MY LIFE - SEPTEMBER

Sunday, September 17, 2000

Oh, to be a sports fan in Cleveland today. You know, they couldn't quite sum up just how good the city collectively feels right now on the radio and I know that I can't. I'll just fill you all in on what happened today. I'll start with the good news first, then move to the great news.

The good news is that the Indians, for the second time in three days, clobbered the New York Yankees, 15-4. Chuck Finley threw six shutout innings for his 13th win and the Indians scored 8 runs off of Yankee starter Denny Neagle and six more of a left handed reliever to really suck the air out of the Yankees this weekend. Manny Ramirez hit a two run homer off of Neagle in the first inning to set the tone, while Travis Fryman finished Neagle off with a two run homer of his own in the third inning.

Meanwhile, Finley was good in his six innings. In the two wins in this series so far, Indians' starters Dave Burba and Finley have allowed 0 earned runs in 14 innings. What makes this win so sweet? Not only did the Indians beat the Yankees for the 4th time in their last 6 meetings, but they just absolutely clobbered them in the process. This was also against a left-hander, something that's given the Indians trouble all year. But the day got even better.

Right before the Indians won their game, the Cleveland Browns did something even better. For the first time since December 17, 1995, the Browns won a home game. The best part? It was against the Steelers, whose slide last year into this year was started by the Browns. It was a game that was close until the end, when the Steelers couldn't get their field goal unit on the field to try and tie the game at 23. Instead, all the scrambling meant that the Browns won 23-20, finally giving us fans a win.

Let's look at it this way. The Steelers had over 2 minutes to drive down the field and try to score. Once they got inside the ten though, they just fell apart. They ran the ball on first down, which ran the clock down to about 20 seconds or so. Then, because the run only went for 2 yards, they had to spike the ball to stop the clock since they were out of timeouts (two timeouts had been used early in the half by the defense, the other had been used after a long pass play over the middle). It was now third down and that set the stage for quarterback Kent Graham to make the bonehead play of the year. With time running down and no receivers open, rather than throw the ball away, he held onto it and tried to buy some time. Well, he was sacked for the third time by rookie Courtney Brown, which sealed the victory. With 8 seconds to go, there was no way the field goal unit would get on the field in time, and the Browns won.

Thank you New York and Pittsburgh. You just made Cleveland's day.

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Well friends, once again Feagler has written an incredibly stupid and short sighted column, once again involving young kids. What the hell is this guy's problem with the youth of America? I mean, a few months ago, I was praising some of his articles and maybe thinking this was a guy who might actually have a clue. But then came the article on the FTC report and now this article involving a young man named Andrew Capizzi, who had refused to stand during the pledge of allegiance, which is his own right.

Feagler himself must feel insulted by this act because he pretty much went on a rampage on it. He then said that Capizzi is the one who touched off the protests at Admiral King High School, protests that Feagler seems to think involve the students not wanting to learn. He links everything wrong now to this kid, which is completely unnecessary and unfair. Capizzi did what he was allowed to do and now Feagler is upset.

Well tough shit Feagler. I may be 19 years old, but I know damn well that I have rights and I will exercise them, even if you don't think it's right. Capizzi knew the same thing and he took advantage of him. His freedom wasn't paid for by money, as you seem to imply, but by the sacrifice of others ahead of him. His slighting of the allegiance isn't necessarily a sign of disrespect. It's his right not to stand, no matter what the reason. I too would hope that Capizzi would understand the sacrifice made for our freedom today, but it doesn't mean he has to adhere to a pledge that is basically old and outdated.

Feagler seems to have become lost with the times. Just like with the FTC report, Feagler is offline in his comments. But then what should I expect from someone who believes everything should be regulated?

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I was off today and more than happy to enjoy it. I don't think it'll be necessary to do a Tribe Watch today because I pretty much explained what happened above. Tribe Watch will return tomorrow after Bartolo Colon and Roger Clemens match up in what should be a good game.

I have more that I could talk about, but I'll save it for tomorrow when I have a little more time to write. Or at least that will be my excuse for today.