This has been brewing for quite a long time now. With the report from The Athletic today claiming that Cleveland Manager Terry Francona, President of baseball operations Chris Antonetti, General Manager Mike Chernoff, and the entire Indians ownership were aware of sexual harassment claims from former pitching coach Mickey Callaway, its time for a change.
The Worst-Kept Secret In Baseball
“Worst-kept secret” is the name of the article and that is an understatement. Everyone in town knew about what was going on. Hell, even I heard rumors about this back in 2018, and I’m just some random person. What we didn’t know was that the team was covering it up.
Callaway was the Cleveland Indians’ pitching coach from 2010-2017 before he went on to become the Mets manager. Callaway is the current pitching coach for the Angels and is under investigation by MLB over these sexual harassment claims. He is currently suspended while the investigation is active.
When this news broke, Antonetti claimed that there were no complaints about Callaway during his time in Cleveland. Antonetti, Francona, and Chernoff were made aware of these allegations after a phone call from a man to the team’s fan services department claiming that Callaway sent “pornographic material” to his wife.
The Athletic’s report states that Francona, Antonetti, and Chernoff talked to Callaway about the incident while a team attorney spoke with the wife. Cleveland did its best to make the situation go away and ultimately, let it slide. It was also brought to the attention of the Mets in 2018 when he was hired as manager.
The Cover-Up
Not only did the front office and Francona know about the things that Callaway was doing, but they also lied about it. They covered it up. I mean, they tried to pay off the husband in order to make this go away. They don’t care what happened. Francona was quoted as saying,
“Tom, I’m not losing my pitching coach.”
This is just flat-out unacceptable. Baseball already has a sexual harassment problem. We are just getting past the Jared Porter incident with the Mets. This type of behavior should not and cannot be accepted. People like Callaway and Porter cannot keep getting positions of power in baseball. People like Francona, Antonetti, and Chernoff cannot be let off the hook here. They allowed this to happen. This could have stopped this but they would rather have their really good pitching coach.
The Cleveland Indians currently have a toxic environment. Even Francona’s son was ashamed of his father’s actions.
This isn’t easy, but it needs to be said. Here is my statement: https://t.co/g90fYnptH6 pic.twitter.com/hAR8tc02Zz
— Nick Francona (@NickFrancona) March 2, 2021
Francona’s “Response”
Everybody in the Cleveland organization that covered this up needs to be fired. Don’t give them the satisfaction of leaving on their own terms. This type of environment can’t be accepted in baseball anymore. It can’t be accepted in any environment. So far, Francona has been the only member of the team to “speak” on the matter.
Terry Francona: "Right now it's just not the right time to respond to some of the questions I'm sure you have. I do hope at some point we are able to, because I think we need to. Just know that we take this very very serious. And I apologize."
— Mandy Bell (@MandyBell02) March 2, 2021
The right time to address this was when it happened. Not when you are caught covering it up. To deny it when there is clear evidence is disgusting. For this to be the only word from the team since the report is even more disgusting. It would be nice if our ownership would pretend they own the team for 10 minutes and make a statement.
It’s clear that this team needs a complete overhaul. From management to the manager, this is an embarrassment to the city of Cleveland and to baseball.
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