AlphabetSoup

I think ESPN gets it.

Frye never had a chance to succeed with the Browns. Their entire setup for young quarterbacks has “failure” written all over it, and if things do not change with the handling of Brady Quinn another disaster looms. The Browns have yet to go out and get a veteran QB who can teach their young passers how to play the game, and while there is talk of the team bringing back Ken Dorsey, who was a great college QB, I just don’t see him bringing Quinn along as a starter.

The Browns continue to make the same mistakes over and over and until they can overcome the past and learn from their mistakes, this franchise will continue to be among the worst in the NFL. Frye is lucky to get out early and move to a better situation and better opportunity to succeed.

Do you think the Browns read ESPN? Or are they too good to hear advice from outsiders?

I think ESPN’s Peter Gammons put it best, and I paraphrase…

Cleveland Indians fans need to get over the dismantling of the teams of the 1990s, and wake up to the realization that we have a good young team now.

Where are all the 42,000+ fans that filled the Jake for 455 straight games? We had a team that was in first place before Sunday’s sweep by the Yankees. And yet we are at the bottom of the list when it comes to attendance.

The Lebron-aliers finished playing in June. The Browns just started this past weekend. Where, oh where, have all the Indians fans gone?

Some people call the local radio shows and proclaim that they won’t come back until the Indians win. Win what? A World Series? Would you miss that? A Pennant? Would you only watch after that? The division? So, only after it has been won? A Wild card? So the 162-game-race is of no interest?

What is wrong with supporting the local team, win or lose? Only the Browns get 100% support, no matter what the record is, or how they play, or who they sign, or don’t sign. The Browns get a free pass.

What is wrong with watching a team that has a winning record?

Or a team that is leading the division?

Nope, Indians fans are still upset over Bartolo being traded for Lee Stevens, Tim Drew, Grady Sizemore, Cliff Lee, and Brandon Phillips. They are still upset that Manny left for the money (just hear the boos when he’s in town). They are still upset that Thome left for Philly and that the Indians did very little to keep him. And they are upset that Omar was let go.

Bartolo was traded in 2002.

5 YEARS AGO!

I just don’t get it.

I think Indians fans need to realize now that the Indians have made some good moves, and have created a solid core to compete with the high-priced, over-paid $200 Million all-star teams. And I think if fans started to come back to the park to enjoy it, then maybe you’ll be in line soon enough for some playoff tickets, and not saying to your friend… “Ok, now I’ll go watch the Indians.”

What kind of fan is that?

I love baseball.

I hate the All-Star break.

I am fine with letting the fans vote in the players, but then you need to call it what it is — a popularity game. Most guys with the stats who deserve to play, don’t get a chance because of big name players. But, if you want the fans to pick that’s what you get. Fine.

The game is a joke, even if it counts now because of Bud Selig’s stupid decision to give the winner home field advantage in the World Series. And with interleague games, MLB cable packages, and fantasy baseball updates, most everyone who cares can keep tabs on their favorite players no matter what team they play for.

But most of all it is the day off before the game, and the day off after the game (or in some teams cases, 2 days off) that sucks the most.

For 3 1/2 months now, we have all gotten into the rhythm of watching our favorite teams, night in, and night out. The Indians have had 2 days off since May (I think, don’t quote). And now i have to take 4 days off and just watch a popularity game?

Tonight the insanity ends, and we can get back to baseball.

The Indians had 3 All-stars. They are 0.5 games out of first place. And tonight they open a series at home against the Kansas City Royals. Maybe now the fans in Cleveland will get over whatever it is that is keeping them away, and go see a ballgame.

Go tribe!

The All-Star break is here.

i’ve never been a fan of the All-Star game. It is a popularity contest, not a game for the best players at this point. But that’s what you get when you leave the starting line up to the fans…

My fantasy team however is sitting on an 8-4-2 record. 2nd in my division by 1 game. 3rd in the league. I currently hold a playoff spot. The #1 team has a 10-4 record… those 2 ties against the 2 bottom ranked teams are hurting me, but they are better than loses.

Out of the 21 players I drafted, 12 have been replaced. Some many times over.

My 1st 2 picks are proving their weight in gold. Chase Utley and Grady Sizemore have been everything advertised.

My main weakness is Home Runs. Utley and Sizemore lead my team with 15 home runs each. I need a big bat.

Grabbing Kenny Rogers and Fausto Carmona off the waivers have proven to be good moves. Wandy Rodriguez was a good pick up too. Schmidt and BJ Ryan hitting the season-ending DL didn’t help, but I think I have recovered.

So far it has been a good season. Great competition. Lots of young, new players making a difference, and lots of moves to be made on the waiver wire.

Wish me luck.

Mark this day. The Browns made draft day exciting again. It was hard to walk away saying things like: “what were they thinking?” or “why did they pick him?” or “why would anyone trade up to get that guy?”

I was all set to turn off the TV, walk away from the draft, and consider not renewing my season tickets if I did not hear, “With the 3rd pick in the 2007 NFL Draft, the Cleveland Browns select Joe Thomas,” or “The Cleveland Browns trade the 3rd pick to…”

And it was nice to see Mel Kiper’s draft board take a hit with the Browns not drafting Brady Quinn.

ESPN can be merciless when it comes to a Top 5 pick not getting picked, sitting at Radio City Music Hall waiting for a team to call his name. Every pick that goes by, they show the player’s reaction. It is almost heartless. And yet makes for interesting TV. I couldn’t get away, who was going to pick the kid who probably shouldn’t have been there.

To everyone’s amazement, the Browns worked the phones, worked out a deal with Dallas, and got 2 of their Top 5 picks on day 1 of the draft.

Will this make the Browns a playoff team next year? Probably not. But does it make the fans excited? Yes. Should we see improvement? Yes. Will we see ticket prices go up after next season? Probably.

All I want is for Brady Quinn to not be the next Tim Couch, and for the Browns to improve on their 4-12 record.