2006 Cubs Season Review: Wait till Next Year
The Cubs completely stunk up the joint this year. I know it, you know it, the American people know it. It's not news. The reasons why they stunk have been well documented on this very web site. There isn't much to say now that wasn't already said then. As a result, the axe is going to fall on Manager Dusty Baker this Monday. I, of course, couldn't be happier. I'm not going to talk about potential replacements in this post, I'll save that for another day. But suffice it to say, I'll be happy with ABB (Anyone But Baker). At least for a while.
Furthermore, a tidal wave of evidence has come in suggesting that Baker might not be the only one to lose his job. Over the last few days, both Phil Rogers and Rick Morrissey of the Tribune have written scathing articles about Team President Andy MacPhail and GM Jim Hendry. It's almost like the shackles have come off and the Tribune Company has granted "the paper" permission to hack away at the flagship. The smear campaign is in full force, and this is usually what happens when a company is ready to clean house. How shocking would that be? As much as I've railed on Baker, I've acknowledged since day one that this abortion of a season wasn't entirely his fault. Hendry and MacPhail deserve equal blame, and it would be poetic justice if they sat right next to Baker on Monday and talked about their dismissal as well. (See Morrissey's column in particular if you want a smoking gun, my thoughts on the terrible job done by MacPhail and Hendry are summed up there perfectly.)
The organization is rotten from top to bottom, and it's time to bring in new blood. One of the most eye-popping stats to emerge this season is the Cubs trouble with Walks. They are last in the league in drawing walks, and first in the league in issuing walks. They've been out-walked by nearly 300 free passes. With more teams seeing the light and focusing on On-Base-Percentage as the stat to look at when sizing up prospective players, the Cubs have seemed to all but ignore it. Dusty Baker didn't help matters much when stating repeatedly that he wasn't a big fan and "walks clog the bases." You'd think after watching Cubs pitchers issue all those walks and how they've bitten the team in the ass, he'd realize that his hitters would benefit from the occasional base on balls as well. Alas, no. Acquiring patient hitters and pitchers with control should be the primary focus of the next regime (if there is one.)
Finally, the other day I caught the new documentary on HBO about Cubs fandom called "Wait Till Next Year." It's a fairly solid representation of what it's been like to be a Cubs fan through the years, and I give it a "thumbs up." Word of warning, it's not so much a documentary on the history of the Cubs as it's a documentary about the fans reaction and life-long love affair with the team. There's some history involved, of course, but most of that should be common knowledge among your average Cubs fans. You see bits on William Wrigley buying the team, Bill Veeck, the moderate success in the 30s and 40s, the dry spell, Ernie Banks, the '69 Bleacher Bums, The Trib and Harry, Ryno and '84, Santo's stumps, and 2003. You also see a cross-section of Cubs fans and how they reacted to the various events. I have to admit, the footage of '84 and 2003 was quite emotional. 84 reminded me of being a kid, coming home from school and watching the team melt down in San Diego. Then 2003 with Bartman, Alou's hissy fit, and the 8-run eighth. I wish people would stop talking about Bartman, but no footage of that game would be complete without mentioning it. Seeing the Alex Gonzalez muffed double play again just pissed me off to no avail. I didn't expect such a visceral reaction to a videotaped replay I've seen a dozen times. It brought back all the feelings of anger I had during that inning (and September 2004 for that matter) and seeing the 8 on the scoreboard just made me sick to my stomach. Just brutal.
If I have any complaints, it was that they skipped over some rather huge events in recent Cubs history. Dawson's MVP, 1989, Maddux leaving, Sammy and Mac, Kerry's 20 Ks, and the '98 wild card. But alas, there's only so much time in an hour and like I said, this show was more about the fans than the team's history.
Review time: Wait Till Next Year? B+. The 2006 Cubs? F. Wait till next year, indeed.
UPDATE (10/1/2006): MacPhail has resigned. Wow, up until this past week I didn't think that was going to happen. Then the Trib unleashed the dogs and Andy is out. No word on Hendry, and Baker is likely out tomorrow. More then....I've got football to write about!