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Yes, I’m referring to the Cleveland Cavaliers, who were blown out by the Boston Celtics. At home. With the series tied at 2, in arguably the most important game in franchise history. Biggest game in franchise history = worst playoff loss in franchise history.

While this is not a basketball blog, I do feel that DLF is a Cleveland blog at heart, and that’s why I’m waxing poetic about this.

I also recall the last time I felt I had to write about my hometown, when I was the Arts and Life editor for The Independent Collegian at the University of Toledo. I wrote a column about the Indians 2007 playoff collapse, and more importantly, Cleveland being a city of survivors. It was cheesy, yet heartfelt. I honestly wrote it more for myself, to give myself closure on the season, and ultimately, the window of contention the Indians had. It got a great response from all the Clevelanders in Toledo.

As I woke up this afternoon, I found myself trying to avoid closure, because I don’t want the LeBron James era to end in Cleveland.

And I find myself fighting the Cleveland mentality – that nothing ever goes Cleveland’s way, Cleveland is a bunch of losers, Cleveland has no class, etc.

A quick note to all the haters who didn’t like how Cavs fans booed their team last night: you would have booed too. That was terrible basketball, from LeBron down. I’ve never been one to say that you can’t boo the home team if the home team is deserving of it.  Heck, I booed CC Sabathia in Game 5 of the ALCS when he left with a 7-1 deficit. It’s our right as paying fans to boo.

But it’s not right for fans to always feel like the losers. And right now it sure seems like that.

So what can a Cleveland fan do, in the face of all this losing? The only think we can do: hope. Yeah, it’s not tangible, but hope can keep you going, and that’s what Cleveland fans need to do: they need to keep going. Keep fighting, not just in sports but in life. You never know what is going to happen.

I can’t sit here and tell you the Cavs are going to win Games 6 and 7, make everything better, and win a championship. I don’t know that. What I can tell you is that while the Indians may suck right now, they will be relevant again, probably sooner than you think. I know, that’s coming out of deep left field (get it?) but it’s the truth. There is always hope, and while I can’t sit back and look at my trophy case full of hope, I can tell you when a Cleveland team finally wins it all, be it the Cavs, Browns or (god willing) the Indians, the victory will be that much sweeter due to all the tears we’ve shed.

Cleveland has been here before, and probably will again. So I’d like to end this self-serving post with how I ended my column in Toledo:

No matter what it’s dealing with, Cleveland is always the underdog. No matter how many times this city is beaten down, it always gets up and comes roaring back for more. Call us stupid for that, but you cannot call us weak.

This city has never given up hope, and that’s an admirable quality.

Call us losers. Call us trash. Call us whatever you want. We’ve heard it all before. It stings, but we get over it. We’re tough.

I love my city, and I’m so proud to call it my home. The Indians, Cavaliers and yes, even the Browns reaffirm my love for this city, and instill pride for my hometown in me.

I’m from Cleveland. We’re survivors

Huff earned his first career win with Sunday's victory over the White Sox.

Sunday’s win over Chicago gave the Cleveland Indians a rare road series win against a divisional opponent this year. As surprising as that is, the names of the players sparking the win might surprise fans even more. Chris Gimenez and Luis Valbuena hit back-to-back home runs in the 2nd inning to help spot fellow rookie pitcher David Huff a 3-0 lead. The home run by Valbuena was the first of his career. He later added another run in the 4th by bringing in Kelly Shoppach on a sacrifice fly to center.

Huff pitched five innings, matching the longest start of his short career. He struck out three and walked three while recording his first ever win. Huff allowed three earned runs, all of which scored on Alexei Ramirez’s 5th inning home run.

The lead was already safe however, thanks to back-to-back home runs by Victor Martinez and Shin-Soo Choo earlier in the inning. The game was not sealed until the unpredictable bullpen combination of Rafael Perez and Kerry Wood handcuffed Chicago hitters in the final two innings. The pair of relievers struck out four combined batters and didn’t allow a single hit.

Despite the inconsistencies throughout this season, Cleveland remains just seven games back of division leading Detroit. If the newcomers to the Indians roster can help the team maintain stability until some of the injured starters return, who knows what this team is capable of doing? Hopefully, this series victory over the White Sox offers fans a glimpse into the future.