Chicago Cubs President Theo Epstein the following statement just minutes ago.
“Jed Hoyer and I had an all-day meeting with Mike Quade last Thursday at Wrigley Field, and Mike and I continued our dialogue with a lengthy phone conversation yesterday after the press conference. Today, I flew to Florida to inform Mike in person that the Cubs have decided not to bring him back as our manager for the 2012 season.
“When I joined the Cubs last week, I knew that Mike had a reputation as an outstanding baseball guy, as a tireless worker, and as a first-rate human being. After spending some time with him this past week, it became apparent to me that Mike’s reputation is well deserved….The managerial search process begins immediately. We are looking for someone with whom and around whom we can build a foundation for sustained success…I want to thank Mike for his nine years of excellent service to the Cubs, and we certainly wish him well in the future.”
Well, the actual statement was much longer and filled with annoying, meaningless corporatespeak, buzzwords that probably tested well with focus groups and total b.s. extolling the virtues of the man that he decided wasn’t worth keeping. So I felt it was in the interests of the reader to abridge the statement.
Don’t get me wrong, I think letting Quade go is the right idea; he had his shot and he failed. I just don’t see the point in overtly fawning over the guy who just got canned. The statement also had a lot of Orwellian doublespeak about the new manager search, and what they’re looking for with that search.
Is it Ryno time? Maybe Ryne Sandberg is right at this juncture? He’s already started interviewing with the St. Louis Cardinals. (Update: the Cubs have made it known to the media and to Sandberg is not a part of their plans)
Can Theo get Joe Torre away from his cushy job as Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations for Major League Baseball?
What about bringing Tony LaRussa out of retirement? He’s managed in Chicago before.
Paul M. Banks is CEO of The Sports Bank.net, a Google News site generating millions of unique visitors. He’s also a regular contributor to Chicago Now, Walter Football, Yardbarker, and Fox Sports.
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