Category: Lou Piniella

Ryne Sandberg replacing Lou Piniella in Cubs' dugout next year?

September 14, 2009 by cubsnet

Ryne Sandberg replacing Lou Piniella in Cubs' dugout next year?

Which famous #31 jersey wearer did Lou Piniella manage ?

May 6, 2009 by diana

Which famous #31 jersey wearer did Lou Piniella manage ?

Soriano to #2 Spot in Order

March 12, 2008 by cubsnet

It's as good of an excuse as any: "Lou Piniella plans to experiment with the Cubs lineup, dropping leadoff man Alfonso Soriano to No. 2 in an attempt to keep him healthy while inserting Kosuke Fukudome fifth," reports MLB.com. Soriano continues to have difficulties with his quadriceps and the move is designed to have him making fewer steal attempts, apparently. Whether that is a valid reason or not, having his free-swinging ways move down in the order is a move in the right direction.

Unfortunately, this now apparently means that the Cubs' worst hitter in the everyday lineup -- Ryan Theriot -- is going to be leading off instead of hitting second.

So who should be in the leadoff spot? Mark DeRosa appears to be the best option, absent doing something radical like putting Derrek Lee there or moving Fukudome to center and placing Matt Murton in right field and the leadoff spot.

All of this is, of course, subject to change, and to change quickly.

And it may change with a trade. As much as the Cubs like Theriot, I believe they would prefer a better hitter in the leadoff spot. Moving Soriano down may make a trade for Brian Roberts or a center fielder even more likely.

Cubs f/x thinks Soriano and Fukudome should switch in Piniella's experimentation. Perhaps. But the idea that Fukudome is an ideal #2 hitter is based on his Japanese numbers. I would like to see a couple of month's worth of performance before handing him the keys to a table-setting position in the order.

Marquis' Entitlement Attitude Doesn't Sit Well With Piniella

March 1, 2008 by cubsnet

We finally have some mystery in the Cubs' spring training camp: Jason Marquis will make more than $16M over the next two years whether he's starting or in long-relief or he's cut. But his family will be affected if he's not starting? Really? And if you want a position, how does it help to inform your boss that you believe you are above competing for it? Here's Marquis' comments today, as reported by MLB.com and the Tribune's Paul Sullivan:


And here's Lou Piniella's reaction:

Well, if that's the case, he can go somewhere else. Win a spot in the rotation, you don't have to worry about it. ... I've got seven starters here for five spots, you know? It's a little bit too early to start talking about what he wants to do or not do.

....

You know, that galls me about Marquis, it really does. I'm not pleased with that comment. We've had a good camp over here, everybody's getting an opportunity. Go out and win a spot in the rotation.

Marquis would do well to go to Piniella immediately and unequivocally apologize and state that he's ready, willing, and able to compete for, and win, a spot in the rotation. Who's Marquis afraid of? Ryan Dempster? Jon Lieber?

Good and Bad Out of Nashville

December 6, 2007 by cubsnet

Good and bad out of the Winter Meetings in Nashville:

Bad: Felix Pie, Sam Fuld, Tyler Colvin, and Jeff Samardzija are "untouchables," according to Jim Hendry. All four are nice prospects, but why would any of them be off-limits in a trade?

Good: Lou Piniella says that Ryan Dempster does not have a starting rotation spot locked up. Kevin Hart, Sean Gallagher, and Sean Marshall will get opportunities as well.

Bad: Ryan Theriot has locked up the starting shortstop spot for 2008, according to Piniella. If Dempster is going to have competition, why won't Theriot? What harm exists in letting Ronny Cedeno compete for the starting job in spring training?

Good: The Cubs are exploring a trade for Baltimore Orioles second baseman Brian Roberts, reports the Baltimore Sun. Roberts just turned 30 and has had .305, .264, .285 EqA's the past three seasons with good defense. Another Cubs Blog has more on Roberts rumors.

Good: A number of teams are interested in Mark Prior, hopefully driving up the asking price.

Who Knows?: The Cubs obtained Twins relief pitcher Tim Lahey in today's Rule 5 draft. Lahey, 25, had a 3.45 ERA in 78.1 innings in double-A last year, with 56 K's and 33 BB's. Another Cubs Blog has more on Lahey. The Cubs lost swingman Randy Wells, who had a 4.52 ERA in 95.2 innings for triple-A Iowa last year, striking out 101 and walking 41.

Piniella to the Yankees?

October 12, 2007 by cubsfaninky

The Sun Times Chris De Luca seems to think so.

http://tinyurl.com/2pg4s6

Piniella Did Not Lose the Game by Replacing Zambrano With Marmol

October 4, 2007 by cubsnet

The second-guessers -- Phil Rogers, Jay Mariotti, Gordon Wittenmyer, Melissa Isaacson, Rick Morrissey, Mike Downey, Mike Imrem, and Barry Rozner (talk about group think) -- were out in full force this morning after the Cubs' 3-1 loss in Game 1 of the NLDS. All of them consider Lou Piniella's removal of Carlos Zambrano to start the seventh inning in favor of Carlos Marmol to have been the cause of the Cubs' loss.

The real cause, of course, was Brandon Webb's mastery of the Cubs' hitters, the particular angle of some line drives off Cubs' bats, and Marmol's inability to locate his pitches in the 7th inning. But not to the aforementioned writers, who have created a new Zambrano in their mind, some unstoppable force who would of course not allowed any runs going forward. Either that, or they just could not come up with another angle on this game.

In making their judgments, they ignore the information Piniella had to go on when he made the decision, namely, that Marmol is a better pitcher than Zambrano over a 1-2 inning stretch.

Cubs v. Diamondbacks Foreward

October 3, 2007 by cubsnet

There will be no CubsNet.com NLDS preview. After all, who am I to outwrite the previews proffered by Nate Silver, David Pinto, Al Yellon, and Marc Hulet / Bryan Smith? (For my money, Silver's is the best. Come to think of it, it is my money, as I'm paying for the BP subscription.) So, instead, what you get from CubsNet.com is a NLDS foreward. I am not the writer of the main story. I am merely anticipating the next page like the rest of you.

The Cubs outscored the Diamondbacks and gave up fewer runs than the Diamondbacks.

The Cubs have just an average offense (8th in the NL), but it is significantly better than Arizona's. As Silver wrote, "The Diamondbacks . . . have one of the worst lineups ever for a team that reached the playoffs, a group that resembles the 1988 Dodgers sans Kirk Gibson."

Dempster's Injury Has Freed Piniella

July 2, 2007 by cubsnet

Many of us long for the day when a manager's management of the bullpen is not dictated by that nefarious of taskmasters: the save statistic. Since Cubs' closer Ryan Dempster has been injured following the game on June 22, Lou Piniella has been freed. The Cubs have won seven of eight since Dempster's oblique injury (in addition to the last game Dempster pitched in). Piniella initially announced that Bob Howry would be the closer in Dempster's absence, as the Chicago Tribune reported. During Dempster's absence, however, three different relievers have notched saves -- Howry (2), lefty Will Ohman (1), and bullet-throwing Carlos Marmol (1).

Read more below the fold.

Olney: Piniella Wearing on Players

June 2, 2007 by cubsnet

Yesterday, Brian mentioned in the comments that "one thing that appears not to have changed with the new regime: the public posturing by the manager seems mostly designed to deflect blame away from himself."

ESPN.com's Buster Olney adds to that today:

The new manager has been openly critical of the players, repeatedly suggesting in his post-game remarks that the problems lie with them, and privately, some players are very critical of the manager and what they view as his tendency to turn them into scapegoats.
. . . .
Piniella needs to start mending fences with his players quickly, displaying more patience and support. Fair or not, some of them already are hardening this view of him -- that he tends to make decisions based on emotion and impatience, and that he tends to blame them for failure, while being readily available for praise when the team succeeds. Which is how many of the Devil Rays came to view him during his tenure with Tampa Bay, but those players were young and absorbed the criticism. The Cubs, a team of veterans, are not reacting as sedately.

Losing breeds contempt. The Cubs need to start winning.