Nats' Acta Still Manager, But GM Fails to Convince

We've parsed front office statements in this space before, but today's Washington Post report on the future of Nationals' manager Manny Acta had holes big enough to accomodate a Metro train.

First, here's the report from the Post:

When a Fox Sports report on Saturday suggested that Acta's firing was imminent -- and already decided -- Acta spoke immediately thereafter with acting general manager Mike Rizzo and President Stan Kasten, who assured him that the report was inaccurate. But even that assurance does not solidify Acta's job, which now survives on a series-by-series basis.

"It's certainly uncomfortable with the speculation," Rizzo said. "Names are being bandied about of replacements and we haven't even discussed it with the current manager. He's still our manager. We support him. And all the reports that happened over the weekend, I don't know where those reports come from."

I'll ignore the part where Rizzo and Kasten told Manny the weekend report that Acta's firing is imminent was "inaccurate". That's not a direct quote.

Here are the quotes of importance.

"He's still our manager." Yes, Mr. Rizzo, that is correct.

"And all the reports that happened over the weekend, I don't know where those reports come from." What an odd way to say that. Did Rizzo mean "We're still trying to find the leak"? Why didn't he say something that directly refuted the Fox Sports report?

If they're really going to fire him, they need to do it. If they're not really going to fire him, try this out instead:

"Manny Acta will manage our team so long as he is making sound decisions on the field, helping our young players develop their talents and improve, and displaying the work ethic and attitude that we want to instill in our young franchise. He is meeting those expectations right now, and we will not remove him this season unless circumstances change. Consistency and continuity are important as we build a contending team around our nucleus of talent. Acta is an important part of that process."

You want fans? You want people to ride out this putrid team with you? Give them hope that you have a real plan. Replacing Acta for the sake of replacing Acta is not the answer, and in the long run will give the impression that the front office is flailing. Staying with him gives the impression that this season is just necessary pain on the way to playoff appearances.

Maybe the franchise will make its first wise decision since moving to D.C.