Who's Lou's successor? Hendry says he's in no rush to name one

Both Bob Brenly and Alan Trammell used extreme discretion.

Trammell politely told reporters, "This isn't my day," as they approached him.

Brenly had somewhat of a statement ready.

"If and when the time comes, it will be handled the right way, and not through the media," Brenly said. "Nobody's asked me anything, and I haven't approached anything."

Trammell and Brenly were easy targets for the media Tuesday after Cubs manager Lou Piniella announced he would retire at the end of the season.

Both have managed before, with Brenly winning the World Series with the Diamondbacks in 2001. And both no doubt will get interviews this fall as general manager Jim Hendry and the Cubs search for Piniella's successor.

Hendry said he will take his time with the process but that he'd like to have it completed by the time the Cubs hold their organizational meetings in late October or early November.

There is no clear-cut favorite at the moment, but here is a quick look at some possible candidates:

Ryne Sandberg: The Cubs Hall of Famer did what nobody thought he would do - ride the buses in the minor leagues.

Currently the manager at the Cubs' Class AAA Iowa affiliate, Sandberg has won good reviews for the work he's done in the minors.

He says he wants to manage in the big leagues. He didn't get the job when Piniella got it in the fall of 2006, but he has a resume now.

Brenly: He also interviewed in the fall of '06. He has been critical of the Cubs' poor fundamentals and has said he would stress them if he were a manager again.

Trammell: He didn't have much to work with while the manager of the Tigers earlier this decade. A Hall of Fame-candidate shortstop, Trammell is a superb infield instructor, and he's a stickler for preparation. He also communicates very well.

Joe Girardi: Another candidate from '06, Girardi has multiple World Series titles to his credit, both as a player and as manager of the Yankees. He came up through the Cubs organization as a player. It might behoove the Yankees to keep him around.

Bobby Cox: He's retiring from the Braves after a legendary run that has him in first place again this year. Cox would appear to be a longshot at this point (and he may not even want to manage again), but he brings worlds of credibility.

Fredi Gonzalez: Another favorite of Hendry, he was fired by the Florida Marlins, an organization that suffers from a meddling owner, who also fired Girardi. Gonzalez could wind up in Atlanta, where he served as a coach under Cox.

"It's not going to be a two-week process," Hendry said. "We'll leave no stones unturned. We'll evaluate people who have done it before, people who haven't done it before, people that are in house and obviously people that work or have worked elsewhere.

"It'll just be a long process to get the right conclusion for the Chicago Cubs moving forward."