The End

I'm exhausted. I'm emotionally spent. My eyes are red from crying on and off for the past 15 hours or so.

But to say that today isn't a day that Joe Cleveland has been dreaming about for his entire life would be a lie. Today, Joe Cleveland is on top of the world!

After 52 long years, Cleveland finally has won a major sports championship, courtesy of LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers! And, it feels good. It feels DAMN GOOD!

If you would have asked me 20 years ago which team would have been the first to snap this drought, the Cavs would have been last on my list.  Even the Browns, which technically didn't exist 20 years ago, would have been ahead on my list over the Cavs. That's because, by and large, the Cavs have been a mess as an organization.

The Browns have been a mess since they've come back in 1999, no denying that. The Cavs have been a mess for most of their 46 years of existence.

The ghosts of Ted Stepien, Bill Musselman, Gary Suiter, Randy Wittman, Trajan Langdon, Mel Turpin, Shawn Kemp, Paul Mokeski, John Lucas, Mike Brown, Byron Scott, Anthony Bennett, Dion Waiters, and so on, are exorcised. The specter of The Decision -- a decision that tore Cleveland to its core and had most of us turn on one of our area's finest exports -- is gone.

Dan Gilbert -- Forgiven!

LeBron James -- Forgiven!

The firing of David Blatt -- Forgiven!

The signing of Tristan Thompson -- Forgiven!

The trade for Kevin Love -- Forgiven!

Tyrann Lue -- Forgiven!

Kyrie Irving and his injury issues -- Forgiven!

J.R. Smith -- Forgiven!

I'm sure there are many other things that can be brought up, but if it's about the Cavs, it is truly, 100 percent, forgiven by myself and the majority of other Clevelanders today.

We're CHAMPIONS, Cleveland! And nobody can take that away from us! NOBODY!

Not the ESPNs and the Stephen A. Smiths of the world. They can try to piss on our Cheerios with speculation about LeBron leaving again -- and that's all that is, is speculation -- but it doesn't matter. Just a month after ESPN aired its brutal 30-for-30 special on Cleveland called Believeland, the Cavs went out and made sure that special is null-and-void.

I was one of LeBron James' harshest critics when he left and even when he decided to come back. I vowed that I would not "fall in love with him" all over again. If he was screwing up, I was going to hold him accountable. And my social media took a beating every now and again as a result, but I owned it. I gave him credit when credit was due, and the way he carried a shell of that team in 2015 to a Game 6 of the NBA Finals deserved a lot of credit.

However, the way he stepped up and led the Cavs to an unfathomable three consecutive wins -- two on the road -- against a Golden State team that won an NBA record 73 wins in the regular season trumps all of that. LeBron James was not to be denied in this postseason, and Kyrie Irving stepped up and went right along with him -- as did the rest of the team.

Kevin Love struggled in the NBA Finals, but in Game 7, his role as a rebounder was a huge factor in the win. The much-maligned Love pulled down 14 boards to lead the Cavs Sunday night.

Tristan Thompson, who signed a ridiculous $82 million contract prior to the regular season, showed during the postseason he was worth every penny. In the Finals, especially, he looked like the third-best player on the floor in a Cleveland uniform. He even knocked down some clutch free throws and played tough defense against the Warriors.

Nobody gave them a chance after losing Game 4 in Cleveland to go down 3-1. I certainly didn't. I almost didn't watch Game 5 because I figured it would be a formality that the Cavs would lose. To my amazement -- and the amazement of just about everybody else -- they routed the Warriors on their home floor to force a Game 6 at home. Draymond Green was suspended for Game 5 because LeBron baited him into an altercation at the end of Game 4 that may have tilted the series in Cleveland's favor in the long run.

Once again, the Cavs stepped up and denied the Warriors a chance to celebrate in their locker room, running out to a huge lead in the first quarter and never letting up. Stephen Curry lost his cool and got ejected. Green also battled foul trouble. Andre Igoudala injured his back, and Andrew Bogut injured his knee.

But still, Golden State had never lost 3 games in a row this season. They had lost 8 games in the postseason after losing 9 in 82 regular season games. They only dropped a handful of games at home. Even though the Cavs had the momentum, it was a tall order.

To both teams' credit, they played like they both wanted it. Every trip down the floor was huge. Every run was answered. Even though Golden State led by 7 at halftime (prompting ESPN to proclaim that the game was over), the Cavs were never truly out of it.

LeBron, in his essay announcing his return to Cleveland two years ago, said that "nothing in Northeast Ohio is given. Everything is earned." And this Cavs team truly earned it in every sense of the word.

I'll stop right there because I have been one of the people harping on the theory that the NBA is rigged or fixed, that the NBA officiating dictates the result of games and that the league office has a hand in how things play out. So, I'm sure people are saying, "How can the Cavs earn something that's rigged?" Fair question.

They earned it because they have the best player in the game. They earned it because they have the best point guard in the game. They earned it because they rose above the one-sided officiating (especially in Game 5) and forced the NBA to rethink some things.

Game 7 was the highest rated NBA game in many years, if not ever. The league isn't stupid. It also loves to milk storylines. And this series had two very good storylines.

I'll give the NBA credit for stepping out of the way and letting the two teams play in Game 7. But the storyline of the team, with the superstar who came home for one last run, overcoming the insurmountable deficit and dethroning the Goliath that is Golden State is too good to not get behind. If it is scripted, give the NBA a lot of props for coming up with the perfect scenario for Cleveland to end its title drought.

Even if it is fixed, it's high time something was fixed in our favor. I'll take it and I'll run with it all the way to the bank, as I'm sure just about everyone else will.

I think about watching Game 7 of the 1997 World Series at Cleveland State and watching Jose Mesa blow that save. I remember how hurt I was and how hurt a lot of my family and friends were as a result. I think that hurt, along with the Indians choking away the 2007 American League Championship Series, made me almost resent the Indians for many years. Today, that resentment is gone.

I think about being a kid -- a young teenager -- and watching the Browns come up short in three AFC Championship Games to the Denver Broncos. One on an improbable length of the field drive that forced overtime, another after a furious comeback that made up for a horrible first half ended when a classy running back was stripped of the ball just a few feet away from scoring the tying touchdown. Somehow, the Browns became my team and continued to be my team throughout those early heartbreaks. But man, did my parents and family members take it hard.

About 8 months ago, my grandfather passed away in his mid-80s. I joked, at his funeral, that he was one of the few people I knew who witnessed several Cleveland championships, and he really had (and he loved talking about them). I thought about him after this game, and how excited he would have been to see this. My love of Cleveland sports came from my grandfather, and I'm sure, wherever he is, he's so thrilled that I can experience this for myself.

My mom has been dead for almost 14 years. She was as diehard as they come when it came to rooting for Cleveland teams. I thought about her too, and how -- if she was still here -- I would have likely been watching Game 7 with her. I'm sure, wherever she is, she's thrilled I can experience this highest of highs.

Both of them were with me in spirit last night, and I get emotional thinking about it. This is what this championship means to me!

Today, with pride, I can puff out my chest and say to the world, "You're damn right I'm a Cleveland sports fan! What are you gonna do about it?" And, the haters are gonna hate, but they're a little quieter now, aren't they? And, it feels good ... it feels DAMN GOOD!

One championship is great. And if it's the only one I ever experience, so be it. At least I can point my finger back at the Pittsburgh fans and say, "Oh yeah, I know what it's like." But, I've seen what one championship can do to a community and how it lifts the civic pride of the people, how it can change the landscape of the entire sporting landscape.

Pittsburgh wasn't a great sports town until Franco Harris made an "Immaculate Reception" in the 1972 playoffs. Two years later, that Steelers franchise that was an NFL doormat for years won the Super Bowl and wound up with six. The 70s saw championships by both the Steelers and Pirates and extended in the 80s and 90s (and even this year) to the NHL's Penguins. The whole thing changed.

Boston was a town known for a baseball franchise cursed by a decision to sell off the greatest baseball player of the 20th Century -- Babe Ruth -- to the hated Yankees. That is, until the 2000s, when the Patriots stunned everyone with a Super Bowl upset and became the current benchmark franchise of the NFL, the Red Sox made up an insurmountable deficit to win its first World Series in 86 years and wind up winning 2 more, and even the Celtics and Bruins added championships. That loser mentality is gone.

The Browns' Joe Haden already has caught the fever. He penned an article for Sports Illustrated talking about how much he enjoyed this championship and how it's fired him up to do the same with the Browns. Tribe manager Terry Francona, a big Cavs fan and the manager of those miracle Red Sox winners, is I'm sure singing a similar tune to his Indians.

The Cavaliers are NBA Champions. The Lake Erie Monsters, just last week, won the second-oldest North American championship trophy in the American Hockey League's Calder Cup -- the 10th one for Cleveland, but (ironically) first one since 1964. Stipe Miocic won the UFC heavyweight championship just one month before that.

Today, sports fans will look and see the Indians are in first place in the AL Central Division. They'll see a Browns team that is starting generate a lot of excitement due to a new head coach, a former hotshot quarterback in Robert Griffin III, and a solid draft class. They'll see a Cavs team built for a possible repeat if they retain everyone and can make a few more moves (with Richard Jefferson retiring, they'll need that solid veteran to fill that key role, that "heartbeat" role). And even though Ohio's NHL team is in Columbus, it's the Monsters that are the Blue Jackets' top farm club and a lot of those players will likely get the call up within the next year or so and show if they can win championships at that level.

Today is a good day to be a Cleveland Sports Fan. We partied like it was 1964 last night and into today. We didn't burn the city down, like most people were afraid that we would. The fact that a lot of us really didn't know how to react to this sort of thing may have played into our favor. All we did was dance in the streets and cheer.

All we did was massively sing the National Anthem before every single game we hosted, which made an impression on the national audience. All we did was be true to ourselves.

God bless you, Cleveland! I love this town so damn much, it hurts! I love the Browns, Cavs and Indians so damn much, it hurts! And today, with all of you, we can call ourselves champions!

I'm exhausted. I'm emotionally spent. I've cried a few more times while I've written this piece -- a piece I've waited my entire life to write. And I'm sure it could have been better. But here it is. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I've enjoyed writing it.

Time for a nap. Congratulations, Cavs, and Go Browns and Go Tribe! And, even better, GO CLEVELAND!

The Cleveland Sports Curse is over! THE END!

Until next time, remember -- ALWAYS REMEMBER -- that Cleveland Rocks!

Bye the bye

As a diehard Cleveland Browns fan, Joe Cleveland has seen his share of frustrating losses.

But last Sunday's home 23-21 loss to the hated Baltimore Ravens, the team I've referred to as the Thieving Bastards and I've now referred to as the Lying Bastards due to the Ray Rice incident, may have been one of the most frustrated I've been.

The Week 1 30-27 loss at Pittsburgh sucked, but the fact that the Browns rallied from a 27-3 halftime deficit to tie the game, only to lose on a last-play field goal, left me feeling conflicted. I hated losing to the Steelers, but I found myself feeling good that this Browns team didn't tuck its tail between its legs like so many other Browns teams have done in Pittsburgh. They sucked it up and played their asses off and had the Steelers and their front-running fans on the ropes.

Then was Week 2 and the 26-24 win over a rollicking FirstEnergy Stadium that had some of us harkening back to the "Pandemonium Palace" days of the 1980s and 90s at the original Cleveland Stadium. The crowd was energized in the newly-refurbished stadium from beginning to end and the drive Brian Hoyer and the offense put together to win the game (without Jordan Cameron, Ben Tate and Josh Gordon, by the way) had most cynical Browns fans believing that this wasn't the "Same Old Browns."

With the Ravens organization rocked following allegations that they colluded with the NFL on a backdoor deal to reduce Ray Rice's suspension and hid the results of the damning elevator video that showed the running back clocking his future wife and knocking her out cold, and with Browns riding a wave of positive momentum, fans showed up Sunday believing that their team not only could win, but also that they would win.

And, for all but the final seconds of the game, the Browns were in position to win and improve to 2-1 going into their bye week. They scored on their opening possession of the game, got two rushing touchdowns and a passing touchdown from Hoyer to Miles Austin and saw Hoyer only throw six incomplete passes the entire game. The Browns got a big interception from Tashaun Gipson, a huge fourth-down stop in their own territory, a 70-yard completion to rookie Taylor Gabriel and an apparent TD pass to Austin that was called back because Hoyer had crossed the line of scrimmage.

And, the Browns wound up with no points as a result of those huge fourth quarter plays thanks to two missed field goals by Billy Cundiff, who's biggest sin in the eyes of Browns fans is that he is not Phil Dawson. Seriously.

The first three Browns games have all been decided in the final seconds and both losses came from last-second field goals. Their win, coincidentally, came on a last-second field goal as well. So this team could just as easily be 3-0, 0-3 or 2-1, but are 1-2.

Joe Cleveland believes that there are parties to blame for the Ravens loss, but he thinks the blame is being misdirected at certain people. Namely, Cundiff and, for some inexplicable reason, Hoyer.

For the latter, I think it's because there are still a few Johnny Manziel honks out there who want to see their boy at quarterback and looking to find something, ANYTHING, to discredit the guy who beat him out. For those people, I highly suggest going to W. 6th with all the other douchebags and get off the Manziel hype. Hoyer has clearly played well enough to be the Browns' starter for the remainder of the season, so give it up.

And, the Browns have played the overhyped rookie all of five plays in three games. He's handed off three times (for losses on each), threw a pass that was dropped by a rookie fullback (that even Manziel admitted wasn't the best pass he ever threw) and caught a 39-yard pass on a trick play that was called back due to an illegal shift penalty on rookie Terrance West.

MANZIEL'S BEST PLAY AS AN NFL PLAYER CAME AS A RECEIVER! Keep that in mind! And, it didn't even count!

If it wasn't for Hoyer, the Browns don't rally in the second half of the Steeler game, they certainly don't win the Saints game and they aren't in position to win the Ravens game. Those are facts, and it's time to swallow that bitter pill, Johnny fans.

Now, on to Cundiff.

To be honest, the blame should go to long snapper Christian Yount, who is starting to go through a Ryan Pontbriand-esque 2011 slump. He's made bad snaps in each of the last two games, and all have directly cost the Browns points.

He delivered a high snap on an extra point snap that Spencer Lanning couldn't get down for Cundiff, and Lanning tried to run it in for two points and was stopped. The Browns were down by one point instead of tied when Hoyer took over possession at his own 4 with just over two minutes to go. The field goal team redeemed itself at the end of that drive, but that winning field goal came within an eyelash of being blocked.

On a 50-yard field goal attempt (into the wind, by the way) following Gipson's interception, Yount delivered a low snap to Lanning that may have messed with the timing. Cundiff's kick hooked at the last possible second and clanged off the left upright. But, it was a 50-yard attempt. Once upon a time, those kicks weren't deemed automatic in the NFL, and, to be honest, they still aren't. And, while Cundiff has a huge leg, he's never been the most accurate kicker from 50 yards and beyond.

After the 4th down stop by the defense, offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan dialed up a deep ball, and Hoyer found Gabriel wide open. Gabriel fell down making the catch, but had the presence of mind to get up and race down inside the 20. Had Gabriel not fell down, it would have been a touchdown. But, clearly, the Browns were within chipshot field goal range.

Hoyer's biggest mistake came on a third-down play. Being pressured and with nobody open, Hoyer began to scramble. But, he noticed the defender peel off Austin in the back of the end zone, leaving him wide open. Hoyer lofted a pass to Austin, but he didn't realize that he was well beyond the line of scrimmage. As a veteran lauded for his football intelligence, it was a rare boner by Hoyer. The result of the play was a loss of 10 yards and down, making the field goal a 36-yard attempt.

Once again, Yount's snap was a bit off, and Cundiff's kick was blocked by the Ravens. You can blame the line for that one. And, if you recall how close Cundiff's game-winner came to being blocked one week ago, it shouldn't come as a surprise that the kick was blocked.

To be honest, the special teams unit a whole needs to be addressed, because they have been a letdown all season long. The Browns have had a problem allowing long returns on kickoffs and punts and Travis Benjamin has clearly lost his X-factor abilities as a punt returner. His decision to not catch a punt he signaled a fair catch for and letting it bounce and roll inside the 10 was a swing of almost 25 yards of field position and may have been the difference in the Ravens getting great field position for their game-winning drive.

Chris Tabor has survived two coaching regime changes, but if his unit keeps this up, he won't survive into next year. This unit has clearly regressed and it cost the Browns the Ravens game, plain and simple.

While some fans are calling for a new kicker, perhaps the Browns should look at long snappers and new punt and kickoff returners. Jim Leonard isn't a big-play threat returning punts, but he's experienced enough that he'll make the smart decision. He'll catch the punt and not muff it, and he'll fair catch it if it's needed. Benjamin even muffed a punt earlier in the Ravens game.

Fortunately, Justin Tucker boomed most of his kickoffs out of the end zone, because the Browns have made a bad habit out of returning kicks out from deep in the end zone and getting stuff before they reach the 20. Take a knee and start at the 20. It's the smart football decision, and the Browns need to get smart football players back there to make those decisions. Nobody the Browns have returning kicks have the track record to take the ball out of the back of the end zone. You didn't doubt Josh Cribbs doing it because Cribbs had returned so many kickoffs for touchdowns in his career. But Marlon Moore and Taylor Gabriel don't have that track record, and Benjamin clearly isn't the same since he tore his ACL last year.

Joe Haden has been hearing his lion's share of criticism and some of it's deserved. I don't blame him for Week 2 because Jimmy Graham is such a matchup nightmare for any cornerback because of his height and athleticism. Haden gave up almost a foot in that matchup, and all Drew Brees had to do was loft it high and Graham was going to go up and get it. Haden did what he could, which was keep Graham in front of him and prevent him from turning catches into big ones.

However, Antonio Brown torched him in Week 1 and he gave up a huge catch to the aging Steve Smith at the end of last Sunday's loss to Baltimore. The 30-plus yard catch put the Ravens in chip-shot range for Tucker, and the Browns weren't able to get a push to block the kick.

With Haden just signing a big contract extension that pays him in the ballpark as shutdown corners like Richard Sherman, Darrelle Revis and Patrick Peterson, it's fair for Browns to expect stellar play from Haden. Perhaps Haden suddenly has a case of "big-contract-itis" that seems to plague many of Cleveland's athletes.

Haden says and does all the right things off the field. He's endeared himself to the fanbase by really falling in love with Cleveland. When Cleveland was taking a beating nationally following LeBron James' departure, Haden embraced the city and the city was only too happy to embrace him back. He's easy to root for, and he's shown the ability to play a good cornerback in the NFL. But, on a team where everyone has to do their 1/11th to the best of their ability if this team's going to win, Haden's struggles are amplified. The Browns want to pressure the quarterback with their front-seven, and in order to do that, the cornerbacks are often left out on an island. Mike Pettine's defense did that with Revis and the Jets, and Revis embraced that concept.

Also, first-round rookie Justin Gilbert -- expected to be the Frank Minnifield to Haden's Hanford Dixon -- has had a rough baptism to life in the NFL. He struggled in the preseason and those struggles carried over to the games against the Steelers and the Ravens. For the Browns to be successful, Buster Skrine cannot be the No. 2 cornerback. Skrine is better served as the nickelback, and that means Gilbert has to grow up and play. I still believe Gilbert can be the Minnifield in this defense, but when you were taken 8th overall (and your bosses passed on the chance to take Sammy Watkins in order to take you), the target is upon you, fair or not.

With that being said, it's not totally on the secondary, either. For whatever reason, the Browns have historically struggled stopping the run, and through 3 games this year, those struggles have returned. You can say that Week 2 was part of the gameplan -- to focus on stopping Brees and the dangerous passing game by sacrificing the run defense. But what's the excuse for last Sunday? Some rookie named Lorenzo Taliaferro and a journeyman named Justin Forsett made the Ravens forget all about Rice by running roughshod all over the Browns. Taliaferro was the best rookie running back on the field Sunday, which isn't good when the Browns were relying on two rookies in West and Isiah Crowell.

Speaking of West, he's channeling his inner Trent Richardson by dancing too much before hitting the hole. He clearly took a step backward on Sunday. Crowell, to me, has outplayed West thus far. And, with Ben Tate slated to return following the bye, West could be in danger of falling to third on the depth chart. Any talk of there not being a role for Tate because of West is quiet now.

The Browns lost to the Ravens on Sunday in "Same Old Browns" fashion, which is a shame. I can't tell you how many games the Browns have invented new ways to lose since 1999, and Sunday was the latest in a long line of those struggles.

Mike Pettine blamed himself and his coaching staff for the loss, and the players blamed themselves and not the coach. Pettine has shrugged off the talk of "moral victories" that so many coaches (Butch Davis, for one) relied on in the past and has made this team accountable for wins and losses. It's refreshing, and that's sad because that was lacking from this team for so long.

I believe the players have bought into what Pettine is selling. I believe that they have bought into Hoyer as the starting quarterback and have rallied around their veteran leaders such as Karlos Dansby, Dante Whitner, Hoyer and Joe Thomas. It's encouraging to see the Browns actually resemble an NFL TEAM out there on Sundays instead of a hodge-podge of individuals setting football back to the stone ages with their play.

However, Sunday showed that Rome wasn't built in a day and this Browns team still has a ways to go before they are a legitimate playoff contender. A win over the Ravens could have put the Browns in a great position coming off the bye and facing several winnable opponents over the next five weeks like the Titans, the Steelers (at home), the Jaguars, the Raiders and the Buccaneers (in back-to-back home games). The Browns being 7-1 going into a nationally-televised game at Cincinnati would have been amazing, and there's a chance they could be 6-2 going into that game. However, chances are more likely they will be 4-4, 5-3, or even 3-5.

How the Browns respond to last Sunday's disappointment through the bye week will go a long way. There were a lot of lessons to be learned by everyone, including Hoyer, Haden, Cundiff, Whitner, West, Gilbert, even Manziel and especially Pettine, Shanahan, Jim O'Neil and Tabor. Here's hoping they learned those lessons of what not do to and not let them happen again.

The "Same Old Browns" wouldn't learn from their mistakes. If Pettine is truly going to change the culture and make "Play Like a Brown" a positive mantra, they can't make the same mistakes twice.

Until next time, remember that Cleveland Rocks!

Indians Acta-propriately

The only person who believed Manny Acta would survive the Indians' historic collapse this season from first place to worst in the span of two months was, apparently, Manny Acta himself.

The questions with the Indians was when they would drop the ax on Acta, and who else would be ridden out on the rails?

The Tribe answered one of those questions last Thursday, when Acta was fired with six games remaining in the regular season. Bench coach and former Indians all-time great Sandy Alomar Jr. was named interim manager for the rest of the season and has been identified as a leading candidate for the permanent job next season and beyond.

The other question hasn't been officially answered. But, it looks like team president Mark Shapiro and general manager Chris Antonetti will be spared for at least one more year.

Joe Cleveland was never a fan of Manny Acta. He did not have a proven winning track record coming in to Cleveland. His perceived passive-aggressiveness in the dugout led observors to believe that he didn't seem to care. And, it also looked like his team quit on him from July through September.

It was clear a change had to be made, especially given the Indians' belief that 2012 would be a season of "contention." For the first two months, they looked to be right.

However, while Eric Wedge's team patented the slow start and red-hot finish during his way-too-long seven years at the helm, Acta's teams patented the opposite -- the red-hot start and slow finish.

Acta's teams wound up with 90 losses in two of his three seasons. The middle season was 80-82, but that year saw a fall from a 30-15 start in June that many believing that the Indians were going to the playoffs.

But, it's not totally Acta's fault. He was given Spam by his front office and expected to turn it into prime rib.

At the very least, Antonetti should have also been shown the door, because every move he's made since becoming the team's general manager has blown up in his face.

For starters, he was heavily influencial on the hiring of Acta as manager. When that manager doesn't even last three seasons, that's a reflection on the guy who hired him.

Antonetti's biggest trade may have been his worst -- acquiring Ubaldo Jimenez from Colorado for four prospects, including first-round pitchers Alex White and Drew Pomeranz. While both White and Pomeranz have struggled in Denver's thin air and have not panned out as expected, the Indians' farm system took a serious hit for a guy that has struggled to win games and be consistant since he was brought to town last July.

Jimenez was on track for at least 19 losses before the Indians mercifully shut him down. It remains to be seen if they will pick up his $5.75 million option for the 2013 season.

Antonetti's most recent offseason may have been his worst. From the re-signing of injured Grady Sizemore for an incentive-laden, $5 million base salary for one year (and then watching him sit out the whole season with a myriad of injuries) to the acquision of aging Derek Lowe, who didn't survive July to the belief that the triumverate of aging Johnny Damon, journeyman Shelly Duncan and minor leaguer Aaron Cunningham would fill the left field void while deciding to not give Josh Willingham a third year and watching Minnesota grant his wish are just the tip of the iceberg.

There's picking up Fausto Carmona's contract option, only to lose him for most of this season due to an identity fraud case that saw him being really named Roberto Hernandez and aging from 29 to 32.

There's signing the banjo-hitting Casey Kotchman as a bargain-baseman free agent to fill the void at first base.

There's going with a predominantly left-handed lineup, which allowed teams to exploit this by lining up their left-handed starters to face the Indians.

There's picking up former International League MVP Russ Canzler in the offseason and watch the right-hander tear up AAA pitching once again while his major league, desperately crying for a right-handed bat with power, didn't call him up until September.

There's turning down decent offers for Shin-Soo Choo and Chris Perez at the trading deadline, but then not acquiring anything that would help his team push Chicago and Detroit for the Central Division title that once seemed within their grasp. Instead, the team only won 5 games in August, Perez continued to make an ass out himself (even publicly ripping the front office) and Choo had a decent season, but not a great season.

Asdrubal Cabrera, who Antonetti signed to an extension during the offseason, suddenly channeled his inner Jhonny Peralta and became a butcher at shortstop (19 errors) while also suddenly losing his motivation to play (and not playing very well when he did).

The starting rotation, believed to be the strength of the team by Antonetti, became one of the worst starting rotations in MLB. Justin Masterson (who was also being bid upon by teams at the deadline) seriously regressed, along with Ubaldo, and minor leaguers like Corey Kluber, David Huff and Jeanmar Gomez were counted on to be the main starters.

Then, there's the saga of Matt LaPorta, who Acta never seemed to care for. LaPorta lost his job to Kotchman, did decently down in Columbus, but was never given a true chance by the Indians this season. Whenever LaPorta did play, he didn't play well. Whether that's because of his problems with Acta or not remains to be seen. But, the lynch-pin of the CC Sabathia trade has suddenly become an afterthought.

Antonetti didn't make the Sabathia, Cliff Lee and Victor Martinez trades (Shapiro did before he got promoted). But, like his predecessor, Antonetti hasn't seemed to make the draft a top priority and has failed at developing talent in the minor leagues.

The roster Antonetti tried to say was a major league, contending roster this season was a joke. Credit Acta for taking this lineup of Punch and Judy hitters and mediocre starters and turning it into a first place team by the end of May. However, a good manager builds off of that success, and Acta is not a good manager.

Antonetti is a mediocre MLB general manager who deserved to be shipped out on the same bus as Acta was. Somehow, Larry Dolan (the worst sports owner in Cleveland) was convinced these moves were good moves and that he (and Shapiro) deserved another chance to run his team.

All they've done is run his team into the ground. However, the penny-pinching Dolan doesn't seem to care as long as his team can turn a profit.

So, it appears the Red Perm and his Boy Wonder will be responsible for picking the next manager of the Cleveland Indians. The last two guys this braintrust were responsible for were both pretty miserable hires --Wedge and Acta -- so I don't have the utmost confidence in their ability to hire a competant guy.

In the end, though, whether it's Alomar or former Indians player and exec Terry Francona or some other candidate, it's not going matter unless something is done to overhaul the talent pool.

This team has regressed in three years in overall talent, and it may not get better unless something drastic happens.

At the very least, the bloated contracts for Travis Hafner, Sizemore and Hernandez/Carmona will come off the books since they will become free agents. Also, the contracts of Choo and Perez will certainly be dangled for whatever top-shelf prospects they can land, and I wouldn't be surprised if Cabrera, Masterson and Jimenez are also dangled as well.

Other than Jason Kipnis, Michael Brantley, Carlos Santana (who took a step back this season) and Lonnie Chisenhall, there isn't much to build around or to hope for as an Indians fan. Perhaps Canzler opens enough eyes during this September call-up to be given the first base job this season. Even then, though, Canzler has been a career minor leaguer for a reason.

Pitching wise, it's a mess. Carlos Carrasco may be ready to return from Tommy John surgery, but he wasn't exactly the second-coming of Fernando before the injury happened.

The bullpen should be strong enough to combat the loss of Perez. Vinnie Pestano has the makeup to be a successful closer. However, he has had his share of shaky moments in the ninth this year. But, to be honest, this team won't be expected to win very much, so a closer is a luxury they really don't need.

It will be interesting to see if the Dolans hire Francona, since you'd expect that he'd command a hefty price tag. After all, he did help Boston overcome their "Curse of the Bambino" with World Series wins in both 2004 and 2007. He may ask for some say in the personnel department as well, which would cut into Antonetti's and Shapiro's responsibilities.

Alomar should get a longer leash than Acta did by the fans becasue of who he is. Other than Omar Vizquel and (thanks to last year) Jim Thome, Alomar is one of the most revered members of those 1990s super-teams by the Indians fan base. Like Omar, Alomar didn't leave by choice, and he always considered himself an Indian at heart even as he played for five other franchises to end his career. While Alomar would be a good PR-hire, he's also universally recognized as a solid baseball man and an up-and-coming managerial candidate. Plus, Alomar would be cheaper than Francona, which would be music to the meiserly Dolans' ears.

I'd expect that Alomar is given the permanent managerial job after the season ends. Perhaps Francona takes a front office position to help ease the (obvious) burden placed on Antonetti and Shapiro for jobs they are clearly not ready or prepared for.

However, by firing Acta and retaining the brain trust, the Dolans have (without saying so) place the target squarely on both of their heads. Losing won't be Alomar or Francona's fault, it will be on the guys who are responsible for acquiring the talent to make up the roster.

Hopefully, this move greases Antonetti's skids out of town, and hopefully, the swarmy Shapiro follows him out the door.

We can only hope that this is Larry Dolan's cue to sell the club, but you can wish in one hand and defecate in the other and see which one fills up first. A new owner would be the cure-all to this franchise's ails because he would clean house and bring in his own baseball people.

We shall see. But, while it once appeared that the Indians were the closest of the three Cleveland franchises to fielding a winner, it is now apparent they are a distant third, whether Sandy's the man in charge or not.

***

Joe Cleveland goes into every Sunday rooting for a Browns victory, and is extremely disappointed when that doesn't happen.

So far, the Browns have not tasted victory through four games and it looks like that skid may grow to five (11 losses overall) this Sunday at the Meadowlands against the defending Super Bowl champion Giants.

However, unlike some fellow Browns fans, Joe Cleveland has been encouraged by what he's seen.

Even though last year's team was 2-2 at this point and started off 3-3, this year's team is MUCH better, in terms of talent. That has been apparent through these four losses.

The Browns have played three playoff teams and a fourth that was off to a red-hot start following some high-profile free agent signings very, very tough and have been competitive. They came within seconds of upsetting Michael Vick and the Eagles in the season opener and gave AFC North foes Cincinnati and Baltimore all they could handle on the road.

Brandon Weeden is still a work in progress, but he's shown flashes of being a very good quarterback. Two 300-yard games on the road against division foes -- one of which has a historically tough defense (the Ravens) -- is more than enough to open this person's eyes.

Trent Richardson is the real deal. Teams are already game-planning to stop him by stacking the box, making it tough for him to get any running room. But, he's become a reliable receiving threat out of the backfield, making people look silly in the open field. As long as his knee stays healthy -- which it has thorugh these four games -- he could be the best Browns running back since the great Jim Brown himself. It's a high comparison, but I believe it's warrented.

Joe Haden's absense only proves how valuable he is to the play of the secondary. Without Haden, Andy Dalton, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Joe Flacco have shredded the Browns secondary -- a secondary that was one of the top-five units in the league last year with Haden playing all 16 games.

D'Qwell Jackson has become a legitimate playmaker and leader on the defensive side. And young linebackers Craig Robertson and L.J. Fort have shown glimpes of being good NFL linebackers.

The wide receivers have, once again, let this team down. They're not giving Weeden much help, and yet he's still putting up decent numbers. The Browns' inability to address this area in the offseason is coming back to bite them in the ass, and that's the fault of Mike Holmgren and Tom Heckert.

Jimmy Haslam doesn't need a whole of excuses to bring in his own people. Heckert appeared the safest of the three (Holmgren and head coach Pat Shurmur) and still does. However, the decision to go with 15 rookies was his decision, and that may turn the tide against him.

Following the Giants' game, the Browns' next four opponents will be the Bengals at home, the Colts on the road, the Chargers at home and the Ravens at home. Haden will be back, and defensive tackle Phil Taylor may be cleared to return by the end of that stretch. It will be these four games that will make or break the Browns, especially Shurmur. The Browns have proven they can play with both Cincy and Baltimore on the road, the Colts are in the same boat as the Browns, and the Chargers are regressing.

Anything less than a 2-2 record in those four games may result in a bye-week coaching change (conveniently located right after that Ravens game), and signal the beginning of the end of the Holmgren regime. It should also be a better barometer for the progress of Weeden and Richardson.

Until next time, remember that Cleveland Rocks!