2012 Cubs Preview: Management/Intangibles

The days of the celebrity manager are gone on the North
Side, but Dale Sveum is a respectable guy who will
get things done.

New staff onboard for rebuilding process

Changes are all around the Cubs management heading into this season.  In the dugout, most of the team coaching staff has changed.  Bullpen coach Lester Strode is the only member of the staff who has been there since before 2010.  The rest of the staff consists of manager Dale Sveum, hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo, pitching coach Chris Bosio, first base coach Dave McKay, third base coach Pat Listach, bench coach Jamie Quirk, bullpen catcher Andrew Lane, and another bullpen catcher who is apparently yet-to-be-named.  

In the grand scheme of things, these coaches may seem irrelevant, seeing as it's the players who determine how many games the team actually wins.  Keep in mind, however, that these major league ball players aren't just superstars in their own world; they are on a sports team, and subject to orders of their coaches.  Unless you're name is Aramis Ramirez, you're going to listen to many of the pieces of advice your coaches give you.  Either that or you can take it up with the AAA coaches.

Plus, these coaches could also be on their way to higher positions in baseball.  Not all of them turn out to be great successes, however, as waving a runner home is definitely different than motivating a rebuilding team into the playoffs.  Not even two years ago, though, a certain Mike Quade was still to be found standing at third base whispering in the ears of Cubs players.  Like I said, not all of them turn out to be great successes.

It was time for some change down there.  I do believe that the manager has far, far more influence on the team than any other single coach.  A manager makes the calls on playing time so players want to impress the manager, while still staying as far away as possible.  It's nearly impossible to tell if success or failure of a team takes responsibility on the coaches.  For example, Jaramillo came to the Cubs widely regarded as the best hitting coach in the league, fresh off leading famous Texas Rangers teams to leading the league in category after category year after year offensively.  In Jaramillo's two years as Cubs hitting coach, it's been hard to tell the difference as the offense has stayed mediocre.  

Pitching coach Chris Bosio works with Matt Garza.

Off the field, the Cubs are in good shape.  I've talked a lot about president of baseball operations Theo Epstein and general manager Jed Hoyer; they know what they're doing in this rebuilding process and will do what it takes to get us there.  I just hope fans keep faith as this process will take time.  Meanwhile, however, they'll set us up with some interesting pieces to look at.  Third baseman Ian Stewart is intriguing.  If he has a 30-homer season in Chicago, which he is certainly capable of, people will know his name.  Because right now, the new Cubs are unknowns.  It used to be easy; Ramirez and Lee were the starting infield corners for seven years.  But Stewart and LaHair?  It doesn't have the same ring.  It will, though, and if it won't, then Hoyer and Epstein will find someone whose name will resonate with the fan base.  That's how you know the Cubs are in good hands.

A problem for this team is speed.  The 2012 Cubs will not steal many bases.  They will definitely be the bottom 10 teams in the league in steals.  If Joe Mather beats Tony Campana for the last spot on the roster, then the Cubs will be in the bottom three.  

In fact, offense overall will be a struggle on this team.  54 home runs from a year ago walked out the door when the Cubs let Carlos Pena and Aramis Ramirez walk.  Stewart, LaHair, and Anthony Rizzo are capable of reaching that number, but they are certainly not known commodities like the previous two.  Give Hoyer and Epstein credit for taking a risk on a couple of relatively unknown players.

Pitching-wise, this season will be an interesting one.  The starting pitching will not be particularly good, but at least the players in it play a role in the team's long-term plan.  This is why I would suggest to never start veteran Rodrigo Lopez or setup man Jeff Samardzija.  Last season, a lack of depth saw the Cubs need to scramble Ramon Ortiz, Doug Davis, and Lopez as stopgaps in an emergency injury stretch.  Hopefully that will never, ever happen again.  The newer starters for the back end of the rotation in Travis Wood, Chris Volstad, Paul Maholm, and more, all have a future with the Cubs.  This way all of their experience earned now can impact the future Cubs teams, and not the retirement home or another team.

Many are saying that "it'll get worse before it gets better" for the Cubs.  I have to disagree.  Record-wise, I would expect a similar finish to last year.  In the vibe of the team, however, there will be a knowledge of a bright future ahead.  The festive Wrigley atmosphere knows that better days are coming.  Last year, the desperation deals for Matt Garza and Pena caused confusion and didn't really leave the Cubs an identity.  They weren't ready to contend, but just made two aggressive moves as if so.  This year, the idea is rebuilding.  Whether or not Sveum wants to accept it (which he doesn't), that is the plan, and there will be no more desperation moves that cleans out our farm system - at least, not for a while.          

Cubs Positional Breakdown: Coaching

Manager: Lou Piniella
'Sweet Lou' has led the Cubs to three consecutive winning seasons.  The personality of a guy like Lou with his confidence, old-school style is a good fit for the Cubs after Dusty Baker completely messed up the talents that he did have.  Piniella becomes fiery at times, but the Cubs needed that to help them rebound in the drastic 2007 turnaround.  He is a numbers guy who knows who to trust and is very substitution savvy, playing guys at the right time.  A record of 265-219 as manager has gotten Cub fans behind him.  Two postseason appearance no shows can't be blamed on Piniella, as his top hitters (Alfonso Soriano, Derrek Lee, Aramis Ramirez) decided to hit in one of the worst three game stretches all season for each.  Piniella enters 2010 with a newfound depth from the minor league system and the same talent as when the 2008 Cubs were the best team in the National League (97-64).


General Manager: Jim Hendry
Hendry knows how to get a deal done.  Even after an NL-worst 96-loss season in 2006, Hendry refused to fall into rebuilding mode and instead continued to add to the winning nucleus that still remained.  Such players as Carlos Zambrano, Derrek Lee, and Aramis Ramirez could have been traded away for prospects for the future, but Hendry came right back with big signings and get the Cubs a worst to first finish in 2007.  He is also a player at the deadline, acquiring Ramirez and Kenny Lofton in 2003 in his most famed deadline deal.  While he may not be the best GM in baseball, he does know how to assemble a winning team and is not afraid to spend the money to do so.


Hitting Coach: Rudy Jaramillo
A hitting deity in the baseball world, Jaramillo has been known to take players one-on-one and analyse each swing, doctoring an individual prescription to best achieve success for each player.  Although Gerald Perry and Von Joshua were good coaches, Jaramillo is the best.  That one-on-one strategy will be key in getting Geovany Soto, Mike Fontenot, Alfonso Soriano, and others get back on track while just improving and getting the most out of everyone else.  Jaramillo's former teams in Texas were always among the league leaders in runs and any player from down there can tell you how good this guy is, notably Ian Kinsler, whose All-Star career was saved by his work with Rudy.  The 2008 Cubs were 2nd in MLB in runs, and guess who was 1st?  Watch for an offensive rebound in a big way in 2010.


Pitching Coach: Larry Rothschild
Until 2009, Cubs pitching staffs had led the league in strikeouts for eight consecutive years.  Eight!  That tied a National League record.  It took more than Kerry Wood, Mark Prior, Carlos Marmol, Rich Harden, and Carlos Zambrano to set that.  Rothschild has been very good coming out to the mound and calming a pitcher down, especially his relievers.  I think Rothschild and the Cubs were a were quicker than they should have been on hooking their starters in the later innings, I would hope that the wave has gone through them.  Kevin Gregg let a lot of games get away from the Cubs, part of the problems that plagued them early in 2009.  With a great staff of Zambrano, Ryan Dempster, Ted Lilly, Randy Wells, and the undecided 5th starter, Rothschild will once again lead a strikeout-plenty, wins-plenty group.


Owner: Tom Ricketts (and family trust)
Although I can't really grade the Ricketts versus the rest of the owners in baseball, I can tell you what an owner can do.  An owner can send a franchise in the right direction, hire the right personnel in the office, get more revenue from their venue, made additions and subtractions from the venue, just to name a few.  Ricketts has done all this and more already even before the beginning of his first season.  A new marketing campaign, extensive Wrigley Field renovations, lucrative Wrigley Field expansion projects, and a new hope in a historic franchise highlights the ownership so far.  The planned 'Triangle Building' and surrounding plaza, which will have player and fan benefits, will turn Wrigley into a state of the art facility while still keeping the old tradition that has made it famous.  I couldn't have drawn up a better time for all of this to happen, because with all of the talent already on the roster, the Cubs are ready to do big things, and right now.