"I'm not Ozzie Blogspot" reporting Bartolo Colon to sign with the White Sox, why aren't the Cleveland Indians in the Hunt?

"I'm not Ozzie" Blogspot Reports that Bartolo Colon will sign a one year deal with the Chicago White Sox. Sigh, the real feel good story of 2009 would have been for Bartolo Colon to come back to Cleveland and be a teammate to the two All Stars Grady Sizemore and Cliff Lee, who were mere minor league prospects several years ago when Montreal traded them for Bartolo Colon.

Mark Shapiro should have tried to sign Bartolo and put him on a fitness training program for a month or two, even if it meant Bartolo would not be available until May or June. Why don't ballplayers ever see the silver lining, the " if we build it they will come" moment in their careers? For Bartolo Colon, coming back to Cleveland right after CC Sabathia left, and being along side the progeny that his trade from Cleveland had created, would have been the right place at the right time in the right year.

Carl Pavano signs with the Cleveland Indians, wow!

This is a shocker, Carl Pavano signs with the Cleveland Indians. What would be really amazing is if Pavano actually lasted until Jake Westbrook returned. What I'm saying is even if Carl can't make it a year without some sort of injury, imagine if he lasted just long enough until a proven vet like Jake Westbrook returned. Then anything after that would be a bonus.

I still wish the Indians and Bartolo could both come to terms, with Bartolo really working his tail off to get into shape. Pavano's signing is surely a typical Shapiro surprise, nobody quite expected it, and we won't know if it was solid or not until the end of the season. So be it.

Bartolo Colon, aka Java the Hut, sits back and waits for his next juicy victim.

I followed Bartolo Colon's career. Year after year he would get slightly fatter, and apparently stronger in the legs. It became the "excuse" for Bartolo's annually expanding girth, "He has strong legs". I guess for several years Bartolo was able to move his mass forward under the direction of his powerful legs, the excuse even being that his strong legs actually made his pitches go faster and that sometimes in the late innings his pitches got even faster.

Then Bartolo's injuries started, and yes, Bartolo's weight played a part in those injuries. Yet Bartolo shouldered on, never once really going on any kind of a noticeable diet. So here we are in 2009, and Bartolo Colon could actually resurrect his career, if only he would lose some weight.

Instead, Bartolo, it appears, will play the role of Java the Hut, welcoming those who would venture into his den and overpay for an overweight "athlete" who appears capable of insulating himself from what would make him better, being in better shape. The Indians did right by Bartolo Colon, even when they traded Bartolo to Montreal.

Because Montreal was a team in desperate need of a starter and his presence there was appreciated by the Montreal fans. Bartolo's effectiveness in Montreal helped land him a four year deal from the Angels, of which at the most he earned 2 years of. Bartolo spent more and more time on the DL during his four years in California.

More rehab followed, and now, instead of having started a physical fitness regimen to show he is serious about the game, apparently Bartolo Colon is content to sit back and wait for his reputation and past success to wrest another one year contract from a desperate team. If only Bartolo could embrace the adventure of going back to Cleveland, especially after the departure of CC Sabathia, and actually being the pitcher the Indians needed to bring them over the hump in 2009. But I guess that is asking too much of a pitcher, to actually visualize their own success when all that really matters is a fat contract.