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Seventh inning barrage helps Tribe win second straight

May 4, 2006 / John Blake

Paul Byrd can feel pretty comfortable these days. Every time he takes the mound, the Indians score like they are facing little-league pitching. The Tribe used a nine-run seventh inning to defeat the Oakland A’s 14-3 Wednesday night. The massive offensive onslaught was capped off by Casey Blake’s three-run homer in the seventh. Travis Hafner also got into the act once again, homering for his third straight game. Even the rookie made a contribution. Kelly Shoppach got his first major-league RBIs with a two-run single late in the ballgame.

The Tribe is starting to put together some solid starts by their staff and is allowing the offense to go to work. Hafner is on a tear and Michaels had one of his best games so far this season.

Cleveland Indians

LB’s layup gives Cavs OT win

May 4, 2006 / John Blake

With the game tied and time winding down in the fourth quarter, LeBron James had a chance to win the game for the Cavaliers with an outside jumper. Lucky for him, he would have a chance to redeem himself. The Cavaliers were down by one with less than four seconds remaining in the overtime period when LeBron got the ball in the corner. Driving baseline, LB managed to squeeze himself through three Wizard defenders to score the winning hoop for the Cavaliers as they beat the Wizards 121-120 and take a 3-2 lead in the series.

“I had enough room on the baseline,” said James, who added seven rebounds and six assists. “If I wore an 18 or 19 size shoe, I wouldn’t have made it. But I wear a 16 and was able to tightrope that baseline to get a layup.”

The moment capped off an epic night where James scored 45 and Arenas finished with 44. James got plenty of production from his supporting cast as well. Larry Hughes, Flip Murray, and Eric Snow all came up big when LeBron was taken out of the game after he got called for his fourth foul midway through the third quarter. Hughes finished with 24 points and Snow scored 18.

The Cavs came this close to being down 3-2 and with the help of LeBron’s heroics, they now have the advantage again in the series. The kid never ceases to amaze.

“If we can go to Washington and close it out, it will be one of my biggest basketball thrills,” James said.

Cleveland Cavaliers

C.C ends Tribe losing streak

May 2, 2006 / John Blake

C.C Sabathia returned from the D.L and gave the Indians just what they needed, a strong pitching performance. The big lefty made his first start after being out for a month with an abdominal strain and pitched as if he were in midseason form. Sabathia, who seemed to be on a strict pitch count, got through five innings while giving up the lone White Sox run in the Indians 7-1 win Tuesday afternoon. Travis Hafner homered for the second straight game and tallied four RBI on the day as the Tribe pounded out 13 hits against Sox ace Mark Buerhle.

Having Sabathia back in the rotation is huge. Pronk agrees, saying his presence on the mound is a boost to the team.

“He’s a guy that’s very well respected on the team — the ace of the staff,” said Travis Hafner, who drove in four runs. “It’s a huge pick-me-up for everybody to have him back on the mound.”

As long as we stay afloat until our injured relievers return I think we will be OK. Perhaps the other starters were putting too much pressure on themselves when Sabathia was out. We now have our ace back finally and hopefully that will take some of the heat of Lee, Westbrook, and company.

Cleveland Indians

A different view on Browns draft picks

May 2, 2006 / Bob

The Cleveland Browns and their staff have rated this years draft as a success. Phil Savage and Coach Crennel feel they generally addressed every need by the end of Day 2. Savage stated he was surprised at the amount of talent that was still available in the later rounds and the team expects most drafted players to add value right away.

The Browns, like most NFL teams, are always optimistic after the draft, hoping every player blossoms into their full potential. Rich Passan, an avid Browns fan and writer, questions some of the Browns decisions. Passan references some of the past �slam dunks� that never materialized. I personally think the Browns deserve a B in the draft. They selected safe players, but have no immediate starters.

Cleveland Browns

LeBron has faced pressure before

May 2, 2006 / Bob

The Cleveland Cavaliers and their fans are watching one of the best players ever to pick up a basketball. LeBron James has been dominating in his first NBA playoffs and anyone that has been following his very short career should not be surprised.

James was quoted as saying that he doesn�t believe in pressure, and so far he has proven this to be true. LeBron is only 21 years old and has already broken most of the Cavs team records. We use to think that Jordon was a once in lifetime player, but if LeBron remains on this pace, don�t rule anything out.

LeBron James