These Are My Confessions: TD

Replicated from the efforts of Eleven Warriors and EDSBS, WFNY continues to bring you our confessions.  Rick started us off.  Denny went multimedia.  Scott knocked it out of the park, DP followed suit, and now its my turn….

1. Our readers know I bleed Tribe Red, White, and Blue. I attended my first game in 1979 when I was three. While there weren’t many guys to root for then, I had a strange obsession for a utility man named Alan Bannister. I had all of this cards. My dad even managed to wrangle a game-worn, Bannister jersey for my birthday one year. Good old #7. This would become an on-going theme in my life – choosing my favorite players from the bottom of the rosters.

Others include Tribe first baseman Reggie Jefferson, failed Yankee prospect Dan Pasqua, University of Kansas sixth man (94-98) Billy Thomas, Browns third down back Herman Fontenot, KU/Cavs PF Darnell Jackson, and Cavs three point gunner Henry James.

2. More Tribe fun as a kid. My late father had it in for Andre Thornton. Why? Because he was the first Indian to make a million dollars. Though he was a DH with decent power, in his eyes, “Thunder’ was not worth the money. We used to refer to him as “$1.1” as in $1.1 million salary.

Anyways, we went to a ton of games at the old stadium in which we were the only people in our upper deck entire section. We always stayed for autographs and waited for the players to come out. My brother once fell out of a moving car in the parking lot just for a chance to have Ernie Camacho sign his glove. Backup Catcher Jim Essian once walked right past us without even a look. My father berated him as he walked past saying “class act bud, you are a backup catcher and too good to sign an autograph for eight year old kids! How do you live with yourself?” It was friggin awesome.

3. As a kid, I preferred to play soccer on Sundays rather than watching football. I know, blasphemy. While I liked the Browns, I decided that the Cowboys were my team. Blame the NFL Films tapes that my father had littered the house with. That’s all we used to watch when we were bored. Danny White, Tony Dorsett, Drew Pearson, Tony Hill, Randy White, Harvey Martin, and Dennis Thurman. Those were my guys.  I used to imitate Butch Johnson’s TD dance in the 1977 Super Bowl win over Denver.

When the lost to the Eagles in the 1980 NFC title game, I was crushed. I finally came to my senses around 1984 and the Paul McDonald era.

4. I was hardcore into the Cavs when I was in high school. When my brother was a senior and I was a Freshman (90-91), we went to 34 games (playoffs included). I used to yell “MONEYYYYY” at the top of my lungs, everytime Henry James hoisted a three. Here is a confession I look back on and scratch my head, I used to bring the same yellow legal pad and keep score in a very particular way. I wonder where that pad is right now….

After the Cavs moved to Gund Arena, like many of you, I had all but checked out. I have always been a college hoops guy first, but when you think about the Chris Mills/Bobby Phills/Andre Miller era teams the Cavs had, how could you have been into it. I shudder to think we may be entering that phase again if LBJ leave.

5. I have always ranked the Cleveland sports teams in my heart in the following order: Indians, Browns, Cavs. My passion for the Indians has NEVER wained, but the same cannot be said for the other two.

6. I go to Browns games, but it is just not the same as it was during the late 80’s/early 90’s when I was really dialed in. Truth be told, I just sit back and laugh at how bad they’ve been. I despise the faction of the unrealistic and drunken Browns fans. I am appalled sometimes at what I see/hear when I enter the stadium each week at the Dawg Pound gate. Drunken buffoons who still think this is 1987 rule the area.

I hate to paint Browns fans with a broad brush like that, but these are my confessions. This city is so in the tank for an organization that hasn’t loved them back for so long it disgusts me. That said, I am fully on board with the Holmgren regime and for the first time since they returned, I think they are moving in the right direction.

7. I despise Jacobs Field era Indians fans. If you cant name any players before 1994, then you don’t deserve to be claiming the Tribe the way you did during the “era of champions.” (SIDE NOTE – how can you call it the “era of champions” when you never won a World Series?”) Where were you when 2,000 of us were watching Jerry Dybzinski, Jerry Browne, Julio Franco, Greg Swindell, Doug Jones, and Mel Hall?

Worst of all, most of you have left again when the going got tough. As I said before, I bleed Red, White, and Blue. I don’t care if the Indians are in last place. I went to those games then, and I go to them now. Just because we don’t have an all star at every position, doesn’t mean we don’t still play baseball in Cleveland. “We have uniforms and everything.”

8. I think Mike Hargrove is the single most over-loved manager/coach in the history of Cleveland sports. Anyone could have managed the Indians teams of the mid to late 90’s and accomplished what they did. Nice guy, terrible manager.

On the same front, anyone understand why Lenny Wilkins is so revered? Sure, he was at one time the all time winningest coach in NBA history. Yeah, but he also has the most losses.

Lastly, I think Sandy Alomar is the single most over-loved player in the history of Cleveland sports. I mean people love “The Lord” Bernie Kosar more than anyone, but at least he delivered on the field. “Take 1997 away from Sandy’s career and what did he really accomplish? “Sally” spent half of his career on the DL.

9. I was fully in the tank for Eric Wedge. I loved The Grinder. I think I may be the only one.

10. Favorite all-time Cleveland venue eats:

• The Solo Pizza – The Richfield Coliseum – perhaps the single greatest sporting event food of my lifetime. Got one every single game I went to during the Price/Nance/Daughrety/Ehlo/Harper era.

• The Pizza Hut Pizza Boats – Cleveland Municipal Stadium – Think of a Stouffers french bread pizza on steroids. Not only were they good, but the same female vendor always seemed to sell them every game and yell “peeeeeeza hut peeeeeeeeeeezaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.” I got the sauce all over me during a Saturday afternoon game when Roger Clemens started the game off by hitting Stan the Man Jefferson in the head with the first pitch, setting off a bench clearing brawl.

• The Three-Piece Chicken Dinner – Jacobs Field – A staple for me during the late 90’s. Three pieces of fried chicken, curly fries, a roll, and cole slaw. To quote NWA at the end of “Straight Outta Compton,” ” DAMN that sh*t was dope.”

• Chicken Fingers Basket – Jacobs Field – My news go-to at the park. Its right in my section. Chicken is excellent with minimal breading, and the key is two years ago they began providing portion cups and honey mustard sauce.

• Hot Dog, Stadium Mustard – Cleveland Municipal Stadium – Nothing better than getting it from a vendor, pulled from a vat of hot greasy water, and plopped right into a bun. Add the packets of Stadium Mustard and you have perfection.