Out with the Lou, In with the Sandberg? « Free Ticket Classifieds Blog
Posted by theGNUru 2 days ago http://blog.freeticketclassifieds.com
Just today Chicago Cubs manager Lou Piniella annouced that he will retire as Cubs manager at the conclusion of the 2010 baseball season. During Sweet Lou’s tenure, the Chicago Cubs went from lovable losers to annual contenders but failed to bring home the ultimate prize– a World Series Championship. Lou Piniella was supposed to be the answer to a team loaded with talent that just didn’t have that killer instinct. Lou’s firey personality and sometimes comical on-the-field antics were supposed to motivate as well as keep the players loose. During Lou Piniella time as Cubs manager, they made the playoffs twice (in 2007 and 2008) but ended up getting swept in the first round both years
Today, the Cubs are in a serious free fall laiden with aging players (and the awful contracts to go along with them). Cub fans have little to be excited about moving forward with the idea of Alphonso Soriano (19M/year), Kosuke Fukudome (14M/year) and Carlos Zambrano (18.8M/year) locked up for several more years with expensive back-ended contracts. Mired in yet another disappointing season of baseball at Wrigley Field, Cubs fans are looking for anything to be optimistic about. The only bright spots this year have been the play closer Carlos Marmol and rookies Starlin Castro and Tyler Colvin.