Acta was fired by the Washington Nationals just before this year's All-Star Game after a 26-61 start and a 158-252 record over 2 1/2 seasons in D.C. The interest shown by both the Astros and Indians seems to indicate pretty clearly that teams aren't holding his ugly record over that span against him, though, and he's quickly going to have a chance to rehabilitate his reputation now that he's got another job.
To me, the playoffs mean one thing: the wise decision-making skills of Cleveland Indians General Manager Mark Shapiro! After firing Jim Thome/snapping turtle hybrid Eric Wedge as the Tribe head coach, Shapiro has really gotten down in the dirt to find a new skipper, looking in the only place you're allowed: the big recycling bin of failed coaches who didn't do a good job somewhere else and were fired by someone else. Why they sound PERFECT!
Fun fact: That guy in the photo to the right was eating in Heritage Park and just throwing his trash on the ground. Thanks a lot for your contributions, Cy Young! Have an eighth of a hot dog!
The Indians' managerial search has apparently whittled its way down to just three names after a round of phone interviews last week. Paul Hoynes at the Cleveland Plain Dealer is reporting that the Indians have called Bobby Valentine, Manny Acta, and Travis Fryman to Cleveland for a second round of interviews and that GM Mark Shapiro is likely to name a manager before the World Series ends.
Valentine's name is the big one that's obviously going to get people talking. He's got over 1,000 career wins and a National League pennant over his 15-year career with the Rangers and the Mets, plus a Japanese Series title in 2005 with the Chiba Lotte Marines. It's been rumored that he's made it clear there are teams he won't manage for in 2010, so presumably the Indians are a job he would want.
While we await the winner of the last Division Series to be settled, a few teams that have already finished their season are in the process of trying to find new managers who can get them to the postseason next year. Two of those teams, the Cleveland Indians and Houston Astros, have interest in a couple of coaches from the recently eliminated Boston Red Sox.
The Indians contacted the Red Sox to see if they could interview pitching coach John Farrell as it seems Farrell is Mark Shapiro's top candidate to replace Eric Wedge. Well, Theo Epstein said that Cleveland can talk all they want with Farrell, but odds are he's going to be staying in Boston.
WASHINGTON -- No matter what you think of Manny Acta as a manager – and the thinking here is that like most other managers in baseball, he can be very successful with the right talent – it's clear that the Washington Nationals desperately need a fresh start.
Certainly it can't be his resumé. Riggleman was Acta's bench coach, so he doesn't represent fresh blood, in fact he was directly complicit in getting the Nationals to this point, to this 26-61 record. Before that, he was an interim manager in Seattle in 2008 and had two managerial stints in the '90s, first with the Padres, second with Cubs. Even counting partial seasons, he's only been a winner once (with Chicago in 1998).
So why? Roughly the same reason any other team fires its manager in the middle of the season – to shake things up.
ST. LOUIS -- Ryan Zimmerman, the Nationals' only All-Star, said Manny Acta wasn't to blame for the team's 26-61 record. But Zimmerman said that with Acta's firing Monday, some players might benefit from no longer having to wonder if Acta would survive.
"I think we're a pretty young team, we're a close-knit group," Zimmerman said. "Obviously as bad as we've played, as rough as a season as it has been for us, we show up to the park every day [in] good spirits and we have fun. And we look forward to getting better. As far as it being a relief -- I don't know if it's a relief but it's kind of getting rid of the distraction, maybe, for some people. ... I think for some of the younger guys, maybe it was wearing on them."
Acta's job status came into question a month ago. Now the Nats are just two games ahead of (behind?) the pace of the 1962 Mets, the only team in modern baseball history to lose 120 games. Those Mets were 24-63 through 87 games.
Well, this is a first. The Washington Nationals, who fired Manny Acta after an absolutely dreadful 26-61 pre-All-Star break record, were compelled to send an email to their fans Monday morning. We can't really tell at this point who had the bright idea to send out the letter or who actually wrote it, because it is simply signed, "Washington Nationals Baseball Club," thus, we have to conclude it's been approved by those in charge.
The letter seems to be an apology to the fans for one of worst first halves we've seen in baseball in recent memory, and it does state that the excessive losing is unacceptable.
Washington lost 5-0 to the Astros on Sunday to drop to 26-61 on the season, a mark that leaves it with an appalling .299 winning percentage, puts it on pace to finish the season 48-114 and all but assures that the club will wind up in last place in the NL East for the second straight season.
Acta -- in the middle of his third season at the helm of the Nationals and 157-252 as manager of the team -- has been the subject of speculation all season long, with FOXSports.com reporting that he had been fired back on June 13, a report that turned out to be premature.
Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a quick nod to what is ahead.
You Oughta Know ... That the Nationals may have just needed the spark of their manager's impending firing to get rolling. They have now won a season-high four games in a row, including Saturday's 5-3, 12-inning victory over the Blue Jays. What's more, the Nats have taken those four from the Blue Jays and Yankees, two teams with winning records in the American League.
"We really feel like we can win every game," Nationals outfielder Willie Harris said. "When you're losing ballgames, you get a gut feeling you're going to lose a game somehow. Things are going well for us now."
Harris was first supposed to bunt with the score tied in the 12th, but he failed. Then he was going to hit-and-run, but he failed at that, too. Finally he swung away, and hit a game-winning homer. After the game, Nationals president Stan Kasten pulled Acta aside and said something to him. Acta then told a reporter:
NEW YORK – Manny Acta was to be back in Washington late Thursday night for the first time since a report that he was about to be fired as Nationals manager.
He may not have to pack up his things.
But he shouldn't buy any property either.
Acta's job status isn't day-to-day or series-to-series, as far as can be determined, but he is certainly on thin ice. Maybe that ice thickened up a bit Thursday when the Nats improbably clinched a series win at Yankee Stadium.
The Cleveland Indians announced Sunday afternoon that they've hired Manny Acta as their manager. They also interviewed Bobby Valentine, Torey Lovullo, and Ron Roenicke, while Acta also interviewed for and reportedly rejected the Houston Astros managerial position. 
To me, the playoffs mean one thing: the wise decision-making skills of Cleveland Indians General Manager 
The Indians' managerial search has apparently whittled its way down to just three names after a round of phone interviews last week. 
While we await the winner of the last Division Series to be settled, a few teams that have already finished their season are in the process of trying to find new managers who can get them to the postseason next year. Two of those teams, the Cleveland Indians and Houston Astros, have interest in a couple of coaches from the recently eliminated Boston Red Sox.
WASHINGTON -- No matter what you think of 
ST. LOUIS -- 
Well, this is a first. The Washington Nationals, who fired 
NEW YORK – 
