The Cubs and Joe Maddon have parted ways, as you’ve certainly heard, the news officially delivered from team president Theo Epstein to Maddon after the Cubs’ penultimate game in St. Louis on Saturday night.
The news wasn’t exactly surprising, even though Maddon’s tenure in Chicago exceeded every single realistic expectation. But Epstein and the Cubs’ powers-that-be had, essentially, backed themselves into a corner and keeping him would have been difficult, even if they had a come-to-Jesus moment and decided they still wanted him around.
They opted against giving Maddon a contract extension after last season, despite that his teams had won an average of 97 games — and claimed the franchise’s first World Series title since 1908 — in the first four years of his five-year deal. The powers didn’t like the way the 2018 season ended, and they wanted to see how things played out in 2019 before making another commitment to the skipper. It was, maybe, a motivational ploy.
BERNSTEIN: Joe Maddon should have a good laugh if Cubs let him go
It did not work. The Cubs spent most of 2019 in first place in an underachieving NL Central, but they again collapsed down the stretch and missed the playoffs. And if you publicly say you want to see improved performance in 2019, and then 2019 is worse than 2018, well, there aren’t many options. Even though, of course, many of the reasons for the Cubs’ 2019 failures had nothing to do with managerial decisions or tactics.
But here’s the thing: Maddon will have his choice of managerial openings this offseason. Teams will have to sell themselves to him, instead of the other way around, as it typically works with manager hirings.
There are four openings at the moment, and almost certainly more to come. Bruce Bochy retired in San Francisco, and Ned Yost did the same in Kansas City. The Padres and Pirates have announced that their managers, Andy Green and Clint Hurdle, respectively, won’t be back.
Padres
The fit: This one almost feels too perfect, doesn’t it? Almost like Padres head honcho A.J. Preller saw the writing on the wall and made the move to fire Green — justifiable, no doubt — knowing maybe he could have an opportunity to land Maddon. That’s speculation, of course. The Padres are a team on the rise, with lots of talented youngsters who just need to learn how to win consistently at the big league level. That sounds a lot like situations Maddon took over in Tampa Bay and Chicago, eh? Also, Maddon knows Southern California well; he was a major league coach for the Angels from 1994 to 2005.
Giants
The fit: How do you replace a Hall of Fame-bound legend like Bruce Bochy? Hiring a (potential) Hall of Fame-bound legend to replace him would work, wouldn’t it? OK, maybe Maddon has years to fill to reach Cooperstown status, but nine seasons of 90-plus wins in his past 12 years, two World Series appearances — including the title with the Cubs — is a damn good start.
Anyway, Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi came to San Francisco from Los Angeles, where he worked closely with Andrew Friedman, the front-office genius who hired Maddon in Tampa Bay to lead his franchise revival. The biggest challenge just might be for Zaidi to convince Maddon that San Francisco is the right spot; the talent/age/contract situations with the franchise aren’t exactly great at the moment.
Angels
The fit: Yes, it’s pretty unlikely the job would be open. After Mike Scioscia’s 19 years with the club ended last season, the Angels hired Brad Ausmus as his replacement. But a 71-87 record isn’t exactly overwhelming, and a chance to hire a guy like Maddon — to BRING HOME a guy like Maddon — is one that GM Billy Eppler at least has to consider, right?
And then there’s this: Earlier this month, the Los Angeles Times reported that Eppler has, essentially, one more year to turn the Angels into a winner. He’s had his shining moments as the Angels’ GM — landing Shohei Ohtani and signing Mike Trout to the long extension — but the Angels have yet to even finish at .500 in his four years, much less sniff the postseason. If he’s got one year to turn things around, who’s a better bet: Ausmus or Maddon?
Phillies
The fit: Back-to-back disappointing finishes might signal the end of of manager Gabe Kapler’s time in Philadelphia. In 2018, the Phillies had a .558 winning percentage in the first half and a .403 mark after the break. In 2019, it was .522 before the All-Star Game and .472 after. For so many reasons — notably signing Bryce Harper to a $330 million contract and trading for catcher J.T. Realmuto — the 2019 finish is much, much more frustrating.
So Kapler could exit. And Maddon, as you probably know, is from Pennsylvania. He grew up two hours northwest of Citizens Bank Park, in Hazelton. He still has a big presence there. And if he could do for the Phillies what he did for the Cubs, they’d love him more in Philly then they do in Hazelton.
Mariners
The fit: Mainly, you have to at least think about the Mariners because GM Jerry Dipoto isn’t a “let’s sit patiently and see how things play out” type of guy. The team is rebuilding, which is never a vote of confidence for the current manager. Scott Servais is ending his fourth season in the job, and after a good start to this season, the past five months or so have been a disaster.
Mets
The fit: You’ll hear a lot about Maddon’t fit in New York, as a players manager and as the perfect media fit for a challenging landscape, but there really isn’t one, honestly. Think about these two things: First, even if the Mets part ways with Mickey Callaway, it’s incredibly hard to imagine the Wilpons would pay the type of salary Maddon would command. And, second, what makes anyone think Maddon — a guy who will certainly have options, plural — would willingly walk into that situation, with that ownership group?
Pirates
The fit: See Mets, above, and multiply that by at least a factor of two. Not happening.
Royals
The fit: Not to be a broken record, but even if new Kansas City ownership wanted to make a splash and pay Maddon the salary he’ll command, it’s doubtful that he’ll want to take over a franchise that’s at least a couple of years away from playoff contention.
