The Tribe broke out their hitting sticks Thursday night as they romped the Angels 14-2. With the victory, the Indians earned their first series win since over a month ago when they beat the Reds in a three-game series in early July. In the wake of his new $14 million contract, Cliff Lee gave up the two runs in seven innings to earn his tenth victory of the season. Every starter recorded a hit for the Tribe but it was Shin-Soo Choo and Ryan Garko who stole the show. Choo had his second straight three-hit night and added three RBI. Garko hit a three-run, bases-clearing double as part of a seven run fourth for the Indians and also homered later on. Hafner had a double and a homer and Jason Michaels contributed three hits and a couple RBI as part of the Indians’ hit parade.

“I’m reminded of this team last September [when Garko was a call-up],” Garko said. “We were winning every series and every game. That’s what I still picture.”

The last few months should be rather entertaining. Many players will be playing for their jobs next season and how well many of these youngsters perform over the remainder of the season will determine where they fit into this team for the future. Garko and Choo sure are off to good starts.

Not until the fourth quarter did any of the Browns’ offensive units show any type of rhythm or success in their 20-7 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. The first-team offense sputtered and the star of the night on offense was fourth string quarterback Lang Campbell, who was 8-of-14 for 77 yards and threw to Jerome Harrison in the fourth quarter for the Browns’ only score of the game.

Charlie Frye and the first-team offense got a couple of series but weren’t able to mount much. A few penalties hurt and offensive coordinator Maurice Carthon seemed to keep the playbook simple. The first-teamers didn’t attempt anything too crazy and were rather conservative in the few drives they did spend on the field. In his first return to live action in nearly two years, K2 had a modest seven yards on two catches. You couldn’t expect much from #80 and just being back out on the field and hitting and being tackled is another positive step for him.

“It was really good to get back out there,” said Winslow, whose career was stalled by an in-game leg injury and a motorcycle accident. “I just wanted to get tackled to get some confidence back.”

After a slow start, the first-team defense really stiffened up. Donovan McNabb and company drove their way down the field with relative easy against the first unit until they got to the goaline. The defense exhibited a wonderful goaline stand to hold the Eagles to just a field goal. The Eagles didn’t score again until the second half so it’s pretty safe to say the defense is way ahead of the offense at his point in camp. One of the stars of the night on the defense had to be first-round pick Kamerion Wimbley, who had five tackles. Spending time with the first unit as well as the second and third, Wimbley made several nice plays and flew around the field all night. He chased running backs and showed some burst as an edge-rusher. Second-year player David McMillian also made an impact, notching two sacks and displaying some great athleticism.

Overall, the Browns showed they need some definite work on offense, which should come with more practice and more reps next game. Keep in mind, the offensive line is still trying to gel, as well as stay healthy (cross your fingers!), and it may take until the season begins to get the offense in sync and working as a cohesive unit.

The Ohio State Buckeyes open this year’s football season against a very talented MAC school. The Northern Illinois Huskies are the favorites to win the MAC west title. The Buckeyes usually play a mid-level division one school in one of their first two games. This opponent may be more of a challenge than Ohio State originally planned.

The Huskies running back, Garrett Wolfe, is coming off a very successful season. He rushed for over 1500 yards and 16 touchdowns last year. The Bucks rush defense will be tested early as Northern Illinois has a history of success on the ground. The MAC conference is known for competing in high scoring and wide open football games. Coach Tressel may be forced to unleash his talented early and let their speed put this game away.

Two hours before his arrest, Maurice Clarett placed a call to ESPN’s Tom Friend. Friend writes about this call in a fascinating column about the events leading up to Clarett’s arrest.

Friend has some interesting theories about why Clarett was driving around town with loaded guns and a bullet-proof vest. Clarett had been hanging around with some questionable characters who had been giving him money and letting him live large before he screwed up in Denver last year, and now Clarett’s lawyer says Maurice had been receiving death threats.

He better be able to substantiate these threats, because Maurice just happened to be in the area of one of the witnesses scheduled to testify against him when the cops nabbed him the other night, so the prosecutors might choose to draw other conclusions.

In any event, I highly recommend reading Friend’s article.