Not Exactly What The Browns Intended
October 26, 2009Braylon Edwards Has Unfinished Business In Cleveland
October 26, 2009Let me just get this out of the way first. Hiring Manny Acta is not a sexy, “get the fans excited,” kind of move. I am guessing that there will be no uptick of ticket sales in the Cleveland Indians’ offices today. So, then what should we all think of the Indians’ latest hire? Much like Terry Pluto said, I have no idea.
In all fairness to Acta and his record with the Nationals, I don’t think Joe Torre deserves all the credit he gets for the 90’s New York Yankees either. Acta had horrible results as manager of the Nationals. Then again, how would Joe Torre have performed there? Torre has been out there turning around the Dodgers. He also has been able to get management to bring in Manny Ramirez and a host of other players including the incomparable Casey Blake. In Washington, I am guessing Acta would have considered the addition of an aging journeyman like Casey Blake to his roster as an absolute blessing.
Still, I can’t possibly get excited about the hiring of Manny Acta. I am kind of happy the Indians hired someone with experience. I am kind of happy they went outside the organization. I am kind of happy that they got someone who might be able to get through to some of our struggling Spanish-speaking players. I guess. It does seem kind of encouraging that the Houston Astros wanted him too on the surface. Then again, using that kind of proof is like saying that if the Royals beat the Yankees in a series and then the Indians beat the Royals in a series then the Indians are better than the Yankees. At the end of the day, it isn’t logical and the argument holds no water.
So, I guess we will just have to wait and see. We will certainly know success if and when we see it. We will be watching the progression of Fausto Carmona. We will watch and see how quickly this team starts this season. We will look for consistency in the lineups and a willingness to put players in positions to succeed. These are just a few of the problems that we have been crying about in the last two years of Eric Wedge. Then again, we will have to look beyond that too, because just being better than Wedge shouldn’t be a big enough expectation from us as Tribe fans.
24 Comments
There isn’t a manager in the bigs who could have won with the squad Bowden put together in Washington, and this guy is a legend in the Dominican Community which can’t be a bad thing. The only ‘sexy’ candidate was Bobby Valentine and would we really want a guy who snuck into a major league dugout with a fake mustache on after being tossed from a game having the fate of a talented young team in his hands? I was actually pretty excited when I saw that we hired this guy and I’m a little shocked how lukewarm most Indian’s fans are.
Craig-you’re about the 50th person who’s brought up this Joe Torre thing (including Acta himself), that must some kind of talking notes. The issue isn’t win/loss with Acta, it’s his horrific downward year to year trend. Joe Torre never had that type of record, even in his very early years.
The point is that other experienced winning candidates were available, but don’t fit Shapiro’s best friend/buddy, stats freak mold. Let’s hope this works out, Acta is a nice man-but that’s all I know about him at this point.
At this point, all he has to do is actually pencil in “LaPorta” every day and we’ll be ahead of the game.
@Isis – you should try validating a point Craig and others make some time. Your critical perspective is valued, but man, the tonal quality of your responses is like fingernails on chalkboard sometimes, haha.
Isis – if you knew anything about the Nationals, which you clearly don’t, you would know that the baseball operation here has become more discombobulated by the season. The team Acta has in his first season was more talented than the subsequent teams, especially in terms of pitching. The team Acta was working with this past season had maybe three MLB quality hitters, maybe two MLB quality starters and no MLB quality relievers. Acta had nothing to down with the downward organizational spiral of the Nationals.
I’m with Craig and Pluto (and others) who aren’t quite sure what to make of this hiring. But I’m not willing to completely write him off based on his lack of success with the pathetic Nationals.
@ AMC – not to mention the organization tried to make splashes by picking up none other than Elijah “put up your” Dukes.
Dunn was a good pickup but everything else they’ve done has been atrocious. The team’s gotten worse, they didn’t sign their top draft pick last year (and barely got Strasburg signed this year). The Nats are much, much worse off now than when Acta started. Something needed to be done to shake the team up, and Acta got the axe. I think he’ll get much more out of the Tribe than he could get out of the Nats. Not saying that’ll be enough to appease everybody, but I’m hopeful at this point.
@5
AMC,
Wasn’t Eric Wedge’s downward trend also during a marked loss of talent to put on the field? Is there a distinction with Acta? That’s not a rhetorical question, by the way.
@1 Why in the world would we NOT want a guy who has the wherewithal to find a fake mustache, wear the fake mustache at all, and attempt a return to the dugout? I mean, that was a classic move. Seriously.
I remember standing up off my couch and actually applauding in my living room the day I saw that on ESPN.
Just to let you in on a little secret about the site. I pubbed my article at 7:00 AM this morning to show up at 4:00 PM… I hadn’t read anyone else mention Joe Torre at that time.
@4 – I’m pretty sure you stand alone when you say that Isis’ critical perspective is valued. Why a person would continue to come to a site where they disagree with everything that is posted is beyond me.
Isis – Start your own blog, so rather then telling people how right you always are, they can just read it for themselves. Oh wait, you have no followers so you try to use this forum
@ 7 – I think it’s a valid question, though I think in the Indians case it was more about the organization over-valuing the talent they thought they had, whereas in the Nationals case it was about having almost absolutely ZERO talent.
I’ll just be excited if we don’t have to see EVERY position being platooned all season.
@10
“…Start your own blog, so rather then telling people how right you always are…”
Should Isis make comments which are uncertain to him?
I’m pretty sure about my comments. I have, at times, submitted what I believe to be conjecture. And I normally qualify it. I, to be honest, don’t know the value of my qualified conjecture. It could be worth nothing.
Isis appears to hold as a waste of time the posting of what he perceives to be conjecture.
There is, for someone like that, room in my head.
So, there I am.
@11
“…over-valuing the talent they thought they had…”
Is that French for “…deciding to go steady with Pronk…”?
Please remember, baseball managers have less to do with the success of their teams than coaches in any other sport. Important sure…vital? No.
@5 – Totally agree. Talent makes the difference.
Everyone needs to keep in mind the following: CHARLIE MANUEL is the manager of a team that is appearing in the World Series for the SECOND STRAIGHT YEAR. You need talent in baseball. And money. 6 of 8 playoff teams were in the top 9 in payroll. Isis, great as he is, could manage this roster or the ’05’-’09 Nats and still those teams would fail.
Here’s my vote for the fake mustache approach to managing. Valentine has a history of taking young teams and quickly turning them into winners… right before he wears out his welcome and gets ridden out of town by the top brass. In two different languages!
But, I’m willing to give Acta the benefit of the doubt and look forward to Jhonny’s reaction when he gets told that he’s playing 3rd again next year.
Isis, here’s how Joe Torre improved year over year to begin his career:
1977: .419%
1978: .407%
1979: .389%
1980: .414%
1981: .333%
He was fired the next year.
Can you read? Or research anything before you write these things? Here is your direct quote: “The issue isn’t win/loss with Acta, it’s his horrific downward year to year trend. Joe Torre never had that type of record, even in his very early years.”
You’re just wrong. Again.
Casey Stengel, NY Yankees: 7 World Championships
Casey Stengel, NY Mets: One of the worst records in the history of baseball.
Managing is highly overrated.
Hahahahahaha……..nice work, Jon! Of course, Isis won’t bother responding to you because he cares not for facts or accountability. He just keeps on spewing open ended opinions that have no basis in realiity.
Jon – Nicely done. Isis is just shoveling bs. We all know talent has much more to do with a managers record then anything else. I am here in DC. Acta had nothing to work with. Will he work out with the Tribe? Who knows.
hate to be a downer, but didnt the Browns love Mangini over other candidates because of his experience? I hope there is absolutely no correlation
No, ONLY Randy Lerner loved Mangini.
Manny Acta instantly makes the Indians pitchers that much better just by glowing.
Many years ago, when Kansas City came into the majors, it seemed they were the Yankee’s Farm Team. Kansas City was (and still is) in the lower tier of paying players. In my opinion that’s how I see my beloved Indians too. What caused this to be, the Curt Floyd situation where players get their freedom and go for the biggest buck.
There are three entities involved, which are the: Players, Owners, and Fans. Because of greed, the players go where they can get the biggest buck. I ask if they are making $8 million a year, do they need to go someplace else because they can get $10 million? The owners keep tract of income and expenses, so they know how much they can allow the scale to tip. The Fan has no control over either, and yet how can they show loyalty to a second tier team that’s always hoping for next year?