Following Acta... Isn't that a clever pun

Clever ain't it?

Everyone is doing it though.

Second Act(a) or Re-Opening Acta.

Whatever..

It's been a bit of a whirlwind since yesterday when the Indians named Manny Acta their new manager. Everyone wants to chime in.

But make no mistakes about it. This is the beginning of a new era and it is bringing a bit of joy to the situation. There is hope and optimism and whether general Cleveland fan wants to admit it or not, there is cause to feel good about this club.

As is the case with anyone making an exciting new hiring. Sure you don't want to be in this situation, but the fact that you are means things have been really bad and there are just hopes for not feeling really bad.

So your joy in this new process comes out.

From my perspective, a lot of reasonable fans are either A) For this hiring or B) Aren't really disappointed.

A large portion of the fans that are ready to chop Shapiro's head off are irrational.

You can tell who's irrational and who's not just by reading their reasoning.

If they make clear of Acta's flaws, then they've got a point and are actually thinking and their opinion deserves to be considered.

If they are shouting random things in vain about the Nationals sucking, Shapiro being a dolt, or just bringing up Eric Wedge, then they have no clue what they are talking about and are just a casual Cleveland fan that doesn't take the time to educate themselves.

That is what really bothers me, for the most part.

Cleveland has many irrational fans, many fan bases do. But you combine irrationality with the collective impatience and pessimistic traits this fan base has and you have a bunch of overreactions, shouts of anger that make no sense and things blown completely out of proportion.

This isn't about that though, so let me get back on topic. It just frustrates me to no end to see fans losing faith before they have a right to even do so. You have no clue how this is going to work out, so stop being such a uneducated negative fan and giving Cleveland fans a bad rap. Who I'm talking to, I have no clue, but if you say "Yeah that's me" when reading this description, I'm talking to you.

Let's go around the web and iron this whole situation out and then pick up on some opinions that are informed.

Okay so this happened this way.

Houston had come to the conclusion that Manny Acta was their guy. They offered him a two year deal. Acta wanted a three year deal. Probably hearing that Acta was being offered the job from Houston, Mark Shapiro and Cleveland decided that Acta was too good to let slip away, so they offered him a three year deal.

Better situation, better contract, better everything if you ask me.

Houston would not budge on the two years, which made Acta's decision even easier. He's coming to Cleveland.

Now what made Shapiro and the Indians do this?

First with Valentine.. It became apparent he still wasn't quite sure if he wanted to do this or not. The Indians apparently were ready to bring him in for a second interview until the developments with Acta came around. That is probably when they scrapped the idea of Valentine and said forget it.

Torey Lovullo was the in-house candidate and considering there are only three jobs open and he was only in the running for this one, there is little doubt of him going anywhere this year. Still that wouldn't have effected their opinion. Shapiro wanted major league experience and Lovullo didn't have that. I still think he ends up on this staff though.

Don Matttingly, the final candidate, at least so we thought. He was expected to get scheduled for an interview this week, but again with Acta getting the offer the Indians had to speed this process up. Either they had to feel really good about one of the other three taking their job or they had to offer it. Mattingly's position may have been key because it appears he was only using Cleveland and Washington for leverage with the Dodgers. As if he was the heir apparent to Joe Torre and he wanted that commitment from them.

Why would the Indians risk not getting any of their men, including their favorite, just to interview Mattingly? It wasn't worth it, even if Lovullo was a fall-back option. Mattingly was a combination of Lovullo and Valentine. He had major league experience unlike Lovullo but he also didn't have an interest (according to rumors) in the Indians, like Valentine.

So I believe that's how this all unfolded and why Acta was hired on Sunday like that. The Indians loved him from the start and they didn't want to lose him to another team because they wanted to interview someone that doesn't actually want the job and badger someone else who didn't really want the job.

Acta wanted the job, he was the candidate they liked the most, so it was simple. Offer him a deal and don't let him go to Houston.

So here we are, like it or not, Manny Acta is the guy. Let's see what the world is saying this morning.

Scott Miller is one of the ones that doesn't get it.

The Indians have hired Manny Acta as manager, which clearly means one of two things:

Either Cleveland knows something Washington didn't.

Or the Nationals were more of a bottomless pit than even they knew.

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Acta, 40, under-managed an already hopelessly over-matched team?

Or Acta has enough managerial chops to overcome even the Nationals' taint?

The Indians have committed themselves to finding out.

And one way or the other, I have a feeling, in the end, there won't be much middle ground here, either.

So while Miller isn't directly saying he thinks this is a bad hiring, he is leaving the door open to what everyone really is thinking. This is either a really brilliant move or a really stupid one. Fair enough for me.

Sort of the same position Terry Pluto is taking, but Terry is more of an insider to this team than Miller is and he knows what's up.

Here's what think of the Indians hiring Manny Acta -- I just don't know.

He certainly belongs on the all-interview team, as Houston also wanted to hire him. That's a lot of attention for a guy who was fired at mid-season with a 26-61 record in Washington. Other than the Nationals, his former franchise, the only teams looking for a manager were Houston and the Tribe.

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Several successful managers had rocky starts to their careers, including Torre and Terry Francona. That's why it is a mistake to simply write off Acta based on what happened in Washington. Now, Acta gets another chance to manage, and the Indians are counting on him to make the most of it.

Just remember that last paragraph, something I'll harp on for awhile. The general theme seems to be unknown and unsureness. Tony Lastoria's turn.

There are sure to be several detractors because of his poor record with Washington or because they wanted Bobby Valentine or some other name manager. But looking beyond all that, and looking at Manny Acta himself and how I really feel about his being named as manager, I honestly have no idea if I like the hiring or hate it.

Most of this is because I know almost nothing firsthand about him other than that 158-252 win-loss record in Washington. And you know what? About 99.9% of us are probably in the same boat. We just don't know anything about this guy.

That said, I do think out of the final four candidates or all the guys they talked to throughout the interview process, that Acta was probably the best option available. That is not necessarily a pat on the back to Acta as this is mostly because it overall was a less than appealing crop of managerial options available to the Indians.

And I think Tony's last paragraph is the general consensus of the rational fans. We don't know what to think, but out of the group we had, as crazy as it sounds, he might have just been the best option for this team right now. Paul Cousineau's turn.

Truthfully, like any coaching hire, nobody really knows what to expect as Acta was unquestionably in control of his press conference with the assembled media and said all of the right things about all of the right people at all of the right times. How he goes about achieving all of those things - like fixing Fausto and getting some consistency out of Peralta - is where his baseball acumen will have to show, and quickly.

Getting a read on him and making a snap judgment about whether he's the right man for the job borders on folly, but some clues about him and his strategies should begin to emerge with the first order of business - naming a coaching staff. The construction of the staff (according to the Front Office when this process started) is up to the newly named manager, and Acta has made it clear that he would have no problem bringing along coaches that are familiar (and successful) with the current batch of Indians - a category that the AAA troika of Columbus manager Torey Lovullo, Columbus hitting coach Jon Nunnally, and Columbus pitching coach Scott Radinsky all fall under.

Which is the central reason I want to bring in the final voice, for now.. Okay Hoynes, you can talk. For informational purposes only though.

Internal candidates for the coaching staff include Class AAA Columbus manager Torey Lovullo, pitching coach Scott Radinsky and hitting coach Jon Nunnally. Others include Dave Hudgens (field coordinator), Dave Miller (pitching coordinator), Class AA manager Mike Sarbaugh, Bruce Fields (hitting coordinator) and Gary Thurman (outfield/base-running coordinator).

As Paul stated though.. This is where it all begins for Acta. Hiring the coaching staff. We've really had a fun time in Cleveland debating about coaching staffs and getting on Wedge for firing Eddie Murray and all that fun stuff. Complaining about Luis Isaac being let go. All that stuff. This is Acta's first attempt to impress the fans. While I don't think it will be just him putting this staff together, he has a large say in it and that's going to really help or hurt his outlook for many people.

It isn't just about you but who you surround yourself with.

Now as this week gets on, we'll probably be discussing that. But today is a day to take in. Manny's press conference will be at 4:00 PM ET and it will most definitely be on STO. I have class during that time so I'll miss it, but you can no doubt bet I'll watch it and take it in.

This is the choice Shapiro has made. You can either get over it and support the guy, even if you disagree with the decision, or you could pout and act like the Indians suck. If you do the latter, don't be the first one to jump back on the bandwagon if things pan out. That is the worst.

This guy is bringing a lot to the table. More than some people are willing to admit. Some people just can't move past the fact that the managerial record with Washington was bad. He had a good first year and then it went down hill.

Look at some of the bozos that organization brought in. Elijah Dukes? I mean really? How is someone supposed to enforce discipline and hard work when management is bringing in a head case like Elijah Dukes? That organization was a train wreck under Jim Bowden and there is a reason that guy is fired now.

If all the things we've heard about Manny are true and he does what he believes in, this has the potential to be the perfect fit. Shapiro wants nothing but good-hard working players with high character. Step one already achieved before he walks in the door. No Dukes, no crazy people, just high character guys that will listen if you talk to them.

All he needs to do is win the team over and there's no telling what can be done. If Eric Wedge can win this team over, so can Acta. Just look at how he won over everyone at his media session. He is a fantastic communicator and given the quality of this organization and the beliefs they have, this could potentially be a match made in heaven.

Give it a chance. Take an open mind. I wanna go over more later, but let's take in the press conference. Approach this with an open mind and stop looking at the Nationals. This is a new day for Indians baseball and let's hope it is the start of something good.