Quade just best choice, says Cubs GM Hendry

It was nothing against Ryne Sandberg, Joe Girardi or anybody else, according to Cubs general manager Jim Hendry.

Hendry showed all due respect, especially to Cubs Hall of Famer Sandberg, as he announced Tuesday that Mike Quade had beaten out of the rest of the field to keep his job as manager of the Cubs.

“To be honest with you, I'd have a hard time criticizing anything he did, Hendry said of Quade, who was 24-13 as manager down the stretch. “On and off the field, dealing with the media, dealing with clubhouse, keeping things private that needed to be private. I thought from A to Z, it was impossible to be critical of him.

Sandberg and Girardi, both ex-Cubs, seemed to be the “people's choices in several camps. Sandberg managed in the Cubs' minor-league system for the last four years. Girardi is managing the New York Yankees in the American League championship series.

“Ryne Sandberg, as great a player as he was, he's just as good a human being, Hendry said. “It wasn't an easy call to make this morning (to tell Sandberg he wasn't getting the job).

“I've really grown to like Ryno the last 3-4 years. What he did, going to the minor leagues and the way he carried himself, was very, very good. He's a Cub icon. I think (owner) Tom Ricketts and his family are very aware of how important it is that Ryno, long term, be a member of the Cub family.

“He's disappointed. He was tremendously classy this morning. I'm sure like a lot of people, your heart's set on that. At the same time, he handled it great. Over time, I hope that he's certainly a Cub in some capacity forever.

On Girardi, Hendry said: “Joe Girardi's an outstanding manager. We all have a history with Joe. He played here years ago. Joe has a great job, a terrific job, as high a profile as there is with his team. At the end of the day, Mike Quade is our guy. That's what we wanted to do.

Coaching question:

Jim Hendry said he and Mike Quade would begin meeting Wednesday to start talking about the coaching staff. Hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo and pitching coach Larry Rothschild are under contract.

Bench coach Alan Trammell has been talked about as a possible bench coach in Arizona, where his former Detroit teammate, Kirk Gibson, is the manager.

The other members of the current staff are third-base coach Ivan DeJesus, first-base coach Bob Dernier, bullpen coach Lester Strode and assistant Matt Sinatro. Sinatro is close with former manager Lou Piniella.

“I think we fully expect to have the staff rounded off and done, hopefully by the (organization) meetings, Hendry said, referring to the first week in November.