Ricketts talks as Cubs keep losing
On the same day Cubs manager Dale Sveum decided to insert Joe Mather into the lineup in center, it was team owner Tom Ricketts who was the center of attention.
Ricketts spoke to “Mully and Hanley” on The Score on Friday morning.
He immediately confronted the issue of his father Joe’s role with the Cubs and how any potential fallout from the so-called “Ricketts Plan” — aimed at ousting President Obama after one term — might affect the team’s negotiations with the city and particularly Mayor Rahm Emanuel, an ally of Obama.
“First and foremost, and I don’t even know how much this matters, but my dad doesn’t really have anything to do with running the team,” Ricketts said. “He’s not on the board. It’s not his project. He comes to a game every other year. It’s not something he’s really focused on.
“The resources to buy the team were set aside a decade ago into a trust for the Ricketts siblings. It’s grown to be something that’s pretty substantial.”
Speaking of substantial, pitcher Ryan Dempster has gone 17 starts without a win, and the Cubs have dropped 10 straight courtesy of a 1-0 loss to the host Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Cubs left 11 runners on base and went 0-for-12 with runners in scoring position. This despite Sveum’s decision to move Starlin Castro out of the third spot and into the 2-hole in favor of Mather.
“Mather’s been swinging the bat as good as anybody since spring training,” Sveum told WGN Radio. “I’m going to give him a little bit of an opportunity here and see if he can pop something and hit some doubles.
“Like I told Castro, it’s not a demotion — you’re hitting .350 with men in scoring position — it’s just a matter of trying something different and see if we can get something going.”
That’s just what Ricketts is trying to do, too. And after some initial anger following the senior Ricketts’ “plan” going public, it looks like Emanuel is ready to get back to the table with the Cubs.
And Tom Ricketts knows just how to make those negotiations quick — and fruitful.
“The Cubs have this model where we pay an incredible amount of taxes — the second highest in baseball — and we have to cover all the expenses of our stadium,” he said. “On top of that, even though we’re technically a private facility, we have all sorts of restrictions.
“We’re taxed like we’re a public facility, and we’re regulated like we’re a public facility, but when we go to try to find a win-win solution to try to resolve some of the problems, then everyone wants to say, ‘Well, you’re a private facility, fix your own problems.’
“Well, I can solve all of our problems if I don’t have all the regulations.”