■ Manager Mike Scioscia of the Los Angeles Angels called baseball's postseason format "ridiculous" because of the extra off-days added a couple of years ago to suit the sport's television partners.
After playing 162 games over 182 days during the regular season, the Angels and Yankees played eight each during the next 20 days going into Game 6 of the AL championship series, which was postponed to last night because of rain.
Los Angeles ended the regular season on a Sunday, then opened the playoffs against Boston on a Thursday.
"I think you lose a lot of the integrity of what the season means when you have three days off at the end of the season to let other teams maybe reset their starting rotation, which is an advantage of clinching early," Scioscia said.
Starting in 2007, MLB added four extra days off: one between the end of the regular season and the postseason openers, one between Games 4 and 5 of the division series, one between Games 4 and 5 of the league championship series and one between the LCS and World Series.
Fox wanted the change to avoid having the World Series open on a Saturday, usually the lowest-rated night of the week.
■ The Cleveland Indians have hired Manny Acta as their manager.
Acta signed a three-year contract with a club option for 2013, team spokesman Bart Swain said yesterday. Additional terms were not disclosed.
Acta was fired by the Washington Nationals in July.
The 40-year-old Acta, who was drafted by the Astros as a 17-year-old first baseman, also interviewed for Houston's opening this offseason. The Indians will introduce him at a news conference today.
■ Cliff Lee will start Game 1 of the World Series for the Philadelphia Phillies, regardless of the opponent.
Lee has been dominant in the postseason, going 2-0 with an 0.74 ERA in three starts. Manager Charlie Manuel made the announcement yesterday.
Lee will take the mound Wednesday night at New York or Anaheim. The Yankees lead the Angels 3-2 in the AL championship series.
Manuel hasn't set the rest of his rotation. Pedro Martinez or Cole Hamels are the candidates to pitch Game 2.
■ Baseball analyst Steve Phillips was fired by ESPN last night less than a week after the former Mets general manager admitted having an affair with a production assistant at the cable network.
Phillips' acknowledgment Wednesday of his relationship with 22-year-old Brooke Hundley was splashed across the New York tabloids for days, embarrassing the Bristol, Conn.-based sports giant.
"Steve Phillips is no longer working for ESPN," network spokesman Josh Krulewitz said in a statement. "His ability to be an effective representative for ESPN has been significantly and irreparably damaged, and it became evident it was time to part ways."
Phillips had taken a leave of absence after the affair became public. Krulewitz declined comment when asked last night about Hundley's status with the company.
■ Tony La Russa flew from his West Coast home to St. Louis yesterday to continue discussions with the Cardinals about his future as manager.
La Russa has been mulling his future since the NL Central champion Cardinals were swept in the division series by the Los Angeles Dodgers on Oct. 10. His two-year, $8.5 million contract expires at the end of the month.
■ Even before Game 6 of the AL championship series, a Web page on MLB.com was headlined: "CONGRATS NEW YORK YANKEES! AMERICAN LEAGUE CHAMPS."
Baseball spokesman Rich Levin said MLB.com prepares those pages early, and that a hacker found the page and began circulating the link on the Internet.
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