CLEVELAND (AP) — Manny Acta’s record didn’t overwhelm the Cleveland Indians. They looked much deeper than
at his wins and losses — lots of losses.
Acta, fired as the Washington Nationals manager in July after 2½ seasons, was hired on Sunday by the
Indians, who gave him a three-year contract with a club option for 2013. Additional terms of the deal
were not disclosed.
The club will introduce the 40-year-old Acta — the Indians’ 40th manager — at a news conference on
Monday. He’s the first Cleveland manager hired from outside the organization since John McNamara in
1990.
The Indians chose Acta over two other known finalists: Triple-A manager Torey Lovullo and former New York
Mets manager Bobby Valentine, who may have eliminated himself from consideration when he arrived at
second interview earlier this week and admitted that he not done his homework on Cleveland or the
American League and wasn’t sure he wanted the job.
Acta, on the other hand, wanted it bad.
After he was let go by the Nationals, Acta spent countless hours watching the Indians on TV. He studied
their lineup, their strengths and weaknesses. He has worked with young players before, and now he’ll get
a chance to turn a new group into winners.
"I am very excited to become part of the Cleveland Indians family," Acta said in a statement.
"I look forward to working with this talented group of young men who seem to possess a lot of
energy and passion for their work. I believe we will grow together as a team, with the ultimate goal of
bringing a championship to Cleveland and its fans."
Acta also interviewed for Houston’s opening and Astros general manager Ed Wade told television station
KRIV and the team’s Web site that they offered him the job Saturday. Acta was drafted by the Astros and
spent 16 years in their organization as a player and coach, but decided to accept Cleveland’s offer.
"We are very excited to have Manny Acta on board as our major league manager," Indians general
manager Mark Shapiro said in a statement. "After speaking with an impressive array of candidates,
we feel that Manny is a very strong and experienced leader who possesses great energy and enthusiasm
along with tremendous communication skills and a positive mindset that will command a presence in the
dugout, clubhouse and with our fans."
Acta, Lovullo and Valentine were the only candidates to have a second interview with the Indians, who did
their initial interviews by phone. The club had planned to interview Los Angeles Dodgers hitting coach
Don Mattingly and Los Angeles Angels bench coach Ron Roenicke this week.
From the outset of the club’s search, Shapiro said he would take as long as he needed to find the right
manager. He canvassed baseball people for possible candidates, whittled a list of more than 30 potential
managers down to around 10 and began making calls.
Acta was near the top of his list.
Cleveland fell under high expectations last season, losing 97 games and finishing tied for last place in
the AL Central. The club fired manager Eric Wedge in the final days of the Indians’ worst season since
1991.
Acta’s communication skills impressed the Indians, who see the Dominican Republic native’s ability to
communicate with the team’s Latino players as a positive.