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Well, here we are on the 4th of July 2010 and the Cubs are sitting 11 games below .500. Who would have thought that would be possible when this season started? Of course we have high hopes before every season, but this one was really supposed to be different. Milton Bradley was gone. Kevin Gregg was gone. We pretty much were back to the same team we had in 2008, right? Yes, it was the same team that went three and out against the Dodgers in the Division Series, but it was also a team that had won back-to-back NL Central titles in 2007 and 2008 and had the makings of, dare I say it, a dynasty. So what happened? The pitching wasn’t there to start the year but has slowly come around. We seem to have finally gotten a grip on our bullpen situation (for the most part anyway) and our starters have been nothing short of untouchable (for the most part anyway). So who would have thought that it would be our hitting that would be giving Lou Piniella fits? Sure, we needed bounce-back years from some key guys, but with the addition of Rudy Jaramillo as the new Cubs hitting coach, that was pretty much a given, wasn’t it? Even if it wasn’t, surely he could help the guys who were hitting pick up the slack for those guys who weren’t, right? So what happened?
Well, all of what I just said is true but that is not what this is even about. What I’m wondering is: what has happened to the fans? I suffered through the mid to late 70’s when it seemed like every year the Cubs would contend but we kind of always knew inside that they would fade at the end, didn’t we? They just didn’t have the talent, am I right? In fact, I knew that every time it was almost time to go back to school, it was also almost time for the “September slide” as I dubbed it back then. I mean how could guys like Ray Burris, Jose Cardenal, and George Mitterwald contend against teams with guys like Catfish Hunter, Reggie Jackson, and Carl Yastrzemski? Come on, it was just a given. But you know what? We didn’t care! Yes, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, that’s right, I said it, we didn’t care! Believe it or not, there was a time before lights in the stadium, before “Take Me Out To The Ballgame” was sung during the seventh inning stretch, or “Go Cubs Go” ever echoed through the neighborhoods of Wrigleyville that people just went to Wrigley Field with no fanfare, glitz, glamour, or expectations. We just went to see Wrigley Field in all of its glorious color, spend time bonding with friends and family, and, oh yeah, to watch baseball. Sure, we hoped the Cubs would win, but that was secondary to sitting in the sunshine, playing “hooky” from school or work, or spending time with our friends and family building memories that would last a lifetime. It was just a game, and you know what, it still is.
Now I know that there are some of you reading this who are going to say that changes need to be made and that this person should be fired or that person should be traded and that the new owners should make change after change after change until there is a new flag that flies over Wrigley that says World Champions and I would be lying if I said that I wasn’t one of them. But in the meantime, can we all just try to exercise a little patience with the new owners? I think they would like nothing more than to see that flag flying too but we as fans must remember that they bought this team less than a year ago and that Rome wasn’t built in a day. Any successful business owner will tell you that you just don’t walk in and start putting heads on the chopping block. First you have to observe and make determinations based on what you see and hear as well as to analyze the results of the decisions and choices that are made. Then, and only then, do you begin implementing changes. Change will come, my fellow Cub fans, but it will take time and one day, in the not too distant future, I think we’ll wake up one October morning and say, “I can’t believe it! Just look at what has happened!”
Well, here we are nearly two weeks into the month of May and the Cubs are not only struggling both at the plate and on the mound, but, quite frankly, they’re struggling for answers. Should GM Jim Hendry go? Should manager Lou Piniella go? Who should hit third, fourth, or fifth in the order? What in the world happened to the basic skills that got these guys into the big leagues in the first place? There are a whole lot of questions to be sure, but any sort of definitive answers surely seem to be eluding the Cubs organization no matter what moves they make. I realize that we’re “still only in May” but it seems like there’s mayhem everywhere you look with this organization.
Now, I’m the type of guy who would much rather focus on solutions than problems but I can’t even imagine what must be going on in the minds of the Ricketts’ family! Where do we start? It’s Cubs’ president Crane Kenney who decides whether or not to replace the GM, right? What good would that do right now though? It’s not like there are 25 free agents waiting to be signed by somebody and their phones just aren’t ringing. So it really doesn’t make any sense to get rid of Hendry six weeks into the season, does it? The problems don’t stop there though. Even if Jim Hendry were to fire Piniella right now, can a new manager inspire this team enough or make better moves than Piniella has so far? I hear a lot of clamoring for Ryne Sandberg to take over as manager. Really? He’s going to motivate this team more than Lou can? No one questions his baseball knowledge or his passion and love for the Cubs, or that he was one of the greatest second basemen to play the position. But great players do NOT automatically turn into great managers. In fact, I’d be hard pressed to come up with just ONE current manager who was also a great player (and please, save your Joe Girardi, Mike Mike Scioscia, and Dusty Baker comments, they were average players at best.) Can you?
Ladies and gentleman, boys and girls, this is our 2010 team whether we like it or not. I know we would all like someone to blame for the disastrous start to this season, it’s human nature. If we can just locate the problem and fix it, everything will be okay, right? Well, seeing as how we are already six weeks into the season and the fact that there aren’t any unsigned MLB All Stars, we might just have to wait this one out. I understand the Ricketts not wanting to come in with guns blazing, ready to fire everyone who has ever worked in the Cubs organization since 1908, but this is going to take time. If Jim Hendry and Lou Piniella can’t get it fixed between now and October, I’m sure that changes will be made. I think there will be accountability in the front office, in the dugout, and on the field, but in time. And that IS something that there is a lot of between now and then: time. Let’s see what happens. My advice would be to buckle your seat belts though, mayhem can often lead to a very long and bumpy ride.