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Indians Tidbits (2009 season)

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I tend to agree with what the guy below writes about the 4 candidates that we know about. I think the smart money is probably on Acta Eddie wouldn't be a bad choice in my opinion but I would prefer Mattingly.

Link

Tribe Needs a Winner
By Matt ZeigerPublished: October 22, 2009
Posted in: Featured Story, LBT, News, Tribe

With the finalists for the Indians? vacant coaching position being announced this week, there is a clear discrepancy between the four candidates. That difference is their track record of winning at the major league level. Now, I?m not saying the Tribe needs a Hall of Fame caliber manager with five World Series rings, but what the organization does need is someone who can come in and expect, demand and motivate his team to win. For me, this was one of the many knocks against Eric Wedge. Did he have great relationships with his players? Yes. Did he know how to develop young talent from his days in the minor leagues? Ok, I?ll give him that. But, when the ballclub was on the brink of success in 2007, could Wedgy draw on his past successes to prepare his team? Set the right tone? Manage emotions? The answer is no. I do not want to see the club make the same mistake twice.

With that here are some quick thoughts on each candidate:

Manny Acta ? I?m sure Acta is a nice enough guy, but what has he done? While it wasn?t entirely his fault he certainly made no headway with the Nats. Other than that, the man has zero major league experience either as a player or a manager. The biggest positive we keep hearing is that he ?relates well to players? and is a straight shooter. Sounds a little too much like Eric Wedge to me.

Torey Lovullo ? He?s a journeyman major league player who has spent the majority of his career, both as a player and a coach, in the minor leagues. All wrong, for all of the aforementioned reasons.

Bobby Valentine ? The veteran of the group, Valentine would demand respect from the young Indians? roster. He is also the highest profile manager of the bunch which, with ticket sales plummeting, may be a wise move for Shapiro and company. Before heading to the Land of the Rising Sun to manage (with some success) the 59 year old Valentine made two playoff appearances with the Mets and won one National League Pennant. It needs to also be noted that Valentine would also come with a lot of baggage in the form of his notorious temper. His pay check would also need to be sizable.

Don Mattingly ? ?Donnie Baseball? had a highly decorated career as a Yankee in the 80s and early 90s, and was in consideration for the Yankee job a couple years ago after Joe Torre left. Although, shockingly, he had only one postseason appearance, his experience in the major leagues is irrefutable. Since retiring Mattingly has moved into coaching and has made two consecutive appearances in the postseason as the Dodgers? hitting coach. Like Valentine, (all-be-it in a different way) Mattingly would command respect in the clubhouse, as his character, talent and likability have been well documented. The hiring of Mattingly would certainly signal fans that the team is moving in a new direction and might even get Clevelanders excited to go to Jacob?s Field (I don?t want to hear any of this Progressive garbage) next April.

It would be wrong to think that a manager with experience and a winning track record is the only thing that can turn the Tribe around (just look at Northeast Ohio native Josh McDaniels, who saw that coming?), but in order to move forward, the organization needs a new attitude and a new direction. Not more of the same.
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The fact that Acta has admitted doing his homework on the Indians organization while Valentine can do nothing but plead ignorance would appear to give him a significant leg up. If nothing else, it shows an enthusiasm for his (potential) job. I tend to agree that Mattingly may be just a pipe dream. He's one of the really hot names out there right now and is probably in a position to wait it out for a job in a major market (like LA). Anyway, toss another name in the ring...

Indians talking to Angels coach


The Cleveland Indians have received permission from the Angels to speak to bench coach Ron Roenicke about their managerial job, which opened when the team fired Eric Wedge in the final week of the regular season. It was unclear Thursday when Roenicke, who has spent 10 seasons with the Angels under Manager Mike Scioscia, six as a third base coach and the last four as the bench coach, would interview for the position, or if he has already been interviewed.
Los Angeles Times
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He's a name I'd like to hear more of. He's an acclaimed bench coach that's been part of a very successful organization.
 
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NFBuck;1574104; said:
He's a name I'd like to hear more of. He's an acclaimed bench coach that's been part of a very successful organization.
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I think the major question is whether he will be able to communicate to our Dominican players:wink2: but seriously learning under Sociosa is not all bad in fact most of it is very good.
 
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LitlBuck;1574182; said:
Shapiro will keep on dicking around and your gut:) will start telling you Mike Hargrove.
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Nah, it's already been reported Hargrove was eliminated from consideration...straight from Shapiro's mouth. I think it's a three horse race between Acta, Bobby V and Mattingly...with Acta the frontrunner. It'll be interesting to see if anything comes from the reported talks with Roenicke.
 
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3074326;1576343; said:
Cleveland Indians sign ex-Washington Nationals manager Manny Acta to 3-year deal - ESPN

Three year deal with a club option for 2013. Would quote it, but there isn't much to quote. Not sure what to think of this. I can say that my first thought was "uhh.."
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What the...?

The Indians chose him after a second round of interviews over former New York Mets manager Bobby Valentine and Indians Triple-A manager Torey Lovullo.
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I chose a quote, over Bobby Valentine? I am not a Valentine fan per se, but...? We take a manager that was fired from the worst team in the business. Not exciting.
 
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THEWOOD;1576369; said:
Money saving move? Definitely does not make a ton of sense. The guy has a horrid record as a manager. I would be pissed if I was a Indians fan..
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shallow analysis. the nationals are the worst team in baseball with the worst collection of talent. nobody in the game would win with that club.

acta did have a better run differential than his successor, riggleman, despite having less talent. that's a more telling sign.

plus, acta's big on the use of sabermetrics, which makes him the anti-wedge.
 
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Acta is a great hire. I mean, c'mon, the guy can actually COMMUNICATE with Latin players. On top of that he spent countless hours studying the Cleveland Indians after he got shit-canned from the worst team in baseball. Kinda like a kid at "Rally's" studying the "McDonalds" menu in hopes of moving on to bigger and better things.

I'm sure the Tribe phones will be ringing off the hook tomorrow with Season Ticket purchases, which is a great thing. Hell, before they announced Acta as the new manager I was kinda bummed out about having to watch Cliff Lee and CC Sabathia square off in Game #1 of the World Series. NOT ANY MORE! Now, the future is "Gotta Wear Shades" bright. :shake:
 
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