The Original Game » e eighth inning of an otherwise forgettable game

Like many fans, I inherited my favorite teams from my father. Adrian Dantley Jersey . I have his face, his eyes, his love of family, and his love of the Indians, Browns, Cavs and Buckeyes deep in my DNA.My love affair with my sweetest team began on a perfect Friday evening in Cleveland. I was 5 years old. Dad and I were two of the 12,084 in attendance for an Indians-Tigers game at the old and cavernous Municipal Stadium. Our seats were just behind the Indians dugout so we had a great view of one of baseballs all-time great brawls. In the eighth inning of an otherwise forgettable game, Tigers pitcher Bill Denehy decided to take back a pound of flesh for the three Tigers hitters already hit by Indians pitching. Denehy plunked Indians catcher Ray Fosse, who was having none of it. Fosse charged the mound. Denehy came flying at Fosse, spikes high, and caught him in the hand. Blood was everywhere. The benches cleared. Denehy, Fosse and Tigers left fielder Willie Horton were sent to the showers, and umpire Jim Honochick called it the bloodiest fight he had seen on a baseball field in 23 years. When the game finally resumed, Indians first baseman Chris Chambliss promptly belted a two-run homer and I was hopelessly hooked. My dad further cemented the relationship when he bought me an Indians replica batting helmet as we were leaving the stadium after the 7-0 win. That helmet left my head for church and sleep and not much else.That 1971 season the Indians lost 102 games, finishing 43 games behind the Baltimore Orioles in the old AL East. But it was in that warm June moment that I dedicated my forever fandom to the Cleveland Indians, declaring to my doting dad, Ill only play in the major leagues for the Cleveland Indians. Never happened, of course, but my lifelong love affair still continues 46 years later with the same unabashed hope and passion.Through the years, Dad and I shared the many heartbreaks, and occasional highs, of Indians baseball. We listened on the radio on Opening Day 1975 when Frank Robinson, in his first at-bat as the Indians player-manager, homered to lead the Indians to a 5-3 win over the Yankees.We watched on TV in 1981 as Len Barker threw a perfect game against the Blue Jays. I still remember our phone call during my senior year at BGSU when Sports Illustrated made Cory Snyder and Joe Carter cover boys with the banner, Indian Uprising. They would lose 101 games and finish 37 games behind the Detroit Tigers.The mid-90s saw the true Indian Uprising. By now, I was working at WBNS-TV, the CBS affiliate in Columbus, Ohio. I was lucky enough to cover the final game at Municipal Stadium and the first game at Jacobs Field. Dad was still living in Sandusky, and we would occasionally meet in Cleveland for games. The Indians were very good. Albert Belle, Manny Ramirez, Jim Thome, Sandy Alomar, Kenny Lofton and on and on -- those teams were dripping with talent.I was covering the 1995 World Series when the Indians lost in six to Atlanta. My first call after completing my late reports was to Dad. We lamented. We replayed Game 6. A 1-0 loss. David Justice homered. Tom Glavine and Mark Wohlers held the potent Tribe offense to a single hit.Two years later it was even worse. 1997. Game 7 of the World Series in Miami. The Indians led the Marlins 2-1 heading to the bottom of the ninth inning. Manager Mike Hargrove called on closer Jose Mesa to get three more outs. Thats all that stood between the Indians and their first World Series championship since my dad was 10. I had left the press box and headed to the doors just outside the Indians clubhouse to prepare for postgame interviews. Suddenly the stadium shook. The Marlins had tied the game. The clubhouse doors flew open. I watched in disbelief as carts of champagne were whisked out of the Indians clubhouse. Boxes of Indians World Series Champions shirts and hats were also carted out, headed instead to Third World countries. The Marlins scored again in the 11th to win Game 7 and the World Series. When I finally finished my postgame interviews and final report, I called Dad. It was in the early morning hours. He was still awake. Waiting for my call.Ten years later, 2007, the Indians are good again, but now Dad was fighting cancer, and for his life, in Phoenix, Arizona. The Indians led Terry Francona and the Red Sox three games to one in the ALCS. My father had loved Terrys dad Tito, who spent six of his best 15 big league seasons with the Indians in the 50s and 60s. I decided to jump on a plane and stay in Phoenix until the baseball season was over. I knew it would be my fathers last. When I arrived, my dad remarked, Too bad for Titos boy, Terry. Seems like a wonderful man, but this one is ours. I spent the next days watching the Indians lose their grip on what seemed a certain trip to the World Series. They would lose Game 5. Then Game 6 and Game 7. My last chance to watch the Indians win a World Series with my dad had slipped away. In the minutes after Game 7 ended, Dad broke the ugly silence with few words. He told me he wouldnt trade the past few days for anything. Even though our team had lost and we both knew wed never see a championship together, he somehow found the positive. He focused on the father-son time. Watching baseball together. As we first had 36 years earlier. He put sports in its proper place. He told me, Let sports enhance your life, not detract from it. They are games, meant to be fun. Dont lose sight of that. He assured me one day Ill experience a championship with my son, Corey. He told me to enjoy it as much as if it had been lived with him.When the Cavaliers finally ended Clevelands 51-year title drought in June, Corey and I were together. We were in Cleveland and we celebrated like children at recess. It took just seconds before thoughts turned to Dad.And thats where my thoughts will be Tuesday night when the Indians host Game 1 of the World Series for the first time ever. With my dad. And all of those backyard catches. And all of those games in old Municipal Stadium. And the late-night consolation phone calls. And that difficult 2007 ALCS. Ill be with Corey, just a few feet away from the Indians dugout and Terry Francona. Dad, you were right. Terry is a wonderful man. And this time hes on our side. Utah Jazz Jerseys . -- The Portland Timbers and Real Salt Lake played to a 0-0 tie Saturday night that left the top of the Western Conference standings unchanged. Custom Utah Jazz Jerseys . Still, Brewers manager Ron Roenicke thought taking him out before the fifth inning was an unusual move. "Im looking up at the board and hes got two hits given up and one run, and Im taking him out after the fourth inning," Roenicke said. http://www.officialjazzauthenticstore.co...ek-jazz-jersey/ . The All-Pro lineman got the leg bent under him while trying to make a tackle during the first half of a 22-20 overtime loss at Miami on Thursday night. The medical staff initially thought hed torn the ligament, and the test a day later in Cincinnati confirmed it. Oklahoma State basketball player Tyrek Coger died after a 40-minute team workout on the football stadium stairs in hot weather, university officials said Friday.The Raleigh, North Carolina, native was 21 years old. No cause of death was cited.Oklahoma State basketball coach Brad Underwood broke down in tears at a Friday news conference as he remembered Coger. Underwood said he was in Las Vegas on a recruiting trip when he learned of Cogers death Thursday.This is the hardest couple of days Ive ever experienced in my coaching life. You say goodbye to players when they graduate and thats one thing, Underwood said, pausing to wipe away tears with a towel. Making that phone call to a mother is -- theres no words.niversity spokesman Gary Shutt said the team held a 40-minute workout at Boone Pickens Stadium on the stadium stairs. Shutt said Coger did not appear to be struggling, but sat down after and the team went to check on him and noticed there were issues. Shutt said 911 was called and paramedics arrived at 5:08 p.m.?Coger was taken to a hospital and pronounced dead at 6:23 p.m.The Stillwater News Press reports that the temperature was 99 degrees with a heat index of 105 degrees at 5 p.m. Thursday.?Coger moved to Stillwater earlier this month after transferring from Cape Fear Community College in Wilmington, North Carolina, where he averaged 12.2 points and 7.0 rebounds per game last season.The 6-foot-9, 240-pound power forward initially signed with Ole Miss in November but was ruled ineligible due to an SEC rule that bars junior college transfers from competing unless they have played three consecutive semesters at the same school. Coger then chose Underwood and the Cowboys.Tyrek was excited to be at Oklahoma State and had such passion for the game and was looking forward to being an OSU Cowboy, Underwood said in the statement Thursday. Losing a member of the team is like losing a member of the family. But we know our loss pales in comparison to the pain his family is going through.Last month, Coger told the Tulsa World he was excited about joining Underwoods program and playing with standout point guard Jawun Evans this season.They look for me as a threat to come in with me and Jawun being a good pick-and-roll [combination], Coger told the newspaper. Alec Burks Jersey. OSU athletic director Mike Holder says the team will thoroughly examine its practices following Cogers death. The NCAAs Sports Medicine Handbook does not provide specific guidelines for when teams should avoid practicing in extreme temperatures.The handbook says heatstroke is the third-leading cause of sudden death in athletes, and that athletes should be gradually introduced to activity in warm temperatures over a minimum period of 10 to 14 days. Coger had been in Oklahoma since July 5, the school said.The NCAA handbook also provides a list of signs and symptoms of heat injury, notes that heatstroke is most likely to occur at the start of preseason practices and says that some athletes with certain health conditions or athletes who are not adequately in shape can be more susceptible to heatstroke. It was not clear whether that was the case with Coger.In an interview with the Stillwater News Press published earlier this month, Coger spoke of frequent headaches that plagued him during his high school days. He said he underwent surgery several years ago to drain fluid from around his brain.At the moment, Im thinking, Basketball is over, he told the newspaper, recalling his feelings at the time of the surgery. I gotta think beyond basketball now.Cogers death is the not the first tragedy suffered by the Oklahoma State athletic department.A 25-year-old woman was charged with four counts of second-degree murder after she plowed into a crowd of people during the schools homecoming parade in October. Four people died.In 2011, womens basketball coach Kurt Budke and assistant coach Miranda Serna were killed, along with two others, when their plane crashed during a recruiting trip in Arkansas.In 2001, 10 people were killed -- two mens basketball players, six staffers and two pilots -- when their plane crashed during a snowstorm as they traveled to Stillwater following a road game in Colorado.Information from The Associated Press was used in this report. Jerseys Wholesale Wholesale Jerseys 2019 Wholesale NFL Hoodies Wholesale Jerseys 2019 Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic NFL Jerseys China NFL Jerseys Wholesale Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys Wholesale NFL Autographed Jerseys Wholesale NFL Gear China NFL Hoodies NFL Jerseys China Wholesale NFL Autographed Jerseys Cheap Jerseys 2020 Cheap Jerseys Throwback ' ' '