Major League Baseball

Quade beat out Sandberg for Cubs job

Published Oct. 19, 2010 1:00 a.m. ET

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Since his hiring as the general manager of the Chicago Cubs, Jim Hendry's dealt with high-profile managers at Wrigley Field and the feeling that every move needs to have an immediate impact, even at the expense of building a long-range plan.

Maybe that helps explain the 102-year championship drought. Short cuts just don't work.

With Lou Piniella's decision first to retire, and then to leave in midseason, Hendry finally had an opportunity — as slim as it may have been — to try and get a long-term plan in place.

A longtime fan of the managerial potential of Cubs coach Mike Quade, Hendry knew in an offseason dog-and-pony show to hire a manager, Quade would quickly be discarded because he didn't have the sizzle of Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg or Yankee manager Joe Girardi or any of the former big-league managers who've become hot items on the managerial front this year.

There was only one way for Quade to win over the Cubs fans and the new Cubs ownership — take over the 51-74 mess Piniella left behind and make the Cubs competitive in the final weeks of the 2010 season. Hendry gave Quade the chance to do that, naming him the interim manager instead of Sandberg or Cubs bench coach Alan Trammell.

Quade made good on the opportunity, and he was given the job on a full-time basis Tuesday instead of Sandberg, who after four years of managing in the minor leagues in hopes of getting a big-league job, was the runner-up this time.

The Cubs were 24-13 with Quade in charge, second among NL teams to only Philadelphia over that stretch. More importantly, the promising prospects who'd struggled with Piniella's style became productive members of the roster with Quade in charge.

Quade's in charge when he has authority. He's no wallflower. He's demanding.

And now he faces the most demanding challenge of his career, managing the Cubs, a team that's turned "Wait Until Next Year" into its annual slogan.

And his long-term experience and success in developing young players is critical to the revamping planned with the Cubs.

While a $145 million payroll didn't buy success at the big-league level last year, the Cubs do have a deep talent base of young players, and Hendry, a former coach at Creighton and scout with Florida, sees the development skills in Quade he's confident will develop the prospects into big-league talent.

The Cubs have a starting point with shortstop Starlin Castro, outfielder Tyler Colvin and strong-armed pitchers Andrew Cashner, Casey Coleman, James Russell and Jeff Samardzija, who all spent time in the big leagues last year.

Hendry's betting his own job on the ability of Quade to handle the job.

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