I’m not sure how to feel about Teddy Greenstein’s report that Cubs general manager Jim Hendry is leaning toward going with someone without previous managerial experience as new skipper.

On one hand, I can see either Melvin or Macha being better with younger players and being more patient about winning. On the other hand, it would be nice to bring in a Lou Piniella or a Dusty Baker who has a proven track record of winning. The last “name” manager the Cubs hired was Jim Frey, and even he had had only one good year, taking the Royals to the Series in 1980.

Before that … Leo Durocher. How much difference does a manager make to a team anyway? That’s one thing that even baseball experts aren’t sure about. A bad manager can do harm, but even a good manager can’t win with a bad team.

Less money for a big name means more money for a good middle reliever or a third baseman with pop, either of which would probably win more games than the best manager out there. Still, I can’t help
but feel that the Cubs are just going with the same old hand-me-down routine in their managerial search.