Piniella musings
Well, the Cubs are about to do it again. They're about to take a manager based solely on reputation and history, and 'experience', rather than take someone who is probably going to be good for the team. They're set to announce Piniella sometime early this week as their manager, and then my heart will break for Joe Girardi. Kind of.
So some thoughts on bringing in Piniella. Well, obviously since I haven't watched him manage a lot, I can't really decide. I mean, aside from what I've already read about him, I know he was fairly decent in Seattle until he clashed with management. Then he went to Tampa Bay only to fail. But, good luck finding a manager who won't fail there.
Things I know about Piniella. He won a World Series, but that was in the early 90's. The game isn't quite the same as it was. Yet, from all accounts, he seems to be managing the exact same way. He hates rookies. He loves veterans. He loves Larry Rothschild. He's fiery. He sells his players out sometimes. He's not a very good in-game manager. He may or may not be retarded.
Most of those things seem to be bad for the Cubs. When Piniella went to Tampa Bay, they were excited to have him there and he was excited to be there. And the team even managed to pull a partial turn-around after he arrived, going from sucking all season, to only sucking for extended periods. Also, he is heavy on veterans. Which could be good, because it may mean that Hendry will go after Barry Zito. And maybe trade away Jacque Jones for somebody good.
Regardless, I guess it's a good idea to bring in a disciplinarian. I mean, sure he still manages a style of baseball that's kind of outdated, and he loves veterans (basically no matter how good young guys perform I guess), but he should at least be able to get some changes in place. Like good fielding. And hopefully he won't select a shitty coaching staff. Also, maybe we could bring in a player like Julio Lugo to play short, since Lugo, for some reason or another loved Lou Piniella.
It's just too bad that the Cubs, once again, fall into the Jim Hendry trap of hiring someone basically because he's experienced and a fairly safe bet. Will the Cubs be the worst team in the NL next year? Not likely. Will they win the NL next year? I'm skeptical. But, if they don't make the playoffs, there's no reason Hendry should have a job. And the prospect of that is exciting. So, it's kind of like we win either way. Except maybe not on the field. Which sucks.
I support Piniella for now I guess, but it's going to be hard to give him a lot of time to see this team turn it around. I'll try to not call for his job too early. And if I were Joe Girardi, who basically wanted the Cubs job last year, and I'm sure he was salivating for it this year, I would never talk to the Cubs again, at least until Hendry is gone. So, like next year.
So some thoughts on bringing in Piniella. Well, obviously since I haven't watched him manage a lot, I can't really decide. I mean, aside from what I've already read about him, I know he was fairly decent in Seattle until he clashed with management. Then he went to Tampa Bay only to fail. But, good luck finding a manager who won't fail there.
Things I know about Piniella. He won a World Series, but that was in the early 90's. The game isn't quite the same as it was. Yet, from all accounts, he seems to be managing the exact same way. He hates rookies. He loves veterans. He loves Larry Rothschild. He's fiery. He sells his players out sometimes. He's not a very good in-game manager. He may or may not be retarded.
Most of those things seem to be bad for the Cubs. When Piniella went to Tampa Bay, they were excited to have him there and he was excited to be there. And the team even managed to pull a partial turn-around after he arrived, going from sucking all season, to only sucking for extended periods. Also, he is heavy on veterans. Which could be good, because it may mean that Hendry will go after Barry Zito. And maybe trade away Jacque Jones for somebody good.
Regardless, I guess it's a good idea to bring in a disciplinarian. I mean, sure he still manages a style of baseball that's kind of outdated, and he loves veterans (basically no matter how good young guys perform I guess), but he should at least be able to get some changes in place. Like good fielding. And hopefully he won't select a shitty coaching staff. Also, maybe we could bring in a player like Julio Lugo to play short, since Lugo, for some reason or another loved Lou Piniella.
It's just too bad that the Cubs, once again, fall into the Jim Hendry trap of hiring someone basically because he's experienced and a fairly safe bet. Will the Cubs be the worst team in the NL next year? Not likely. Will they win the NL next year? I'm skeptical. But, if they don't make the playoffs, there's no reason Hendry should have a job. And the prospect of that is exciting. So, it's kind of like we win either way. Except maybe not on the field. Which sucks.
I support Piniella for now I guess, but it's going to be hard to give him a lot of time to see this team turn it around. I'll try to not call for his job too early. And if I were Joe Girardi, who basically wanted the Cubs job last year, and I'm sure he was salivating for it this year, I would never talk to the Cubs again, at least until Hendry is gone. So, like next year.
posted by Jtrouble at 11:12 AM
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