Baseball: Covering the Bases

Wedge's raw deal ...

There was quite a cruel nugget in the Indians game notes Wednesday. Filed under "Upcoming Milestones," their P.R. staff points out Eric Wedge is 10 wins from tying Al Lopez for fourth-most among managerial victories in club history.

The problem? That's no longer possible.

In the most unjustified managerial firing since Joe Torre was foolishly let go by the Yankees after guiding them to a 13th consecutive postseason appearance in 2007, the Indians announced the axing of Wedge on Wednesday afternoon. He'll finish out the season.

Sure, I get it, the Indians were a big old bust -- I pegged them to win the American League Central (and, yes, I had company, though, given my prognostication past, my praise might've been their kiss of death) -- but it wasn't all the fault of Wedge, who definitely won't be unemployed long.

Travis Hafner played just 91 games this year and, after last year's shoulder surgery, might never again be the imposing player who terrorized opposing pitchers to the tune of four straight 100-RBI seasons from 2004-07. Grady Sizemore played just 106 games and hit only .248 before they finally shut him down in preparation for elbow and abdomen surgeries. Oh, and after the season clearly had gotten away from them, Wedge was expected to keep afloat a team after club brass had stripped him of some serious talent?

Let's be honest, that's asking a bit much.

To Wedge's credit, he's making no excuses for his firing, which he knew about at least by Tuesday.

"It's been a long run, as managers go,'' Wedge told the Cleveland Plain-Dealer. "I have a great deal of respect for the Dolans (owners), Mark Shapiro (GM), the city of Cleveland and Tribe fans all over the place. I'm a big believer in being accountable for what you do. I take responsibility for this.''

That's all fine and P.C., but frankly, the general manager has to be held accountable, too. Wedge is a fine skipper -- he guided the club to two playoff appearances in his first five years, including to within one win of the World Series only two years ago. This year? Yeah, it's been an absolute debacle, but Wedge was set up to fail once Shapiro paraded out of town reigning Cy Young Award winner Cliff Lee and All-Star catcher Victor Martinez, not to mention Ryan Garko, Mark DeRosa, Carl Pavano and Rafael Betancourt.

That comes one year after dumping another reigning Cy Young winner, CC Sabathia, as well as Casey Blake.

Today, Wedge is stuck with 12 rookies on his 30-man major league roster. That, of course, is no recipe for success, considering that rookie residency is tied for tops in baseball with the equally sad-sack Orioles, Diamondbacks, Pirates, Padres and Reds. Those six teams are a combined 141 games under .500.

In seven seasons as Indians manager, Wedge, 41, is 561-569 with one AL Central championship and never finished last in the division. But last year, the Indians were a disappointing 81-81, and this season they're 65-93 and flirting with the basement (they're just a one game up on the Royals), thanks to a lifeless 11-game losing streak earlier this month. Impressively, he's agreed to finish the season.

Along with Wedge, his entire coaching staff will be let go, too. That includes a couple of former Tigers:
* Pitching coach Carl Willis was drafted by the Tigers in the 23rd round of the 1983 draft and pitched for them as a rookie in 1984 before being traded late in the season to the Reds for reliever Bill Scherrer.
* Bullpen coach Chuck Hernandez was the Tigers' pitching coach until being canned after an abysmal 2008.

As for Wedge, I can't see him being without a job for long, depending, of course, on if he even wants to get right back into managing after seven years laboring in the shadow of Lake Erie. The Astros, who fired Cecil Copper earlier this month, and the Nationals, who canned Manny Acta in midseason, have interim managers who're unlikely to stick around. I'd be stunned if both clubs don't inquire about at least interviewing Wedge, though the Nationals' status as permanent rebuilders can't appeal to him.

Also, don't be surprised if the Diamondbacks come calling Wedge, too, even though they, for some ridiculous reason, gave Bob Melvin's unproven replacement a contract through 2012. A.J. Hinch, previously best known around these parts for playing 27 forgettable games for those unforgettable 2003 Tigers, has been absolutely no savior. Hinch's players, many of whom probably couldn't have pointed him out in a lineup when he took over a month into the season, are 16 games under .500 with him at the helm.

As for the other team that fired a manger in-season, the Rockies, you better believe Jim Tracy will be back in 2010. The Rockies are an amazing 71-40 since he took over, and have climbed all the way into the wild-card lead from nine games under .500 and a 14-game National League West hole facing Tracy when he replaced Big Rapids, Mich., native Clint Hurdle in late May.