Where does Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon stand?
Chicago Cubs fans have become quite accustomed to stories regarding Joe Maddon’s status as a “lame duck” manager.
Chicago Cubs Joe Maddon’s contract was a story during the offseason, and the hot seat has reached a boiling point with the Cubs desperately clinging to a playoff spot in the final weeks of the regular season.
Before Chicago’s Friday matinee against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Theo Epstein appeared on the Cubs flagship radio station and unleashed a scalding assessment of his team’s performance over the last “12 or 13 months.”
Epstein has never been one to shy away from criticism. He was straightforward about the team’s need to shake things up at the trade deadline. And he has repeatedly said that a failure to win this season will be met with significant changes to the roster.
But each new soundbite seems to put Maddon in the crosshairs as if the veteran manager is at the center of a Cubs team that has been under immense scrutiny since last September.
Chicago Cubs: Setting the record straight
Let’s be clear: Maddon is unquestionably one of the greatest managers in Cubs history. He ranks first among Cubs managers in terms of winning percentage in the modern era. After Friday’s win over the Pirates, Maddon has 466 wins with the Cubs, the fifth-most in team history. Most notably, he was on the bench for the first championship since 1908.
He has also overseen a roster that has dealt with a number of internal changes in recent years.
The Cubs have had a new pitching coach and hitting instructor in each of the last two seasons. Epstein and Jed Hoyer have failed to improve on one of the worst farm systems in the MLB. And most of their free-agent signings in recent years have been utter disasters.
Yu Darvish is beginning to provide merit to the massive contract that he received last winter. But that has hardly made up for signings like Brandon Morrow (who had one-half of a spectacular season but has not pitched since last July) Drew Smyly, Brian Duensing, Daniel Descalso, Brad Brach, Tony Barnette and Xavier Cedeno (subscription required).
The narrative that Maddon has failed the Cubs might be unfair considering a lack of substantial upgrades in crucial areas (like the bullpen) and a myriad of injuries and other factors that have played into Chicago’s struggles this season.
Chicago Cubs: Is “Cool Joe” too cool?
Maddon and Epstein approach the team’s struggles from very different angles. While Epstein tends to be blunter, Maddon has consistently had a “no panic” mentality. When the Cubs were only able to take two of four games from the San Diego Padres, Maddon told Patrick Mooney of The Athletic (subscription required) that he merely felt his guys were playing tight, rather than uninspired:
“I could understand from watching on TV, or if you’re looking from a distance, anybody might interpret it that way,” Maddon said before Friday’s 17-8 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. “My biggest concern is that they were playing tight, so I think the interpretation for me is ‘apretado.’ Everybody’s playing a little bit too tight.
This is another area of criticism that has followed Maddon: he sometimes seems to lack a sense of urgency. That might not be the best credo to adopt considering that the Cubs are in danger of missing the playoffs.
Ultimately, the team’s performance down the stretch will determine Maddon’s fate, though he has had tremendous success with the Cubs. Maddon’s philosophical differences with Epstein and co. might mean that this is the end of the road.