advertisement

Imrem: Nice to see Cubs doing what it takes to win

Cubs baseball chief Theo Epstein keeps tearing chapters from the book of legendary 49ers head coach Bill Walsh.

In case you were wondering, that's really good for the Cubs.

When Epstein left Boston for Chicago, he cited Walsh saying that 10 years is long enough for a coach or sports executive to hold any one position.

Epstein didn't invoke Walsh's name again in Friday's news releases announcing that the Cubs fired Ricky Renteria and replaced him with Joe Maddon.

However, the moves bring back to mind an ESPN interview years ago with George Seifert, who succeeded Walsh as 49ers' coach.

The question was what Seifert learned as an assistant coach under Walsh. The answer, to paraphrase, was to never let anything get in the way of winning.

The Cubs are living up to that by paying the price - in money, energy and losing seasons - for eventual sustained success.

Who knows whether the Cubs and club chairman Tom Ricketts will reach that goal? What is known is that they'll steamroll obstacles in their path to get there.

Ricky Renteria was in the way so the Cubs whacked him. Previous manager Dale Sveum was in the way so Epstein whacked him. Rooftop owners are in the way so Ricketts whipped them.

They were marvelously ruthless and wonderfully heartless things to do, but they had to be done.

Joe Maddon, one of the best managers in baseball and perhaps the absolute best, was on the open market.

The Cubs could have done what a lot of other teams did: Refrain from hurting the feelings of their current managers. In the process those teams also would have avoided the hefty expense of signing a manager of Maddon's stature.

So from the day Maddon exercised the opt-out clause in his contract with Tampa Bay, he was eminently available to the Cubs.

Rather than dream up ways to let something get in the way of winning, the Cubs wasted no time pursuing Maddon as a clear upgrade in the manager's office.

Ricky Renteria - whack! - get out of the way of winning.

The Rays are investigating whether to charge that the Cubs tampered with Maddon before he officially opted out of Tampa Bay. So what?

Look, the portrait isn't flattering of the Cubs, Maddon and circumstances conspiring to relieve Renteria of the job he waited so long to work at.

Maybe Epstein and Maddon feel badly about that. Maybe they don't. Who knows how they feel about it? Better yet, who cares?

This is a sport where stealing signs is common. Stealing a manger is only a little more extreme.

Pitchers throw high hard ones near a batter's head. Runners collided with catchers so hard that a safety rule had to be instituted. Prospects are sent packing before their dreams are realized.

It's called hardball for a reason, now for the first time in a long time around the Friendly Confines of Wrigley Field.

Sports can't be compared to other industries. Nobody hires a pastry chef and says, "Pastry chefs are hired to be fired."

That's what's said of baseball managers, however. Sometimes even baseball managers say it.

Let's guess to make a point that Renteria's contract was for $1.33 million for each of three years. That means he will leave with $4 million.

The rest of us would be happy to be paid that much money in our entire careers. Renteria will get it for managing the Cubs for one season.

So, sorry, it isn't a tragedy if Renteria has to cry all the way to the bank.

Back to the original point: The firing of Ricky Renteria and the hiring of Joe Maddon indicate that Theo Epstein, Tom Ricketts and the Cubs aren't letting anything get in the way of winning.

Good for them and good for Cubs' fans regardless of whether the strategy works in the end.

mimrem@dailyherald.com

Article Comments
Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.