Wedge And Entire Staff Let Go

The Indians today announced that the organization will not retain manager Eric Wedge for the 2010 season, which was to be the final year of his contract. In addition to this announcement, all seven members of his coaching staff have also been informed that they, as of now, will not return next year. It is possible that some of the coaches could return in some capacity depending on who the new manager is, but it looks likely that they will start completely from scratch with the entire coaching staff.

For now, Wedge and the rest of his coaching staff will remain in their present positions for the final six games of the season. The Indians will hold a press conference today with General Manager Mark Shapiro at 1:30PM, and followed by Wedge at 2:00PM.

The Indians had some last minute meetings among all members of the front office staff last night, and it was then that they came to the conclusion to make the move today to announce that Wedge will not return.

So where do the Indians go from here? There is a lot of buzz that Boston Red Sox Pitching Coach John Farrell is the leading candidate for the job. At this point, he is the clear frontrunner for the job. It was reported by FoxSports' Ken Rosenthal a few days ago that Farrell has a clause in his contract which would prevent him from seeking another job opportunity this offseason, but it is very possible that the clause could be waived in light of an opportunity for a promotional move from pitching coach to manager. If Farrell is interested in seeking the opening as the Indians' manager, at this point there appears to be no reason why the Red Sox would not let him pursue the job opportunity.

Farrell would be a very good choice. The Indians idealy do not want a complete outsider to be added to the coaching mix since they would want someone to come on board who is familiar with their philosophy. This is not a requirement as at this point they will likely explore all manager options available to them, but it is something they prefer. Farrell is a former player in the organization and was the Farm Director from 2001 to 2006, joining the front office when Shapiro was promoted to General Manager. With Farrell coming from a very successful Red Sox organization, he can also help give the Indians some new insight and views based on his experiences working in Boston.

There has also been some talk of Mike Hargrove coming back as he expressed interest in a recent radio interview of wanting to manage again. Whether or not the interest is mutual from the Indians perspective is unknown at this point, but while becoming the manager again may not be likely for Hargrove it is a possibility he could be named a bench coach for Farrell or whoever assumes the manager role.

Once the manager is named, look for Triple-A Columbus Manager Torey Lovullo to be added as a coach in some capacity, likely the third base coach. Lovullo also will receive strong consideration for the manager opening, though he would seem to be down a little on the Indians' priority list at this point.

Also, Triple-A Columbus Pitching Coach Scott Radinsky looks to be almost a given to assume the pitching coach duties no matter who the manager ends up being. Radinsky is well received in the system and one of the better pitching coaches in the minors. He also has an excellent rapport with his players, and is very familiar with every pitcher who should make up a very young staff in Cleveland in 2010 and beyond.

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