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A couple weeks ago, the Indians were practically unstoppable. Now, they’re practically unwatchable. Witnessing them blow one golden opportunity after another has been painful, aggravating and downright depressing. But, Tribe fans, there is good news, and when Spring Training ’06 rolls around next year, it’ll be great news.

This team is set up to compete for the long haul.

Look, nobody expected them to win 93 games this year, let alone 94. If you did, you may have known something not even Eric Wedge and Mark Shapiro knew. The fact that they’re even in this race is astounding considering their brutal start to the season and their 94-loss campaign just two years ago. They were so hot for so long, and while it was easy to envision them riding that hot streak through the playoffs and into the World Series, it’s not all that surprising that it’s come to an end. Unfortunately, their timing sucks, but we’re used to that. We are, after all, Cleveland fans.

So let’s say we’re treated to a minor miracle, with the Indians winning Sunday, the Yankees knocking off the Red Sox and then the Tribe taking out the Sox in a one-game playoff. Awesome. Playoff baseball again, baby!

But if that doesn’t happen, there’s so much to look forward to with this team. The rotation, headed by C.C. and Lee, is set, with several young arms down on the farm ready to make the jump. The lineup will be stacked for the next several years, with Hafner, Grady, Victor and Peralta leading the way and, again, a ton of minor-league talent on the brink. And sitting atop the entire franchise is one of the best GMs in the game, a guy who hasn’t gotten nearly the credit he deserves for rebuilding this team so quickly and so thoroughly.

They’ll have work to do this offseason, of course, whether they make the playoffs or not. Kevin Millwood needs to be retained — he’s a workhorse and his invaluable professionalism has rubbed off on the entire rotation. Shapiro also must go out and find a professional hitter, someone who will hit .320, can handle the bat and can hit for some power, a guy who can be this team’s version of Carlos Baerga. The Indians don’t need anymore sluggers — it needs one or two guys who can move runners over, come up with some big hits and keep the lineup afloat when all the boppers are swinging and missing. Plug him into the #3 hole, move Peralta down and suddenly, this lineup is even more dangerous. Of course, for all of that to happen, Dolan needs to be willing to open up the wallet a bit this off season, but with the success the Indians enjoyed this year, I don’t expect that to be much of a problem.

I hate looking toward next year with this year still up in the air, but there’s nothing wrong with having a long-term outlook. That’s exactly the approach Mark Shapiro took when he took over an aging Indians team just a few years ago, and look what he’s accomplished. With two or three more calculated moves this winter, we may be talking about a World Series run this time next year.

The Yankees, having clinched the AL East title today, will sit scheduled starter Mike Mussina Sunday against the Red Sox so that Moose can go in game one of the ALDS.

And who’s going to start in Mussina’s place?

Jaret. Wright.

This would be good news if we were talking about the 1997 Jaret Wright, or even the 2004 version that thrived (15-8, 3.28 ERA) under the tutelage of Leo Mazzone. Unfortunately for Tribe fans, the 2005 model will take the mound against the Red Sox in a game the Indians need the Yankees to win. Even worse, the Yanks are expected to rest many of their regulars in preparation for the playoffs.

Rooting for a Yankees win and hoping Jaret Wright can deliver? Guess that’s what happens when you let your destiny slip through your fingers.

In a column entitled Your’e pulling for the Indians–or you suck, some guy has not idea what he’s asking for.

There is, however, respite from this unpleasant and relentlessly repeated tale of two cities gripped by self-involvement, and it is the Cleveland Indians.

Respite? Is he watching any of the last 5 losses in 6 games? Any of Cleveland sports in the last 40 years? You call that respite? Hey buddy…spare yourself the agony.

That collective groan you heard all over Cleveland about 4pm Saturday afternoon occurred when Travis Hafner’s blast in the 8th inning of today’s 4-3 loss to the White Sox hit the wall for a double instead of going out of the park.

Everyone knew Jhonny Perralta, the tying run, would not be waved home from third. Everyone knew that Chicago would then walk Victor Martinez to load the bases with one out. Everyone knew that the next batter, Ronnie Belliard, would either hit into a double play or pop out…he did the latter. And then everyone knew it didn’t matter who the hell the next batter was, nor how loaded the bases were, or how many outs there were. The game was over.

That’s the difference between a home run and a double. Pretty much the difference between the Indians winning and losing. Making the playoffs and not.

Let’s see, about a billion strikeouts tonight, 1 run scored in 13 innings (oops, sorry 2 in 13, how could I forget such stunning offensive output), 0 for 25,348 with runners in scoring position, and about 800 arms left laying all over the infield after Indians batters nearly swung them out of their sockets.

Gonna say it again. This team lived by the home run, and it is currently dying by the home run having left the building. The 9th inning, when the Tribe tied the game with some actual situational hitting, is the only inning tonight out of 13 that the Tribe actually looked like a baseball team rather than a sports bar softball team staffed with beer-bellied neanderthals who spend every smoking break at Swings N’ Things attempting to tear the skin off 15 mph meatballs.

These guys simply do not know how to shorten their swing, make contact, and just plain hit. If they ever did, they’ve certainly forgotten now. They look for a home run pitch, and if they don’t get it, they don’t swing, and they strike out looking. Or else it’s the big fat guy softball team show, with guys swinging so hard they almost knock themselves over.

And in the supreme irony of the evening, Ronnie Belliard uncorks one of those gargantuan swings in the 13th for an actual home run, as opposed to the invisible ones the Tribe thought they were gonna hit every time they struck out. Only it wasn’t enough. It was never gonna be enough for the Tribe to just hit home runs. And it won’t be enough to get them to the playoffs, or get them very far should they get there.