Despite the carefree days of summer kicking off, these are not happy times for sports fans in northern Ohio. The Cavaliers followed the lead of Cleveland teams before them, with a debacle the past fortnight, falling to the Orlando Magic in six games — all of which they could easily have lost. With 66 wins, Cleveland’s hoops squad was the NBA’s best team all season, but as this excellent analysis says of their series with Orlando, they were “never even in it.”
Most honest folks with whom I’ve spoken lay primary blame on head coach Mike Brown. Personally, I wonder if a coach of the year has ever been fired the ensuing offseason. Doubtful this will occur, but now would be the fairest time, as the Cavs won’t go anywhere with this guy “in charge.” I use quotes because he does not coach, lets his assistant draw plays (this was clear to anyone watching the series) while he chats with fans and allows Lebron to do whatever The King chooses. I’ve never seen two offenses look so different. Stan Van Gundy sets up plays and coaches his team. It’s clear Mike Brown rarely does.
Of course, few in the media castigated Brown. The generic opening of the aforementioned piece is:
“There was no drama and no last second suspense. The Orlando Magic came out of the locker room ready to advance to the NBA Finals and they took no prisoners. It was the Cavaliers who gave the Mickey Mouse effort and they paid for it with their playoff lives as the Magic won going away 103-90.”
Somehow, the article fails to call out the coach.
Long-time Cleveland columnist Terry Pluto, one of the best in America, also seems reticent to point his finger at Brown, though he does a bit at the end of this otherwise sound write-up. Other local media members rightly refuse to call the loss a choke (it was not, as the better TEAM clearly won), but still barely mention Coach Brown’s lack of any adjustments through six grueling games.
To no one’s surprise, the politically correct national media, like Yahoo’s Dan Wetzel, gets generic by focusing on Lebron and “the future,” with little analysis other than the mundane cliché of “Cleveland had the best player in this series. Orlando had the next four.” I heard that sixteen times on my 25-minute ride to work Friday morning, Dan. I didn’t even bother to read what sophomoric essay ESPN would have. Let’s just hope “witty” self-aggrandizer Rick Reilly’s not involved. {Ok, he isn’t yet, but irresponsible ESPN did focus on Lebron, naturally}
Speaking of bad “leaders” in Cleveland, despite my pleading three weeks back, Eric Wedge still has a job, regardless of his very-talented Tribe occupying the cellar in a bad division. It seems he’ll be the skipper the rest of 2009 and beyond. Too bad for fans of the Tribe. And now, Indians star centerfielder Grady Sizemore hit the DL this weekend
“The Indians say Sizemore has struggled with elbow discomfort for most of the season.”
There’s always an excuse. Sizemore, who is on the Disabled List for the first time, is having a terrible first
eight weeks. It happens. I’m not so sure he’s hurt or he would have hit the DL earlier. Additionally, Travis Hafner has “suffered a setback” in his rehab. This I believe, since he was tearing up the minors prior and is injury prone.
It’s been a tough season for Wedge and his club, but other teams, like St. Louis, somehow persevere through bigger challenges year in and out. 2008 Cy Young winner Cliff Lee has been solid of late but has little to show for it. Cleveland is still waiting for Fausto Carmona to be the 2007 version rather than the ’06, ’08 or ’09 version. And while Carl Pavano has been adequate, especially Sunday versus his former team before the piteous bullpen coughed up his lead despite Cleveland’s eventual triumph, Jake Westbrook cannot return soon enough.
On the opposite end of I-71, the Reds, once off to a strong start, fizzled this weekend in Milwaukee. And now their best player, Joey Votto, is out for mysterious reasons. Psychological injuries are often worse than physical ones. This could hurt.
The Reds still sit a few games over .500; they have a dynamite pitching staff sans fifth man Micah Owings (headlined by Johnny Cueto, 12 wins already from Bronson Arroyo & Aaron Harang, and the return of Edinson Volquez), and one of the best road records in baseball. But they also play, as of May’s end, in the NL’s premier division and arguably the best in baseball, so it’ll be tough. I’m no fan of Dusty Baker’s managerial skills either, as Chris Dickerson seems to be this year’s Corey Patterson (a guy who should be in the minors but is playing nearly daily and killing the team), and Baker could not care less.
Thankfully, it’s a long way to October.
[Editor's Note: And to add to the misery of the state of Ohio this weekend, the Ohio State Buckeyes' baseball team played a couple of games this weekend in the College World Series. To say that they did not go well would perhaps the understatement of the century.]
