Indians hire Tim Tolman as bench coach

Nov 16, 2009 - 10:52 PM CLEVELAND(AP) -- New Cleveland Indians manager Manny Acta's coaching staff is nearly complete.

On Monday, Acta picked Tim Tolman as the bench coach, Steve Smith as third-base coach and Scott Radinsky as bullpen coach.

Tolman spent two seasons as Acta's third-base coach with the Washington Nationals. He was in Cleveland's organization for four years, serving as minor league field coordinator from 2003-06 before joining Washington. Tolman worked with Acta for 12 years in Houston's player development system.

Acta played his final minor league season under Tolman at Burlington, Iowa, in 1991. He was later on Tolman's coaching staff in the minors.

"He's a very bright baseball mind. I feel very comfortable with Tim," Acta said. "He managed me in the minor leagues. I feel like he's a guy that can really help me. He's never been afraid to talk to me, and that is very important for a bench coach. He's also very familiar with our system, which we took into consideration."

Smith worked as an infield and third-base coach with Seattle, Texas and Philadelphia.

Radinsky has spent the last three seasons as Cleveland's Triple-A pitching coach.

Acta, fired last season by the Nationals, hired Tim Belcher as pitching coach earlier this month.

Acta is still conducting interviews for his first-base and hitting coaches. He said he is "pretty close" to finalizing those decisions.