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So I watched the NFL Network’s Top 10 Worst Free Agent Signings of all-time the other day, and the Cleveland Indians had two players make the Top 7. Evidently they paid wide receiver Andre “Bad Moon” Rison $17 million in 1995, then paid quarterback Jeff Garcia $25 million in 2004. Both players lasted but a season in Cleveland.
Now these two moves happened nine years apart and by two different franchise leaders. The Browns rolled out for Baltimore after the 1995 season before the NFL gave the city the team back in 1999. All that, and watching how Ohio native LeBron James (who left his home state for Miami before this season after leading the Cavaliers to the finals in 2007) could help push the Heat to the NBA title this season got me thinking how rough it must be to be passionate about sports in Cleveland.(Rick Vaughn) The last major professional sports title in Cleveland came in 1964 when the Browns won the NFL title. (That was three years before Super Bowl I in 1967). But there is hope for Cleveland, and I’m not talking about winning the draft lottery and the first pick in the NBA draft this year. I’m talking about the Indians. Yep, the Indians. The city’s baseball team, which hasn’t won the World Series since 1948, though it won the American League pennant in 1995 and 1997. This year, Cleveland is leading the AL Central and is flirting with baseball’s best record at 33-21 (four and a half games ahead of Detroit in its division). It’s pretty much been a surprise to everyone. I didn’t see many preseason Mlb Jerseys prognosticators picking the Indians to do much this season.