Every once in a while there are a bunch of things on my mind, and they’ll be addressed in today’s blog. Once again, it’s a Cleveland Sports Perspective potpourri.
· David Huff lost his tenth game Tuesday night in Boston, joining Justin Masterson in that category this season. In games when those two pitchers get the decision, the Indians are 5-20. In all other games, the Tribe is 40-42, a pretty respectable record.
Obviously, it’s not only the starter’s fault when a team loses, but the Indians have a 50-50 shot of winning when someone else is involved in the decision.
· Speaking of Masterson, isn’t it time the Tribe tries him as a set up man out of the bullpen? He throws hard and is very tough on right-handed hitters. Besides, it would open up another spot in the starting rotation.
· Why do people get so fired up about a player’s performance in practice? Already, there is some hand wringing over how Browns’ QB Jake Delhomme in training camp. Who cares? The guy has shown he’s a competent NFL signal caller.
Derek Anderson was an all-training camp performer. Look how well that worked out.
· Why did WKNR ruin their afternoon drive time show? Michael Reghi is a pro and knows his stuff, regardless of the sport. Now he’s teamed up with a wanna be impressionist who only wants to talk about Ohio State football and basketball.
· Stop all the talk of demonstrations when the Miami Heat makes their first appearance in Cleveland this season on December 2nd. There is no way fans can agree about any action, so it’s a complete waste of time. Miami is going to bring their “A” game that night in order to make sure they win in LeBron James’ return.
· Who is going to play center for the Cavaliers this season? They could start Anderson Varajao, but he would have a problem guarding the Dwight Howard and Andrew Bynums of the league. Plus, it is thought that Byron Scott would like to bring him off the bench.
· The Indians’ Shin-Soo Choo is one of baseball’s most underrated players. He’s a lifetime .295 hitter with a career 874 OPS. He has cut down on his strikeouts from a year ago, and has one of the game’s best throwing arms in RF.
He also has a higher slugging percentage this season than Alex Rodriguez. Also, add in his good base running instincts and you have one of baseball’s best players. Choo, Asdrubal Cabrera, and Carlos Santana should be the cornerstones of the Indians for the next few years.
· Could it be that the Browns downgrading of first round pick Joe Haden was a negotiating ploy? All of the negativity about his speed before he even took the field could have been a way of getting him signed and into camp.
· Keep reading that the Cavs have some interest in Shannon Brown, and if he returns, it would rectify a mistake made by former coach Mike Brown, who didn’t seem interested in developing him as a rookie. There could have been work ethic reasons involved, but Brown certainly has the athleticism that would work in Scott’s running game.
· Who would win in a strikeout contest: Russell Branyan or Chris Gimenez?
· Has anyone heard from Dan Gilbert lately?
MW
Cleveland Sports Perspective 