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Cat-loving chihuahua suckles seven abandoned kittens
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Patrick McManamon:
For your Saturday entertainment …
Akron Zips:
Hitchens leads Zips in second-half comeback
Tribe Matters:
Seven players added to Tribe’s 40-man roster
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Holmgren expresses interest in Browns position
Kent State Sports:
Kent State blown out in second half, loses to Temple 13-47
Cleveland Cavaliers:
Gameblog: Cavs at Indiana Pacers – Here’s to LBJ and Free Throws
Buckeye Blogging:
OSU – Michigan college football rivals meet in Baghdad
Varsity Letters:
Twinsburg’s Harris play basketball for Miami U
All Da King's Men:
Headed For Disaster
Blog of Mass Destruction:
Will Health Care Reform Pass?
Akron Law Café:
Federal Judge Declares DOMA Unconstitutional
See Jane Style:
Vintage Chic
Car Chase:
TIME TO GET YOUR COLLECTOR CARS WINTERIZED
Let's Talk Real Estate:
Silverdome Potentially SOLD!
Ohio Travels with Betty:
George is looking for a Thanksgiving buffet in Akron.
Sound Check:
Steely Dan Plays "The Royal Scam" at E.J. Thomas Hall
HRLite House:
Colloquium at University of Akron
Akron Gamer:
Nintendo's Mario endures even as games come and go
By Patrick McManamon
Beacon Journal sports writer
POSTED: 07:02 p.m. EDT, Oct 17, 2009
The Indians' managerial search continues, with one overriding concern: Find a manager who can deal with the fact that the team might not be that good in the short term.
The Indians won't say this out loud, of course. Nor should they. Anything can happen, especially in the American League Central.
But the tea leaves for 2010 — especially the pitching tea leaves — do not predict a pennant-winning team.
Part of the reason the Indians made the decision they did with Eric Wedge was what lay ahead.
With fans already not embracing Wedge, he clearly would have taken the brunt of anger and frustration in 2010.
A new manager can portray the situation for what it is: A fresh start with high hopes but realistic expectations.
General Manager Mark Shapiro and Assistant GM Chris Antonetti spent the final two or three weeks of the season on the managerial hot line, listening to ideas and suggestions.
That resulted in a list of 30 being drawn up. Conversations around the league led to new names being added, others being reaffirmed.
Phone ''interviews'' were conducted with eight to 10 of the 30, with a list of final candidates being brought to Cleveland whittled down to no more than five.
The Indians aren't releasing names of candidates until they interview in Cleveland — except to say that there is one internal candidate.
That could be Torey Lovullo or it could be Travis Fryman.
Former Indians manager Mike Hargrove would be a popular choice. He still lives in Richfield, and everyone knows what he accomplished in the 1990s.
Hargrove was on WKNR on Friday and said he had had informal discussions with Shapiro, but it's not known if he'll be in the final five.
Reports broke last week that former Washington Nationals manager Manny Acta was interviewed via phone. This might be one of the names Shapiro added, because Acta's won-lost record in Washington is pretty miserable (158-252). He interviewed for the Astros job in Houston on Friday.
One interesting name to consider worked in Akron in 2006 and 2007: Tim Bogar.
Bogar, 45, is one of the ''hot'' candidates in baseball right now. Houston will interview him Monday.
He seems like one of those classic guys who weren't great players but are good managers because they understand the game.
He also has a resume that would seem to fit Shapiro's criteria.
For one, Shapiro knows him and is familiar with him.
Bogar managed the Aeros in 2006 and 2007; Akron reached the Eastern League championship both seasons.
In 2006, he was named the Minor League Manager of the Year. That same year, Baseball America said he was the best managerial prospect in the minor leagues.
He spent 2008 as a coach with the Tampa Bay Rays, working for a team that reached the World Series.
Last season, he was the first base coach for the Boston Red Sox.
At the least, he seems like a very intriguing candidate.
He also could be the kind of candidate to emerge and be a viable candidate for the job.
Quinn and the holdout
What would have happened to Brady Quinn had his rookie contract not resulted in a holdout?
Quinn did not report to camp on time because of wrangling between his agent, Tom Condon, and the Browns to ensure Quinn would be compensated properly should he become the starter.
That's an approach. But there are agents who steadfastly maintain that the worst thing for a rookie quarterback is to hold out because it sets him back and gives someone else a chance.
The holdout didn't change Quinn's rookie season — the Browns were pretty determined he not play as a rookie — but it did give Derek Anderson a chance to prove himself.
That was the year that Charlie Frye started the opener, then was traded. Anderson replaced him in the second game and went on to throw 29 touchdowns.
Because he had such a strong season, Anderson was named the starter for 2008. When the team struggled, Quinn replaced Anderson for two games before breaking his finger.
The Browns then hired coach Eric Mangini, who brought in a new staff that looked at the film of 2007 and 2008 and was very impressed by what they saw of Anderson.
Rather than give Quinn the starting job in the offseason, Mangini decided to hold a competition.
Quinn won the job, then struggled before being replaced after 10 quarters.
He now is openly admitting he might like a trade and a fresh start.
Quinn clearly has deserved better from the Browns — especially because he's being judged after 10 quarters. They weren't good quarters, and he did not help his cause much.
But he now finds himself in a spot where he has no chance to get on the field even after Anderson completed two passes for 23 yards in a game.
Can anyone blame Quinn for wanting out?
Consider the Detroit Lions with Matt Stafford this season. The original intent was not to have Stafford play. But he got to camp on time, played pretty well and earned the starting job.
With no holdout, Quinn might have been able to impress the same way and he might have been the guy to replace Frye.
Nobody knows what would have happened, but in that preseason neither Frye nor Anderson did well. Frye won the job by default, and Anderson was named starter because Quinn had not been with the team long enough.
Anderson took the opportunity and ''threw'' with it, and because of that, he was given an equal opportunity to win the job this preseason.
The decision to hold out might have been the cardinal sin for a first-round quarterback: Never allow the team to see someone else.
The best way to do that: Get to camp on time.
Doing so ensures the first-round status will be recognized. If things go as expected, the money eventually will take care of itself.
On the Zips
There are many ways a coach can learn about a team.
Keith Dambrot of the University of Akron simply asks his basketball players.
Dambrot takes a poll of his players about several different aspects of the team — including best teammate, shooter, leader, passer, defender and rebounder. Players vote for the top three in each category and cannot vote for themselves.
He then asks for a starting lineup, and next three best players.
Dambrot was not revealing specific information about this year's vote, but he did talk in generalities about how the survey helps him.
The most talented player, for instance, is not always viewed as the best teammate.
He remembered one season when the team's best player did not receive a vote for best leader or teammate.
''That tells you that the guys think he's fooling them,'' Dambrot said.
He communicated that thought directly to the player.
''That's why I do the survey,'' he said. ''He was a good kid, a real good kid, don't me wrong. But . . . ''
How players view their teammates is important. Dambrot started doing the survey when he arrived at UA.
''I use the results to say, 'These are areas where you have to get better,' '' he said. ''I try to do it in a positive way, say, 'I'm not trying to be nasty, but this is how you're viewed.'
''A lot of times we think we're viewed in one way, us included, but we're not.''
Zeke's beginning
Freshman Zeke Marshall had what Dambrot called ''a rough month'' leading up to the start of practice.
Marshall sprained an ankle, then reinjured it after it had healed to the point that he could play. If the season started Saturday instead of practice, Marshall would not have been in the starting lineup.
''He's practiced but he's hobbled,'' Dambrot said. ''And now he doesn't have success because he's hobbled.''
Which increases the challenge for a freshman — even one who is as highly touted as Marshall.
''We got him out there,'' Dambrot said, ''but his learning curve slowed down a little bit. On top of it, not being healthy he can't really jump and run like he's used to. It makes it really difficult.''
Dambrot knows that Marshall's arrival raised expectations for the Zips. Add a talented 7-footer to a team that won 23 games and the MAC and things should get better.
But he called expectations for Marshall ''a little unrealistic.''
''This is a whole new world for him,'' Dambrot said. ''He's not used to the grind. Now he's going through the grind injured. He's not very strong to begin with.
''Now when you're injured and you're not very strong and you're not used to the grind and you're 7-foot tall, it makes it difficult.''
None of this, though, changes the reality that the Zips should compete to win the MAC this season.
The upside: Dambrot said before the ankle injury, Marshall was doing really well.
Random thoughts
• Has there ever been a milder, more sedate buildup to a Browns-Steelers game?
• Yet one more indication of the state of a rivalry that really no longer exists except in the minds of folks who cannot accept reality. How can there be a rivalry when a team has won 11 times in a row and 17 out of 18?
• It's understandable why Quinn would want to be traded, but it's even more understandable why the Browns don't want to trade him. Quarterbacks get hurt in the NFL, and it's vital to have a good backup. Especially if he's affordable like Quinn.
• Too, how can anyone expect Quinn to be traded when the New York Jets already have a quarterback?
• It's also good to hear the Browns say they are not going to trade Joshua Cribbs. Trade him and there's no talent left. Not that there's much now anyway.
• Cribbs is in a weird spot. He has seen Kellen Winslow and Braylon Edwards finagle their way out of town by complaining and acting improperly. Cribbs has done everything right this season. Problem is, he has no leverage, thanks to the six-year extension he signed that runs through 2012.
• On the one hand, today's Browns game looks like a gigantic mismatch.
• Seriously . . . if the Browns scored six against the Buffalo Bills, what do they expect to get done in Pittsburgh?
• On the other hand, the notion of the Browns winning sounds just preposterous enough that it could happen in the NFL. Likely? No. Possible. Maybe.
• The flag thrown on Corey Williams for roughing the passer in Buffalo seemed ridiculous live. That he was fined $7,500 for the play seems really excessive for what looked like a hard tackle in the end zone.
• Indians outfielder/first baseman Matt LaPorta has two surgeries in one day, on his toe and on his hip.
• That does not seem good.
• No matter how you cut it by saying he'll be back and all that, two surgeries in one day does not seem close to optimum.
• America Online did a poll of favorite TV show songs. M*A*S*H, Friends, Rawhide, Gunsmoke, Andy Griffith . . . all included. My question: How in the world can any kind of poll like this not include The Dick Van Dyke Show?
• Da-da-da, da-da-da . . . how they changed the opening so Dick did not fall over the ottoman but stepped around it. Come on . . . any respectable poll like that has to have that song.
• John Wooden turned 99 this past week. Among his inspirational statements dug up by the Los Angeles Times: ''The main ingredient of stardom is the rest of the team.''
And: ''A coach is someone who can give correction without causing resentment.''
• Until next time . . . there you have it.
Patrick McManamon can be reached at pmcmanamon@thebeaconjournal.com. Read his blog at http://www.ohio.com/mcmanamon/. Follow Pat on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/patmcmanamon.
The Indians' managerial search continues, with one overriding concern: Find a manager who can deal with the fact that the team might not be that good in the short term.
The Indians won't say this out loud, of course. Nor should they. Anything can happen, especially in the American League Central.
But the tea leaves for 2010 — especially the pitching tea leaves — do not predict a pennant-winning team.
Part of the reason the Indians made the decision they did with Eric Wedge was what lay ahead.
With fans already not embracing Wedge, he clearly would have taken the brunt of anger and frustration in 2010.
A new manager can portray the situation for what it is: A fresh start with high hopes but realistic expectations.
General Manager Mark Shapiro and Assistant GM Chris Antonetti spent the final two or three weeks of the season on the managerial hot line, listening to ideas and suggestions.
That resulted in a list of 30 being drawn up. Conversations around the league led to new names being added, others being reaffirmed.
Phone ''interviews'' were conducted with eight to 10 of the 30, with a list of final candidates being brought to Cleveland whittled down to no more than five.
The Indians aren't releasing names of candidates until they interview in Cleveland — except to say that there is one internal candidate.
That could be Torey Lovullo or it could be Travis Fryman.
Former Indians manager Mike Hargrove would be a popular choice. He still lives in Richfield, and everyone knows what he accomplished in the 1990s.
Hargrove was on WKNR on Friday and said he had had informal discussions with Shapiro, but it's not known if he'll be in the final five.
Reports broke last week that former Washington Nationals manager Manny Acta was interviewed via phone. This might be one of the names Shapiro added, because Acta's won-lost record in Washington is pretty miserable (158-252). He interviewed for the Astros job in Houston on Friday.
One interesting name to consider worked in Akron in 2006 and 2007: Tim Bogar.
Bogar, 45, is one of the ''hot'' candidates in baseball right now. Houston will interview him Monday.
He seems like one of those classic guys who weren't great players but are good managers because they understand the game.
He also has a resume that would seem to fit Shapiro's criteria.
For one, Shapiro knows him and is familiar with him.
Bogar managed the Aeros in 2006 and 2007; Akron reached the Eastern League championship both seasons.
In 2006, he was named the Minor League Manager of the Year. That same year, Baseball America said he was the best managerial prospect in the minor leagues.
He spent 2008 as a coach with the Tampa Bay Rays, working for a team that reached the World Series.
Last season, he was the first base coach for the Boston Red Sox.
At the least, he seems like a very intriguing candidate.
He also could be the kind of candidate to emerge and be a viable candidate for the job.
Quinn and the holdout
What would have happened to Brady Quinn had his rookie contract not resulted in a holdout?
Quinn did not report to camp on time because of wrangling between his agent, Tom Condon, and the Browns to ensure Quinn would be compensated properly should he become the starter.
That's an approach. But there are agents who steadfastly maintain that the worst thing for a rookie quarterback is to hold out because it sets him back and gives someone else a chance.
The holdout didn't change Quinn's rookie season — the Browns were pretty determined he not play as a rookie — but it did give Derek Anderson a chance to prove himself.
That was the year that Charlie Frye started the opener, then was traded. Anderson replaced him in the second game and went on to throw 29 touchdowns.
Because he had such a strong season, Anderson was named the starter for 2008. When the team struggled, Quinn replaced Anderson for two games before breaking his finger.
The Browns then hired coach Eric Mangini, who brought in a new staff that looked at the film of 2007 and 2008 and was very impressed by what they saw of Anderson.
Rather than give Quinn the starting job in the offseason, Mangini decided to hold a competition.
Quinn won the job, then struggled before being replaced after 10 quarters.
He now is openly admitting he might like a trade and a fresh start.
Quinn clearly has deserved better from the Browns — especially because he's being judged after 10 quarters. They weren't good quarters, and he did not help his cause much.
But he now finds himself in a spot where he has no chance to get on the field even after Anderson completed two passes for 23 yards in a game.
Can anyone blame Quinn for wanting out?
Consider the Detroit Lions with Matt Stafford this season. The original intent was not to have Stafford play. But he got to camp on time, played pretty well and earned the starting job.
With no holdout, Quinn might have been able to impress the same way and he might have been the guy to replace Frye.
Nobody knows what would have happened, but in that preseason neither Frye nor Anderson did well. Frye won the job by default, and Anderson was named starter because Quinn had not been with the team long enough.
Anderson took the opportunity and ''threw'' with it, and because of that, he was given an equal opportunity to win the job this preseason.
The decision to hold out might have been the cardinal sin for a first-round quarterback: Never allow the team to see someone else.
The best way to do that: Get to camp on time.
Doing so ensures the first-round status will be recognized. If things go as expected, the money eventually will take care of itself.
On the Zips
There are many ways a coach can learn about a team.
Keith Dambrot of the University of Akron simply asks his basketball players.
Dambrot takes a poll of his players about several different aspects of the team — including best teammate, shooter, leader, passer, defender and rebounder. Players vote for the top three in each category and cannot vote for themselves.
He then asks for a starting lineup, and next three best players.
Dambrot was not revealing specific information about this year's vote, but he did talk in generalities about how the survey helps him.
The most talented player, for instance, is not always viewed as the best teammate.
He remembered one season when the team's best player did not receive a vote for best leader or teammate.
''That tells you that the guys think he's fooling them,'' Dambrot said.
He communicated that thought directly to the player.
''That's why I do the survey,'' he said. ''He was a good kid, a real good kid, don't me wrong. But . . . ''
How players view their teammates is important. Dambrot started doing the survey when he arrived at UA.
''I use the results to say, 'These are areas where you have to get better,' '' he said. ''I try to do it in a positive way, say, 'I'm not trying to be nasty, but this is how you're viewed.'
''A lot of times we think we're viewed in one way, us included, but we're not.''
Zeke's beginning
Freshman Zeke Marshall had what Dambrot called ''a rough month'' leading up to the start of practice.
Marshall sprained an ankle, then reinjured it after it had healed to the point that he could play. If the season started Saturday instead of practice, Marshall would not have been in the starting lineup.
''He's practiced but he's hobbled,'' Dambrot said. ''And now he doesn't have success because he's hobbled.''
Which increases the challenge for a freshman — even one who is as highly touted as Marshall.
''We got him out there,'' Dambrot said, ''but his learning curve slowed down a little bit. On top of it, not being healthy he can't really jump and run like he's used to. It makes it really difficult.''
Dambrot knows that Marshall's arrival raised expectations for the Zips. Add a talented 7-footer to a team that won 23 games and the MAC and things should get better.
But he called expectations for Marshall ''a little unrealistic.''
''This is a whole new world for him,'' Dambrot said. ''He's not used to the grind. Now he's going through the grind injured. He's not very strong to begin with.
''Now when you're injured and you're not very strong and you're not used to the grind and you're 7-foot tall, it makes it difficult.''
None of this, though, changes the reality that the Zips should compete to win the MAC this season.
The upside: Dambrot said before the ankle injury, Marshall was doing really well.
Random thoughts
• Has there ever been a milder, more sedate buildup to a Browns-Steelers game?
• Yet one more indication of the state of a rivalry that really no longer exists except in the minds of folks who cannot accept reality. How can there be a rivalry when a team has won 11 times in a row and 17 out of 18?
• It's understandable why Quinn would want to be traded, but it's even more understandable why the Browns don't want to trade him. Quarterbacks get hurt in the NFL, and it's vital to have a good backup. Especially if he's affordable like Quinn.
• Too, how can anyone expect Quinn to be traded when the New York Jets already have a quarterback?
• It's also good to hear the Browns say they are not going to trade Joshua Cribbs. Trade him and there's no talent left. Not that there's much now anyway.
• Cribbs is in a weird spot. He has seen Kellen Winslow and Braylon Edwards finagle their way out of town by complaining and acting improperly. Cribbs has done everything right this season. Problem is, he has no leverage, thanks to the six-year extension he signed that runs through 2012.
• On the one hand, today's Browns game looks like a gigantic mismatch.
• Seriously . . . if the Browns scored six against the Buffalo Bills, what do they expect to get done in Pittsburgh?
• On the other hand, the notion of the Browns winning sounds just preposterous enough that it could happen in the NFL. Likely? No. Possible. Maybe.
• The flag thrown on Corey Williams for roughing the passer in Buffalo seemed ridiculous live. That he was fined $7,500 for the play seems really excessive for what looked like a hard tackle in the end zone.
• Indians outfielder/first baseman Matt LaPorta has two surgeries in one day, on his toe and on his hip.
• That does not seem good.
• No matter how you cut it by saying he'll be back and all that, two surgeries in one day does not seem close to optimum.
• America Online did a poll of favorite TV show songs. M*A*S*H, Friends, Rawhide, Gunsmoke, Andy Griffith . . . all included. My question: How in the world can any kind of poll like this not include The Dick Van Dyke Show?
• Da-da-da, da-da-da . . . how they changed the opening so Dick did not fall over the ottoman but stepped around it. Come on . . . any respectable poll like that has to have that song.
• John Wooden turned 99 this past week. Among his inspirational statements dug up by the Los Angeles Times: ''The main ingredient of stardom is the rest of the team.''
And: ''A coach is someone who can give correction without causing resentment.''
• Until next time . . . there you have it.
Patrick McManamon can be reached at pmcmanamon@thebeaconjournal.com. Read his blog at http://www.ohio.com/mcmanamon/. Follow Pat on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/patmcmanamon.
Comments
Click here to post your comments
Canton, OH
Posted 07:43 PM, 10/17/2009
Plus, they could get Bogar dirt cheap. . .
akron, oh
Posted 08:23 PM, 10/17/2009
Hey Mac, I think that Shapiro does not know very much about baseball talent . . . . how he got where he is is a fluke. John Hart probably had something to do with it. When Shapiro talks to guys like Acti, I know that Shapiro doesn't know what he is doing. Where do you get all of this poop about a new manager? Bogar, for instance? I am sure that Bogar would be a better choice than Acti.
r m kraus
akron
Reston, VA
Posted 08:41 AM, 10/18/2009
Quick thought on the Browns/Steelers rivalry: As Browns fans, we are all painfully aware of the record over the recent past - - but I feel that the rivalry is still strong among fans. I must be one of those who cannot "accept reality."
I'm going by memory, and just the basic "vibe" that I grew up with around my father and grandfather, but I thought the rivalry had been around and strong even in the first decades where the Browns were perennial title contenders and the Steelers were anything but. (Not unlike what we've been going through lately.)
It wasn't until last year or the year before that the Steelers actually had an overall winning record against the Browns. If you look at the standings over the years, you should find that the Browns and Steelers were rarely "equals" in the standings. That's what makes this rivalry special.
Rivalries are best when both teams are competitive, and the Browns since expansion have done everything possible to kill this one. But I think this rivalry still has some life in it.
Go Browns!
Naples, FL
Posted 09:04 AM, 10/18/2009
Can we quit with the "Quinn clearly has deserved better from the Browns"? In what regard? He held out for more cash and screwed up his chances. He started 2 games last year and 3 this year. Thats 5 starts and he had one decent game against a horrible defense. The media acts as if the coaches were totally blind during practices over the past 3 years. It's not all about game day. He hasn't earned it. The Browns perhaps deserved better from Quinn. After trading away valuable draft choices to get a guy 21 teams passed on, he holds out and has proved to have an average to below average arm and accuracy only at 5 yeards or less. Yers, the Browns deserved better!
Naples, FL
Posted 09:14 AM, 10/18/2009
From Terry Pluto:
"According to Stats Inc., Anderson has had 10 of his 84 passes dropped. The service rated 14 of his 84 passes as "poor throws." Quinn has had four of his 74 passes dropped; 12 have been rated as "poor throws." Most NFL teams use the Stats Inc. rating system.
That's 12% of DA's throws have been dropped and 17% poor throws, BQ has only had 5% dropped and basically the same 16% poor throws. But DA gets sacked less and the running game has improved because they can't stuff the line of scrimmage vs DA.
Posted 11:47 AM, 10/18/2009
It's all a matter of perspective, Pat. It was optimal for the tribe that LaPorta had both surgeries under the same anesthetic, thereby saving some cash. That ownership group is always thinking, always fiscally responsible. Reports are they even tried to repair, at the same time, a thing or two they merely anticipate will go wrong next. Progressive and proactive. Almost visionary.
Mogadore, OH
Posted 12:05 PM, 10/18/2009
The Tribe might as well hire a minor league manager since it is mainly a minor league team.
Also thanks for the tip on the AOL TV theme poll; it was interesting to read some of the comments, especially ones pointing out favorites that were missing.
Posted 05:07 PM, 10/18/2009
Travis Fryman, only clear choice
Posted 07:12 PM, 10/18/2009
GO CAVS!!!!!!! YES AND IT COUNTS GO Steelers! DA Sure is aheck of a spark!becky in wadsworth is stillhot
Posted 05:15 AM, 10/21/2009
to all the indians fans who keep bleating about how cheap the dolans are:
1) the dolans spent twice as much to buy the indians than jacobs ever spent to improve the the indians;
2) the indians under the dolans have won just as many world series as the indians did under jacobs;
3) jacobs always treated owning the indians as a business - if not, why did he sell the indians before ever winning a world series?
4) dick jacobs is just as accountable for the indians' plight by forcing the dolans to pay top dollar by bidding against themselves;
the point: calling the dolans cheap is a lot like calling a dad cheap because they get their kid an inexpensive present after paying 90% of what they make in alimony to an ex who goes off and spends it on herself.
Kandi, SL
Posted 03:36 PM, 10/21/2009
@ BCinLA
Are you kidding me?
