Hendry Aims To Have Big Contract Year Before Free Agency, or, alternately, The Sarge Is Dishonorably Discharged!

Maybe he'll get on the juice.

Anyway here's the deal

On Wednesday, the Cubs informed hitting coach Gene Clines, first-base coach Gary Matthews, bench coach Dick Pole, pitching coach Larry Rothschild, third-base coach Chris Speier, bullpen coach Juan Lopez and special assistant Sonny Jackson that the new manager would be responsible for hiring his own staff.

Makes sense. Is Oneri Fleita in there? No? Oh well.

The Cubs' hitters have been last in walks two years in a row by a large margin, and were in the bottom three in 2003-4. A large part of this could be the types of hitters they have been scouting (high contact, low OBP) for the past five years. But if Dusty wasn't willing to put Corey Patterson over his knee, it was Gene Clines' or Sarge Matthews' job to do so. I'm glad K-Patt has found himself in Baltimore, but I'd have much rather had him than Pierre in CF if the Cubs had had a decent hitting coach.

I don't even want to talk about Larry Rothschild. Poor mechanics or overly stressful warm-ups or whatever, there is no excuse for the injuries and the high walk totals. Hopefully somebody else can figure it out. You are the offspring of Satan. If you go to hell, every day will run as follows:

1. Throw curveballs until your elbow is torn to pieces.
2. Rain delay.
3. Throw again.
4. A trip to Northwest Community hospital, where "they put a hamstring from [your] leg into [your] arm so [you] don't know whether to call it a leg or an arm, but will race anybody on [your] hands." (verifiable)
5. Hours after surgery, being brought to the field in a wheelchair to pitch the nightcap.
6. Pass out.
7. Wake up the next morning.
8. Repeat.



I wonder if the Sarge will have his breakout year in Texas, teaching Hank Blalock to be a good hitter and stop dooming fantasy baseball teams everywhere (I know, he had surgery Monday).

Also this article was surprisingly concise, unromantic, and well-written. Which makes total sense because it was written by someone other than Carrie Muskat. Maybe she'll be replaced by...um, Mark Sheldon, as well.

EDIT: Apparently the blog published this, and I didn't. Go blog!

- Pandrew.