BASEBALL / ROSS NEWHAN : Fired-Up McNamara Awaits Call of Club No. 7

All managers are hired to be fired, but when is enough enough?

When does a succession of firings strip a manager of credibility and prompt him to pursue other work within the industry?

John McNamara has managed six major league teams. No one has managed more. Only Jimmy Dykes and Dick Williams have managed as many.

McNamara has been fired by five of the six--San Diego, Oakland, Boston, Cincinnati and Cleveland. He chose not to return to the Angels.

Is enough enough? Did his firing by the Indians last week push him over the edge? Is he ready to consider the green fairways of an easier and more stable occupation?

“Not at all,” McNamara said by phone. “If the right situation comes along, I’ll take it. There’s no doubt in my mind I can manage a team.

“This (latest firing) doesn’t disprove anything. I think I did a good job to win as many games as we did.

“People can talk about the firings, but how many times have I turned around and been hired again? I look on that as a compliment.

“I’ve been wanted--and not by the FBI. I mean, I’ve been in a major league uniform every year except one since 1979, and I wouldn’t hesitate to manage again if I felt it was right.

“I’d like to break the tie with Dykes and Williams and do something no one has done before.”

The Indians’ 25-52 first half was the worst in baseball and included a 7-21 June. It was a no-win proposition from the start.

Injuries deprived McNamara of Sandy Alomar in the middle of the lineup and the catalytic Alex Cole at the top, after the Indians failed to re-sign Candy Maldonado, their most productive hitter last year.

Temperamental slugger Albert Belle was unable to maintain his spring groove; veterans Chris James, Brook Jacoby and Jerry Browne started slowly, and there was little for a suddenly inconsistent relief ace, Doug Jones, to save.

The Indians scored two or fewer runs 42 times in the first half and were 11-40 when they scored three or fewer runs.

“We had a breakdown in a lot of key areas,” McNamara said. “People who were expected to hit better didn’t, and it put a lot of pressure on the younger players.

“This is going to be a good ballclub in time, but when you’re 26th (among the 26 major league teams) in most offensive categories, it gets difficult and frustrating.

“Every night, it seemed to go down to the last pitch in the last inning, no matter if we were winning or losing.”

The Indians’ commitment to a youth movement was seen in their recent acquisition of first baseman Reggie Jefferson through a roster mistake by General Manager Bob Quinn of the Cincinnati Reds, followed by the trade that sent Tom Candiotti to the Toronto Blue Jays for outfielders Glenallen Hill and Mark Whiten and pitcher Denis Boucher.

It has been reported that Cleveland personnel director John Hart, believing an already lost season afforded his young players an opportunity to gain experience, began to dictate lineups, objecting to his manager’s desire to sprinkle in a veteran or two in a bid for an occasional victory.

McNamara, fired by the Reds when he refused to accept the lineup demands of then-General Manager Dick Wagner, denied that Hart was dictating lineups. But he acknowledged that it’s difficult to attempt force-feeding at every position, implying that veterans are necessary to the process.

“The Indians have helped themselves with Whiten, Hill and Jefferson,” he said. “This is going to be a good club, but it’ll take time.”

McNamara ran out of time in Cleveland, and the clock is said to be ticking for Tom Trebelhorn with the Milwaukee Brewers and Greg Riddoch with the San Diego Padres.

Frustration and anxiety eat at all managers, and there were some recent patterns in McNamara’s behavior that “concerned” Indian President Hank Peters, a longtime friend who said he made the change to benefit McNamara as much as a club that may require the touch of a younger manager.

McNamara said he appreciated his friend’s concern but hoped one pattern continued. He said he hoped that he will continue to be wanted--but not by the FBI.

ACE IN THE HOLE

Having traded Candiotti, the Indians apparently have decided to rebuild their pitching around Greg Swindell, who also has been on the block. Peters met with Swindell’s agents, Alan and Randy Hendricks, during the All-Star break in Toronto to begin negotiations.

Said Swindell, who will earn $2.025 million this year and is eligible for free agency after the 1992 season: “The sooner I sign a contract, the better. I need the piece of mind knowing where I’m going to be for the next three years, so that I don’t have to listen to trade rumors every day and can get down to the business of pitching.”

STILL AVAILABLE

Swindell may be off the trading block, but Ron Darling of the New York Mets and Chris Bosio of the Brewers are said to remain on it, and both have prompted interest by the Angels, privately concerned that they can’t survive the entire second half with a four-man rotation--and uncertain that Fernando Valenzuela can return as an effective No. 5 starter.

Said an Angel executive: “We would be in first place and in a very strong position if our fifth starters had given us even a .500 record and the prospect of that continued reliability in the second half.”

The Boston Red Sox, with three pitchers--Danny Darwin, Matt Young and Mike Gardner--on the disabled list and the Blue Jays threatening a runaway in the American League East, are also in the Darling-Bosio-almost anyone pitching market. But the Red Sox are finding a gun at their head, meaning the price would have to be one of their three top prospects--Mo Vaughn, Phil Plantier or Scott Cooper.

THE RED MENACE

The Reds expect to rejoin the Dodgers in the National League West race with the imminent return of pitchers Jose Rijo and Norm Charlton from the disabled list, but the defending World Series champions may be more of a threat to themselves, judging by ongoing complaints about management’s failure to deal for a proven starter.

All-Stars Rob Dibble and Barry Larkin raised the issue again at the All-Star game in Toronto, and Manager Lou Piniella is believed to share the feeling that General Manager Bob Quinn, inhibited by the budget constraints of owner Marge Schott, has made a mistake by standing pat.

Piniella privately says that even a cosmetic change would bolster morale, particularly in the wake of Cincinnati’s failure to move on the long available Candiotti and the loss of the highly regarded Jefferson.

“Does this organization want to win or doesn’t it?” Larkin asked in Toronto. “I don’t think any of us have the answer.”

GAME TIME

American League president Bobby Brown sent a letter to his 14 clubs Friday, offering about a dozen suggests on how to shorten games, including pitchers working faster, hitters remaining in the batter’s box between pitches, managers signaling for new pitchers as soon as they leave the dugout.

The general reaction of players seemed to be that the letter is a joke, because it doesn’t address the key problems: Expanded TV time between innings and the refusal of umpires to call the inside and high strikes, resulting in more pitches and walks.

COMMENTARY

Baseball’s growing concern about the length of games is complicated by its refusal to move up the starting times of all games, particularly the showcase events.

The All-Star game didn’t start until almost 8:45 p.m., EDT, Tuesday night and didn’t end until almost midnight. Fans were streaming out of the SkyDome by the seventh inning--and they had paid a minimum of $47 a ticket. How many TV sets were being turned off so that youngsters and their working parents could get some sleep?

How many fans is baseball losing by bowing to the TV dollar and refusing to advance the starting time by an hour? As it is, the climactic moments of the All-Star game, playoffs and World Series are being played out when baseball’s next generation of fans are asleep. Of course, recent All-Star games would have put them to sleep anyway.

COMMENTARY II

On second thought, the real problem with the All-Star game isn’t the fans’ voting. It’s the managers. Get them and their strategy out of the game. It’s an exhibition. Let the hitters go up and whale.

Last year, National League Manager Roger Craig took the bat away from Wade Boggs in a lively situation by ordering an intentional walk.

This year, Cal Ripken Jr. already had singled and homered, and was on the verge, it seemed, of a performance that would finally awaken the ghosts of previous All-Star games. But American League Manager Tony LaRussa of the Oakland A’s, seeing only the chance to extend a 3-2 lead to 4-2 with a sacrifice bunt in the seventh inning, pinch-hit for Ripken with Ozzie Guillen.

Guillen did his job, advancing two runners, which prompted NL Manager Lou Piniella to order an intentional walk to the next hitter, Rafael Palmeiro. Exciting stuff that has no business in an exhibition game where the final score doesn’t matter.

As Ripken said, after missing the chance to test his groove against the renowned fastball of Rob Dibble: “I’d have liked the challenge.”

And how many fans--it’s “their game” isn’t it--would have loved to see it?