I have been thinking about fan villains recently. Over the past 48 hours, going on Cleveland Sports Twitter and avoiding an article about Kevin Love or Yan Gomes has been practically impossible. I will not discuss either in this piece, but will note two exceptional pieces written about them.
Michael Bode from WFNY wrote a delightfully detailed piece on Yan Gomes that should be read post haste.
William Bohl from Fear the Sword wrote an article that I enjoyed regarding Kevin Love.
I am going to use the rest of "The List" as a cathartic journey which may read more like a journal entry than a sports blog.
1. Anthony Lima trolls Indians fans again.
In a classic Daryl Ruiter move, Lima notes that if you remove a teams most successful series from consideration, they do not look as good on paper. Hold on Voltaire, hold on Mark Twain, hold on Oscar Wilde, a new intellectual is in town to offer incisive commentary. Perhaps most humorous, is that only 65 games into the season, Lima removed ~10% of the Indians games, their very best and they still had a positive run differential.Sweeps of Reds/Royals greatly inflated run differential for the season. Take those two series outbursts out and Indians +2 for year— Anthony Lima (@SportsBoyTony) June 16, 2016
There certainly are concerning markers for the Indians moving forward, and the bullpen is a giant red caution flag but anachronistic pedants who are searching for retweets rather than substance are not worth your time Indians Twitter.
2. Terry Francona continues to pay off his life debt to Bryan Shaw. Two nights in the past ten days, Terry Francona has gone to a reliever with a 5.74 FIP first out of the pen in the late innings. A pitcher whose arm Francona has attempted to sever from his body over the course of the past three years to the tune of 224 appearances. It is clear Shaw is not the same.
I know, I am doing a great job coaching from my couch. But one of a managers primary responsibilities is to put players in a position to succeed, pitching Shaw in high leverage simply is not a position in which he can succeed right now.
Of course there is plenty of blame to go around, the front office failed to Tito-proof the roster this off-season which leaves Francona favorites Chris Gimenez, Michael Martinez, and Bryan Shaw to get overused until we despise them.
3. Conclusion. We all used this heading on our high school papers right? I did. As frustrating as all of this is, I got to watch my team, my city in Game Six of the NBA Finals last night. In the carpool, at work, on the street, I have been able to talk to people of all types about the Cavs. Feeling Cleveland during playoff buzz has been invigorating. In a time where it seems like everything divides us, the Cavs have created Community and making Cleveland my new home during this season has been fantastic.
I found the following lyrics and song particularly fitting when thinking of Cleveland and Northeast Ohio this week.
Ain't no man or men that can change the shape my soul is in
There ain't nobody here who can cause me pain or raise my fear
Cause I got only love to share
If you're looking for truth I'm proof you'll find it there
You have survived my non-linear musings, kudos! May you encounter a fulfilling day.
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