The regular season just ended and that usually means a rash of managers get fired. The first two casualties happened today. The Chicago White Sox and the Baltimore Orioles fired their managers. The Fan expected one of those decisions but not the other.

There was an obvious flaw in the makeup of the Chicago White Sox. Their sub-standard play early and the way the team tanked at the end showed a fundamental lack of character. Ultimately, Jerry Manual was the fall guy for that lack of character. It's difficult to say if that blame is placed in the correct pigeon hole. The manager is ultimately responsible for the outcome and the White Sox had some of the best talent in the league and couldn't get it done.

The question remains if anyone could have motivated that team and unless the makeup of the team is changed, the same problems may exist next year as well. The easy finger to point is toward Frank Thomas. David Wells caught a lot of flack two years ago when he pointed fingers at Thomas when it was later determined that Thomas had a serious injury.

Let's concede that Wells opens his mouth far too often. But the man has been on championship teams. Wells might have picked the wrong time to point fingers at Thomas, but his overall assessment may have been correct too. And what Wells said has been rumored before. There is no way to definitively say that Thomas is the problem in Chicago, but he may be one. He is certainly not the only one.

Bertolo Colon has the best stuff of any starting pitcher in the American League. Yet he only 15-13 this year with an ERA of 3.87. While I cringe at pointing this out, the pitcher is definitely overweight and seems to be able to turn it on or off at will. Colon has Roger Clemens stuff but not Clemens' heart.

Any regular reader here will already know the Fan's opinion of Carl Everett so we won't bother to tread that water again, but what is the true story behind Roberto Alomar? For nine out of ten years between 1992 and 2001, Alomar batted over .300. He batted .266 for the Mets last year and started at .262 this year for the Mets and finished at .253 for the White Sox.

But his batting isn't the only story. Playing second base, Alomar always had over 425 assists a year. Last year he had 349 and this year, 342 so he clearly isn't getting to as many balls. Has Alomar's skills eroded that much at 35 years of age, or has the fire gone out of his baseball heart?

These facts indicate that whomever succeeds Manual will inherit the same kinds of problems that Manual faced himself. Good luck!


What is more surprising is the firing of Mike Hargrove. The manager who was known as the "human rain delay" when he was a player seemed a good fit in Baltimore. The Orioles were at rock bottom when Hargrove started and the entire organization needed to be rebuilt. That is happening now but how can you blame the results of a bad organization on the manager who had to endure the results?

And what is sad is that the Orioles seemed to make strides this year. Usually when a manager gets the axe, his coaching staff will too and the batting methods instituted in Baltimore have made great strides. It's a shame that those strides may be sacrificed in what is probably a cost cutting move.

I agree with Hargrove when he said today: "There's no doubt in my mind the job we did this year was a good job,'' Hargrove said. "I think we were able to lay a foundation of winning players with winning attitudes.'' http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ap-orioles-hargrovefired&prov=ap&type=lgns

The Orioles finished tenth in the majors in batting and eighth in base hits. If Mora and Surhoff hadn't been hurt and Conine traded, this would have continued to be a pesky and difficult team to play. Hargrove did a good job with this club.


So who will replace these managers? Cito Gaston should be considered for one of the positions. How could a man who won back to back World Series still be unemployed?


The Red Sox match up better against the Oakland A's than any team in the American League because their strong right-hand batters offset the A's lefty starters. Every other team has strong lefty batters that can be negated by the A's big lefties. The Red Sox have a good shot at beating Oakland whose team batting is still very suspect. Red Sox take the series 3-1. Nomar Garciaparra wins MVP.

I don't see the Yankees losing to the Twins. The Yankees have always hit Radke well and I'll take Messina, Clemens and Pettitte against the Twins starting three. The Yankees play small ball as well as the Twins so the crazy turf won't be as much an advantage as it would have been against the White Sox. The Yankees in a sweep 3-0. Mariano Rivera wins MVP.

The Florida Marlins have a decent shot at defeating the Giants. The Giants do not have much hitting besides Bonds and the Marlins have the arms to shut the Giants down in a short series. I pick the Marlins in an upset 3-2. Miguel Cabrera wins MVP.

It's too bad the Cubs drew the Braves in the first series. Of all the teams in the NL playoffs, the Cubs probably match up worse than the others against the Braves. However, if the Cubs fireballers can get and stay hot, they can carry the series, but that's a big if. The Braves' pitching isn't what it once was, but they should still win the series, 3 games to 1. Giles will be the MVP.