Tribe update (quick, avert your eyes!)

Sitting here waiting for the Celtics to finish off the Magic, we're forced to uncover our eyes and stare into the carnage that is your 2009 Cleveland Indians. I'll admit, I was overly optimistic about this team. I thought the bullpen would actually be a strength. I thought they'd win around 90 games and take the very winnable Central Division. Of course I also thought they'd be able to string together a couple of wins - something that has happened exactly once through the first 34 games of the season. When you stop and think about that for a second you realize how truly pathetic that face really is - and you understand why the team is sitting at 12-22 on May 13th.

I'd boo Thome if I cared enough to still go to games

It was more of the same last night as they lost 9-4 to the White Sox to again avoid a winning streak. Old friend Jim Thome hit a couple home runs off Jeremy Sowers, who really shouldn't be in any team's starting rotation at the big-league level. The bullpen also allowed a couple of late runs in the 7th to make sure there was no chance of a comeback win. It seems like a similar script every night with these Indians. And now the finger-pointing has begun. Eric Wedge is in the line of fire and many in the organization are at his defense.

I honestly don't know how/when/if this mess can be fixed. But I was talking to my buddy Nicko yesterday and we agree that there are bigger problems in baseball than just the Tribe's shitty play. MLB should really just shut things down for a year and fix all of its problems. I'm tired of the payroll disparity, and losing budding stars before they hit their primes. The steroid crap doesn't bother me all that much, I'm just tired of watching the rich get richer. I'm tired of seeing the best players sign with New York/Boston/LA. I'm tired of fans of those teams and their sense of entitlement to everything. And I'm tired of watching the Tribe lose. Come back soon Cavs, I'm already missing you.

Back on track

The Tribe returned to their winning ways in Baltimore last night (after a forgettable Monday night) with a 6-1 win. Jeremy Sowers was able to notch his third win of the season with 8 strong innings of work (7K, 1BB, and 72 strikes in 96 pitches). And more importantly, this game finally featured the return of Travis Hafner off the disabled list. He went 2-for-4 with two singles and a walk. So the Indians finally have all of their bats back in the line-up for the first time since May 25, although now there are only 19 games left in the season.

A sight for sore eyes: Pronk singling in the first inning

"He looked good, [took] a couple of strong swings," Wedge said. "I felt like it was a great start for him in regard to him getting back with us and getting back into the swing of things here at this level."

I actually didn't think Hafner would make it back on the field this year. It has been a tough season with the shoulder injury and the passing of his father. But I have to admit it was nice to see him back out there having some fun and helping contribute to another Tribe win. They are now 33-22 in the post-Sabathia era and only need to finish 11-8 in their quest for .500. And you have to wonder what could have been had this team remained somewhat healthy this season. They are only 9-1/2 out right now even after all the adversity. But as we are used to saying in Cleveland, there's always next year...

Other Tribe Notes: Mark Shapiro talks about the infield options for 2009... Brian Bullington was called up from AAA Buffalo to start the second game of Saturday's double header... and some strange details are emerging in the yet-to-be-finalized CC Sabathia trade with the Brewers.

Browns Update: The Browns offense is getting ready to play the Steelers, with our without Donte Stallworth at receiver. Why do I have a feeling this guy will never be 100% this year? To add to the speculation that Stallworth might be recovering for a while, the Browns re-signed receiver Paul Hubbard to the practice squad... Tony Grossi gives his scouting report on the Steelers... obviously the Browns defense needs to improve quickly to beat their arch rivals.

Cavs Update: OK, only 48 days until the season opener. If you can't tell I'm obviously excited for this season. There probably won't really be much to talk about until training camp opens in a few weeks, but I did like this article from the Toronto film festival where the documentary 'More Than a Game' (chronicling the LeBron-led Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary high school basketball team) just premiered. It should be something to see.

Then, James, a 6-foot-8, 260-pound man who has carried an NBA franchise on his back since his rookie season at age 18, stopped talking and started to get choked up. He cried onstage. For the first time, the public witnessed a deeply emotional moment for James. ''This is the first time I've cried — in basketball or anything — since we lost that national championship game in eighth grade,'' James said, referring to an AAU game in Orlando. He wasn't the only one who cried.

No more day games, please

One look at the expanded MLB standings and you'll notice something very peculiar about the 2008 Indians... they are an abysmal 15-26 in day games (.365) compared to a very respectable 52-45 (.536) in night games. What's the reason for this oddity? Is it that we are now loaded with younger players that like to stay out late and party till the wee hours of the morning (I know I would be doing that)? Maybe they just can't get up for day games. Or were they cursed by Grady Sizemore losing that ball in the sun in Kansas City late September of 2005? Although that doesn't really check out since they did go 29-19 during the day last year. Or maybe it's just a random occurrence in a long 162-game season and there really isn't any relevance to it. Whatever the case, they need to start playing better during the day. (Note to self: If you do renew your 20-game plan next year, don't get one that includes 7 Sunday games like this year).

The Tribe couldn't complete the three-game sweep at the Prog yesterday afternoon, falling 4-2 to the White Sox. Sweeping the Central division leaders would have been a tall order, especially with the inconsistent Jeremy Sowers on the mound for the Tribe. Yesterday he was able to give the Indians only 5-1/3 innings and gave up all four runs, including 2 homers. But at least the bullpen did give the Tribe some solid work again, with four relievers combining for 3-2/3 scoreless innings.

The White Sox went all out for this one, giving Jenks a rare 5-out save

Obviously I'm not a fan of these weekday getaway games. But this one really boggles my mind, considering both the Indians and White Sox have an off-day today. What was the reasoning behind scheduling this one as a day game? So you could only get a half-capacity crowd to show up? If that was the goal, then good work. The Tribe will resume play tomorrow night as they embark on a 8-game road trip starting in Kansas City. Not only will they have a chance to get back over .500 this month, but they can also get their division record over .500 and that would be a major accomplishment to me. They currently sit at 25-31 in the division with 16 games left against their Central foes.

Other Tribe Notes: Cliff Lee was named AL pitcher of the month yesterday. And with a 5-0 record and 1.86 ERA in August, who could possibly argue that selection?... Newcomer Rich Rundles is excited for his chance to be in the big leagues. He debuted with a four-pitch walk yesterday... And this is Cleveland, so I guess it's time to start worrying about Cliff Lee's future here.

Browns Update: More bad news on the injury front from Berea yesterday. Not exactly the way I was hoping we'd be going into the Cowboys game. But it sounds as if Jamal Lewis will be ready to go. As promised, I will have my Browns/Cowboys thoughts featured here tomorrow. Just don't take my advice to Vegas or your local bookie.

Cavs Update: LeBron made an appearance on ESPN yesterday. And Brian Windhorst says we are close to signing Lorenzen Wright as big-man insurance. I'd like to think of him as a slightly upgraded Scot Pollard, but of course without the fun hairdos and advice for the kids.

A little breathing room

The Tribe finished a nice weekend series win on Sunday, taking two of three from the Angels, the owner's of the best record in baseball. They really could have taken all three from L.A. (or Anaheim, whichever you prefer) if not for some very sloppy defense on Saturday. But as a hefty singer from the 70's once said, two out of three ain't bad, especially in a season like this one for the Tribe where most fans are just hoping to squeeze out any positive vibes.

My wife and I were at the Prog on Friday night to see Cliff Lee go the distance for win #17 in a 3-2 victory (even if it did cause us to miss this). Lee has found the winning formula for the Tribe this year - just keep the game out of the hands of the bullpen. He induced four double plays in that victory, and watching him pitch this year really is great if you followed his struggles last year. By my estimation (and barring any injuries) he should get about 7 more starts before the season is over, and if he pitches anywhere near the level he has so far, win #20 should be here around mid-September.

Sunday's 4-3 win featured a Houdini-like escape in the top of the 9th by Jensen Lewis to get Jeremy Sowers just his second win on the year. Grady Sizemore gave the Indians the lead for good in the 6th. And to illustrate how well the Angels have played this year, this was their first series loss to an AL opponent since May. That is pretty impressive. With the win the Tribe has now won 7 of their last 10 and they have opened up some breathing room in the fight to stay out of the basement in the Central. They currently stand a game and a half up on the Royals and only 3-1/2 behind the Tigers. They will enjoy a day off today to make room for the Browns on MNF :)

Jeremy Sowers finally notched win #2 on Sunday

Other Tribe Notes: The Indians will have some big names in the line-up on Tuesday night in AAA Buffalo. Martinez homered in Akron on Sunday. And Jensen Lewis wants to be the closer of the future. Personally I'll settle for dumping a boatload of money on K-Rod (and his 47 saves already) this winter.

Browns Update: The Browns finally get back on the field tonight for their second exhibition game, this one on Monday Night Football against the defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants. Today's PD jokes about a possible Super Bowl preview, but is it really that far-fetched? There are plenty of reasons to watch this one, even if we will possibly play this team twice more after tonight. Want another reason? It's the debut of the Browns in brown pants. I'll admit, I'm excited for a peek at the new look. And of course, don't forget Tony Grossi's noon chat today.

"I've seen a highlight reel of Braylon [Edwards] catching the ball and me running for touchdowns. We're not the team to look over anymore. Cleveland is in the house. Put us on prime time and let's see what we can do." - Josh Cribbs

Cavs Update: LeBron and Team USA destroyed Germany today, 106-57 to finish pool play in the Olympics. His stat line reads 18 points (7-of-10 from the field, including 4-of-5 from 3-point range), 3 rebounds, and 2 steals in just 18 minutes of action. If you missed the game, it can be seen in its entirety here (not that I would ever condone watching something like that in the office). Team USA will continue play on Wednesday in quarterfinal action against Australia.

"Going against Greece and going against Spain, it was really easy to get up for," James said. "And we could have easily came in and had one of those games where we make excuses, but we didn't take a step backwards today and that was good, it was really good."

And speaking of LeBron, we've finally found an article about him in a national publication that is worthy of reading. Stop the presses, there is sanity out there. While I don't agree with everything in there (particularly the Ferry bashing - and granted, this was written before we acquired Mo), it is the first national story I've seen that presents valid points as to why LBJ would want to stay here. Imagine that.

Climbing our way out

Don't look now but there's a new last place team in the AL Central. For the first time since July 26th, the Tribe has emerged from the cellar and put the Royals back in their rightful place. I'll try not to get too far ahead of myself, but I see we are only 3-1/2 back from Detroit now too. And just so you don't think I'm kidding, visual proof:

The Indians won their fifth straight game last night, this time a 7-5 victory over the Orioles. They did it with more solid hitting and again overcame some shaky bullpen work late in the game. They were also helped by Baltimore kicking the ball all over the field, amassing four errors in the process.

Jeremy Sowers was in line for his long-overdue second victory of the year (he has gone at least six innings in five straight starts, yet has nothing to show for it) but Masa Kobayashi quickly put an end to that. Kobayashi's line for the night - 0 outs, 2 hits, 1 earned run, and 1 inherited runner scored on 13 pitches. Not good. But Rafael Perez was good (his ERA is down to 2.80 after a disastrous start to the season) and he enabled the Tribe bats to get another win over an AL East team.

Asdrubal Cabrera was the hero at the plate again last night, getting the game-winning RBI in the bottom of the eighth. Cabrera is now hitting .324 for the month of August (8 hits in his last four games) and appears to finally be comfortable again at the plate. And Jensen Lewis did some nice work in a 1-2-3 ninth inning to get the save in the ever-changing closer experiement for the Tribe. They will look to extend the winning streak tonight at the Prog with another one against Baltimore. Newcomer Anthony Reyes will make his home debut for the good guys.

I could get used to this winning thing

Bye-Bye Birdie: It wasn't all good news from the Prog yesterday. Paul Byrd was dealt to the gates of hell to play for Satan's team (otherwise known as being traded to the Boston Red Sox). I wasn't aware that Byrd had even cleared waivers when I learned of the deal yesterday afternoon. As I've said before, he wasn't the greatest pitcher ever to wear an Indians uniform. But he had a lot of heart and I will always fondly remember his Game 4 start in New York last year in the ALDS. And Byrd was treated so unfairly in last year's ALCS with the whole HGH thing. I will always wish him well personally, but I hate seeing him go to Boston. Ugh. The Indians will either get cash or the infamous player to be named later in return...

"I don't know if the trade is ironic because of the HGH thing," said Byrd. "I think it's more ironic because it's the team that beat us. I wasn't a Red Sox fan this off-season, let's put it that way. Putting on that Red Sox jersey may take a minute or two."

Other Tribe Updates: The neverending search for bullpen help was again a topic of discussion yesterday. And with Byrd's spot in the rotation coming up again tomorrow, it looks like Aaron Laffey may be coming back up to Cleveland.

Browns Update: Just when I thought it was safe to type "arthroscopic surgery" in an earlier Browns update, we're hit with this. I know we are deep at tight end, but it's still not something we need. And Tony Grossi had been saying that depth may help us land a defensive back in a trade, so now, who knows? At least Donte Stallworth wasn't really trying to win the number one receiver job.

Finally a 'getaway' win!

I've been harping on it all season here, but the Tribe finally accomplished what I thought was impossible yesterday - a win in the dreaded weekday 'getaway' game. The 9-4 win gave them a split in the 4-game series with the Tigers (although they really should have taken 3 of 4), and gave Fausto Carmona his first win since May 12. He was much stronger in this outing than his previous one, going 6-1/3 innings and allowing only 2 earned runs on 99 pitches. Grady Sizemore provided some offensive punch with his 27th home run (2nd in the AL), a 3-run shot in the 5th. And Ben Francisco made a terrific diving catch early in the game.

This picture just speaks for itself - Fasano & Kobayashi, an unstoppable battery

Granted, the Indians are still in last place in the Central - a full two games behind Kansas City - but they have played much better of late. Since the 10 game losing streak that seemed to last forever (June 28-July 9) they have gone 10-7. Not earth-shattering, but respectable given all the injuries, trades to key players, bullpen struggles, and pitching rotation scrambling. The trade deadline did pass without Paul Byrd being dealt yesterday, but he still could be moved sometime this month.

The Tribe pushes on tonight in Minnesota, beginning a 9-game road trip that will also take them to Tampa Bay and Toronto. Jeremy Sowers will get the start tonight and can hopefully improve his dreadful 5.86 ERA and 1-5 record.

Other Tribe Updates: Some info here about finalizing the CC trade and some early returns on the Casey Blake trade. And some updates from the farm. And Grady Sizemore is having a career year, in case you hadn't noticed.

''I just pace around the clubhouse,'' Sizemore said. ''My routine is so crazy; I don't really want to get into it. I think I do more running in the clubhouse than I would if I was playing in the field."

Browns Update: The first injury news of training camp hit yesterday. Not a huge blow but it's always nice to have depth on defense, so let's hope Peek is back for the regular season. Terry Cousin is one guy who's not worried about the Browns' secondary. And Andra Davis likes the talent all around him. Finally, Terry Pluto gives some views from Thursday's practice.

Of course no training camp report would be complete without a dumb video update:


Cavs Update: LeBron returned to action yesterday with 20 points (8-9 from the floor) to lead Team USA to a 114-82 exhibition win over Turkey in China. He then chipped in 15 points this morning (7-9 from the floor) as Team USA dumped Lithuania, 120-84. And LeBron is now using FIBA rules to his advantage in China.

You just know Loozer wishes he still had this guy on his team every night

40 Days Left

Only 40 days left until sports enjoyment can officially resume in Cleveland. Or at least that's what I'm hoping. But until the Browns begin their season on September 7th, we're probably going to have to deal with a few more bad weekends like the one the Tribe had this past weekend. And in what seems like typical fashion this season, I tuned in just in time to see the bad stuff and missed the few good things that did happen.

On Friday I skipped the entire Indians game (in favor of the outstanding Foo Fighters show at the Q) and missed the lone victory of the series, a 5-4 triumph over the Twins. In that game Cliff Lee notched his 14th victory (even if Masa Kobayashi did his best to try to ruin things) and dropped his ERA to a stellar 2.29. The win also marked the Tribe's first division win in 8 tries. Ouch.

So feeling better about the team's recent play and with not much else to do while burning the summer away (it's going WAY too fast) I attended the game on Saturday, eager to see Fausto Carmona's return to the rotation. Well, it didn't last long and it was brutally painful. 2-1/3 innings pitched, 7 hits, 3 walks, and 9 earned runs are all you need to know about the 11-4 loss. I guess this sort of thing should be expected when a guy returns after being out that long. But with the way this season has gone for the Tribe I half-expect Fausto to be put back on the DL for the rest of the year...

Then yesterday's game... I forgot they were even playing and was out and about yesterday when my wife reminded me to flip on the radio as we were driving. Just as I tuned to 1100 AM I hear Tom Hamilton say, "and Sowers has gone 5 perfect innings", and right then I knew it was over. Of course the next Twins batter hit a double and it was all downhill from that point. The Indians ended up losing 4-2 after Justin Morneau got the game-winning RBI off closer candidate #956, Rafael Perez. By the way, Morneau is now hitting .350 against the Tribe this year with 7 extra base hits and 10 RBI. Yikes. Like I said, only 40 more days until Browns football.

All Tribe fans should rejoice now that this man has left town

Other Tribe Updates: Well, Casey Blake was finally dealt on Saturday. That one was bittersweet for me. I love what Blake has done this year and appreciated all his hard work over the years. I wish him nothing but success wherever his career takes him. He ended up going to the Dodgers in exchange for right-hander Jonathan Meloan and catcher Carlos Santana (maybe he will prove to be a better guitar player than Ben Broussard?). In another minor deal, the Tribe acquired pitching prospect Anthony Reyes for hard-throwing right-hander, Luis Perdomo. Terry Pluto calls the deal a "decent gamble" so I'll take his word for it. The Indians face the Tigers tonight at the Prog to start a four-game series. Paul Byrd will be on the mound for perhaps the final time for the good guys...

Cavs Update: Hoopsworld.com got an exclusive interview over the weekend with Danny Ferry. Not much new to report, but I thought I'd pass along what Ferry had to say.

"I like our team very much," said Ferry, "But we're looking at every possibility. I think we helped ourselves in the Draft this year, we'll look at the free-agent situation if there's opportunities there and trades as well."

Browns Update: Camp continues in Berea, with no devastating injuries yet (keep your fingers crossed). There was a nice piece on veteran wide receiver Kevin Kasper today. And also some updates on our favorite backup QB and punt/kick returner. And don't forget, Monday is chat day with the PD's Tony Grossi. There's always some good stuff in those podcasts.

Weekend Wrap

The second half of the Tribe's season got off to a rather rocky start with an 8-2 loss to the woeful Mariners in Seattle. Aaron Laffey was rocked in the bottom of the 2nd for five runs after a bad error by Jhonny Peralta opened things up. But the Indians were able to rebound nicely on Saturday and grab a 9-6 win behind Shin-Soo Choo's bat. And it marked Jeremy Sowers' first big league win since May 24, 2007 (trust me, I looked it up). I wish I could give you more details from Saturday's game, but due to MLB's ridiculous Fox Saturday TV rule, I was not able to watch the game in Cleveland. If someone could explain to me why I would rather watch the Red Sox vs. the Angels on Fox, instead of my favorite home team on STO, well, I'm all ears.

So in Sunday's rubber match between two AL disappointments, Cliff Lee took the mound for our Tribe. And not surprisingly, he notched his 13th win on the year going the distance for the 6-2 victory. Kelly Shoppach provided all the support that Lee would need in the 4th inning. The only bad news from Sunday's game were the two horrendous plays (at least the ones that I saw) turned in by Jhonny Peralta at short. One was officially credited as an error, the other wasn't, but allowed a runner to get a hit on a routine grounder. Look, I'm not trying to pile on Jhonny and I love the way he's been hitting lately. I'm just stating my case for moving him to third base sooner rather than later. Asdrubal Cabrera needs to be our every day shortstop and I'll keep repeating it until I'm blue in the face. Unfortunately, Eric Wedge doesn't agree. Maybe they are just waiting for the right offer for Casey Blake? We'll find out soon I guess.

Just another day at the office for Cliff in Seattle

So after taking two out of three in Seattle, the Indians improved (?) to 11 games under .500, yet are still looking up at the Royals in the standings. But the good news is they've won six of their last seven games overall. They look to continue their improved play in a three-game series starting tonight against the Anaheim Angels of Los Angeles of Anaheim (or something like that). Paul Byrd will be on the hill for the good guys, so pray for rain or just lots of run support!

Browns Update: Training camp starts in less than 48 hours and I'm happier than a teenage girl at an NKOTB concert in 1989. Terry Pluto talks about the high hopes for the 2008 Browns. And Tony Grossi gives us a video preview below. I'm officially pumped.

Cavs Update: Well the summer league has already come and gone, with the Cavs going 0-5 in Las Vegas. But the real story was how well J.J. Hickson performed out west. He ended the summer league on a high note last night, with 24 points and 5 rebounds in 34 minutes of action. In the five games in Vegas he averaged 19.4 points and 7.8 rebounds in 30 minutes a game. Not too shabby.

"The Cleveland Cavaliers' J.J. Hickson has displayed a powerful post game with a full repertoire of moves. It looks like he'll be a steal for the Cavaliers." Source

Motown Misery Continues

Things went from bad to worse on Tuesday night in the Tribe's first game in the post-CC era. Chalk up loss number nine in a row as Jeremy Sowers was rocked again for 6 earned runs on 10 hits in Detroit. The loss is particularly bothersome to me given that the Indians got to Justin Verlander in the first inning with a double and a home run... then followed that up with no hits over the next six innings. This looks to me like a team that has completely given up. I know the Tigers are playing well now and we are obviously in a huge tailspin, but pride needs to kick in at some point. And I'm not sure what happened to Sowers between 2006 and now but he does not look good. His ERA has ballooned to 7.81 to go along with an 0-5 record. Is this the same guy that went 7-4 with a 3.57 ERA in 2006? The Tribe will look to avoid their first double-digit losing streak since 2004 tonight when Paul Byrd takes the mound. Take my advice - don't watch.

Handshakes at the plate seem even more common when Sowers is pitching

CC Update: To add insult to injury, CC Sabathia won his first start in Milwaukee last night. He was shaky (as you'd expect given the enormous expectations, new league, etc.) but still fought through 6 innings giving up 5 hits, 5 walks, and 2 earned runs. He also did go 0-2 at the plate, but I imagine he was a little worked up for this game.

It will be tough to get used to this sight

Cavaliers Update: Onto hopefully some good news... the free agency picture became a little clearer last night as more faces changed teams. Elton Brand decided to stun the Clippers and bolt for Philadelphia, and then Cory Maggette got a huge contract from the Warriors. Of course Cavaliers' GM Danny Ferry is watching this all unfold with his full attention. Maggette would have made a nice addition to the Cavs and they did reportedly offer their full mid-level exception, but that just couldn't compete with the 5 years, $50 million he ended up getting.

So now this leaves and big decision for Twinsburg native James Posey. The Cavs are very interested, but it will be up to Posey to decide which team gives him the best chance to snag another ring. It will also be intriguing to see where Monta Ellis of the Warriors ends up.

Finally, obviously a longshot to be on any NBA roster again, Tractor Traylor is suiting up for the Cavs summer league squad.

Moving On...

My Cleveland Gladiators (affectionately called 'mine' after my recent jump onto their bandwagon) got a big playoff win last night in Georgia and they will now advance the conference championship game... but they aren't the only ones moving on. The really big story over the holiday weekend actually became official yesterday. CC Sabathia is now a Milwaukee Brewer, traded Monday for 1B/LF Matt LaPorta, LHP Zach Jackson, RHP Rob Bryson and the always popular player-to-be-named-later. The Tribe insists that this player will have a chance to be a big leaguer so we will wait and see on that one.

Listening to the radio and reading responses online, Indians fans are obviously less than thrilled with the move. And I understand that. I loved watching CC grow from a solid-but-inconsistent young pitcher into a Cy Young winner last year. There were always questions about his weight, but none of us can deny that CC was a durable pitcher while he was here and he actually liked being on the Indians. That goes a long way for fans in this town. Yet with that said, I just cannot rip the Indians for this move. This is what Major League Baseball has become over the last decade. With no hard salary cap in place, the rich stay rich and mid-market teams are forced to make agonizing decisions about their own players. Do you risk everything and give him a huge, long-term contract that he will likely never live up to and will strap your team financially for years? Or do you trade him for prospects and hope that those young guys pan out and become stars?

In this case I really think Mark Shapiro made the right decision. We've seen it too many times in the past where we thought we could keep our own players, only to see them bolt to greener (as in dollar signs) pastures. Did we get ripped off in this deal? Who knows? But to me, the Brewers are giving up four prospects for a pitcher they are renting for maybe 15 starts this season. And they are currently behind two teams in their own division. So by no means does this guarantee them anything. At least the Indians know their season is already over and building for the future begins now. We can only hope that this deal can come remotely close to the Bartolo Colon trade that netted us Grady Sizemore, Cliff Lee, and Brandon Phillips. I'm not expecting that this time around, but I just hope one of these players will end up being solid for us. I'd honestly rather see it go down this way than CC just walking away for nothing after this season.

And ripping the Dolans for this move is just silly in my view. CC was offered a 4-year deal at $72M before this season started. Given the history of long-term huge money deals for pitchers (Barry Zito immediately comes to mind) I would have really been upset if the Tribe went for more years and more money. It just wouldn't have made any sense and would have hurt the long-term potential for this team. I wish CC the best and I'm looking forward to seeing him hit in the National League. But I'm not looking forward to him wearing a Boston or New York cap next season when he chases the almighty dollar. And that's why Major League Baseball in 2008 drives me crazy. This scenario will play out again and again and again until the system is fixed.

We'll definitely miss the big lefty

Trade Reactions:

• Terry Pluto
• Bill Livingston
• Paul Hoynes
• Pat McManamon
• Buster Olney

Other Tribe Updates: Life without CC begins for the Tribe tonight in Detroit when Jeremy Sowers and his 7.53 ERA try to end the team's current 8-game losing skid. In case you missed it over the long holiday weekend, our favorite punching bag closer Joe Borowski was designated for assignment on Friday. Thinking back to last year, it now truly seems miraculous that we were able to squeeze 45 saves out of that right arm. And Jeff Weaver was picked up off the scrap heap to plug the enormous hole left by CC in the Tribe's rotation. That ought to be fun to watch. And Grady Sizemore and Cliff Lee will be the lone members of the Tribe in NYC for the All-Star Game. Oh, and Grady will even be in the Home Run Derby, thanks to his AL-leading 22 HR's (18 of them solo shots by my own unofficial count - lots of clicking on individual box scores there).

Gladiators Update: Big win for the Gladiators last night. Once again our receivers basically caught everything thrown to them and they squeaked out another big playoff win, this time on the road. And QB Raymond Philyaw added 8 more TD passes, now giving him 16 for the postseason to go along with no interceptions. My personal favorite moment from last night's game was team president and CEO Bernie Kosar hovering behind the officials as they tried to review a play near the end of the game on instant replay. You can see he is pouring everything he has into this team and it's fun to watch. The Gladiators now advance to the National Conference Championship game against the Philadelphia Soul this Saturday at 1:00pm on ESPNHD.

One win away from ArenaBowl XXII...

Are You Ready For Some Football?

Well, last night marked my debut as an Arena Football League fan. I went into the Gladiators first playoff game in Cleveland not really knowing what to expect, but came away thoroughly entertained. The Gladiators' big 69-66 win over the Orlando Predators featured some solid action. And I was more than impressed with the play of our receivers, led by fellow BG alum Robert Redd's 14 catches for 204 yards and 4 TD. And the crowd of nearly 14,000 fans in the Q was much louder and less AFL-obsessed than I had feared. I think most people there were just casual fans like me looking for some good entertainment.

The game was very much in doubt until a big fumble by the Predators late in the 4th as they were marching down the field for the go-ahead score. The Gladiators then capitalized on an 8-yard TD run to seemingly put the game out of reach with 52 seconds left. But in true arena football action, the last minute seemed to last forever. Orlando marched down the field to score again and cut the lead to just three points. And then the Gladiators still needed a throwaway pass on fourth down to burn the final second off the clock. Now they advance to face the Atlanta Force in Georgia next Monday night. I have been converted into a fan now and I will be watching!

Brandon Hefflin recovers a big fumble late for the good guys

Tribe Update: The Indians misery continued last night in Chicago. Jeremy Sowers gave the White Sox a huge 8-1 lead after three innings, and with our sporadic offense and nightmarish bullpen, it was just too much to overcome. They lost 9-7 to now fall 10.5 games out of first and grab sole possession of last place in the Central.

Cavs Update: A couple of big name free agents decided to opt-out of their contracts last night as the NBA free agency period began at midnight. I'd welcome either of them into a wine and gold uniform this season, but obviously they would have to come via sign & trade, and those deals are always tricky. Given our current salary cap situation, don't expect any big free agent signings this summer, it's just not realistic.

Terry Pluto is looking to end the ridiculous sky-is-falling talk of LeBron to New York in 2010. I can't wait to hear this nonsense for the next two years (sigh). WFNY has a great take on the subject, and *gasp* it is actually well-thought and makes sense, instead of what most of the 'experts' in the national media keep spouting out. And LeBron does have a good message for kids this summer, even if he can't wait to bolt from Northeast Ohio ;)

Get Well Soon Windy!

Before I delve into anything else today, I wanted to take a moment to wish Brian Windhorst (by far the best Cavs writer in the world) a speedy recovery. I had been wondering about the lack of updates on his blog recently, and yesterday TrueHoop confirmed that he is pretty sick. Then I read this this morning and realized how serious his situation really is. BW, you're in our thoughts and prayers and we're pulling for you!!!

I was really looking forward to seeing what Brian had to say about tomorrow night's draft. There are a lot of different directions the Cavs can take over the next 24 hours or so. I'm sure there will be some trade opportunities out there so it will be interesting to see how everything plays out. Although Danny Ferry says don't expect any major changes. Mary Schmitt-Boyer answers some Cavalier draft day questions. And here's a decent overview of the current Cavaliers as they stand the day before the draft.

Tribe Update: The Indians lost another one last night to old friend Omar Vizquel and the San Francisco Giants, 3-2. More of the same problems for the Tribe - quiet bats and bad bullpen work. I have no statistical evidence to back up this claim (really I'm too lazy to dig for it right now), but I swear our bullpen leads the league in giving up 'insurance' runs late in games. It seems like every time either of the Raffys or Masa Kobayashi come in for the 7th inning or later with a one-run lead it always ends up getting worse. Then our anemic offense really has no chance at a comeback. Truly depressing.

Tribe fans still love #13

The Indians and Giants will be at it again tonight with the ridiculously overpaid Barry Zito (see why I'm advocating a Sabathia trade?) going against Jeremy Sowers. Also, Larry Dolan supports Eric Wedge and Mark Shapiro.

Season Swept Away

This may be the defining series of an extremely disappointing and frustrating year for the Tribe. The Rockies completed the sweep of our Indians with a 6-3 win last night in Denver. Jeremy Sowers wasn't very sharp and didn't get much support anyway. And the bullpen then gave us no chance, and they really haven't all season long. This isn't what I had in mind when I bought season tickets (20-game plan) last October.

The Rockies completed the sweep on Thursday night

The team surely won't admit it, but even they have to know it's time to blow this thing up. Start the fire sale now. Terry Pluto agrees with me. I've been saying for a while that Paul Byrd will surely have to go. That's a no-brainer. But now I'm fully on board with trading CC Sabathia as well. Honestly, the only pitchers I wouldn't deal at this point are Aaron Laffey, Fausto Carmona, and Cliff Lee. The rest can be had for the right prospects. It will be interesting to see how this plays out but I have faith in Mr. Shapiro.

Tribe Notes: The Tribe did some shuffling in the wake of Victor Martinez's elbow surgery. They acquired veteran catcher Sal Fasano from the Braves, the the ever popular player-to-be-named-later. They also sent catcher Yamid Haad back down to the minors before he ever played in a game. Oh, and Jason Micheals is batting .279 in Pittsburgh with 5 doubles, 3 HR, and 22 RBI since being traded there. Of course he is. And finally, who knows when Travis Hafner will be back? Your guess is as good as mine.

Cavs Update: Brian Windhorst makes his triumphant blogging return (well, for me at least) and gives us the lowdown on the recent Anderson Varejao trade rumors. I look forward to hearing more from BW over the next week in anticipation of the draft next Thursday.

LBJ Speaks, but Tribe Silenced (Again)

The first order of business today: LeBron James gave a fairly lengthy interview and touched on a variety of topics yesterday with the PD. He also appeared later on ESPN850. This is my favorite part:

"I'm dedicated to bringing a championship to this city," James told Mark "Munch" Bishop during an appearance later Wednesday on ESPN 850 WKNR to promote the upcoming King for Kids Bike-A-Thon. "I'm bringing a parade to this city. I love this city. I love Northeast Ohio. ... Right now I can't see myself going anywhere else."

And I'm dedicated to watching the Cavs win a championship so it works out well for me LeBron. I already can't wait for November. I'll be adding some tidbits here shortly in anticipation of the 2008 NBA Draft that takes place a week from today. This is obviously a very important time for the Cavaliers and I'm excited to see what happens over the next week and beyond.

Forget New York, LBJ was deepening his Northeast Ohio roots yesterday at the Q

Tribe Update: Since it is my sworn duty to speak on all Cleveland sports happenings, I must also talk about the disaster that is the 2008 Cleveland Indians. They dropped their second in a row to the lowly Rockies last night, 4-2 in Denver. The loss drops them into sole possession of 4th place in the AL Central, now above only the Royals. The Tigers have finally overtaken us, themselves a complete disaster in 2008. Once again, the bats fell silent and really didn't give Aaron Laffey much of a chance. And Rafael Betancourt continued his bewildering slide, giving up an important insurance run to Colorado in the bottom of the 7th, just after the Tribe had cut it to 3-2. The Indians will look to Jeremy Sowers to avoid the sweep tonight.

The Tribe continues the trend of making bad teams look good in '08

At least Jhonny Peralta and I have something in common - we both share disappointment in his hitting this year. And who knows when Fausto Carmona will be healthy enough to pitch again?

Browns Update: The Browns rookies took their annual tour of the Pro Football Hall of Fame yesterday. Maybe someday one of them will be enshrined there. For now, I'll just take a home playoff game. I'm working on curbing my enthusiasm with baby steps. That way I won't be so disappointed all the time.

2 Out of 3 Ain't Bad

The good news: the Tribe managed to win a series. The bad news: the fire sale might be starting sooner than we expected. That's becuase Victor Martinez will undergo surgery Friday to remove bone chips in his right elbow and will be out the next 6-8 weeks. Josh Barfield also hit the DL yesterday. The Indians promoted catcher Yamid Haad and infielder Jorge Valendia (don't worry, I never heard of them either) to take their places. And Travis Hafner will still be out of the lineup at least through the team's next road trip to Colorado and LA. Add that to Jake Westbrook's season-ending injury and Tommy John surgery, and Fausto Carmona's hip injury, and the roster looks more like a M.A.S.H. unit. I now fully expect Paul Byrd and CC Sabathia to be dealt, among others.

Last night was encouraging from an offensive standpoint with the Tribe banging out a season-high 18 hits in a 12-2 win over the Twins. The offense was highlighted by Jamey Carroll's 4-hit night, and Shin-Soo Choo's 3-run homer. Aaron Laffey got the win, going 6 strong innings, giving up only one run. His ERA is now down to 2.83. And the team is still only 6.5 games behind the White Sox, even with all the struggles and injuries. But that's my optimistic side coming out. My realistic side is preparing for wholesale roster changes shortly. We resume interleague play tonight at the Prog with the Padres coming to town. Yours truly will be in attendance, so I fully expect to be disappointed with the results. Tonight it will be Jeremy Sowers against Josh Banks.

Laffey was solid again on Thursday night

Browns Update: Superagent Drew Rosenhaus is at it again, talking about a new contract for K2. Sometimes I hate what professional sports have become. It's more about posturing for your next contract than anything else. I wish agents could just be eliminated completely. Also, if you didn't catch the Browns highlight show on STO last night I highly recommend it. It was the top ten plays of 2007 with the audio feed from Donavan and Dieken. Great stuff and I'm sure they'll run it a few more times. Oh, and Brady Quinn just wants to win.

Cavs Update: It's official, Big Z is out of the Olympics for Lithuania. My heart hurts a little for him as this may be his last chance to represent his country. But the selfish Cavalier fan in me says this is great news for him to be 100% next year, resting his ailing back.

It's Always Fun

I always get a little extra enjoyment out of beating the New York Yankees. Tonight was a great game down at the Prog. I got to experience that old Jacobs Field magic for the first time in the new seats. On this evening Jhonny Peralta was the hero, hitting a two-out, three-run homer off Andy Pettitte to put the Tribe on top for good.

Positive things to take away from this one:

• This was the Tribe's fourth consecutive win and they are now 11-12, only 2 games out of first place.
  
• Paul Byrd did a decent job tonight (other than when facing the greasy steroid monger Jason Giambi). He had great command of the strike zone (59 strikes and only 18 balls).
• The bats banged out another 9 hits and 6 runs. The offense seems to be coming around.
• Franklin Gutierrez added an important insurance home run and the offense manufactured another important 2-out run in the 6th inning as well.
• Finally, and most importantly, the bullpen was solid. Rafael Perez came on in relief and pitched 2-1/3 scoreless innings. And how great was it to see Rafael Betancourt come in and get a 1-2-3 ninth? I can't remember the last time JoeBo accomplished that.

Tomorrow we look to finally get back to .500 as Jeremy Sowers gets the call in place of Jake Westbrook. Let's keep it rolling.

Jhonny did the Yanks in with a huge 2-out, 3-run HR

Tribe & Royals Washed Out

Wednesday night's game in Kansas City was rained out after a two-hour delay. Even Mother Nature doesn't want the Tribe to capitalize on the momentum that started in Tuesday's 15-1 drubbing. A doubleheader has been scheduled for 6:10pm on Thursday, with Fausto Carmona starting Game 1 and Cliff Lee starting Game 2. This means a long and likely late night of sports for me and Mrs. Chief:

6:10-8:00 - Tribe vs. Royals, Game 1
8:00-10:30 - Cavs smacking around the Wizards in Game 3
10:30-12:30? - Tribe vs. Royals, Game 2

The doubleheader on Thursday also means that there will have to be another shake-up in the Indians' pitching rotation. We already know that Jeremy Sowers will take Jake Westbrook's spot on Saturday vs. the Yankees. But now Fausto Carmona won't be able to go on Monday since he is pitching on Thursday. So look for Aaron Laffey to be called up for Monday's start. I'll be back later today for a Cavaliers/Wizards Game 3 update...

No Suspension for Brenda (and Ben called up!)

It's been a busy sports information afternoon here on the shores of Lake Erie. First, apparently Brenda Haywood will not be suspended for his flagrant foul on LeBron in Game 2. I've made my thoughts on this known below so I won't delve into it anymore.

Also, the Tribe made a roster move today. Jake Westbrook was placed on the 15-day DL with a ribcage muscle injury (specifically a "left intercostal strain"). So Ben Francisco was called up from AAA Buffalo to take his place on the roster. This will likely only be for a couple days until Westbrook's turn in the rotation, when I expect Aaron Laffey or Jeremy Sowers to get the call. But maybe if we all work together in unison in positive thinking, we can persuade Eric Wedge to give Ben a couple starts in left field to show what he can do. The Jason Michaels/David Dellucci experiment has already taken at least a month off my life.

Welcome back Ben - hope you can stay for a while