Cooper Ingle’s mistake against Texas lit up Cleveland’s fan base on Tuesday night, but not everyone in town wanted to turn one ugly play into a bigger issue. Ken Carman came out swinging on his Wednesday morning show, pushing back on the calls to yank the rookie from the outfield after the error.
“He’s not an outfielder by trade. He just had a brain fart.
There are people saying to bench him. I’m not gonna bench him over that.
It was a dumb thing. He knows it’s a dumb thing.
Do I need to punish him publicly and rub his nose in it?” Carman asked.
He doubled down on that point with another direct read of the situation: "He's not an outfielder by trade, he just had a brain fart. I'm not gonna bench him over that. It was a dumb thing, he knows it's a dumb thing."
The bigger picture explains why the reaction inside the organization has been so measured. Cleveland started giving Ingle outfield work at Columbus earlier this season as a way to get his bat into the lineup, not because anyone viewed him as a natural corner outfielder. He’s still in the middle of learning the position at the major league level after spending most of his career as a catcher.
That same line of thinking showed up from the dugout Tuesday night. Vogt said he would send Ingle right back out there the next time the opportunity comes up and made it clear he wasn’t going to let one play define the rookie. Austin Hedges also spent a long stretch with Ingle after the game and backed that approach in the clubhouse, pointing to his own long list of major league mistakes.
Taken together, the messages from the manager, the veterans and now the local media all point in the same direction: the Guardians see public punishment as the wrong answer. With Ingle’s bat still needed in the lineup and no better outfield options available, the plan sounds simple enough. Put him back out there and keep moving.
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