Our Year

I still remember the night I fell in love with the Cleveland Indians. Driving home from my brother's little league game, my dad turned on the radio and, for the first time in my life, I heard the voice of Tom Hamilton. I was instantly hooked. I listened to as many games as I possibly could during that summer of 2006 despite the fact that it was a rather lousy season for the Tribe. My love for the Indians was cemented the following year when the Indians roared through the regular season, winning 96 games, en route to a postseason berth. In 2007, at the age of 14, I was in the midst of a health battle that would ultimately result in a diagnosis of Crohn's disease that November. Unable to play outside due to a lack of energy caused by malnutrition, I spent my summer indoors, listening to Tribe baseball. Hammy saved me from a deep depression that summer, and I can still remember his best calls. Kelly Shoppach's walk-off home run against the Athletics. Both of Casey Blake's walk-off homers in September as the Tribe ran away with the American League Central. I loved that team. Grady and Pronk. C.C. and V-Mart. I was convinced they were going to win the World Series. They built a 3 games to 1 lead over the Boston Red Sox in the American League Championship Series... Well, we all know how that ended. I was crushed, but I knew I was a Tribe fan, and a baseball fan, for life.

In the following years, my health improved dramatically while the performance of the Indians went in the opposite direction. However, I never lost faith in my ball club. The brief trip to the playoffs in 2013 was exciting, but it was merely the appetizer for 2016. I'm not ashamed to say that I nearly cried when the Indians clinched the division in Detroit last September, and that I did cry when they swept Boston in the ALDS and again when they defeated the Blue Jays in the ALCS to capture the American League pennant. But then, in the World Series, another one of those damn 3-1 leads slipped away. Another year with no World Series championship.

But this year is different. Instead of playing it safe, the Indians shocked the baseball world by signing Edwin Encarnacion, the best slugger on the market. They signed Boone Logan, the best left-handed relief pitcher on the market. Michael Brantley appears to be healthy. Carlos Carrasco and Danny Salazar, largely missing from last year's postseason run, are back to solidify the starting rotation behind Corey Kluber. The bullpen, anchored by Andrew Miller and Cody Allen, is the best in the Major Leagues. The offense, even before the signing of Encarnacion, was excellent with Francisco Lindor, Carlos Santana, and Jason Kipnis leading the way. This is the year the Cleveland Indians will finally reach the summit of the baseball mountain. This is the year Tribe fans will receive their just reward for nearly seven decades of loyalty without a championship. This is a new year. This is Our Year.