Chicago Cubs: Ross the front-runner; how does Girardi fit in?
Multiple industry experts, according to Jon Heyman, believe that the manager position belongs to Ross if he wants it.
The big question is whether the former backstop wants wants the job. He’s a family man with young children and has a cushy job calling games for ESPN, as well as a front office gig with the Cubs.
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Ross may be the best fit since he actually played with several key players on the Cubs roster currently and many of them looked up to him as sort of a father figure in the clubhouse. He was never afraid to jump on a teammate if something needed to be fixed and that was one of Maddon’s biggest problems – he seemed complacent at times.
Back to Girardi; he was let go from the Yankees citing a disconnect between him and the young players on the roster. Perhaps even a bigger issue, many rumors circulated saying he didn’t listen to front office suggestions on how to manage the team. As we all know, the Cubs front office can be pretty hands-on with their suggestions, so there’s a question of how well Girardi would mesh.
One thing the Cubs have going for them is the fact that the roster isn’t really “young” anymore. It’s not old in terms of age, but all the players are now in their fourth or fifth season in the majors. They know their way at this point, so they wouldn’t have to worry about Girardi “disconnecting.” Nico Hoerner is the only one there would be concerns about, but the other guys can really take him under his wing there.