General Managers Mark Shapiro and Neal Huntington have a lot in common. They've spent the last two years trying to rebuild their teams, while making tough trades and feeling the sting of public criticism.
When Neal Huntington (right, with Pirates manager John Russell) became Pittsburgh's GM before the 2008 season, he was just the latest of several new big-league bosses with Cleveland Indian pedigrees. But Huntington has matched the struggles of his former boss, Mark Shapiro, with the Tribe.PITTSBURGH, Pa. -- The John Hart general manager's tree was in full bloom in 2007. Three of the GMs who broke in under Hart in Cleveland had their teams in the postseason -- Mark Shapiro in Cleveland, Dan O'Dowd in Colorado and Josh Byrnes in Arizona.
The tree has grown barren since. O'Dowd's Rockies are the only team to make it back to the postseason. This year the Indians and Diamondbacks are in last place, while the Rockies are four games out of first in the NL West.
Which brings us to Pittsburgh this weekend and another branch of the Hart GM tree. Neal Huntington worked for Hart and the Indians starting in 1998. In September of 2007, Huntington became general manager of Pirates.
Shapiro's Indians play Huntington's Pirates in a three-game series at PNC Park this weekend. Shapiro, who will relinquish his duties at the end of the season to become team president, was in Pittsburgh to study PNC Park and the NHL Penguins' new arena to see how the Indians might better use their space at Progressive Field.
Pittsburgh, like the Indians, is in last place. Huntington and Shapiro have much in common.
The exhilaration of a big-league victory last week didn't quite match the thrill provided by Mother Nature for Blue Jays pitcher Shaun Marcum in San Diego.HOT CORNER
Earthquake float: Toronto’s starter Shaun Marcum was out of Monday’s interleague game and on the way to a 6-3 victory over San Diego when things started moving in the visitor’s clubhouse at Petco Park.
“First earthquake. That was pretty fun,” Marcum told the Associated Press after the game. “I didn’t feel it until they said something on TV. The TVs were moving a little bit and I started floating back and forth a little bit. That’s always fun.”
The magnitude-5.7 quake hit in the eighth inning and stopped play momentarily.
Mound talk: Brandon Koehnke, the Indians’ head groundskeeper, twice inspected the mound last week at Progressive Field after Washington’s Stephen Strasburg and the Mets Jon Niese called for repairs on June 13 and Wednesday, respectively. Koehnke did his inspection after each game.
“I was expecting a crater, but it was pretty much insignificant,” said Koehnke. “It’s unfortunate and I’ll keep my eye on it. If these guys aren’t comfortable, we’ll fix it for them.”
Indians starters David Huff and Mitch Talbot, who opposed Strasburg and Niese, said the mound was fine.
Speak up, please: All Pirates President Frank Coonelly had to do was make an announcement, but he chose to remain mum until Thursday. Then when rumors began to circulate that manager John Russell and GM Neal Huntington jobs were danger because of their team’s atrocious play, an announcement was made that Huntington had a year added to his contract that was scheduled to end after this season and Russell had the 2011 option exercised on his contract.
Connelly added that both moves were made in the off-season. Then he gave no indication that Huntington or Russell would be around long enough to fulfill their extended deals.
Nice business.
THE RANT
How many potential Hall of Fame players have the Indians let walk away through free agency without so much as throwing a parade or producing a “we are the world” video of community leaders begging them to stay?
Let’s see, there was Omar Vizquel, Manny Ramirez, Jim Thome and Kenny Lofton. Not to mention Albert Belle, whose ticket to Cooperstown went unpunched because of a hip injury that cut his career short. Vizquel, Ramirez and Thome are still active. Lofton retired after the 2007 season and won’t be eligible for the Hall until 2012. Belle, who was not helped by his personality, stayed on BBWAA’s Hall of Fame ballot for only two years, but if he’d stayed healthy, there would have been no keeping him out of Cooperstown.
Now the Cavs are faced with the same dilemma regarding LeBron James, but the cities of Cleveland and Akron are reacting much differently. They’ve done everything but send him a fruit basket and hold candlelight vigils.
Here’s hoping he stays, but if he doesn’t the sun will still come up and the Cavs will still be playing basketball next season. It may not be great basketball — the Indians have rarely approached greatness since they let so much talent leave town — but the games will go on.
— Paul Hoynes
They have been forced to make painful trades over the last two years because of ownership demands to cut payroll and rebuild. The Pirates opened this season with the second-lowest payroll in the game at $39 million. The Indians opened at just over $61 million to rank 24th out of 30 teams. They were at $81.5 million in 2009.
In trying to rebuild their clubs, they've been criticized for the trades of high-profile players. Shapiro has taken heat for the 2008 trade of Cy Young winner CC Sabathia to Milwaukee. Michael Brantley and Matt LaPorta, the key players he received, started the year with the Indians, but were optioned to Class AAA Columbus because of offensive problems.
Last season the howls grew when he traded Cliff Lee, another Cy Young winner, and All-Star catcher Victor Martinez. Lee and outfielder Ben Francisco were sent to Philadelphia for four players -- Lou Marson, Jason Donald, Carlos Carrasco and Jason Knapp. Marson opened the season as the Indians catcher, but was optioned when Carlos Santana, the real catcher of the future, was called up. Donald, with Asdrubal Cabrera injured, is a regular at shortstop or second base. Carrasco is at Columbus and Knapp is still recovering from 2009 right shoulder surgery.
Shapiro received Justin Masterson, Nick Hagadone and Bryan Price from Boston for Martinez. Masterson, who has been in the Indians' rotation since opening day, is improving. Hagadon and Price are in the minors.
If the Indians have received a grab-you-by-the-throat star player in those three deals, he has yet to emerge.
Huntington, in his first full year on the job in 2008, traded power-hitting outfielder Jason Bay to Boston as part of a three-way deal. Only one of the four players he received in return, Andy LaRoche, is still on the roster.
He did better in sending outfielder Xavier Nady and left-hander Damaso Marte to the Yankees for Jose Tabata, pitchers Jeff Karstens, Ross Ohlendorf and Dan McCutchen. Karstens started against the Indians on Saturday night, Tabata was just called up and started in left field Friday. Ohlendorf is in the rotation as well.
In 2009, Nate McLouth, Nyjer Morgan, Adam LaRoche, Jack Wilson, Ian Snell and Freddy Sanchez were dealt by Huntington. The trades have come at a price. Through Friday the Pirates were 152-237 under Huntington and John Russell, his hand-picked manager. Eighty-six players have worn a Pirates big-league uniform in the last two years.
This the Pirates' 124th season in the NL. They are headed for their 18th straight losing season. They last won a World Series in 1979.
The Indians, a charter member of the AL, are moving toward sixth losing season in the last nine. They haven't won a World Series since 1948.
Commissioner Bud Selig likes to say that MLB's playing field is leveling. In these two old baseball cities, it's leveling off in the wrong direction regardless of who the general manager is.