The Oakland A's and Arizona Diamondbacks finalized a deal on Friday that sent Dan Haren to the Diamondbacks for six prospects, all ranging in talent and success in the minor leagues.  This comes as particularly disheartening news because it was revealed this week that the Cleveland Indians were one of the teams looking to deal for the A's ace.  Additionally, it seemed that the Tribe was beginning to gain the inside track, as they were able to offer top-line prospects and players with major league experience.

The idea of a rotation that included the likes of C.C. Sabathia, Fausto Carmona, and Dan Haren made Cleveland fans everywhere feel an extra surge of anticipation for the upcoming summer.  However, as it was not the case, the primary focus once again turns to the signing of C.C. to a long-term extension.  Dan Haren was supposed to be that insurance policy if Sabathia went somewhere else - who can the Tribe turn to now?  Cliff Lee?  Just "hoping" that he returns to form (which was never the form of a lights-out, dominant pitcher anyway) won't be enough against the trendy new favorites of the AL Central in the Detroit Tigers.

Continue reading "No Dice on Haren in Tribe Uniform"

This is exactly the kind of win the Cleveland Cavaliers needed to get themselves out of a terribly pesky slump.  The Cavs beat the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday in two overtimes, 104-99.  It was the kind of hard-fought game throughout that the Cavs were accustomed to winning last season, but had trouble doing so this early in the 07-08 season.

LeBron James led the way for the Cavs (how surprising) with 31 points, making him the youngest player in the history of the NBA to make it to 9,000 points in a career.  It is obvious that his finger is still not completely healthy, but for him to still score 30+ points is nothing short than MVP-caliber play.  Lucky for him his supporting cast decided to show up as well with Devin Brown having a solid night to further boost the team.

Continue reading "Cavs Win in Double Overtime Should Provide Boost"

Okay, so maybe I was a little too quick to draw conclusions in the last post.  Certainly, the win over the Bucks was much-needed and should have provided a boost to the team's psyche and morale.  However, after further investigation of the Cleveland Cavaliers' game against the New York Knicks on Wednesday, I have come to this conclusion: the team simply stinks.  But how can anyone argue with that given the results?  Giving up 63 points to the Knicks in the first half is simply inexcusable and would certainly seem to disprove coach Mike Brown's deep obsession with a defense-first attitude.  Either that or the team has stopped buying into his system, which also would not be surprising.  Sooner or later, fans might have to come to terms with the realization that the Cavs, their beloved 'Bron & Co., is one of the worst teams in the Eastern Conference.

Continue reading "New York Knicks Prove Me Wrong"