Chicago Cubs Closing In On A New Manager

The Chicago Cubs managerial search appears to be drawing towards a conclusion. After a week and half of interviewing prospective managerial candidates, President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein and General Manager Jed Hoyer appear to be on the verge of naming the next manager of the Cubs. A process that began with Philadelphia Phillies’ bench coach Pete Mackanin, Texas Rangers’ pitching coach Mike Maddux, Cleveland Indians’ bench coach Sandy Alomar Jr, Milwaukee Brewers’ hitting coach Dale Sveum, Terry Francona, and Boston Red Sox bench coach DeMarlo Hale has a reached a point where the signs point overwhelmingly to one candidate’s favor.

Early Wednesday afternoon, Francona told Comcast Sportsnet New England that he will be taking the 2012 season off from managing, and withdrew from contention for the Cubs’ managerial position. Francona never seemed to be a realistic candidate for the position, though, this week was the first time that Epstein actually acknowledged Francona as a candidate. Though there were reports that Francona coveted the Cubs’ position, so the former Red Sox manager must have come to the realization the he was not a serious candidate to fill the Cubs’ managerial seat. Francona’s right hand man in Boston, DeMarlo Hale, also never appeared to be a serious candidate for the Cubs’ position.

Philadelphia Phillies’ bench coach Pete Mackanin never seemed to be a front-runner in the Cubs’ managerial search. It seems as if Epstein and Hoyer were conducting more of a courtesy interview for Mackanin, who has been a baseball-lifer without having any full-time managerial experience. The same can be said about Cleveland Indians’ bench coach Sandy Alomar Jr. While Alomar did impress Epstein and Hoyer during his interview last Friday, the belief is the former catcher needs more coaching experience before taking on his first major league managing position. Though, Alomar will definitely be a name to watch as various managerial positions open during the course of the next couple of seasons.

Then there was Mike Maddux. At one point this week, Maddux appeared to be on the fast track to becoming the next manager of the Cubs. Maddux withdrew his name from the Red Sox managerial search, but left his name in the discussion to become the next manager of the Cubs. After interviewing with the Cubs, the sentiment was even stronger that the long-time pitching coach would receive his first managing position with the Cubs. Though the feeling all changed this week, as more reports suggested that Maddux was struggling with the idea of spending less time with his family while managing the Cubs. In the end, family won out. Citing family concerns, Maddux has withdrawn his name as candidate for the Cubs’ managerial position.

Enter Milwaukee Brewers’ hitting coach–and the next manager of the Chicago Cubs–Dale Sveum. Sveum was the first candidate to be linked to the Cubs’ managerial position once news broke that Mike Quade had been fired. That should have been the first indicator that Sveum was the front-runner to fill the Cubs’ managerial seat. Though at the same time that the Cubs expressed interest in Sveum, the Boston Red Sox did the same. Sveum’s first and second interviews with the Red Sox and Cubs were nearly simultaneous, with the final conversations with both teams coming on Tuesday on Wednesday. Epstein, Hoyer, and team chairman Tom Ricketts spent Tuesday with Sveum, and that is likely where Ricketts gave his seal of approval. Sveum had lunch with the Red Sox ownership group on Wednesday and the expectation was that the Red Sox would make an offer to the Brewers’ hitting coach.

Sveum’s lunch outing with the Red Sox ended without an offer, and that cleared the way for the Cubs to make an offer. Red Sox team president Larry Lucchino told reporters on Wednesday night that the team could expand their managerial search, indicating that the team has moved on from Sveum. Shortly after Lucchino’s media address, news broke that the Cubs were zeroing in on their new manager; and now multiple national sources are confirming that the Cubs have offered their managerial position to Sveum. While nothing is official, the overwhelming expectation is that Sveum is going to accept the Cubs’ offer within the next couple of days.

Once things become official, Cubbies Crib will have a full write-up on Sveum and analyze what he brings to the table; for now at least, it will be fun to see how many fans chastise the choice because he is someone that they haven’t heard of before, or does not have the last name of Sandberg or Maddux.