Joe Maddon To Manage The Chicago Cubs?
Joe Maddon is set to be named the new manager of the Chicago Cubs. Maddon just last week informed the Tampa Bay Rays that he would not be returning and rumors began immediately, one of which was reported on the Inquisitr, that he would be heading to Los Angeles to take over the Dodgers from Don Mattingly, who has yet to build a winner in the city of angels.
As originally reported by Yahoo! Sports, Maddon to the Cubs could very well be the catalyst to build a true winner that the long-suffering franchise and their fans have hoped for. Maddon turned a bunch of kids in Tampa into contenders, earning a World Series berth in 2008, eventually losing to the Philadelphia Phillies in six games. Maddon’s Rays teams had to contend with perennial AL East powerhouses in the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox and still managed to find ways to win.
Maddon’s agent has yet to confirm the new job, but Major Leagiue Baseball rules forbid teams from making managerial announcements until after the World Series, which ends tonight in a pivotal game seven “championship game” between the Kansas City Royals and San Francisco Giants in Kansas City.
Jon Heyman from CBS Sports first tweeted the info, and then tweeted a counter comment due to MLB regulations. The Cubs have been mum as well.
joe maddon to become cubs manager. story up soon at @CBSSports
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) October 29, 2014
sources: joe maddon will be the new cubs manager. (cubs deny a deal is done tho) http://t.co/OnSU8RPI2r — Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) October 29, 2014
Joe Maddon’s quarky managerial style was a hit in Tampa. He was able to teach the game and keep his players loose with stunts like wacky ties on road trips, and even leveraging his hair style against wins. The stunts appeared to work as Tampa became a regular winner in the AL East. The Rays were 754-705 in Maddon’s eight years with the team.
Current Cubs manager Rick Renteria has reportedly been informed of the coming change but again, teams cannot publicly discuss the hiring until after the game tonight. The Cubs are denying that the Maddon hire is a done deal — publicly.
Cubs’ source calls Maddon report “inaccurate.” No word from Cubs or Maddon’s agent.
— Paul Sullivan (@PWSullivan) October 29, 2014
Expect a formal announcement of the hire as early as tomorrow. Do you think Joe Maddon can turn the Cubbies around? Sound off in the comments below.
[Images courtesy of Google]
