World Series

So far the Series, with the exception of Game 1, has been an exciting affair, both teams pretty evenly matched.  My only carp is that it has also been pretty sloppily played on the whole.  And there have been some pretty questionable managerial moves, especially by the Red Sox skipper John Farrell, who does not seem to understand the NL rules at all.

I usually root  for the NL team unless it is the Cardinals or the Mets, but I also have a soft spot for Boston since their history somewhat mirrors that of the Cubs.  That said, the ridiculous mountain man beards and constant beard tugging after they make a good play is just plain stupid.  So I am actually neutral right now and I want the Series to extend to seven games.

What I really cannot stand, though, is the coverage by Fox Sports.  I mean, do we have to endure the endless dugout interviews while the game is going on around them, mostly about whose mother survived cancer and who was depressed but feels better now that he has hired a reliable babysitter?

Also the endless replays, some from decades ago and the interminable prattle of Joe Buck and Tim McCarver.  Especially McCarver!  Is this guy ever right about anything?  Tonight was the topper.  After Craig got on base with one out in the ninth, the Cardinals put in the rookie Wong to pinch run.  McCarver just went on and on for ten minutes about how come Napoli was holding the runner and why didn't he just back off and let him take second base and it made no sense for him to hold Wong who was going to steal second anyway and gee, whiz, why on Earth would you hold the runner in that situation, it didn't make sense.

After a while, I was starting to think that maybe this time McCarver was right until I came to my senses.  No, McCarver is always wrong.  No matter how much sense he seems to make.  That is a given.  Seconds later, Uehara picked Wong off first base to end the game, demonstrating in the process why Napoli was indeed holding the runner at first base.

Yanks Keep Girardi, Cubs Sign Sweeney

OK, maybe that's a little sarcastic.  Not that I have anything in particular against Sweeney, by the way.  I think he is a useful enough role-player on a team dominated by role-players and placeholders.

The Girardi thing is bound to be a big disappointment for fans who were looking for some level of competence on the field manager level.  Girardi or his agent played the Cubs and Yanks against each other very well and Girardi comes out with four years at a substantial raise and a job with a team that, however ancient they are and however likely they are not to be serious contenders next year, are committed to winning.

So the search continues.  I read Ricketts letter/apology(?) to Cubs fans and ticket holders.  Not much there to hang a hat on, is there?

Of the potential managers mentioned, I kind of lean towards Dave Martinez.  He has a history of winning on a very young team without any real superstars that pretty much has to recreate itself every year.  Plus he is a pupil of Joe Maddon, one of the best younger managers in the game who seems to get the most out of a team with tight payroll limitations.

The press seems to be viewing the manager search as another interim choice.  OK, maybe so, but who would take a job with that kind of restriction in mind?  I'll tell you, a guy like Dale Sveum.  Lets hope they set their sights a little higher this time around.

Dale Sveum

Readers of this blog will be well-aware of my disdain for the recently fired Cubs manager.  Enough said.  I thought he was a mistake from the beginning, and also that the idea of hiring a placeholder manager and fielding a team of placeholders was a fundamentally dumb idea.

So, anyway, he is gone, and the search for a replacement begins.  I have to assume that the Cubs have at least made some back-channel inquiries about Joe Girardi, who seems a logical choice.  I kind of agree with Gordon Wittenmyer that they need to make this move.

Sveum was undoubtedly the victim of the poor performance and lack of progress of several of the teams showcase "stars," most particularly Starlin Castro, but also Anthony Rizzo, Jeff Samardzija, and Edwin Jackson.

Sveum's demise was also the result of a deeply flawed strategy that is being implemented by Epstein and Hoyer.  I'm convinced that this whole process of rebuilding bottom up doesn't work for a major market team.  You've got to put a hopeful product on the field in order to retain fan interest.  The Cubs have not done so.  They haven't even tried, with the result that their attendance is down so much they are hemorrhaging cash.

If the Cubs want to get back to some semblance of relevance, they not only need to get a good manager and good coaches who can recognize and develop real talent, they need to start by improving the team right now with players who will contribute over the long haul and bring some measure of respectability.  Losing cultures get turned around by winning every now and then.

So right now, I would say they should make a run at Shin-Soo Choo and also at least kick the tires on a legitimate #1 starter like David Price.  Choo is a free agent, but Price would cost them at least one solid prospect.  If we are to believe the hype on some of these guys the Cubs are developing in the minor leagues, they can afford it.

Besides that, everyone knows that they are lucky if one or two of these guys lives up to the hype.  Remember Felix Pie?  Five tools, etc., etc.  Another caution about the farm system.  If you notice, with the exception of Alcantara, a switch hitter, and Vogelbach, they are all right-handed hitters who never walk.