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If you are like me, you now have some very difficult decisions to make.
As Cade Smith slammed the door in the bottom of the ninth at Fenway Park Thursday night, he kicked it open for the Cleveland Guardians' appearance in the American League playoffs.
For me and a million other Ohioans, October baseball is what we cheer for. So Cleveland earning a playoff berth is thrilling. I am as excited as a kid getting his first fishing rod.
But here's my dilemma: I'm also a football fan, so now I have to pick between baseball, football and (you guessed it) fishing.
October is a great month for fishing in Northeast Ohio. We will have steelhead rushing the rivers from Lake Erie. We will have Ohio River smallmouth bass feeding like there's no tomorrow. We'll have the improving fall bite at Berlin, Milton, Mosquito, Shenango, West Branch and every other lake within an hour of Warren and Youngstown.
Toss in chores like mowing grass and dealing with falling leaves - obligations we must shoulder if we are to be responsible adults - and the decision about whether to clean up the yard, sit in front of the TV or hitch up the boat and go to the lake becomes problematic.
This time of year presents options too tempting to have to be forced to pick just one.
As the water cools all across our region, the fish are on the move. Footballs and baseballs are flying, but the walleyes, bass, crappies and trout are oh so tempting.
Great schools of baitfish are moving to Lake Erie's beaches, harbors and tributaries. Emerald shiners, shad and other small fish are starting to head to the shallow water, with smallmouth bass and steelhead trout right with them. A few walleyes are coming, too, and their numbers will only grow bigger as we head through October.
The Youngstown-Warren area is blessed with reservoirs that are home to healthy populations of game and panfish. Their primary forage base is shad. As water temperatures dip, the shad and other prey fish school up and move toward the banks. Anglers with sonar can locate the bait schools suspended around points and in the creek arms.
Berlin and Mosquito are good bets for October walleyes. Both lakes also serve up catchable numbers of crappies, as well as smallmouth and largemouth bass.
Shenango Lake north of Sharon is one of my favorite autumn lakes. It's an excellent crappie lake. Bass anglers find their favorite species around the numerous bridges and associated rip-rap banks, as well as the east and west ends' shallow banks and flats littered with stumps and toppled trees.
Mosquito is a traditional walleye hot spot. This fall anglers can expect to find the walleyes moving shallow to pick off perch and shad near the weed edges. While Mosquito's walleyes are less numerous this year, anglers can expect the fish they do locate will be larger than average.
Trophy-size muskies will be kicking up their feeding at West Branch, Pymatuning and Milton as we swing into October. Kayakers and canoeists might also tangle with a big muskie or two on the Mahoning River from Newton Falls to its confluence with the Shenango River.
Walleyes, saugers and smallmouth bass are the autumn attraction on the Ohio River, where anglers can expect to find fish around current breaks near docked barges, sea walls, bridge pilings and gravel shoals.
Riveting action abounds through October - on the water and in the stadiums. So do we go fishing or flip on the TV? It's up to you, but my mind is made up. I'm going fishing with confidence that I can catch up with my teams on recorded broadcasts (please don't tell me the score while I'm out on the lake).
Jack Wollitz writes weekly for readers of the Tribune Chronicle and Vindicator. Contact him at jackbbaass@gmail.com.