Right on, Way off: Will Acta be fired before the season ends?

With every day that ends in another loss the Tribe gets closer and closer to the cellar in the American League central. It’s hard to believe that not so long ago Cleveland sat atop the division. And when the lead slipped out of their grasp plenty of hope still remained that the Indians could add a right-handed bat to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Unfortunately, the wheels fell off and the wagon tumbled end over end in a stupefying display of implosion. So, many have started to peek at what may lie ahead in 2013 and what kind of changes may take place along the way. Let’s examine a few changes that could be in store for an organization that has nothing, if not hope.

Acta will get the ax by season’s end

Right on: Making a legitimate change, like removing Manny Acta from managerial duties, will send the message to fans that the organization is not accepting of perpetual losing. It’ll definitely serve as a bone to the many Tribe fans who are thirsty for blood, as many are becoming increasingly displeased with ownership and management. Pinning some of the failure on Acta, however just it may be, seems to be the much more plausible option than purging the front office or selling the team. Acta, who has a .421 career winning percentage to go along with never having a winning season certainly has no reason not to expect the cries calling for his job, as the Indians have endured consecutive season-crippling swoons.

To properly start the much-needed rebuilding process, it’s imperative that Cleveland cleans house, and what better place to start than with the manager, who has been accused of losing control of his clubhouse. At the very least, it doesn’t appear that Indians players are buying into his system or its chances of yielding success. Former pitching coach Scott Radinsky already got the boot, so the front office is obviously willing to make changes, especially considering Radinsky didn’t even make it a full season at his post. It’s stubborn to tie oneself to some imaginary limited window of contention; this team simply has too many holes: two to three front-end starting pitchers and three to four every day position players.

And for the record, it makes little sense to buy into CEO Paul Dolan’s recent comments that team president Mark Shapiro, general manager Chris Antonetti, and manager Manny Acta’s jobs are all safe, in spite of the horrific second-half collapse. For one, he made these comments at Acta’s bowling charity fundraiser. Secondly, he went on to elaborate that he’s trying to figure out how the team collapsed, stating that "It's going to take more time to assess what we have and what we need and what we're capable of doing”. These are explicitly alarming comments from the team’s CEO, one who you’d imagine would have a pretty good grasp as to why this season ended in an even worse fiery crash than last season’s tumble. These comments do as little to affirm fan faith in the front office, as they do guarantee Acta’s job security.

Way off: Firing Acta before the end of the season does little for the fate of the remainder of 2012. It would actually only serve as a catalyst for ongoing turmoil in the organization. If the higher-ups deem Acta as unfit to continue as manager, then the proper time to relieve him and hire his successor would be in the offseason. The roster he’s been given to work with has failed miserably in living up to expectations. With a failed trade (i.e. Ubaldo Jimenez), underachieving, injuries, and little success garnered from players that were brought in during the past offseason it’s clear that Acta never had a legitimate chance to succeed with the personnel he was given.

Firing him now, in-season, concedes that Cleveland is in the initial stages of yet another rebuilding process. Instead of blowing up the roster, the Tribe should build around its core pieces to plug the holes in the roster. There is already a very solid foundation in middle of the field, manned by Carlos Santana, Jason Kipnis, Asdrubal Cabrera, and Michael Brantley, all of whom are key cogs in the lineup, as well as capable defenders.

Furthermore, firing Acta is injust because it excuses the organization’s ability to consistently scout and develop its own talent. Of the 25 players on the current roster, only six were drafted or initially signed and developed by Cleveland (Kipnis, Allen, Sipp, Pestano, Hernandez, Hermann). And of those six, really only two or three of them are plus assets for the team’s plans moving forward. It is simply impossible for the Tribe to be competitive if they can’t produce their own homegrown talent. Relying on trades, some of which have surely been wildly successful, won’t always work, as you can’t win every swap.

Call it public relations damage control if you wish, but the bottom line is the CEO just came out publicly and said that Acta isn’t in any danger of losing his job. Finally, Acta gets an unfair shake from Tribe fans because he’s perceived as subdued, even bland. Any assertions for him to lose his job are just being made as a knee-jerk reaction to the unfortunate second-half nosedive.

Verdict: Right on, Acta has lost control of his team and the only move is to clean house and start fresh with a new voice. He’s never had a winning season and simply blaming the second consecutive post-All Star break swoon on a bad hand is irresponsible; this team has its holes, but it’s not 4-21 bad.

Zeke Carrera should start in left field the rest of 2012

Right on: Given the competition on the 40-man roster that Carrera currently faces for playing time in left field, the only beneficial move is to give the 25 year old Venezuelan a chance to prove himself. Brent Lillibridge, Shelley Duncan, and Vinnie Rottino are all journeymen, who offer little more than bench filler. Therefore, in no way should they siphon playing time from a player who very well may be part of the long-term solution in left field. Even though it’s only been 53 at-bats, Zeke has a .321 batting average, after hitting .294 in 394 at-bats in Columbus this season.

Carrera offers the Indians a much-needed injection of speed, as their middle-of-the-road team steals total of 82 could use a speedster to put the pressure on opposing defenses. He already has three swipes with the big league club, after racking up 26 stolen bags with the Clippers. With speed and the ability to lay down a bunt, Cleveland could only stand to gain by seeing what they have in Carrera by playing him in left the last several weeks of the season. He’s the only left field option with any chance of long-term starting potential, and even though some are skeptical about his ability to contribute on an everyday basis, he’s climbed every ladder of the minors to earn a shot after going undrafted.

If the team’s brass thought a player like Tim Fedroff was ready, then he’d already be with the Indians. Remember, Matt LaPorta has also posted all-world numbers against triple-A pitching, too.

Way off: Carrera supporters must remember that this is the same player who hit .243 last season in 202 at-bats with the Tribe. He offers little in the way of offensive pop, evidenced by his soft .349 career major league slugging percentage. The lack of power from the corner infielders, as well as missing Hafner in the designated hitter spot, necessitates that whoever is playing in left has some power. Also, he’s yet another lefty, and Cleveland desperately needs to foster success from its right-handed options, namely Shelley Duncan, who has the pop the team needs.

Duncan has eleven homers in 222 at-bats, so detractors who point to his .203 season batting average must remember that he’s being expected to hit for power, not average. The real answer in left field, for the rest of 2012 and beyond, is fellow 25 year old Tim Fedroff. The Columbus left fielder has a .324 batting average and a blistering .934 OPS, painfully meriting a shot to succeed at the big league level. He’s an unknown commodity, so to lump him in with LaPorta is unfair. Carrera likely isn’t capable of doing enough with the bat to merit starting duties. One could argue that Zeke is a mini-journeyman, as he’s had stints in the Mets and Mariners organizations.

Verdict: Way off, Fedroff has done more than enough to be given a look in left field. Carrera could still be used in the DH spot, in order to give both youngsters a chance to see if they can be part of the long-term plans.

Masterson should be reinserted in the ‘pen

Right on: With the wildly varying peaks and valleys in Justin Masterson’s 2012 season, it’s clear that he still has yet to put it together as a top of the rotation starter. Not only has he not been a #1 or #2, he’s not proven himself to be guaranteed a rotation spot, with his unflattering 4.73 ERA. If it weren’t for the simultaneous calamity that has struck the rotation, Masterson’s numbers would attract much more scrutiny. The regression he’s showing this season is alarming for a 27 year old in his 5^th major league season. If he hasn’t harnessed it yet, when will he? The biggest reason he needs bumped to the bullpen is his difficulty against left-handed hitters.

A quick look at walks and lefty-righty splits:

2012
70 BB in 161.2 IP
vs LH - .284/ .377/.440
vs RH - .227/ .305/ .303

2011
65 BB in 216 IP
vs LH - .286/ .331/ .415
vs RH - .209/ .300/ .259

Masterson’s WAR is 2.1 in 2012, compared to 4.9 in 2011. He’s already allowed more walks this season in much fewer innings pitched, as he has issued the 5^th-most free passes in the American League. He also allows way too many steals (19, 3^rd most in the AL), so the best way to utilize Masterson would be to use him to shore up some of the middle and long relief issues in the bullpen. He could fortify an already impressive component to the team, giving the Tribe one true lockdown strength, led by Perez, Pestano, Smith, Allen, and Rogers.

Finally, any argument excusing the excessive walks as a byproduct of the sharp movement on his pitches is off-base because the bottom line is he’s giving up way too many walks, as well as the 6^th- most earned runs in the American League (85). He has experience in the bullpen, and placing him there would give him the best chance to disguise his struggles against lefties.

Way off: It would be absurd for a team that is desperately starved for starting pitching to relocate Masterson in the bullpen. They already are forced to regularly start Corey Kluber; who takes Masterson’s spot? Chris Seddon? With Josh Tomlin undergoing Tommy John surgery and Carlos Carassco coming off the same procedure, the starting rotation has major question marks heading into 2013, so moving Masterson to an already capable bullpen only makes the rotation that much weaker. Fans must remember that this is the same Masterson that has a 3.21 ERA in 2011 and a resounding complete game victory against a potent Cincinnati Reds lineup to cap off a sweep of the intrastate rivals.

Observers still seem to not grasp that Masterson has more than the usual amount of movement on his pitches, so to treat him like a straightforward pitch-to-contact pitcher, like Zach McAllister is erroneous. Masterson relies on sharp movement on his sinker and slider to induce ground balls; therefore, as a result, he will throw more balls than McAllister. Sure, something has obviously been off about this season for Masterson, but clearly the front office believes that the troubles very well could stem from issues with former pitching coach Scott Radinsky.

Quitting on a 27 year old pitcher with the potential and flashes of dominance he has shown is shortsighted, especially if the team plans to part ways with Ubaldo Jimenez. It will be awfully difficult to convince Masterson to sign a long term deal with Cleveland if he’s being relegated to the bullpen on a team that is clearly in need of rebuilding, or at the very least some significant retooling.

Verdict: Right on, the issues against left-handed hitters, coupled with the severe regression this season dictate that Masterson would be better served in the bullpen. Give Scott Barnes a handful of audition starts over the last month and see if he could be an answer moving forward.

Contact Adam via e-mail by dropping him a line at amcgavin@kent.edu.