked 8!!! Fausto almost broke a 105 year old record!!!!

3. Borowski is finally on the DL. Hopefully he'll not earn his closer job back when he gets healthy. It's just painful watching this guy pitch. Doesn't matter if they're up 1 run, 3 runs, 6 runs... He always seems to make things interesting. Best case was for him to get hurt, the Indians are forced into putting somebody else in that role and Borowski can figure out his problems in therapy.

4. Hafner still can't see the ball. He's got 14 Ks and 14 hits. He has to be making more contact than this. In the couple of games that I've seen, he's not swinging at strikes. He's swinging at 2-0 curveballs down in the zone. He's swinging at a fastball out of the zone on 3-1 and then watches a fastball on the inside part of the plate go by for strike 3. This just isn't the Travis Hafner of 2 years ago. He was feared, he is not now. Looks to me like he's putting too much pressure on himself, trying to hit the bases empty grand slam everytime he's at the plate. He's guessing too much. He needs to get back to whta he did in the past. See the ball, hit the ball. Get back to the basics.

5. We need Victor in the lineup. Peralta just isn't getting the job done hitting behind Hafner.

6. We need some help in the outfield. I think Gutierrez will be good, eventually, but they need another big bat out there. I don't think Delucci and Michaels are going to get the job done. Gutierrez is good hitting in the 9 spot, but they need another bat for the middle of the lineup.

7.Garko is hitting the ball pretty hard. This is very important!

8. Grady Sizemore is the best defensive CF in baseball.

9. The bullpen is horrible. Can't blame Borowski for the loss last night. 2 nights in a row the bullpen blew wins against the Red Sox. And a quick look at the standings puts the Indians at 5-9. For a team many picked to go to the Series, this is not a good start.

The season is still young, plenty of time to turn things around. Maybe you can blame the cold weather?? Who knows, excuses are not what they need right now. Good baseball is what they need right now.

Yeah, I've been pretty lazy

Well, maybe not lazy, I have been ridiculous busy. I'm trying to balance 2 jobs and dealing with health insurance problems. I think I've spent more time in the last month trying to get my health insurance issues resolved than actually finding a new job. Absolutely miserable.

World B. Free was one of the great Cleveland Cavs. One of my earliest memories was watching him at the old Richfield Coliseum. He was coming down the court on a fast break, no defense in front of him. He pulled up at the 3 point line and drained the 3. The Coliseum went nuts.

But, I've missed quite a few things. One of those things I haven't missed it a Detroit Tigers win. I guess a $140 million payroll gets you 0-7. I'm sure they're going to get things turned around, they're too good to keep losing, but that's just horrible.

The NCAA season ended with a bang. Actually a 3 pointed that's going to go down in history as one of the biggest clutch shots ever. What a great final game, as long as you weren't a Memphis fan. Back and forth, lots of athleticism, great basketball, just a great game. Considering the Saturday night games, the Championship sure made up for it.

One Shining Moment was great! As usual.

UNC being down 40-12 or whatever it was. Coming back and getting it down to 4 points, and then losing by 20. What an emotional roller coaster for Carolina fans??

My fantasy baseball team had possibly the worst week in the 9 year history of the Big 10 Units. I had 6 starts and between them they could not even muster up 25 combined points.

CC Sabathia sure doesnt' look like a Cy Young winner? He's been terrible early this season. Along with pretty much everybody else on the Indians. Hafner has more Ks than hits. Peralta is terrible. Victor is banged up. The Outfield is in shambles. Delucci is terrible. Michaels is worse. Carmona has been the lone bright spot. And I guess Westbrook put together a real nice start last night. They're 4-5. With the team they have, there is no way they should be 4-5. And Borowski is awful. They're going to need to find a new solution for the back end of the pen.

And a final note, I had to fax 5 pages to my new employer. I went to FedEx Kinko's. The total bill was $9.67. Yes, that's right, $9.67 for faxing 5 pages. 5 fucking pages, almost $10. I will never set foot in a FedEx Kinko's again.

Opening Week!

I've been ridiculously busy these last couple of days. I haven't had much time for the blog. And apparently Pikus and Reynolds haven't either. No real surprise there.

The Indians have opened the season 2-0 against the garbage of the AL Central. CC sure didn't look like a Cy Young winner on Monday, but Fausto sure did. 7 innings, 1 run. Solid outing for a very cold night in Cleveland. Game 3 of the series is this afternoon, hopefully the Tribe can get a nice sweep of the Sox to start the season. Westbrook is on the mound for the Indians.

Victor pulled a hammy in opening day. I really think we're going to need him to play more 1st base this year. Shoppach is solid behind the plate but we're going to need him to hit. Taking Garko out of the lineup to let Victor play first is going to be tough to replace.

The whole lineup is hitting right now. I think that's more of a function of the BP Buherle threw to the Indians yesterday than anything else. It's a little deceiving to see that they're nearly hitting .400 as a team so far... But Sizemore and Cabrera each had 3 hits yesterday and Hafner added 2. This is real good for Hafner after the dismal October he had last season.

And one last Indians comment. Sometimes I just hate Cleveland fans. Why do they insist on booing Jim Thome every time he comes up to the plate. He was one of the greatest Indians on some of the greatest Indians teams. Management couldn't come up with the money so he left to go to Philly. Get over it!!!! It makes me sick to hear the boos coming from the crowd when he's comes up. Makes me sick!

4 #1 seeds in the Final 4 for the first time ever!! The 4 best teams throughout the season have made it to the final weekend. Why people are in such an uproar about how terrible this tournament has been is beyond me. Call me crazy, but aren't the #1 seeds supposed to make it to the final 4? Aren't they #1 seeds for a reason?

Anyhow, Pedro Martinez is out for another 4-6 weeks. No real surprise there.

Best Lineup In Baseball?

I have the time today, the tourney is starting on Thursday, I have to work tomorrow, so I figure I have nothing better to do today than check out the Indians lineup for this upcoming season.

Leading off will be Grady Sizemore. He should be able to build on the All-Star season he had last. He's probably the only true 5 tool player they have in the lineup. Hopefully he will steal some more bases than he did last season. He stole 33 bases last year, up from 22 the previous, but he's really the only speed the Indians have in the lineup. It would be nice to see him steal close to 50 this year.

The 2 spot should be filled by Asdrubal Cabrera. I really think this kid is the real deal. He was fantastic in the field teaming up with Jhonny Peralta up the middle and if he can hit around .300 this season, he will be very effective getting himself on base and moving Sizemore into scoring position for the meat of the lineup.

In the 3rd spot should be Hafner. Hopefully he's a little upset about his dismal performance in the playoffs when I'm still convinced he couldn't see the ball. Although his homerun totals and his average were down considerably last year, he still knocked in 100 runs. Which would tell me that he got some key hits when he needed them. Travis had a wrist injury last season, and I remember Jim Thome had a wrist injury and had a horrible season in the year following but was able to bounce back in a big way the next. Let's bet on Travis having a year like he did in 2006!

Hitting Cleanup will be Victor. Arguably the best hitting catcher in the bigs, he put up some solid numbers last year .301/25/114. I'm guessing he's going to get some more time at 1B to try and keep the knee problems down to a minimum. He should have another big season.

Behind Victor will be Ryan Garko. He had a pretty solid 2nd half of the season and can hopefully take the next step in protecting Victor in the lineup. The more good pitches Martinez gets to see, the better off the Indians are going to be.

Next up will be Jhonny Peralta. After a dismal 2006 both at the plate and in the field, I think he put to rest the thoughts of trade/release/move to 3rd/demotion with the way he played last year.

Casey Blake will be hitting in the 7 spot. This is another guy that put to rest the demons last year. With the acquisition of Andy Marte to play 3rd, and Gutierrez/Michaels/Delucci/Nixon to play the outfield last year. There was a real possibility of a short future in Cleveland. But, we found out that Marte sucked, and we needed a 3rd baseman. He filled in so well that there's really no question about who will be at 3rd this year. Hopefully a little stability will be good for Blake

The 8 spot will be filled with Delucci/Francisco/Michaels. Whoever is playing in the OF that day. I would really like to see them go after a power hitting outfielder this season. Maybe they can give up some pitching to get another big bat in the lineup?

And the end of the lineup will be shored up by Franklin Gutierrez. Another young guy that should hopefully build on the succes he had last year. He had moments of "...We don't need another guy in RF, Gutierrez is our guy!!!" and "...Why is this guy even in a major league lineup???"

Solid lineup from top to bottom. A good mix of vets and younger guys. Let's hope that they can build on last season. Let's hope that they have a little more desire after how last season ended. If nothing else, this should be a very entertaining team, they should have a very good shot to win the AL Central. Times are looking good at Jacob's Field. I'm really looking forward to this season.

I will never call Jacobs' Field, Progressive Field.

And I took these pictures at at Sox-Indians game at US Cellular last season. I know, they're really good....

Opening Day is Right Around the Corner!

If you can believe it, Spring Training is quickly coming to a close, opening day is a mere 2 weeks away, and I haven't said a thing about the Indians.

Fortunately or unfortunately, I'm not quite sure yet, the lineup is little different from last season. I think this is a good thing. To come as close as they did to beating the Sox last fall, I think these guys are hungry to get back to the postseason. Hopefully Hafner went to an eye doctor.

The strength of this team is going to be the starting rotation. Anchored by last season's Cy Young winner, and free agent-at-the-end-of-the-season, CC Sabathia. He just keeps getting better and better each season. Hopefully his head doesn't get bigger than it already is thinking about all of those dollar signs that await him at the end of this season. The #2 guy is going to be Carmona. If he can get back half of what he did last season he's in store for another good season. Next in the rotation is admitted HGH user Paul Byrd. The crafty vet is coming off arguably his best season in the bigs and lets hope he can have another good one. #4 in the rotation is Jake Westbrook. He finished last season pitching really well by winning 8 of his last 11 starts in August and September. And from what I can figure, the #5 starter is up for grabs. Between Laffey, Lee, or Sowers. With a little luck one of those guys will step up and take over the spot in the rotation.

The bullpen should be solid again this season. The bullpen is boring. Middle relievers are about as exciting to talk about as hemorroids. With a little luck Borowski figured out how to get 3 consecutive batters out over the winter. Even with all of his breakdowns, he was able to rack up 45 saves with an ERA over 5 and opposing batters hitting close to .300 against him.

I'll get to the lineup tomorrow. It will give me something to do.

Indians Sign Betancourt

The Indians signed Rafael Betancourt to a 2 year contract today. Now if they can just find a closer that doesn't give up 3 baserunners each appearance, they should be in good shape. Betancourt tied for last seasons lead in holds and only allowed 3 of 33 inherited runners to score.

Right now they're starting rotation should be Sabathia, Carmona, Byrd and his HGH, Westbrook, and I imagine Cliff Lee. I'd be willing to put that rotation up against just about anybody in baseball, except for the playoffs. Solid top to bottom.

The AL Central is going to be really competitive this season. The Tribe can pitch and they should hit the ball hard too. Hopefully Hafner can get over what happened last season, I'm still convinced he couldn't see the ball in the playoffs, not to mention he killed my fantasy team last season. How about some starts over at first, I hate putting him in at a utility position each week. Sizemore is up for another good season, Victor hits, Garko came on late in the season. They'll be a fun team to watch play!

Anyhow, I'm really looking forward to this season, not only because of the '08 Indians, but I'm really getting sick of this cold weather. It's miserable in Chicago!

Pitchers and catchers report in 22 days!

A lot of Heartache..but a bright future

To be a Purdue and Cleveland fan, is like some sort of sick joke if you are a sports fan. So many memories of hope for a championship, and then just dashed away in the blink of an eye. Don't believe me, take a look:

-Willie Mays over the shoulder catch in '54. Granted, my mom wasn't even born yet, but I still see replays once a year. But, my grandma was 36, and she remembered it vividly.

- Right Red 88. Oakland, we lost to Oakland?? At home, to a warm weather team in the ice and snow off Lake Erie? I was 5 at this time, and I remember clearly being in a restaurant with my parents when this happened, only to have my dad yell at me to "quit acting up." My emotions were getting the best of me, at age 5.

- Put in Mike Jackson! That's what I remember screaming to Hargrove 800 miles away from Indiana, while he was sitting in South Florida. But sure enough, "Joe Table," a.k.a Jose Mesa comes trotting out of the bullpen. Then he somehow survives a terrible 9th, and Craig Counsell's missle is caught in right field by David Justice. Granted, that was just delaying the inevitable, when a Edgar Renteria single up the middle sealed the fate of the Fighting Wahoo's in '97.

- The Drive, The Fumble-- I don't even want to get into this. We all knows how this turns out. Elway in '86, and Byner in '87. Byner's huge game was overshadowed by one fumble that Dennis Smith didn't even know he caused at the goal line.

- The C.C/Fausto Meltdown in the '07 ALCS. Two potential Cy Young award winners, failing to show up for the ALCS. If they pitch just one game like they can in game 5 or 6, the Tribe goes to the World Series, and probably beat the Rockies who woke up from a coma after winning 50 straight games.

That's enough negativity, let me look toward the future now:

-The Browns, 10-6, but missed the playoffs. Yes, the Colts probably should have played their starters, look at their past performances on rest. But, the Browns should have beat the Bengals too. With a little help at D line next year, and one more receiver to compliment Braylon along with JJ, the Browns should contend for the division in '08. DA with another year under his belt, and an O Line that dominates, could make for a fun '08.

-The Tribe in '08: Same team, same good starting staff, another year of experience for young players. Look for guys like Asdrubal Cabrera, Garko, Gutierrez, Carmona, and an improving Jhonny Peralta to have strong years in '08. I know the Tigers beefed up their lineup, but I'll still take the Tribe's pitching over the Tigers pitching all day. Yes they got Dontrelle, but he's a very average pitcher, who had an ERA over 5.00 last year...in the NL. Welcome to the AL Dontrelle.

- Cavs: Get LeBron help, before he leaves. Last year was a fluke, get the man some help, before he leaves. I can't state that enough.

-Purdue- BBall looking strong for a young team. I love Matt Painter and what he's done, and also because he bought me a pitcher of Killians's at Hooters, simply because I had a Purdue hoody on. I fully expect a Big Ten title or two, over the next four years with this team. As far as football goes, we should be fine with Danny Hope. He had a high powered offense at E Kentucky, and apparantly he can recruit his butt off. Recruiting is something that has hampered the program, with the likes of Michigan, OSU, and Wisconsin in the Big Ten. I have a good feeling about Hope.

Now call me the eternal optimist, because I am. I don't forget the past and all the heartache, but I certainly look toward the future, when one of my teams is hoisted up that championship trophy.

Boiler Dawg Blog Open For Business!

So Pikus and I have been friends since we met in Tarkington Hall at Purde University in the fall of 95, shortly after, we realized we were both Cleveland Fans. We've been friends since.

So we've been through Jose Mesa's Blown save, the departure of the Browns from Cleveland, The Jim Colletto years, the loss to the Braves in 97, the Boilers losing the Rose Bowl in 2001, the Browns losing just about every weekend from 99-06 and the Ravens winning the Super Bowl, the Cavs getting swept, and the Titans playing against the Lawrence North JV team to keep our Browns out of the playoffs in 07... All kinds of good stuff!

So hopefully we'll keep updated on our favorite teams actually winning something for a change and give everyone our 2 cents, and some fun stuff we may come across along the way.