The last time Joe Cleveland graced everyone out there with his blog, he essentially wrote the epitaph to the Cleveland Indians' season.
And this was after watching ONE FREAKING GAME!!
Such as life as a Cleveland sports fan, especially a fan of the Indians. You've seen the same song and dance for the most part since 2002, you kind of expect it.
But, to our amazement, the Indians shrugged off that Opening Day beating (and one the day after) to start winning!
Yes, Charlie Sheen, I said WINNING! What a novel concept for our Wahoo Warriors.
Under Eric Wedge, losing in April was a common occurance. Whenever the team did start getting their stuff together, it was August, and Browns training camp had opened, and the Indians were already 15 games out of first, and they had already dealt two of the best players for prospects that still needed seasoning down on the farm, and ... well, you catch my drift. The fact is, they usually won when no one paid attention anymore.
So, when they pointed out their 14-9 September, fans probably thought they were making it up. After all, the Browns were starting the season 0-3 and that's what everyone cares about.
This year, Manny Acta was doing the same song and dance about a strong finish that nine people probably paid attention to (eight of which work for the Indians) and fans tuned him out. They looked a team that was so cheap, they trotted out a career minor leaguer to start at third base and tried to pawn it off as a legitimate move. They looked a team that seemed hell bent on trading their top guys before they could test the free agency market because they knew there was no chance in hell they were going to sign them instead of playing to win. They, like Joe Cleveland, could really care less.
So, after the team played to everyone's expectations by looking like Columbus Clippers in their first two games, the fans tuned out in droves.
It wasn't until the Indians swept the high-priced, ESPN-darling Boston Red Sox and their annoying self-rightous 'Nation' that some fans began to pay attention.
Well, I saw "some fans", because home games at Progressive Field look a lot like they did in the 1980s at the old Cleveland Stadium -- heavy on the empty seats.
Sure, the weather has something to do with it, and this April has been especially dismal this year, both temperature-wise and precipitation-wise. The expectations for the team have something to do with it. And, a general distaste for all things Larry Dolan still play a big part in it, whether the Indians want to believe it or not.
But, they're winning ... and they're winning the right way.
Fundamental baseball! What a novel concept! That's something I haven't seen in a long time. I NEVER saw it under The Grinder (that's my nickname for Wedge, since he always talked about how the team "had to keeep grindin.")
Sacrifice bunts! YES! Solid starting pitching! YES! A great bullpen! YES! An offense that is doing well despite two of their best players slumping (Shin-Soo Choo and Carlos Santana) and a third (Grady Sizemore) just now coming off the DL!
YES-YES-YES!!
Joe Cleveland will still admit to being very hard on Paul and Larry Cheapass, because I still haven't seen a true committment to winning out of these two since Larry Dolan exclaimed that his goals for the team were "World Series championships (plural)" upon buying the team in 2000. And, a litmus test will be come June or July and this team is still keeping up their pace -- will they chisel off the vault and pry it open to get this team an additional bat or arm to make a legitimate playoff push? They did it in 2007 to a degree (although, adding an aging Kenny Lofton wasn't exactly opening up the purse strings). Will they do it in 2011?
And, I'll admit to being skeptical of whether the Indians can continue this trend. They just suffered their first three-game losing streak (getting swept by the last-place Twins) before pummelling the Royals as I type this Monday night. I think a lot of the fan base is waiting for that other shoe to drop on the Indians.
However, let's forget about long-term for a second and enjoy this for what it is.
The Indians are in first place! FIRST FREAKING PLACE! In April, for crissakes.
The Cavs just finished second-worst in the NBA and are heading for a lockout. The Browns' draft is coming up, but their labor situation is a mess (are they locked out anymore? Is it over? What?), and the 2011 season is still kind of up in the air.
Sure, the minor-league Lake Erie Monsters are in the playoffs, playing in a Game 7 as I write this, but it's minor league hockey. Cleveland is still a major league town, and we want our major league teams to win.
So, let's enjoy the winning for once. Will they still be winning at this time next month or in two months? Who knows? Common-sense says "No," but common-sense predicted a 7-16 April for the Indians and a 16-7 month for likes of Boston and Minnesota.
The Indians are in first place. Joe Cleveland is ready to enjoy it. How about you?
***
Just so you know, you only have a few more hours to vote in the Madden 12 cover player tournament. And, in case you were living under a rock, a Browns player is in the finals.
That's right, Peyton Hillis has a legitimate chance to grace the cover of the popular NFL video game this summer if he can get more votes than convicted dog torturer and killer Michael Vick.
I'm sure EA Sports didn't envision a final of an unknown player from a lackluster team vs. a pariah who once graced their cover a few years ago that fans are still pretty split on (you either hate him or have forgiven him. If you're an Eagle fan, you've probably forgiven him). But, this is what happens when you let the fans decide.
Hillis has been bouyed by strong support from the Browns organization, along with a movement among the social networking sites Facebook and Twittter promoting him as a viable alternative to the usual athlete that graces the Madden cover. And, let's not forget that Browns fans are the most loyal and passionat fans in the NFL.
Disagree? When a moron tries to move the team to Baltimore, and the fanbase unites in full-force to force the NFL to do something drastic, that speaks volumes about how passionate and loyal Browns fans are. I don't see Houston's new team nicknamed "Oilers," do you?
The EA people are already spinning it saying that Hillis "epitomizes what a John Madden-esque football player is all about." That tells me they've made up their mind as to who they'd like to see on the cover, and it isn't the felon.
Sure, there's that "Madden curse" thing that's out there. Every player whose graced the Madden video game cover has either suffered a season-ending injury, or been hampered with injuries, or had a poor performance the following season. And, everyone out there is envisioning a season-ending injury for Hillis if he gets the cover.
You know what? Hillis' style of play leaves him open to injuries. He would probably be injured if he was on the cover or not. And, it appears that Montario Hardesty is going to cut in Hillis' workload, which should leave him fresher and healthier as the season goes on.
You say the word "curse" in Cleveland and people freak out. We need another "curse" like we need a hole in the head, right? Well, maybe two curses cancel each other out. Maybe Dan Gilbert was right in that LeQuitter took the supposed curse with him to Miami (we'll see in the next few weeks if the Heat get bounced in the playoffs). Maybe something as small as the Indians getting off to a hot-start is proof of that. Who knows?
All I know is, Hillis is a guy who doesn't make millions of dollars, but goes out and plays football because he loves it. He loves contact, he loves running over people (or hurdling them) and flexing those guns when he scores touchdowns (which he did a lot of). He's humble, a Christian, the epitome of a "good-ol-boy." It's time for a blue-collar guy representing a blue-collar team, fanbase and community to get some love instead of the usual primadonnas that grace the cover.
Get out there and vote for Hillis. Give the Browns some exposure. Show the NFL andn the ESPNs of the world that Cleveland isn't some "outpost" that is irrelevant because LeQuitter took his so-called talents somewhere south. Screw the so-called curse!
I've voted for Hillis so many times so far, I lost count. Follow Joe Cleveland's lead and do the same while you can.
And, be honest, do you really want Michael Vick to be on the cover of a video game that, despite being extremely popular with adults, is still being marketed to kids?
Follow this link and do the right thing:
http://espn.go.com/sportsnation/feature/madden2012cover
Until next time, remember that Cleveland Rocks!
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Woe is the Tribe
So, the Indians began another Major League Baseball season with a whimper. Despite outscoring the White Sox 9-1 over the final five innings, they lost to perennial Opening Day nemesis Chicago White Sox, 15-10. Yes, that means they spotted Obama's favorite team a 14-0 lead.
Indians fans sold out Progressive Field for the 18th straight Opening Day. Most of them left when Chicago's lead swelled to 14-0. Ninety percent of them didn't return for the following day's 8-3 loss to the White Sox.
One year after finishing last in the American League in total attendance, the Indians drew a record-low 9,000 fans to the ballpark in Jacobs/Progressive Field's history. You'd have to go back 20 years to find an attendance figure that low, and that was when they were still playing in the old Cleveland Stadium.
Apathy for the Indians is at an all-time high. Fans look at the Tribe's roster and can't recognize half of the guys on there (which didn't help when they decided not to put last names on their "special" jersies they wore for the opener). Some guys are has-beens. Most are never-weres.
So, what is the cause of the general disdain for the Indians, the oldest professional sports team in Cleveland and the one who drew a then-record 455 sellout crowds to Jacobs Field during a tremendous run of great baseball in the 1990s-early 2000s? Well, Joe Cleveland can examine them right here:
1. Tribe owner Larry Dolan: Prior to 1997, Larry Dolan was an anonymous Cleveland-area attorney. However, when Art Modell moved the Browns and the NFL announced they would bring the Browns back as an expansion team, Dolan suddenly became interested in owning them.
Getting some investors behind him, Dolan's group quickly emerged as one of the early favorites to purchase the team. Alas, they were outbid by Modell's former silent partner, billionaire Al Lerner, for a then-record NFL franshise selling price of $530 million. Instead of fading back into obscurity, Dolan got frandhise fever.
Shortly after the Browns came back, Tribe owner Dick Jacobs announced that he was selling the team. The man regarded as the guy who saved baseball in Cleveland and presided over some of the best times in franshise history was ready to cut bait. Quickly, Dolan showed an interest.
Jacobs, who bought the Tribe for just $60 million, sold the team to the Dolans for a whopping $324 million in 2000. At the time, that was the second-largest selling price in MLB history. Dolan inherited a team that was starting to get a little long in the tooth with three of the largest payrolls in team history and a wizard GM who was ready to leave the team behind.
Dolan, who immediately proclaimed that he expected his teams to win "multiple World Series titles," quickly had those words come back to bite him in the ass. His first challenge was trying to re-sign Manny Ramirez, who bolted for the greener pastures of the Boston Red Sox. The Indians qualified for the postseason in 2001 under Charlie Manuel, but got off to a slow start in 2002. New GM Mark Shapiro decided to fire Manuel, who went on to win a World Series title as the manager of the Philadelphia Phillies, and traded Hall of Fame second baseman Robbie Alomar to the Mets.
Then, it got worse. After another slow start in 2003 under rookie manager Eric Wedge, Dolan signed off on the trade of ace starter Bartolo Colon for three minor leaguers and a journeyman first baseman named Lee Stevens. Tribe fans who were used to playoff contenders revolted and complained. However, those three minor leaguers became Cliff Lee, Grady Sizemore and Brandon Phillips, which made Shapiro a "genius."
Dolan failed to re-sign fan favorite Jim Thome, making him a low-ball offer that he rebuffed. The team made more prospect trades and cut payroll, as Dolan was losing money hand over fist.
The rebuilding on the cheap method worked in 2007, when the Tribe won the Central Division (led by a lot of those prospects), eliminated the Yankees in the ALDS and took a 3-1 lead over the Red Sox in the ALCS. However, the Tribe choked and dropped three consecutive games, losing a World Series bid and sending the team into a downward spiral.
Dolan claimed he'd "spend money when the time was right." However, time and time again, Dolan never did. He never made a big splash in free agency, usually signing a castoff, oft-injured pitcher for an incentive-laden deal in the hopes that that pitcher would find his mojo again. And, with a team that was so close to a World Series, Dolan didn't improve the team and they faltered in 2008.
Since then, he greenlighted more payroll-slashing trades of ace pitchers CC Sabathia and Cliff Lee, and catcher Victor Martinez. He and his son blamed the fans, who were staying away from the park in droves, as the reason why they were cutting costs and rebuilding again. Fans who weren't happy about the team's direction and trying to justify spending their hard-earned cash on Progressive Field responded by completely ignoring his team.
It's resulted in Dolan trying to make money in other ways. The Snow Days promotion, in which they turned the stadium into a Winter fun park, wound up being a bust. Their latest idea is to stage a country music concert during midseason.
Fans are tired of Dolan's excuses for not making his baseball team better. They remember a guy who wanted to win "multiple World Series titles" and wonder where that guy went. They think he overspent to buy the Tribe and ran out of money. They are tired of seeing a loser baseball team with a bunch of unknown guys and are hitting Dolan in the one place he cares about -- his wallet.
2. A losing culture: The Browns wound up 5-11 for the second year in a row under Eric Mangini, which resulted in a coaching change and a change in overall philosophy (and another feared rebuilding of the roster). The Cavs had nothing to show for back-to-back seasons of 60-plus wins, lost LeQuitter James in a nationally-televised embarassment and bumbled their way to an NBA-record losing streak and the worst record in the league. Fan optimism is at an all-time low. And, the Indians, who have been perpetual slow-starters, begin the season with two blowout losses to a bitter rival.
That doesn't help. The Tribe needs to win and win fast if they want to regain fans' trust. This city is dying for a winner, any winner, and would quickly glom on to whoever that is. Instead, the Indians' Class AAA roster is getting lit by by White Sox hitters and failing to generate any offense when it matters. And, so, by the end of the week, the Indians will probably be completely ignored until they make their next cost-cutting trade.
3. Local competition: As the Indians stumbled and bumbled their way through the last decade, several minor league teams have popped up in close proximity of Cleveland. Two of them -- the Class AA Akron Aeros and Class A Lake County Captains -- are affiliated with the Indians. The Lake Erie Crushers, playing in nearby Avon, are in the independent Frontier League. Going 200 miles south, the AAA Columbus Clippers just built a new stadium and became affiliated with the Tribe. All four teams have brand-new stadiums. All four teams have recently been winning (Crushers and Aeros league titles in 2009, Captains a league title in 2010). All four teams are offering affordable ticket and parking prices for fans to watch baseball in more intimate surroundings.
If Joe Cleveland wanted to take his family out to a baseball game, do you think he'd want to drive into Downtown Cleveland, spend $25 to park, $20 per ticket and much more on concessions and other things? Or, would he stay closer to home and go to Eastlake or Avon or Akron and spend a fraction of that, get a better seat, and probably be just as, if not more, entertained there than by what he'd see by the Indians? I think Joe Cleveland would want to spend minor league money on a minor league team instead of major league money for a minor league team.
The Indians are essentially competing with themselves, and their farm teams are capturing more fan interest than the parent club.
4. The state of baseball: Baseball hasn't been too great for its fans on a national scope lately.
Baseball is finally putting a messy Steroid Era behind them, that stained some of the best records and best known players in the game for many years. Baseball economics are a mess. Because there is no salary cap and very limited revenue sharing, big market teams can spend as much money as they want to field great teams. Meanwhile, other teams can spend as little money as they want. Teams like the Indians, for example.
Fans think the idea of an exhibition game for fun deciding which league has home-field advantage in the World Series is stupid, but the league doesn't listen. Fans were angry about steroids in baseball, but baseball turned a blind eye to it for far too long and are still paying the price for it. Fans look at a business model like the NFL (hard salary cap, revenue sharing among all 32 teams) and wonder why that wouldn't work in baseball and baseball continues to ignore it. Fans see instant replay work in football, basketball and hockey and wonder why they have to deal with tons of blown umpiring calls in big games when the technology is there to make sure those don't happen, and baseball sticks its head in the sand.
And, fans see an organization that plays by two different sets of rules in two leagues, then tries to have those two leagues play each other without changing the rules to make all the games uniform, and wonder what clown is actually running this thing and how hard is it to decide to use a DH for all 30 teams or let the pitchers bat for all 30.
It's things like this that soil the fans' perspective on the the game of baseball, and why football has lapped it in popularity and basketball is close to passing it as well.
5. A different time: The Indians went from a pennent-contender in the 1950s to a doormat in the 1960s, 70s and 80s because of poor trades and poor decisions that set the franchise back many years. Fans of those teams eventually treated those teams like "Loveable Losers" and kind of embraced them in a way.
Then, Jacobs Field opened, talent was finally developed, competant people ran the front office, and the Indians became on of the best teams in the American League. They reached two World Series (losing both) and made the playoffs four straight years and five times in a six-year span. Winning spoiled the fan base.
This generation of fans isn't ready to embrace a group of "Loveable Losers" like the fans in the 1970s and 80s did. With ESPN showing every highlight, every game becomes national news, so the pressure to win is greater. Fans don't like to see their city embarassed on ESPN every night by a poor showing.
Besides, the Browns will always be top-dog in this town who finally have some competant people running things. The Cavs were the flavor of the month with LeQuitter on the team, but appear to have some ducks in a row for a rebuilding effort thanks to some great trades. Even as those two leagues enter some uncertain labor times that could (and have) resulted in lockouts, baseball appears to be a distant third among local fans.
Winning solves a lot of things. But, this perfect storm of ingredients may cause this team to lose its fan base permanently until they begin to fix those things. For this year, it appears fixing these things is waayyy off.
Joe Cleveland can only shake his head and hope the NFL ends its lockout so the Browns can comeback, because it's going to be a miserable summer for the Wahoo Warriors.
Until next time, remember that Cleveland Rocks!
Indians fans sold out Progressive Field for the 18th straight Opening Day. Most of them left when Chicago's lead swelled to 14-0. Ninety percent of them didn't return for the following day's 8-3 loss to the White Sox.
One year after finishing last in the American League in total attendance, the Indians drew a record-low 9,000 fans to the ballpark in Jacobs/Progressive Field's history. You'd have to go back 20 years to find an attendance figure that low, and that was when they were still playing in the old Cleveland Stadium.
Apathy for the Indians is at an all-time high. Fans look at the Tribe's roster and can't recognize half of the guys on there (which didn't help when they decided not to put last names on their "special" jersies they wore for the opener). Some guys are has-beens. Most are never-weres.
So, what is the cause of the general disdain for the Indians, the oldest professional sports team in Cleveland and the one who drew a then-record 455 sellout crowds to Jacobs Field during a tremendous run of great baseball in the 1990s-early 2000s? Well, Joe Cleveland can examine them right here:
1. Tribe owner Larry Dolan: Prior to 1997, Larry Dolan was an anonymous Cleveland-area attorney. However, when Art Modell moved the Browns and the NFL announced they would bring the Browns back as an expansion team, Dolan suddenly became interested in owning them.
Getting some investors behind him, Dolan's group quickly emerged as one of the early favorites to purchase the team. Alas, they were outbid by Modell's former silent partner, billionaire Al Lerner, for a then-record NFL franshise selling price of $530 million. Instead of fading back into obscurity, Dolan got frandhise fever.
Shortly after the Browns came back, Tribe owner Dick Jacobs announced that he was selling the team. The man regarded as the guy who saved baseball in Cleveland and presided over some of the best times in franshise history was ready to cut bait. Quickly, Dolan showed an interest.
Jacobs, who bought the Tribe for just $60 million, sold the team to the Dolans for a whopping $324 million in 2000. At the time, that was the second-largest selling price in MLB history. Dolan inherited a team that was starting to get a little long in the tooth with three of the largest payrolls in team history and a wizard GM who was ready to leave the team behind.
Dolan, who immediately proclaimed that he expected his teams to win "multiple World Series titles," quickly had those words come back to bite him in the ass. His first challenge was trying to re-sign Manny Ramirez, who bolted for the greener pastures of the Boston Red Sox. The Indians qualified for the postseason in 2001 under Charlie Manuel, but got off to a slow start in 2002. New GM Mark Shapiro decided to fire Manuel, who went on to win a World Series title as the manager of the Philadelphia Phillies, and traded Hall of Fame second baseman Robbie Alomar to the Mets.
Then, it got worse. After another slow start in 2003 under rookie manager Eric Wedge, Dolan signed off on the trade of ace starter Bartolo Colon for three minor leaguers and a journeyman first baseman named Lee Stevens. Tribe fans who were used to playoff contenders revolted and complained. However, those three minor leaguers became Cliff Lee, Grady Sizemore and Brandon Phillips, which made Shapiro a "genius."
Dolan failed to re-sign fan favorite Jim Thome, making him a low-ball offer that he rebuffed. The team made more prospect trades and cut payroll, as Dolan was losing money hand over fist.
The rebuilding on the cheap method worked in 2007, when the Tribe won the Central Division (led by a lot of those prospects), eliminated the Yankees in the ALDS and took a 3-1 lead over the Red Sox in the ALCS. However, the Tribe choked and dropped three consecutive games, losing a World Series bid and sending the team into a downward spiral.
Dolan claimed he'd "spend money when the time was right." However, time and time again, Dolan never did. He never made a big splash in free agency, usually signing a castoff, oft-injured pitcher for an incentive-laden deal in the hopes that that pitcher would find his mojo again. And, with a team that was so close to a World Series, Dolan didn't improve the team and they faltered in 2008.
Since then, he greenlighted more payroll-slashing trades of ace pitchers CC Sabathia and Cliff Lee, and catcher Victor Martinez. He and his son blamed the fans, who were staying away from the park in droves, as the reason why they were cutting costs and rebuilding again. Fans who weren't happy about the team's direction and trying to justify spending their hard-earned cash on Progressive Field responded by completely ignoring his team.
It's resulted in Dolan trying to make money in other ways. The Snow Days promotion, in which they turned the stadium into a Winter fun park, wound up being a bust. Their latest idea is to stage a country music concert during midseason.
Fans are tired of Dolan's excuses for not making his baseball team better. They remember a guy who wanted to win "multiple World Series titles" and wonder where that guy went. They think he overspent to buy the Tribe and ran out of money. They are tired of seeing a loser baseball team with a bunch of unknown guys and are hitting Dolan in the one place he cares about -- his wallet.
2. A losing culture: The Browns wound up 5-11 for the second year in a row under Eric Mangini, which resulted in a coaching change and a change in overall philosophy (and another feared rebuilding of the roster). The Cavs had nothing to show for back-to-back seasons of 60-plus wins, lost LeQuitter James in a nationally-televised embarassment and bumbled their way to an NBA-record losing streak and the worst record in the league. Fan optimism is at an all-time low. And, the Indians, who have been perpetual slow-starters, begin the season with two blowout losses to a bitter rival.
That doesn't help. The Tribe needs to win and win fast if they want to regain fans' trust. This city is dying for a winner, any winner, and would quickly glom on to whoever that is. Instead, the Indians' Class AAA roster is getting lit by by White Sox hitters and failing to generate any offense when it matters. And, so, by the end of the week, the Indians will probably be completely ignored until they make their next cost-cutting trade.
3. Local competition: As the Indians stumbled and bumbled their way through the last decade, several minor league teams have popped up in close proximity of Cleveland. Two of them -- the Class AA Akron Aeros and Class A Lake County Captains -- are affiliated with the Indians. The Lake Erie Crushers, playing in nearby Avon, are in the independent Frontier League. Going 200 miles south, the AAA Columbus Clippers just built a new stadium and became affiliated with the Tribe. All four teams have brand-new stadiums. All four teams have recently been winning (Crushers and Aeros league titles in 2009, Captains a league title in 2010). All four teams are offering affordable ticket and parking prices for fans to watch baseball in more intimate surroundings.
If Joe Cleveland wanted to take his family out to a baseball game, do you think he'd want to drive into Downtown Cleveland, spend $25 to park, $20 per ticket and much more on concessions and other things? Or, would he stay closer to home and go to Eastlake or Avon or Akron and spend a fraction of that, get a better seat, and probably be just as, if not more, entertained there than by what he'd see by the Indians? I think Joe Cleveland would want to spend minor league money on a minor league team instead of major league money for a minor league team.
The Indians are essentially competing with themselves, and their farm teams are capturing more fan interest than the parent club.
4. The state of baseball: Baseball hasn't been too great for its fans on a national scope lately.
Baseball is finally putting a messy Steroid Era behind them, that stained some of the best records and best known players in the game for many years. Baseball economics are a mess. Because there is no salary cap and very limited revenue sharing, big market teams can spend as much money as they want to field great teams. Meanwhile, other teams can spend as little money as they want. Teams like the Indians, for example.
Fans think the idea of an exhibition game for fun deciding which league has home-field advantage in the World Series is stupid, but the league doesn't listen. Fans were angry about steroids in baseball, but baseball turned a blind eye to it for far too long and are still paying the price for it. Fans look at a business model like the NFL (hard salary cap, revenue sharing among all 32 teams) and wonder why that wouldn't work in baseball and baseball continues to ignore it. Fans see instant replay work in football, basketball and hockey and wonder why they have to deal with tons of blown umpiring calls in big games when the technology is there to make sure those don't happen, and baseball sticks its head in the sand.
And, fans see an organization that plays by two different sets of rules in two leagues, then tries to have those two leagues play each other without changing the rules to make all the games uniform, and wonder what clown is actually running this thing and how hard is it to decide to use a DH for all 30 teams or let the pitchers bat for all 30.
It's things like this that soil the fans' perspective on the the game of baseball, and why football has lapped it in popularity and basketball is close to passing it as well.
5. A different time: The Indians went from a pennent-contender in the 1950s to a doormat in the 1960s, 70s and 80s because of poor trades and poor decisions that set the franchise back many years. Fans of those teams eventually treated those teams like "Loveable Losers" and kind of embraced them in a way.
Then, Jacobs Field opened, talent was finally developed, competant people ran the front office, and the Indians became on of the best teams in the American League. They reached two World Series (losing both) and made the playoffs four straight years and five times in a six-year span. Winning spoiled the fan base.
This generation of fans isn't ready to embrace a group of "Loveable Losers" like the fans in the 1970s and 80s did. With ESPN showing every highlight, every game becomes national news, so the pressure to win is greater. Fans don't like to see their city embarassed on ESPN every night by a poor showing.
Besides, the Browns will always be top-dog in this town who finally have some competant people running things. The Cavs were the flavor of the month with LeQuitter on the team, but appear to have some ducks in a row for a rebuilding effort thanks to some great trades. Even as those two leagues enter some uncertain labor times that could (and have) resulted in lockouts, baseball appears to be a distant third among local fans.
Winning solves a lot of things. But, this perfect storm of ingredients may cause this team to lose its fan base permanently until they begin to fix those things. For this year, it appears fixing these things is waayyy off.
Joe Cleveland can only shake his head and hope the NFL ends its lockout so the Browns can comeback, because it's going to be a miserable summer for the Wahoo Warriors.
Until next time, remember that Cleveland Rocks!
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