The Cleveland Indians were expected to be cellar dwellers in 2011. Then, BAM. 30-15 to start the season, and Cleveland was flying high. As the season wore on, the team eventually wore down with it, losing its grasp on first place in the AL Central, and by the end of the season, its season-long battle with the .500 mark, finishing at 80-82. The 50-67 finish after the hot start really dampened the spirits of the Tribe, but there were still a lot of things that went right. By the same token, there was a lot that went wrong, since the Indians finished with a -56 run differential on the year. no comments

The Movember MLB Mustache Madness Manager bracket rolls on.  These next two combatants managed their clubs to unprecedented success only to get dumped unceremoniously a few years later.  Maybe a win in our Mustache Madness bracket can make them feel better and/or earn them another gig.

Phil Garner

Scrap Iron?  Maybe the rest of his game, but this mustache is pure gold.

VS.

Bob Brenly

You'd be smiling too with a mustache this nice... and a World Series ring that was won in spite of your own horrendous managerial skills.

Time to vote! (one vote per matchup per day)

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Expectations for the Boston Red Sox coming into the year were high; 100 wins? 1,000 runs scored? The Red Sox started out the season 2-10. Oh no! The world is ending! Cut to June-August, when Boston spent the majority of the time in first place; yay! Best team ever! Then came the 7-20 September, as the Sox plummeted out of the AL East lead and then, finally, out of the playoffs together on the season's final day.

The Movember MLB Mustache Madness Manager bracket rolls on.  Our last set of active mustachioed managers may be short on in-game strategy skills, but they've got the mustaches to pay the bills.

Bruce Bochy

His whiskers have seen better days since he moved up the coast to San Francisco, but back in his Padres heyday, Bochy's bush was amongst the best.  Also, Bochy has to get some bonus points since he has more surface area to give since he has a gigantic head.

VS.

Ron Washington

Forgoing follicular volume for style and sleekness was the best decision Ron Washington has ever made, though his World Series management sets that bar pretty low.

Time to vote! (one vote per matchup per day)

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The Movember MLB Mustache Madness Manager bracket rolls on.  Bust out your AARP card for this matchup.  Two of the oldest interim managers ever get to square off now.  Winner gets a free pass for the early bird special at Hometown Buffet

Davey Johnson

The 1980's were a pretty crazy time for the Mets, and if this mustache doesn't prove it, I don't know what will.  Well, aside from the mountains of cocaine the team consumed.

VS.

Jack McKeon

Why pay for the classic mustache-and-glass disguise when you can just grow your own!

Time to vote! (one vote per matchup per day)

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The Movember MLB Mustache Madness Manager bracket rolls on.  Surely you thought these next two entrants were glaring omissions from the Former Player bracket, but that is only because they can best do battle here.  They are also a true oddity in that they are players who were well known for their mustaches but have moved on to being a manager sans-stache.

Don Mattingly

I know he had to shave off those inferanl sideburns, but why did that beauty of a lip bush?

VS.

Kirk Gibson

I know he is going to win NL Manager of the Year, but he would have gotten my vote no matter what his team's record was if he had just kept his mustache.

Time to vote! (one vote per matchup per day)

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We're done with the player side of the Movember MLB Mustache Madness brackets, but the fun is far from done.  We now delve into one of the greatest untapped resources for baseball mustaches: managers.  Most managers don't seem to know what they are doing on the field, but at least they know what they are doing with a razor.  Two shining examples from the game today give us our opening matchup of the manager bracket.

Jim Leyland

Leyland has made several stops and had a lot of success in his managerial career and there has been one constant throughout that time, his mustache.

VS.

Eric Wedge

You know it is a good mustache when you can't tell if you just Googled an Eric Wedge picture or a young Stacy Keach.  However, even this soup strainer has limits to his powers and was eventually shaved off in the midst of the Mariners' epic losing streak this season.

Time to vote! (one vote per matchup per day)

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We're down to the nitty gritty, the most important awards of all: the most valuable player. There's a wide open competition in the American League, which is where I'm going to focus on first. Names like Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia of the Boston Red Sox, Curtis Granderson of the New York Yankees, Jose Bautista of the Toronto Blue Jays, and Justin Verlander of the Detroit Tigers are the ones who you'll find at the top of most ballots across the internet. What did the OC's staff think of the race?

Midseason winner: Jose Bautista, Toronto Blue Jays

VOTING RESULTS
1) Jose Bautista, Blue Jays (86 points, six first place votes)
2) Jacoby Ellsbury, Red Sox (72 points, two first place votes)
3) Miguel Cabrera, Tigers (62 points)
4) Justin Verlander, Tigers (60 points, one first place vote)
5) Dustin Pedroia, Red Sox (53 points)
6) Curtis Granderson, Yankees (42 points)
7) Adrian Gonzalez, Red Sox (34 points)
8) Ian Kinsler, Rangers (27 points)
9) CC Sabathia, Yankees (17 points)
10) Alex Gordon, Royals (14 points)
11) Evan Longoria, Rays (7 points)
12) Mike Napoli, Rangers (6 points)
13) Ben Zobrist, Rays (4 points)
14) Adrian Beltre, Rangers (4 points)
15) Robinson Cano, Yankees (3 points)
16) Jered Weaver, Angels (2 points)
17) Asdrubal Cabrera, Indians (1 point)
18) Dan Haren, Angels (1 point)

Up next in Movember MLB Mustache Madness is the outfield matchup of our Former Player bracket.  Since this is the final matchup of the day, we saved a little something special for last.  Yep, you guessed it, more players with mustaches.

Dave Henderson

Not only is this a fine horseshoe mustache specimen, but it also answers the question of what Michael Strahan would look like with a mustache.

VS.

Sam Thompson

We had to have one entrant that was an original old school baseball mustache gangster.  Sure, crumb catchers like this one were more common back then, but it still stands out from all the rest.

Time to vote! (one vote per matchup per day)

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The news just broke on Twitter (courtesy of the official MLB account): Mike Quade will not return as Chicago Cubs manager in 2012. He was under contract for next season after signing a two year deal (with an option for 2013) prior to the 2011 season. After another disappointing Cubs season, new team president Theo Epstein must have felt that it was time for a fresh start.

Now, the interesting part. According to FOX's Jon Morosi on Twitter, Epstein said that the new Cubs manager must have managerial or coaching experience at the big league level. Who does that immediately rule out? Well, the runner up to Quade in last season's managerial search, former Cubs icon (and current manager of the AAA Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs) Ryne Sandberg. 

With Sandberg apparently out of the running, who does that leave for the position? One name that immediately pops into my mind is a man that Epstein is familiar with: his former manager in Boston, Terry Francona. It makes sense. He has experience dealing with both veterans and young players (which the Cubs will be a nice blend of next season in all probability), is used to managing in a large market, and has plenty of experience at the major league level. I'm not saying that Francona is the perfect choice, but it at least makes sense.

No other names are immediately popping into my head. Many believed that Sandberg was the immediate favorite for the job, but with him getting excluded from Epstein's parameters, the field is now wide open for this job.

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