If only baseball everywhere could be as dead as it is in this gritty city. And if only these hardy fans could get what they deserve for so many summers of suffering, a parade instead of a promise.
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Almost 4 million fans gladly paid to watch the Indians at Jacobs Field this season, a home season that ended with the Florida Marlins’ 8-7 conquest in Game 5 of the World Series Thursday night. The Indians go south now, but not to get warm.
There’s plenty of that here, only you don’t measure passion with a thermometer, or TV numbers. The Indians might be in trouble when they go to Miami this weekend. But they won’t be in trouble when they return to Cleveland, win or lose. This city loves the Indians, and the feeling is mutual.
If only Thursday night would have had a happy ending. The Indians, comeback artists, scored three runs in the ninth and Sandy Alomar, the winning run, had bat in hand. But when his fly ball was caught, shortly after midnight, those fans who had been standing at their seats just kept standing.
It would be tough now for these Indians. Then again, these Indians are tough. As Jim Leyland, the Marlins’ manager said, this isn’t like the regular season. The Indians are only one game behind in the World Series standings. They’re running second, but that could change in a hurry.
As they did in the opener, the Indians dialed for help from Orel Hershiser, 39. But he’s been acting his age lately. The Indians presented him a 4-2 lead, and he tried to make it work with his guile, which was more reliable than his stuff.
Livan Hernandez, the Marlins’ spectacular rookie, outlasted Hershiser again and beat him again, no small accomplishment for the Cuban defector. The Marlins batted .199 as a team during the National League Championship Series, and before they amassed 15 hits Thursday night, they were being outhit by the Indians, .340 to .240.
Yet the Marlins are one victory away from a title.
“I stick by what I said earlier,” Leyland rasped. “We apologize to nobody for being here, and the same goes for the Indians. These two teams deserve to be here.”
Before the game, Leyland delivered an unsolicited Rodney Dangerfield monologue. But his audience wasn’t laughing about his critique of the critics who have been blasting this Series for its lack of artistic merit.
What Leyland must understand is that the industry of baseball leaves itself vulnerable. This marquee event began with that sideswipe by Don Ohlmeyer, a honcho for the participating NBC network, voting for a sweep.
Then along comes Bud Selig, a caring and decent soul, the pro tem commissioner. He blames the pokey pace of play for late finishes. This is the same Selig who endorses radical realignment, in part so more games can be conducted at a reasonable hour, for live and TV audiences.
Yet the World Series is contested when many Americans are, or should be, in bed.
But baseball really dozes in dealing with perceptions. When the Bulls won their fifth title last June, the Finals drew a national rating of 16.8, the second highest in NBA history. Yet, only one World Series ever has underwhelmed that number–in 1989, when there was a 12-day interruption between Games 2 and 3 because of an earthquake.
However, the NBA toots its horn, and generally is hailed as the hot sport. Meanwhile, besides a few meccas such as Cleveland, baseball wallows in its self-inflicted sad-sack image. What’s that old saying about how baseball must be the best game of all if it can survive the people running it?
The frightening word there is, if.