Enough With the Daily Articles on the Unsettled Lineup
Lou Piniella may not have had a consistent lineup this season, but the Chicago dailies have been running a consistent theme lately: lamenting the changing lineup. Tuesday's Chicago Tribune treats us to Dave van Dyck's "All Cubs know is who's on first." (Well, and third, and left, and catcher.) Why is it so important to the Chicago MSM to have a settled lineup? The Cubs entered Monday's games 6th in the National League in runs per game (4.9), and well above the league average (4.44), and rising. And that is with the outfield having shown almost no power during the month of April. It is not a bad thing that the manager mixes and matches to put forth the best lineup that day. It is not as if Piniella is doing things like putting Neifi Perez (or, as the case may be, Cesar Izturis) at the top of the order. And it is not a bad thing that the Cubs finally have some bench players worth playing. I don't blame Piniella if he is "growing weary and more than a little impatient with questions about his lineup choices." I'm growing weary with articles discussing the beat reporters' collective obsession.
- cubsnet's blog
- Login or register to post comments
Couldn't agree more!
Players seem to have adjusted well to Lou's style of management. I have to say, I'm enjoying the flexibility that is being demonstrated as well - especially given the recent victories! Keep the opponents guessin' Lou - and more importantly, keep the Cubbies on their toes!
Piniella
I'm inclined to agree, but I also think that the more they win, the more the tone of these articles will change. If it was a problem when they were losing, the more they win the more the focus will be on how Lou has the knack for finding the right lineup on the right day. Even the van Dyck article takes the middle ground, I think - I don't know if I'd characterize his tone as "lamenting", he seems to be treating it more as a curiosity than a problem.
You Are Right
The contrast between Lou Piniella and Dusty Baker is stark. Here, at last, is an active, engaged manager, using all his smarts, baseball know-how and feelings to get the best from his team. The media can't handle it. Rather than write about individual Cub player achievement, they ask the manager questions as if they cannot believe the team can be good more than one way or one day. (Maybe there are too many writers. Firing one or two would save the newspapers money. Half the stuff they write is dumb humor, anyway.)
Respectfully,
FEARLESS BEAR