http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2009/10/19/valentine-a-finalist-for-the-indians-job/ Baseball. Baseball. And then a bit more baseball. Wed, 19 Jun 2013 07:59:52 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2009/10/19/valentine-a-finalist-for-the-indians-job/comment-page-1/#comment-6639 Mon, 19 Oct 2009 16:00:51 +0000 http://localhost/wp/nbchbt/?p=1743#comment-6639 I, for one, am leaning towards Manny Acta, just based on his apparent saber-friendly philosophy. I believe that FJM linked favorably to an interview of his, and I’ve seen others.
The strange thing about Wedge’s tenure was just how badly the team underperformed. Looking at Pythagorean Records, the Indians pretty consistently underperformed by several games each season. Ditto with second-order records. Add that to a lengthy list of promising young players who have never really reached their full potential (Barfield, Marte, Peralta, for starters), and you have to wonder if the problem was indeed the coaching staff.
Of course, as an Indians fan I have a vested interest in believing that much of the team’s woes were the fault of Wedge and his staff. It makes contention seem that much closer, a much quicker fix. The real question remains, just what the heck has been wrong with the Indians?? Each year they are the saber-darlings of the universe, and each year their bullpen implodes and they get off to awful starts and perform far beneath their Pythagorean records. Shapiro has his faults (drafting and low-level free agent signings), but it’s hard to argue that the team hasn’t had talent. Heck, we missed the playoffs with Sabathia, Lee, Westbrook, and a resurgent Kevin Milwood leading one of the best Indians staffs in recent memory.
As an Indians fan, the past seven years have left me completely baffled. It seems that, with the talent, we should have accomplished far more than we did. Where we went wrong, whose fault it is, and whether it can be fixed with Manny Acta or whoever at the helm — I am eager to see what happens.

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