Hello Tribe fans everywhere!

When Indians General Manager Mark Shapiro recently signed a contract extension, much was made of the "family atmosphere" he created on the ballclub. Shapiro's intelligence and sensitivity were hailed by players and management alike.

Overall, I believe the Indians have benefitted from Shapiro's keen perception -- especially in matters that might only be vaguely related to baseball. But, watching the replay of Bob Wickman notching a victory over Cleveland on Monday, I keep wondering why the Indians traded him.

Wickman wasn't pitching poorly when the Tribe shipped him to Atlanta midway through the 2006 campaign. He just didn't have enough save opportunities. The Indians didn't receive much in return for the veteran closer, and, frankly, they looked a bit foolish when Wickman was lights out for the Braves through to the end of the season.

Now, Cleveland really needs a closer, and Joe Borowski is about the best they could manage. At his peak performance, Borowski is no Wickman, and, as an Indians fan, it pains me to see Wickman in a Braves uniform when he clearly enjoyed pitching for the Tribe.

Shapiro and Eric Wedge both say, "Gee, we thought he would retire at the end of the year." But they were wrong. The lines of communication must have been faulty.

What really happened, I suspect, is that Wickman was wounded when Shapiro made such an all-out effort to sign San Diego's Trevor Hoffman. When that failed, Shapiro came back to Wickman and signed him, but the chemistry was damaged. And, for whatever reason, the Indians chose not to repair it. That might be a harsh assessment, but I believe it to be the truth. And now the Indians are at risk, with Borowski as closer.

Hopefully, it won't turn out to be a big deal. But in a year when the selection of relievers was so thin, don't you wish Shapiro would have stayed a little bit closer to Wickman?

This wasn't the only major screwup Shapiro made with Cleveland's bullpen, either. A year ago, he let Bob Howry escape when the Tribe failed to come close to matching the 3-year, $12 million offer the setup man received from the Cubs. Today, that money doesn't sound the least bit outlandish.

When you hear fans talks of Mark Shapiro's "genius," think about Bob Wickman and Bob Howry.

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The answer to yesterday's quickie quiz: Ron Hassey caught two perfect games during his career -- Len Barker's in Cleveland and Dennis Martinez's in Montreal.

Today's quiz: Which Tribe pitcher in 1992 became the first American League hurler in 30 years to get a hit in the All-Star Game?

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-- Kevin Cuneo