Chris Perez criticizes Cleveland fans for rooting against LeBron James, 'blindly supporting' Browns

CLEVELAND - Indians closer Chris Perez is at it again.

In an interview with The New York Times , Perez questioned Cleveland fans who “blindly support” the Browns and root against LeBron James.

“I don’t get the psyche,” Perez told The New York Times. “Why cheer against a guy that’s not even in your city anymore? Just to see him fail? Does that make you feel good? I could see if the Cavs were in the championship, but that’s their mentality."

Perez was also confused about the city’s allegiance to the Browns.

“Their whole thing is, ‘We want a winner.’ Well, why do you support the Browns? They don’t win. They’ve never won. They left. You guys blindly support them. I don’t understand it. It’s a double standard, and I don’t know why,” Perez said.

The Browns returned to Cleveland in 1999, with the team’s legacy intact, after being moved to Baltimore. They won the NFL Championship in 1964  but have never won a Super Bowl.

While the Indians reached the World Series twice in the mid-late 1990s, they haven’t won one since 1948.

“They’ve had a lot of years of misery. They say, ‘You just don’t understand because you don’t live here.’ O.K., maybe I don’t. But that doesn’t mean it has to keep going,” Perez told The Times.

These latest gripes come just more than a month after Perez called out Indians fans for not showing up to games. The Indians are last in baseball in attendance.

“I don’t think they have a reason to boo me. I was tired of getting booed at home so I figured I’d better throw some strikes (on Saturday). You can quote that,” Perez said after fans booed him for putting two runners on in an outing against Seattle.

Clevelanders are again talking about Perez, his name trending on Twitter Tuesday morning.

@ k_wood76   Chris Perez just needs to shut his damn mouth

@hockeynut93   Chris Perez talking about fan support again. I'm glad. Great team, crowds under 20 K are unacceptable

@ DMcDougal24   Again, Chris Perez speaks the truth.. But sometimes you're better off just keeping your mouth shut.

There’s no consensus among fans on Perez’s rants but one thing is for sure – the closer gets people talking.

Perez is producing on the field too, currently MLB’s saves leader with 23 and will likely be an all-star representative for the Indians in Kansas City.