Top 10 Reasons the Cubs Hired Mike Quade as Manager

Here are the top 10 reasons Jim Hendry (with a gentle nod from Tom Ricketts) hired Mike Quade to manage the Chicago Cubs through 2012 (with a team option for 2013). From the home office in Davenport Iowa*: 10: Mike is a solid baseball lifer who began managing 25 years ago and earned his shot [...]

October 19, 2010 Tags: Chicago Cubs, Mike Quade, Tom Ricketts Posted in: Jim Hendry, manager, Mike Quade, observations, oddities No Comments

New Cubs Manager Choice Will Be Telling

With Year One of the Ricketts regime coming to an end, we really haven’t seen much from them to really define their priorities and style. I mean, sure, we’ve seen more fan outreach, some new marketing ideas, bison on the menu; but not much to indicate what kind of owners they will be from a [...]

September 18, 2010 Tags: 2011 Chicago Cubs, Alan Trammel, Andy MacPhail, bison dog, Bob Brenly, Bob Melvin, Bobby Valentine, Crane Kenney, Davey Johnson, Eric Wedge, Fredi Gonzalez, George Steinbrenner, Joe Girardi, Joe Torre, Mark Grace, Mike Quade, Pat Listach, Ryne Sandberg, Tom Ricketts, Tony LaRussa, Year One Posted in: biz of baseball, Jim Hendry, manager, observations, Ricketts family, Team Ownership No Comments

Took me out to the ballgame

I made my first visit to Wrigley Field so far in Year One of the Ricketts regime this week. Overall, the initial changes made by the new ownership are subtle but I found none of them objectionable. Note the new illuminated Cardinal-red Toyota sign in the left field bleachers has not yet been erected. Here are [...]

May 1, 2010 Tags: Ambassadors, bison dog, Consessions, food, Jahaan Blake, marketing, Murphy's Bleachers, pizza, restrooms, scoreboard, tips, Tom Ricketts, Toyota sign, troughs, Year One Posted in: biz of baseball, Chicago, game day, observations, photo of the day, Ricketts family, Team Ownership, Wrigley Field No Comments

Ricketts should keep eye on the ball

Tom Ricketts is a smart, likeable guy. He talks a good game for the most part, but most of what I hear lately has very little to do with winning baseball in 2010. I heard a Lou soundbite from the Cubs Convention: ‘We have a good team up here in Chicago’ he said. And Lou [...]

January 20, 2010 Tags: 2010 Chicago Cubs, Aaron Miles, Andy MacPhail, Carlos Zambrano, Crane Kenney, Cubs Convention, Jim Hendry, Kevin Gregg, L flag, Milton Bradley, Ted Lilly, Tom Ricketts Posted in: Hot Stove, Jim Hendry, lineup, Lou Piniella, observations, players, playoffs, Ricketts family, Team Ownership No Comments

First Signing for 2010 Cubs Must Be Owner

The 2009 Cubs were a major disappointment by nearly any measure. They didn’t hit, they didn’t field, even the Cubs vaunted pitching staff faltered. The team sustained major injuries, fought on and off the field, and was generally unlikeable. One of the main causes of this (that is controllable) is the lack of leadership at [...]

October 19, 2009 Tags: 2009 Chicago Cubs, Crane Kenney, Jim Hendry, Lou Piniella, Tom Ricketts Posted in: biz of baseball, observations, Team Ownership One Comment

Guest Post: Philosophy 101

Here is another Guest Post sent in by AJ. Back in the day, as a first year student at Illinois State University, I recall registering late in the process and as a result got stuck with a couple of courses I otherwise would never consider taking to complete my general studies. One of them, Philosophy [...]

April 19, 2009 Tags: Adrian Gonzales, AJ, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Blackhawks, Derrek Lee, Jake Peavy, Manny Ramirez, Mark Cuban, Micah Hoffpauir, New York Yankees, Sean Marshall, Tom Ricketts, World Series Posted in: fan comments, guest post, Hot Stove, lineup, observations, players, roster, Team Ownership One Comment