It's official. My Cleveland Indians are heading to the playoffs for the first time in six years, attempting in the end to bring home a championship for the first time in 59.
In honor of the moment - and as long as the moment continues - The Toaster Talks is going to commemorate the fight in blog song.
First up is the Yankees in a short series. The Yanks scare the bejesus out of me in general - not because of how good they are, but simply because there seems to be a prevailing evil that arrives and ensures that its beloved pinstriped team goes all the way.
Mark Mothersbaugh - We Call Them Pirates Out Here
On paper, there is no question New York is the best team in the league. I mean, they paid for it, right? On the field, it's a bit more mixed. The Indians bested the Yankees record by two games and were even hotter than the sports writers' "hottest team in baseball" in the last 45 days of the season (five games better, in fact). But the Yankees won each and every time the two teams played this season. Yikes.
Eels - Losing Streak
They say the playoffs come down to pitching. That's good, because I'm not sure the Indians offense at its best is even in the same league as the Yankees best O. But if pitching wins championships, the Indians have a mighty good shot. They have two of the five best pitchers in the league going in Games 1 and 2. If they can hold their own and the Indians offense can produce, this series is the Tribe's to lose.
The Lovin' Spoonful - Do You Believe in Magic
Without a doubt the tone will be set by Game 1, with C.C. Sabathia - the man who should win the Cy Young Award - on the mound. If he pitches a gem (which he almost always does) AND if the Indians can get to Wang (which seems highly possible)...well, I'm not going to speculate. These are big ifs for October baseball. Either way, I'll be on hand to witness it.
The Mountain Goats - Going to Cleveland (thanks for the track, DW; sorry for the droning intro, folks)
The sports writers seem to think this is a pretty well-matched series. Still, most of them are giving the edge to the Yankees, mostly because they are the Yankees and I'm pretty sure it's already been decided that the Yankees must make it to the World Series.
The New Pornographers - Challengers
So I'm going to sit down tonight for my usual routine - a hopeful, brings-tears-to-the-eyes viewing of Major League. (Just the opening credits can give me goose bumps).
Randy Newman - Burn On
I don't make predictions, but I haven't felt this good about a baseball team I rooted for since the mid-'90s. As they say back in Cleveburg, it's Tribe time now.
God bless America.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment