When the Cleveland Indians fired Eric Wedge and hired Manny Acta I literally screamed “WHY?!!!” Manny Acta got fired by the Nationals last season after compiling a 26-61 record (29.9%). He has a career record (3 years) in the majors of 158-252 (38.5%)! He has the worst win/loss % of any active manager heading into the 2010 season. Looking at the Indians’ pitching staff combined with Acta’s managing prowess I see the Indians having a long year in 2010.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE MANAGER IN 2010: D-

The Indians will be depending on youth in the pen in 2010. That is because 32-year old righty Kerry Wood will miss the next 6-8 weeks due to a strained back. Wood pitched in 58 games (0 starts) for the Indians last season and he was 3-3 with 20 saves, a 4.25 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. Wood has done a decent job since converting to the bullpen from the starting rotation. In his last two years, Wood has pitched in 123 games (0 starts) in which he is 8-7 with 54 saves, a 3.87 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP. Wood has whiffed 147 batters the last two years in only 116 1/3 innings showing just how dominating he can be out of the pen. I look for him to do a good job for the Indians when he returns to health.

24-year old righty Chris Perez will serve as the closer until Wood is ready to return to action. At that time he will likely be switched back to the top set-up man role. Perez pitched in 61 games (0 starts) for the Indians & Cardinals last season in which he was 1-2 with 2 saves, a 4.26 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP. He only has allowed 41 hits in 57 innings last season while whiffing 68 batters showing just how good his stuff is. I think he will be up to the challenge for the Cleveland Indians in 2010.

26-year old lefty Tony Sipp will be the top reliever throwing from that side. Sipp pitched in 46 games (0 starts) for the Indians last year and he was 2-0 with a 2.92 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. He only gave up 27 hits in 40 innings last season while whiffing 48 batters showing how good his stuff is. But he needs to clean up his control as he walked 25 hitters in 2009 and that is way too many.

26-year old side arming right Joe Smith will likely be one of the Indians’ middle relievers in 2010. He pitched in 37 games (0 starts) for the Indians last season and he was 0-0 with a 3.44 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP. He only gave up 30 hits in 34 innings last season while whiffing 30 batters which is pretty good.

25-year old righty Jensen Lewis will be pitching middle relief for the Indians too in 2010 unless he’s needed in late relief. Lewis pitched in 47 games (0 starts) for the Indians last season and he was 2-4 with 1 save, a 4.61 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP. He has now pitched in 124 games (0 starts) in his three years with the Indians and he is 3-9 with 14 saves, a 3.84 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP. Lewis is a battler who is capable of pitching late in games and I think he will have a good year for the Tribe in 2010.

27-year old lefty Rafael Perez is hoping to rebound from a terrible year in 2009. He pitched in 54 games (0 starts) for the Indians last season in which he was 4-3 with a 7.31 ERA and a 1.90 WHIP. He gave up 66 hits in only 48 innings for the Indians last season as he was pitching batting practice most of the year. In 2006-2008, Perez pitched in 135 games (0 starts) for the Indians in which he was 5-6 with 3 saves, a 2.89 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP. Perez has great stuff so maybe last year was just a bad one for him that he can rebound from in 2010.

35-year old righty Jamey Wright will probably be the long man in the pen for the Indians in 2010. Wright pitched in 65 games (0 starts) for the Royals last year and he was 3-5 with a 4.33 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. He does have issues with control as he walked 44 batters in only 79 innings last season. He doesn’t have much of an upside.

32-year old righty Saul Rivera had a awful year last season for the Nationals but anyone that played for Manny Acta before he got to Cleveland probably has a leg up on the competition for a bullpen job. Rivera pitched in 30 games (0 starts) for the Nationals last season and he was 1-3 with a 6.10 ERA and a 1.62 WHIP. In his first three years with the Nationals Rivera pitched in 215 games (0 starts) in which he was 12-12 with 4 saves, a 3.72 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP. If he makes the Tribe’s bullpen in 2010 it will likely be as a middle man.

23-year old righty Jess Todd had a rough time last season in his first taste of the majors. He pitched in 20 games (0 starts) for the Cardinals & Indians last season in which he was 0-1 with a 7.66 ERA and a 1.93 WHIP. Todd also pitched in 44 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball last season and he was 4-2 with 25 saves, a 2.04 ERA and a 1.00 WHIP. Todd only allowed 40 hits in 53 innings last season in the minors while whiffing 66 batters as he was awesome in the minors. The Indians need Todd to take the next step in 2010.

29-year old lefty Mike Gosling is a longshot to make the Indians’ pitching staff at the start of the 2010 season. Gosling pitched in 15 games (0 starts) for the Indians last season in which he was 0-0 with a 5.04 ERA and a 1.64 WHIP. He also pitched in 29 games (4 starts) in AAA-ball last year and he was 7-4 with 1 save, a 4.81 ERA and a 1.52 WHIP.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BULLPEN IN 2010: C

The only likely starter for the Indians older than 26 years old with be 32 year old righty Jake Westbrook. Westbrook started 3 games in AA-ball last season in which he was 0-1 with a 2.00 ERA and a 1.00 WHIP. He last pitched in 2008 with the Indians as he has been recovering from Tommy John Surgery. Westbrook hass pitched 8 years for the Indians appearing in 197 games (158 starts) in which he is 63-62 with a 4.25 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP. He has 3 seasons of at least 14 wins for the Indians so he will enter the 2010 season as the Indians’ #1 starter if he can stay in one piece.

The Indians would like 26-year old righty Fausto Carmona to step up and be the pitcher he was in 2007 when he started 32 games for the Tribe and was 19-8 with a 3.06 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP. You have to start wondering if 2007 was a fluke for Carmona. In his other three years with the Indians he has worked in 84 games (53 starts) in which he is 14-29 with a 5.78 ERA and a 1.67 WHIP. Carmona was awful last season for the Indians as he started 24 games in which he was 5-12 with a 6.32 ERA and a 1.76 WHIP. Carmona gave up 151 hits and he walked 70 batters in only 125 1/3 innings for the Indians in 2009. He also started 7 games in A+AA+AAA-ball last season in which he was 3-3 with a 2.72 ERA and a 0.95 WHIP. The Indians can’t wait forever for Carmona to turn things around so this will be a big year for him one way or another.

25-year old righty Justin Masterson came over in the Victor Martinez trade last summer. He pitched in 11 games (10 starts) for the Indians last season and he was 1-7 with a 4.55 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP. Masterson pitched in 42 games (16 starts) last season with the Red Sox & Indians in which he was 4-10 with a 4.52 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP. Masterson whiffed 119 batters in only 129 2/3 innings last season but he walked 60 batters which is way too many. Masterson has the ability to be a above average starting pitcher in the majors.

25-year old lefty David Huff will likely enter the 2010 season as the Indians’ 4th starter. Huff started 23 games as a rookie for the Tribe last season and he was 11-8 with a 5.61 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP. Huff also started 7 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 5-1 with a 4.35 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. Huff has the most potential of the lefty starters the Indians have right now.

24-year old lefty Aaron Laffey might have a slight lead for the #5 starter job for the Indians. Laffey pitched in 25 games (19 starts) for the Indians last season and he was 7-9 with 1 save, a 4.44 ERA and a 1.62 WHIP. In his three years with the Indians, Laffey has pitched in 50 games (44 starts) in which he is 16-18 with 1 save, a 4.39 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. Laffey doesn’t have overpowering stuff so he has to be very fine with his control.

26-year old lefty Jeremy Sowers is out of options so he will have to make the Indians’ pitching staff or be subjected to waivers. Sowers pitched in 23 games (22 starts) for the Indians last season and he was 6-11 with a 5.25 ERA and a 1.51 WHIP. He has pitched in 72 games (71 starts) in his four years with the Indians and he is 18-30 with a 5.18 ERA and a 1.44 WHIP. Sowers has almost the exact same kind of stuff as Huff and Laffey. The Indians just can’t afford to have three soft tossing lefties in the rotation at the same time.

23-year old righty Carlos Carrasco came over in the Cliff Lee trade with the Phillies last season. Carrasco is the Indians’ #8 rated prospect coming into this season according to Baseball America. Carrasco started 5 games for the Indians last season in which he was 0-4 with a 8.87 ERA and a 2.28 WHIP. He allowed a stunning 40 hits (6 of which were homers) in only 22 1/3 innings for the Indians last season. He also started 26 games in AAA-ball last year in which he was 11-10 with a 4.64 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP. I look for Carrasco to start the year in AAA-ball and be one of the first pitchers the Indians call up in 2010 if they need a starting pitcher.

26-year old righty Mitch Talbot came over in the Kelly Shoppach trade with the Rays over the winter. Talbot started 15 games in Rookie+A+AAA-ball last season in which he was 4-4 with a 3.69 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP. His only experience in the majors was in 2008 with the Rays when he appeared in 3 games (1 start) and was 0-0 with a 11.17 ERA and a 2.79 WHIP. If Talbot doesn’t make the starting rotation the Indians might keep him as a long reliever as he is out of options.

22-year old righty Hector Rondon is the Indians’ #7 prospect heading into the 2010 season according to Baseball America. Rondon pitched in 27 games (25 starts) in AA+AAA-ball last season and he was 11-10 with a 3.38 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. He has now pitched in 92 games (90 starts) in his four years in the minors and he is 32-30 with a 3.92 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP. Rondon will likely get his first major league action at some point in 2010 with the Indians.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE ROTATION IN 2010: D-

27-year old lefty swinging Shin-Soo Choo had a breakout year for the Indians in 2009. He played in 156 games for the Indians last season and he was 175 of 583 (.300 avg, .883 OPS) with 87 runs scored, 20 homers, 86 RBIs and 21 stolen bases. The Indians would be ecstatic if Choo puts up another season with a .300 avg with 20+ homers and 20+ stolen bases in 2010. Choo made 7 errors in 124 games in RF last season while showing good range. Choo had 11 assists last season as he showed a very strong throwing arm out of RF. If Choo can tighten up his defense a bit he could be a All-Star in 2010.

29-year old righty swinging Austin Kearns will be given a chance this spring to win a job with the Indians. He played in 80 games for the Nationals last season in which he was 34 of 174 (.195 avg, .641 OPS) with 20 runs scored, 3 homers and 17 RBIs. The Indians suspect that Kearns just had a off year as he has a career batting average of .256 with a .780 OPS in 842 games in his major league career. Kearns didn’t make any errors in 54 games last season while showing slightly above average range. Kearns showed a solid throwing arm out of RF with 5 assists there in 2009.

26-year old switch hitting Trevor Crowe played in 5 games in RF for the Indians last season in which he made 1 error while showing outstanding range.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE RF IN 2010: B

27-year old lefty center fielder Grady Sizemore tried to play through a lot of injuries last season and it showed in his performance before he shut himself down for the year. Sizemore played in 106 games for the Indians last season and he was 108 of 436 (.248 avg, .788 OPS) with 73 runs scored, 18 homers, 64 RBIs and 13 stolen bases. The Indians need Sizemore to at least have his average year in 2010 for them to have any chance to succeed in 2010. In his last five seasons Sizemore has averaged 107.4 runs scored, 25 homers, 77.8 RBIs and 25.6 stolen bases. Sizemore didn’t make any errors in 92 games in CF last season for the Indians while showing good range. He only had 1 assist last season as he played with a bum elbow most of the year.

22-year old lefty swinging Michael Brantley played in 20 games in CF last season for the Indians in which he made 1 error while showing below average range. Brantley would likely shift to CF from LF if Sizemore gets hurt again in 2010.

26-year old switch hitting Trevor Crowe could be the #2 CF for the Indians in 2010 if Brantley starts the year in AAA. Crowe played in 68 games for the Indians last season in which he was 43 of 183 (.235 avg, .611 OPS) with 22 runs scored, 1 homer, 17 RBIs and 6 stolen bases. Crowe also played in 49 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 55 of 185 (.297 avg, .801 OPS) with 27 runs scored, 2 homers, 20 RBIs and 14 stolen bases. Crowe made 1 error in 30 games in CF for the Indians last season while showing outstanding range there.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE CF IN 2010: A