Soapbox time

Joe Cleveland is sick and tired of all the national pundits out there who have a bias against Cleveland..

What exactly did we do to deserve this type of treatment? We're like the lepers of professional sports, especially in the eyes of the so-called *eye-rolling* "Worldwide Leader of Sports," ESPN.

Check out this latest drivel by one of the schleps ESPN employs to write stories on their Web site:

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/hotstove10/columns/story?columnist=crasnick_jerry&id=6007562

The lead itself is so typical of everything ESPN. Let's compare Cleveland to Boston. Boston, which is near Bristol, Conn., and where every staffer appears to be from and be a huge fan of their teams. Let's turn David Ortiz into a superstar, when he did the same exact stuff with Minnesota and other teams he played for. But, because he's wearing the sacred Red Sox uniform, let's highlight him on ESPN all the time. Let's try to sweep it under the rug when Ortiz is linked to PEDs but we'll blow it up when Manny is because Boston gave up on him.

Yes, Boston teams are winning. Boston also forgets that they went through a lot of heartache before that winning happened. Remember that so-called Curse of the Bambino that caused the Red Sox to go 80 years without a World Series title? Yeah, because they won two World Series titles within the last 10 years, and they continue to contend for playoff berths thanks to a flawed MLB system where rich owners in big markets can overpay for free agents while poor owners in small markets have to cut corners (like our good "friends" Paul and Larry Cheapass ... err ... Dolan), that's all forgotten about. Ancient history, right Boston?

How about the Patriots? Remember when they were best known for being the punching bag for the 85 Bears in Super Bowl 25? Remember when they were 0-2 in Super Bowls, thanks to Brett Favre and Desmond Howard? And, how they couldn't win a Super Bowl, even with the great Bill Parcells as their coach? Remember how upset their fanbase was when they gave up draft picks for Bill Belichick, who was a terrible coach in Cleveland, and how they were ready to lynch him when he benched their beloved Drew Bledsoe for some mediocre Michigan low-round draft pick named Tom Brady? Of course, Boston Fan doesn't remember all of that. Now, Belichick is a "genius" and Brady is "the best QB in the NFL." And, chances are they'll probably get back to the Super Bowl and win another one, and that's a credit to Belichick and his system. He's, apparently, the only one who can perfect his system, since so many of his disciples go on to other outposts and fail as head coaches (and, Browns fans know that all too well, since we had two of them). But, like I said, recent history is all that matters, and the Patriots have won 3-of-4 Super Bowls in the last 10 years and lost the other one on a "fluke catch by a journeyman receiver."

Remember when the Celtics were coached by Rick Pitino? Remember how Boston fans ran him out of town and back to the college ranks because his teams were so terrible? Remember when Paul Pierce was a selfish player on some bad teams? Yeah, Boston Fan like to point to those 17 championship banners, but only one of those banners have been won in the last 25 years. But, that's OK, they manipulated the system to get Garnett and Ray Allen (just like Miami did with LeBron, Wade and Bosh this year), and it helped with the development of Rajon Rondo. Like I said, it's what have you done with me lately, and Boston will enjoy their 2008 title and their berth in the 2010 Finals (even though they lost to the "hated" Lakers).

I'd like to hear from Boston Fan when things go South (and they will). I like how everyone points to the fact that Cleveland sports teams haven't won a championship since 1964 and forget that the Indians reached two World Series in the 1990s (and eliminated their beloved Red Sox and Yankees to get there in various years) and the Cavs reached an NBA Finals in 2007. They forget that in 2007, to go along with the Cavs finals berth, the Indians had a 3-1 ALCS lead on their beloved Red Sox and the Browns were a tiebreaker away from clinching a playoff berth. But, today, all three of those teams "suck," and that's all that matter.

Joe Cleveland "loves" when a network is televising a Cleveland game and they continually roll out highlights of The Drive, The Fumble, The Blown Save, Red Right 88 ... really? Hell, they even mention the Cuyahoga River catching fire, and that happened in 19-freaking-69!! Most of those idiots at ESPN weren't even born when that happened, but they gleefully talk about it like it was yesterday.

It makes Joe Cleveland wonder if the dregs at ESPN, who look through their rose-colored Boston/New York/LeBron glasses, would be happy if folks like me and the other hard-working, loyal folks in Northeast Ohio start being front-runners like they are? Sure, we've got enough Steelers fans around these parts to nauseate folks, but seriously? The tone of that article almost makes it a shame to be a fan of Cleveland sports teams. Yeah, they're down on their luck right now. LeBron leaving the Cavs hurt more than anyone really wanted to believe and may have set this franchise back a few years. The Indians continue to cut payroll, make lopsided trade and alienate their fanbase by spending more money to turn the stadium into a Winter Wonderland park instead of on the on-field product. And, the Browns are looking for their fifth full-time head coach since they came back 12 years ago, during which time they've only made the playoffs once, had a winning season twice and beat the Steelers 4 times.

But, the name on the front of those jersies and in front of those nicknames are "Cleveland." Cleveland is where we live. Yeah, we're frustrated by the lack of winning and aren't ashamed to admit it and bash ownership, coaches or even players if we feel they're not doing enough to reverse that trend. But that's what loyal fans do. The Red Sox may have had loyal fans, but that was before they started winning and EVERYONE became a Red Sox fan. Have they been loyal to the Patriots or the Celtics? How about the Bruins, who haven't won squat? Loyalty is easy when your team is winning. When the team (or teams, in our case) are down on their luck, that's when loyalty is proven.

Cleveland fans complain a lot, but they're loyal. And, if your teams haven't won a championship in 46 years and counting, wouldn't you be a little bit frustrated and complain a lot, too?

I believe that one day a Cleveland team will win a championship (my money is on the Browns at this point, because the NFL is set up for a team to come out of nowhere and win and sustain winning when it happens. And, Mike Holmgren seems to know what he's doing). And if doesn't happen, so what? Sports teams are a distraction from everyday life. It just so happens to be Joe Cleveland's living to watch and write about sports, but so be it.

Even though ESPN wants you to be (as they gleefully run every single stat LeBron garners as the Heat keep winning), don't be ashamed to be a Cleveland Sports Fan. Remember, it's always darkest before the dawn, and every cloud has a silver lining.

Until next time, remember that Cleveland Rocks!