The Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals do not like each other. They never have, and they probably never will.
The rivalry spans back over 100 years, and though Major League Baseball has expanded and reshuffled divisions on several occasions, the Cubs and Cardinals have always been in the same division. They know each other like the backs of their own hands.
But although animosity exists between the two franchises, individuals in baseball still have to think about making the best decisions for their own careers.
That principle extends to on Chicago Cubs assistant this season, who reportedly could be under consideration for the Cardinals' managerial position if incumbent skipper Oliver Marmol loses the job at the end of this season.
On Friday, Jon Heyman of the New York Post named Cubs first base coach Mike Napoli as a fit to take over the Cardinals job if Marmol is out. Napoli has been in the Cubs organization the past five seasons, including three as the first-base coach.
A 2012 All-Star catcher with the Texas Rangers and 2013 World Series champion with the Boston Red Sox, Napoli seems like a natural fit to become a big-league manager. He was known for his instrumental role in a team's chemistry wherever he went--and he played for four very good teams in his 12-year career.
Overall, Napoli put together an .821 OPS, 267 home runs, and 744 RBI as a player. Now, he's rising through the coaching ranks, and it appears he's on the precipice of getting a shot to manage a team.
As a player, Napoli never had skin in the rivalry between the Cubs and Cardinals. But taking the St. Louis job would certainly make Napoli infamous on both sides of the rivalry--whether he has a winning tenure or not.
And as Napoli has seen firsthand with the animosity Milwaukee Brewers fans have towards current Cubs manager Craig Counsell, there's no room for sentiment in an NL Central rivalry when a coach goes to manage another team in the division.
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