A satisfying Belcher

New Tribe manager Manny Acta has begun assembling his staff, starting with new pitching coach Tim Belcher. Belcher grew up in Sparta, Ohio, about a two-hour drive from Progressive Field down I-71. He pitched 14 seasons in the bigs, winning 146 games. He spent the last eight years with a much longer title in the Indians organization: special assistant to the baseball operations department. You don't know what that means? Well, according to Paul Hoynes' Plain Dealer article:

As a special assistant, Belcher worked with the Indians player development system in instructing and evaluating pitching talent at every level in the minor league system. He also scouted other teams, providing advance scouting reports for the last several years for the Tribe's big-league coaching staff.

It's hard to evaluate managers, and even harder to evaluate pitching coaches, especially pitching coaches who have never been pitching coaches before. We do know that the Indians have developed a few fine pitching prospects the last few years, with varying degrees of success at the big-league level, and perhaps Belcher deserves some credit for that. But perhaps not.

Who's the worst?

Now that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have erased the goose-egg in their win column, there are no winless teams left in the NFL. So there are now five teams tied with the worst record, at 1-7: Tampa Bay, St. Louis, Kansas City, Detroit, and ... well, you know who the fifth team is. So those teams are in a race of sorts for the first pick in the 2010 draft. If the Browns get that pick, it will surely rescue the franchise, as we've seen how well this organization has done with the first overall pick. (OK, that was unfair. The Tim Couch and Courtney Brown selections were made several regimes ago; even the owner has changed since then. Still, it goes to show that a top pick is far from a panacea.)

But the question for today's post is not which team is most likely to get the top draft pick. The question I wish to explore is, which is the worst team in the National Football League? Let's take them all individually, in no particular order, using the major stats along with a few lesser-considered ones:

1. Browns: Lose by an average score of 26.1 to 9.8 (-16.3); 31st in total offense; 32nd in total defense; 31st in third-down conversions; 23rd in opponents' third-down conversions; -11 in turnover ratio (which, by the way, is 32nd in the NFL).

2. Chiefs: Lose by an average score of 25.6 to 15.8 (-9.8); 30th in total offense; 30th in total defense; 32nd in third-down conversions; 22nd in opponents' third-down conversions; +1 in turnover ratio.

3. Rams: Lose by an average score of 27.6 to 9.6 (-18); 26th in total offense; 27th in total defense; 24th in third-down conversions; 32nd in opponents' third-down conversions; -7 in turnover ratio.

4. Buccaneers: Lose by an average score of 28.9 to 16.8 (-12.1); 28th in total offense; 29th in total defense; 25th in third-down conversions; 29th in opponents' third-down conversions; -2 in turnover ratio.

5. Lions: Lose by an average score of 29.6 to 16.6 (-13); 25th in total offense; 25th in total defense; 16th in third-down conversions; 16th in third-down conversions allowed; -4 in turnover ratio.

These are all dreadful teams, obviously. The Chiefs are the only ones who lose by less than 10 points a game, probably because they're also the only ones with a favorable turnover ratio. The Lions have the best rankings in the other stats I chose.

So that leaves the Browns, Bucs and Rams for the title of worst. The Rams have been outscored the most, the Browns take the cake for worst combination of yards gained vs. yards allowed. The Buccaneers have no such claims, so it's between the Rams and Browns. I think the Browns have managed to do slightly better on the scoreboard, despite the obvious inferiority of their main units, because of the superiority of their special teams. We all know about Josh Cribbs, and the Browns' one win this season was largely because of a great effort by Dave Zastudil and the punt team.

So the worst team in the NFL is the St. Louis Rams, with the Browns a very close second. Does anybody wonder why there are still tickets available to next Monday's game against the Ravens? Why would anyone want to stay out past midnight on a school night to watch the NFL's second-worst team most likely get clobbered? I'm kind of hoping that game doesn't sell out, because then it will be on TV, and I'll feel compelled to waste my evening watching it.

Pryor shines in homecoming

The Buckeyes are in control of their own destiny — at least in terms of winning another Big Ten title — in large part because of Pennsylvania native Terrelle Pryor's big game in his home state. Pryor passed for two touchdowns and rushed for one in Ohio State's commanding 24-7 victory over Penn State, and while his overall numbers weren't particularly impressive (8-for-17 passing for 125 yards; five rushes for 50 yards), he made some big plays and avoided any major mistakes. He missed an opportunity for a touchdown at the end of the first half when his throw to a wide-open Dane Sanzenbacher went long, but that was probably the biggest mistake he made, and you'll take that every time.

The Buckeye defense was fantastic, particularly against the Nittany Lions' running game. Evan Royster, who had averaged 95.4 yards a game coming in, went for just 36 yards on 13 carries yesterday, his lowest total of the season. They also held Daryll Clark to 125 yards passing, which was also his lowest total of the year; and got him for one interception, Ross Homan's pick midway through the fourth quarter, which short-circuited Penn State's attempt to mount a comeback.

If the Buckeyes can beat Iowa next week in the Horseshoe, they'll go to the Rose Bowl no matter what happens the following week against Michigan; the other teams that could tie them at 6-2 in the Big Ten would be Iowa, Penn State and Wisconsin, which they would all have beaten this year under that scenario. And you have to like their chances against Iowa, as it appears Hawkeye quarterback Ricky Stanzi will miss the game after hurting his ankle in yesterday's loss to Northwestern. The Hawkeyes showed in that game that they aren't the same team without Stanzi, who probably would have led them to victory against the Mildcats.

Obviously, there will be no Big Ten team in the national championship this year, but if the Buckeyes get into the Rose Bowl and win it, they could get back into the top 10, and maybe even the top five. And if they do win the Big Ten, it would be the fifth straight year they've won or shared that title. That's definitely worth rooting for.

Baseball season is over

It had been nine years since the Yankees were able to spend their way to a championship. They came close in a couple of epic World Series — that 2001 series against the Diamondbacks was probably the best World Series I can remember — but fell each year to a team that had a lower payroll. Usually a much lower payroll. Last year, they didn't even make the playoffs, thanks to a bunch of young upstarts from Tampa Bay.

But these Yankees, the most expensive team ever assembled, would not be denied. All their high-priced stars contributed somewhere along the way, from A-Rod to CC to Jeter to Godzilla, the series MVP. (Speaking of which, they say he's got to go ...)

It's kind of hard for me to reflect on this series in any meaningful way, because (a) there wasn't much late-game drama, and (b) though I tried my best, I didn't manage to get through one single game without falling asleep, because they started so late and I get up early. I did wake up for the ends of a couple of them, including last night, but ... well, I won't belabor the point. (See my October 30 post for more thoughts about the time the games started; I would add that last night's game ended at almost midnight.)

And the New York Yankees have won their 27th title. I suppose we should be glad to have had eight seasons in there with someone else hoisting the trophy. May we go at least eight years before their next one.

Nice comeback

Last night's 102-90 win over the Wizards was the Cavaliers' first win over a good team this year, and was thanks in large part to the best performance so far of Shaquille O'Neal's five-game-old Cleveland career. The Big Witness put in 21 points on 7-of-9 shooting, with eight rebounds, to nicely complement LeBron James' 27 points, eight rebounds and six assists, as the Cavs came back from a 39-21 second-quarter deficit to make the Wizards disappear.

It wasn't just the King-n-Shaq Show. Mo Williams knocked in 15 and Boobie Gibson added 14; and in fact, the Cavs pulled away in the fourth quarter, during which LeBron only played four minutes. But the main reason the Cavs won this game is because the Wizards had no answer to Shaq. That's the reason we got him, and it was great to see.

"Kokinis" rhymes with ... well, Venus

So George Kokinis' stint in Cleveland is over, after just eight games. The Browns are saying very little, but speculation is that even though Eric Mangini was instrumental in bringing Kokinis here, the two have not gotten along at all. So it seems Mangini won a power struggle against the guy he himself handpicked to be the general manager.

The GM is typically the guy who makes the personnel decisions, and the guy who discusses them with the media. When a trade is announced, for example, the GM usually makes the announcement. But who heard a peep from Kokinis when Braylon Edwards was traded? Did he actually have anything to do with that trade? Or did Mangini do it all himself? Did Kokinis, in fact, do anything at all for this team? Did he conduct the draft, or was that all Mangini? And if Mangini was the guy who put this dreadful team together, does Kokinis actually deserve to be fired? Probably, if all he did was collect a paycheck and stare out the window all day; but what about Mangini? Sure, it generally takes more than one season to turn a team around, but there is no question this team was better last year under Phil Savage and Romeo Crennel than it is this year under Mangini and Kokinis, er, Mangini again.

This Browns organization is rotten from the top down. I don't know how much blame team owner Randy Lerner deserves for this, but he did hire these guys. He says he's sick over the way the team has played, and I'm sure he means it. But he has more power to do something about it than anybody else in the world. And I've often said that the Browns, like the Chicago Cubs, don't have that much financial incentive to put a quality product on the field because they sell out all the time even if they're terrible. But guess what? Tickets are still available for their next game, Nov. 16 against the Ravens. I don't know about you, but I'm sure as shootin' not going to buy one, and I don't care that much if the game gets blacked out. Maybe Browns fans are finally going to insist that they get their money's worth, and maybe that will make some difference in the way the team is run.

I'm rambling a bit now; please accept my apology for that. Anyway, following this team at this point is a little bit like watching Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet," because you know it's going to end in tragedy. The difference is, there's no poetic prose involved in this tragedy. Just some awful football.

Pathetic. Just pathetic.

Let me start off by saying I didn't watch the Browns' 30-6 loss to the Bears yesterday. It wasn't some sort of protest or conscientious objection, though if these Browns weren't so terrible, I might have chosen to stay home and watch. But my wife wanted to go to a Chinese auction that was being drawn at 2 p.m. at Windham High School, and that sounded like more fun to me than watching the Browns get the crap beaten out of them yet again. And it was! I didn't win anything, but my wife won a Windham football jersey (No. 8; and I wore it the rest of the day, just for the heck of it), a scrapbook set and a lunchbox set.

As the auction wore on, I was checking in from time to time on the Browns, who were predictably pathetic. They were down 16-0 at the half, by which time Derek Anderson was 2-for-9 for 13 yards with an interception and a lost fumble. He had also been sacked once for an 11-yard loss. Eric Mangini must be a very pig-headed man for not going with Brady Quinn to start the second half. As bad as Quinn was at the start of the year, Anderson has played about as badly as I've ever seen an NFL quarterback play, and I'd frankly rather see Brett Ratliff out there right now. The only thing Anderson has proven this year is that he's got no business running an NFL offense.

Anyway, Mangini stuck with Anderson, who rewarded him with a 4-for-8 passing performance in the second half, for 63 yards, and scored a rushing touchdown that was set up by a shanked punt and four Jamal Lewis rushes. Anderson never threw the ball on that one touchdown drive, which started at the Chicago 30.

Lewis announced after the game that this would be his last season, and if I were one of his teammates, I'd be tempted to join him. It can't be fun to play on a team like this.

Delonte's back

From a basketball perspective, it's good to have Delonte West back. The Cavaliers probably would have beaten the Charlotte Bobcats with or without him yesterday, but his 13 points in the second half certainly helped in the 90-79 victory.

But I have my doubts about Delonte West as a human being. I know, he's diagnosed with bipolar disorder and all that, and I can forgive him for carrying three concealed weapons, as long as he didn't actually hurt anybody. And while it was bad that he missed all of training camp and the first few games without giving an excuse, I can accept that he needed some time to get his head together. But his wife had him charged with domestic violence last week, and that's the part I have trouble overlooking. He reportedly grabbed her and tried to take her wedding ring and purse after accusing her of cheating on him. That's far from the worst thing I've ever heard of a man doing to a woman, but still, I have a hard time rooting for a guy who has apparently used his physical strength to overpower his wife.

On the plus side, the Cavs are now 2-2, and still seem like a strong bet to go a long way in the playoffs. Whether they're a championship-caliber team or not remains to be seen, as it will take them some time to gel. But I look forward to enjoying the ride.

It's an outrage! An outrage, I tell you!

Major League Baseball and the Fox network seem bent on keeping as many kids as possible from being able to watch the entire World Series. The games are all starting at 8 p.m., which means that if they go relatively smoothly, the earliest we can hope for them to end is about 10:45 or 11. How old were you when your parents first let you stay up until 11 on a school night? And would you be a baseball fan today if you hadn't been able to watch World Series games to their conclusion when you were a kid? (Probably, but maybe less so?)

I myself usually go to bed around 10 these days, and through the first two contests of the '09 series, I have thus far failed to stay awake until the conclusion of a game. Wednesday night, I just went to bed, but last night, I dozed off on the couch and later woke up to see the last couple of innings. But I slept through one of the most unusual plays you'll ever see, the line drive that Ryan Howard (allegedly) caught before turning it into a 3-6 double play. I did see the replay, but it's never the same as seeing it in the moment.

And you'd think that after having games one and two on school nights, they'd at least have games three and four on Friday and Saturday so everyone can stay up without worrying about getting up the next morning. But no, today's an off day. Saturday's game starts at 8:20, and then — and I think this ticks me off the most of all — Sunday's game, which could start at just about any hour, starts at 8 again, ensuring that people like me don't get as much sleep as we'd like that night, and that school kids don't get to see the ending. Game five is set for 8 p.m. Monday, followed by an off-day Tuesday, and then, if necessary, games six and seven start at 8 on Wednesday and Thursday nights. So even if the series goes the full seven, there will be only one game that does not end past 10 p.m. on a school night in the Eastern Time Zone, the time zone with the nation's largest population, not to mention both cities whose teams are involved.

I love major-league baseball, but I hate Major League Baseball, for many reasons. This is a very big one.

Oh, yeah

It probably hasn't escaped anyone who cares enough about Cleveland sports to read this blog, but just in case it has ...

Tonight's World Series opener pits Cliff Lee of the Phillies against CC Sabathia of the Yankees. I've defended those trades, but still, that's just a little bit depressing.

Cavs won't go 82-0

The King-n-Shaq Show opened last night at Quicken Loans Arena, with a 95-89 loss to the Boston Celtics. OK, big deal. The Cavaliers blew a 14-point first-quarter lead, which the Celtics turned around to a 15-point third-quarter lead, before the Cavs made it interesting late.

Sure, I'm a little disappointed our boys didn't win, but the Celtics are a darned good team too. This doesn't mean they're better than we are, it just means they were better than we were last night. Give Shaq and LeBron some time to get used to each other — not to mention newcomers Jamario Moon, Anthony Parker, etc. — and they'll be OK.