There are rumblings that Dale Sveum's status as Cub manager is in doubt. Even though management has said he will not be judged by wins or losses, the media believes there is no clear "vote of confidence" for Sveum.
Except that Sveum is Theo's guy. He survived the insane statistical, theoretical and abstract interview process. The front office knew he was being sent to battle with no troops. Sveum has been a good company man, saying all the right things. So Sveum's job should be safe for next year, which will be a continuation of the morass of this year.
But writers think that there will be a good crop of talented managers coming to market. Joe Girardi's contract is up in New York. The Steinbrenners would be insane to not re-sign him even if the Yankees are going into a rebuilding or re-tweeking mode for the next few seasons. Girardi would command around $7 million to manage, something the Cubs seem unwilling to do when the Ricketts are squeezing dimes for their the real estate projects.
Mike Scioscia signed a 10 year deal with the Angels which runs through 2020. It is highly doubtful that as disappointing the Angels have been with their superstar payroll that the Angels' owner is going to eat seven years of that deal.
Ron Gardenhire of the Twins is another possibility. The Twins have underperformed the last two seasons. However, the Twins have a history of staying the course with their managers. Gardenhire is a old school fundamentalist who gets the most out of his players. The Twins have another wave a young talent that will come up next season, so Gardenhire's past experience of developing talent at the major league level means the Twins will probably keep him in the fold.
The question is whether Sveum is the guy to get the Cubs into the playoffs when the roster talent improves (as The Plan unfolds). Former Bulls GM Jerry Krause explained once that in the early Jordan era, Doug Collins was the right coach for the team, but over time he was not the coach to get the Bulls from point B to point A (championships). That is why Phil Jackson was hired to replace Collins. The Cubs will come to the same point in Sveum's tenure.
So far, Sveum has not been perceived as improving talent. Castro and Rizzo have regressed terribly under his watch. Sveum was a shortstop himself, but he has not communicated his experience onto Castro to get him to improve his defense. People question his lineups, in game decisions and bullpen use. But it seems that under his watch, the Cubs have gone back into the comfort zone of being content with losing (the culture that Epstein was brought in to change.)
