Brenly enjoying Diamondbacks gig
Bob Brenly sounded happy Friday about being “home” and working Arizona Diamondbacks games on TV.
And he says not once has he had to yell, “Run it out!” during a telecast.
“No, not once,” he said with a laugh at Wrigley Field, where the Diamondbacks opened a weekend series against the Cubs. “In some respects, it’s just a reflection of the manager, Kirk Gibson. He played the game that way, and he demands that his players play the game that way. They understand when they come in here that there are certain expectations and anything less than that won’t be tolerated.”
Brenly was the Cubs’ color analyst from 2005-12, and he was never shy about criticizing poor or lazy play. Hence, the “run it out” cry.
This year, Brenly is analyzing a first-place club in the D’Backs.
“The team itself is a lot of fun to watch,” he said. “They do a lot of things well and play the game the right way. They hustle. They’re fundamentally solid. I can only think of one game this year where they beat themselves, where they made mistakes that cost them a ballgame.”
Many people were surprised last off-season when Brenly went to Arizona, where he managed the D’Backs to the 2001 world championship and where he has maintained a home. Along with Cubs play-by-play man Len Kasper, Brenly helped form a popular broadcast team.
But the security of a long-term deal, along with the chance to be home, made going to Arizona a natural choice.
“I’d like to think that if we had stayed here for the guaranteed two years that something would have worked out and we would have stayed long term,” he said. “That would have been wonderful. But it just didn’t look like it was going in that direction.
“Because of my connection to the (Arizona) organization, one thing just kind of led to another. Professionally, it’s been a tremendous move. Personally, I miss the city of Chicago. Life goes on. It’s a new challenge. I’m having a great time and looking forward to the next five years.”
Brenly’s name also would be linked from time to time to managerial jobs in baseball. He does not appear headed back to the dugout any time soon.
Not that it’s completely out of his system.
“I think baseball pretty much has the manager thing out of their system,” he said. “I’ll never say never if the right situation came along. I’m not pursuing it. Obviously, nobody’s pursuing me. I’m intent to stay where I’m at right now and just go home at the end of the day, and it’s not may fault and I don’t pick up (the newspaper) the next day calling me an idiot.”
Grand times: Scott Hairston#146;s grand slam in Friday#146;s 7-2 win over the Diamondbacks came one day after pitcher Travis Wood hit one. That#146;s the first time the Cubs have hit grand slams on consecutive days since Sammy Sosa did it July 27-28 at Arizona. The last time it happened at Wrigley Field was Sept. 15-16, 1972, with Jim Hickman and Burt Hooton.This and that: The Cubs have won five in a row for the first time since a seven-game winning streak, July 31-Aug. 6, 2011. They#146;ve outhomered their opponents 11-1 in the streak ... Anthony Rizzo extended a hitting streak to seven games (9-for-25) ... Alfonso Soriano hit his 378th career homer, tying him with current D#146;Backs coach Matt Williams for 66th all time.