Josh Q. Public:  I keep working my way back to you babe, with a burning love inside.  I’m working my way back to you babe, with a happiness that died.  I let it get away.  Payin’ every day.  -Frankie Vali

Public Service Announcement:  OK, here we go!  What’s crack-a-lacking sports fans?  The 1951 Giants did it.  They came back.  They came back from thirteen games down.  Thirteen games down to cross town rivals, Dem Bums.  The hated Brooklyn Dodgers.  Came back, and won the National League Pennant.  The Shot Heard Round the World.  The Giants win the pennant and they’re going crazy. They’re going crazy, I don’t believe it, I don’t believe it, I will not believe it!  The 1964 Cardinals did it.  They came back.  They came all the way back from seventh place.  The Redbirds were 28-31 when they acquired Lightning Lou Brock for Ernie Broglio.  The immortal Ernie Broglio.  The rest, they say, is history.  The Redbirds acquired Lightning Lou Brock and eventually won the NL Pennant.  The Redbirds acquired Lightning Lou Brock  and eventually won the NL Pennant and the World Series.  The heat was on back in 1964.  I hate to do this but, the Bombers did it too.  The Bronx Zoo Yankees of 1978 stormed back.  Stormin’ Norman Scwarzkopffed back.  Stormin’ Norman Scwarzkopffed from fourteen back in the standings to eventually force a heartbreaker.  A heartbreaker, dream maker, love taker.  Don’t you mess around with me!  Heartbreaker of a tiebreaker against my beloved Red Sox.  Sure it’s a little harsh…but, here.  Cannonball it, cannonball!  Cannonball comin’ through, cannonball!  The 2004 Red Sox.  They came back.  Down 0-3.  Cannonball Dave Roberts.  Cannonball Curt Schilling.  Cannonball Big Papi.  Cannonball Cave Man.  Cannonball the greatest comeback of all time.  Those comebacks were about great teams.  Those comebacks were about great memories. They were special.  Orange Blossom Special, rollin’ down the seaboard line.  Today we’re gonna talk about a different kind of comeback.  Individual comebacks.  Captain Comebacks.  Jim Harbaugh style.  A different kind of special.  Nomah special.  Big Hurt special.  Rickey Henderson special.  Brett Saberhagen special.  Bo Jackson special.  Comeback Player of the Year special.  Ridin’ the range once more.  Totin’ my old .44.  Back in the saddle again.  Whoopi-ty-aye-oh, rockin’ to and fro.  Back in the saddle again.  Whoopi-ty-aye-yay, I go my way.  Back in the saddle again. 

The Indians believe Jhonny Peralta will  be back in the saddle again.  Yup, Jhonny.  Make sure you spell it right.  The Tribe thinks he will bounce back.  Bounce back in a big way.  Bounce back by April Fool’s Day.  Bounce back to the .886 OPS Jhonny Peralta of 2005.  Back when he was glad to be alive.  Back before he took a dive.  Back before he was an adventure in the field.  Back when he batted .292 with twenty-four bombs and seventy-eight RBIs.  All Indians records for a shortstop.  In the off season of ‘05-06, Jhonny grew two inches.  Had a tough time adjusting.  But he’s ok now.  He worked hard this winter in Cleveland.  Peralta also had LASIK surgery to correct his vision.  I remember hearing the same thing about Greg Vaughn one season.  Then he went out and hit 50 dings with the Padres.  Jhonny’s back in the saddle again.  Quick Jhonny Peralta fun fact:  The unusual spelling of his first name is attributed to a clerical error on his birth certificate.  He has refused to have it changed.

Brad Lidge will be back in the saddle again.  Teammate Brad Ausmus seems to think so: “By the end of the season, he developed confidence in his two-seamer (sinking fastball) and it will carry over.  It is a very good pitch for him, because it doesn’t sink straight down; it bores in on right-handed hitters and makes his slider that much more effective.  He will be fine.”   I think so too.  Will he be Light Out once again?  Is he still reeling from the Phat Albert Pujols home run in the ‘05 NLCS?   He still has the stuff.  He’s still tough enough.  He’s still up to snuff.  If he can harness that fastball, that is.  Time to play the game!  Time to bring the pain!  Time to get back in the saddle again!  Quick Brad Lidge fun fact:  Lidge is the all-time leader in strikeouts-per-nine-innings (12.98) among pitchers with at least 200 appearances in their career.

Derrek Lee, Chicago Cubs.  He should be back in the saddle again.  The wrist injury took this superstar from forty-six to eight jacks.  From one-hundred and one to seventeen extra-base hits.  Now he’s healthy.  Now he has thunder around him.  Now it’s time to bring the lightning.  The last time Derrek Lee was healthy for a full season, he had a higher batting average than Phat Albert Pujols.  He had more doubles than Pujols.  He had more triples than Pujols.  He had more bombs and had a higher OPS than Pujols.  Can he better than Pujols this year?  I dunno about all that.  I don’t know if he’s all that phat.  I dunno if he’s phatter than that phat cat.  I do know, he’ll be back in the saddle again.  Quick Derrek Lee fun fact:  Derrek Lee received a full-ride scholarship offer from the University of North Carolina to play basketball.

Rich Harden  has the ability to win a Cy Young.  I’m not just flinging dung.  Not speaking in tongues.  Harden has a 30-16 career mark with overpowering stuff.  Mighty stuff.  Marvelous stuff.  Monumental stuff.  Mind blowing stuff.  Magnificent stuff.  But his physical problems have taken him from thirty-one to nineteen to nine starts in three years.  Word has it he’s now fit as a fiddle.  A Stradivarius.  With Big Barry Planet Zito gone, the A’s need Rich Harden.  They need his ghost pitch to be most Caspery.  At this point in the spring, Harden is throwing only fastballs and changeups, and he’s dominating.  He just struck out five of the last six hitters he faced and tossed two scoreless innings in his team’s 4-3 win over the San Diego Padres.  A’s fans gotta love that.  They gotta love the fact he’s back in the saddle again.  Quick Rich Harden fun fact:  Harden began the 2003 season with Midland, and in 2 games, he had a 2-0 record and pitched 13 perfect innings, striking out 17 along the way.

Coco Crisp will be riding high in the saddle again.  Crisp hurt his hand the first week of the season last year.  Crisp was playing with a little bit of fear.  Never really got out of second gear.  Never returned to to full form.  Never hit fastballs the way he once could.  Now he’s all healed up.  Now, with Julio Lugo on board, he can bat in a more comfortable spot in the two or eight spot.  Now he can get hot.  Hot as the Minnesota Vikings’ yacht.  Now, he can be Coco Crisp, not just Johnny Damon’s replacement.  Now, he’s back in the saddle again.  Quick Coco Crisp fun fact:  Coco's real name is Covelli Loyce Crisp.

Eric Gagne, Texas.  Eric Ggne’s back in the saddle again.  I know, I know.  I know he’s only thrown fifteen and a third innings the last two years.  But with his gigantic heart.  With his gigantic heart and giganticker changeup.  With his gigantic heart, giganticker change and the gigantickest of breaking balls, he’s back in the saddle.  Bigger than big, taller than tall.  Quicker than quick, stronger than strong. Ready to fight for right, against wrong.  Gigantor, Gigantor, Gigantor.  If he can throw eighty-nine to ninety-three, he can be a young Trevor Hoffman.  Deja vu all over again.  Can he go fifty-five for fifty-five again?  Can he go eighty-four for eighty-four for again?  Can he throw for an incredible 1.20 ERA, 137 Ks and 20 walks in 82 1/3 innings pitched again?  Probably not.  Who could?  He can ride back in the saddle again.  Game over!   Quick Eric Gagne fun fact:  Gagne and catcher Russell Martin became the first French-Canadian-born battery in a MLB game.

Honorable Mentions:  Hideki Matsui, Jason Varitek, A-Broad- if you can call it a comeback, Randy Johnson, Pedro, Bartolo Colon, Armando Benitez, Nick Johnson, Todd Helton, Barry Bonds, Zack Geinke, Bobby Crosby, Carl Pavano, Jason Isringhausen, Hank Blalock, Brad Wilkerson, Rany Wolf, Jon Lester- I hope he does it, I hope he does it!, Jason Kubel, Darin Erstad, Jeremy Hermidia, Ben Sheets, Aaron Rowand, Mike Hampton.

Peace out homies.  Six two and Even!