A new low is possible... (New manager)

[StMarksCubs]

...if we hire Jimy Williams.

 

It's startling to me that his name would come up in any discussions for a new manager. Unless the latin meaning of "interim" is least inspired, most blatant disregard for track record....

 

I'd love to find a new Scioscia, or Girardi... Phil Rogers' piece on the AAA Sox manager does have me intrigued.

[cubfan1955]

Hendry is very high on Jimy Williams. Don't bet against it.

[RynoRules]

Hendry is very high on Jimy Williams. Don't bet against it.

 

Source?

[cubfan1955]

Hendry is very high on Jimy Williams. Don't bet against it.

 

Source?

You have to believe the Cubs already have sorted through their alternatives to Baker. Such changes aren't made overnight without forethought. Among the potential managers who could be plugged in immediately are Lou Piniella, Tom Kelly, Jimy Williams, Gene Lamont and Fredi Gonzalez -- all of whom have big-league managing experience, except for Gonzalez.

 

Gonzalez is the Atlanta Braves' third-base coach, but the Braves might allow him to leave now because they have fallen out of playoff contention. Lamont is on Jim Leyland's coaching staff with the Detroit Tigers, who might be averse to tampering with their success.

 

Piniella, Kelly and Williams might be available to start today under the right circumstances. Whether they would take the job, however, without any commitment beyond this year, would be a factor in the hiring process.

 

The venerable Kelly could be a caretaker. He managed the Minnesota Twins to two World Series titles when Cubs president Andy MacPhail was the Twins' general manager and would bring a no-nonsense attitude to the clubhouse.

 

Williams is highly respected by Hendry as a solid baseball man with good instincts. He managed the Toronto Blue Jays, Boston Red Sox and Astros and was a coach for Bobby Cox with the Braves, an organization for which Hendry has the highest esteem.

 

http://www.chicagosuntimes.com/output/sports/cst-spt-cub05.html

[YearofDaCubs]

Jimy Williams would be a terrible idea.

[StMarksCubs]

Jimy Williams would be a terrible idea.

 

Imagine reuniting Todd Walker with TK though... Yow!

[Rooftop Bum]

Yep, there is our new manager. From bad to worst.

[Mizzou]

Why is Jimy Williams a bad choice?

[goonys evil twin]

I'm not sure it can get worse.

 

If Hendry's next hire is a failure, he could easily be gone after next year, and that, in and of itself, would be a positive. His 2 year extension only goes through 2008, and if he has 3 miserable years in a row, the Cubs probably won't give him a chance for number 4.

 

So, give Hendry a chance to hire somebody other than Baker, and see if they can win next year. Or else he's gone.

[Roast]

Why is Jimy Williams a bad choice?

 

I echo this question. I dont know alot about him other than he coached the Stro's for a while.

 

 

Although, now that I type this, i seem to remember he has a serious problem with Overusing pitchers...is that correct?

[Rob]

Say no to neck fat!

[cubfan1955]

He makes Dusty look like a genius. He is the only manager I ever thought Dusty outmanaged. Remember when the Astros fired him and hired Garner is when they made their miraculous comeback in 2004. The worst possible thing that happened to the Cubs in 2004 is when the Astros fired Williams.

[dalgreen]

I don't know why Williams would be considered a worse choice than Baker, other than some people already wanting one guy and if it's not their guy they're not going to like the choice. One thing I don't like about Williams is how his first name is spelled. :P

[Roast]

...Really though, Can someone give me the rundown on Jimy Williams? Why is he good/bad?

[dalgreen]

I still maintain that the best thing would be for Baker and Hendry to go. I have no confidence and no faith in either of the two, and I suspect as long as Hendry is the one (along with the current Cub scouts, something he's also responsible for) responsible for constructing teams, we won't be contenders. Last August in a full article he apologized and took full responsibility for the make-up of the team and said he needed to do a better job. Well, May of this year he said the same thing. I've yet to see a good manager with a bad baseball team contend for a championship. I've seen bad managers with good teams win (Phil Garner, Terry Francona) but I haven't seen bad teams with good managers win.

[dalgreen]

He makes Dusty look like a genius. He is the only manager I ever thought Dusty outmanaged. Remember when the Astros fired him and hired Garner is when they made their miraculous comeback in 2004. The worst possible thing that happened to the Cubs in 2004 is when the Astros fired Williams.

 

I think getting Beltran helped, too.

[goonys evil twin]

I still maintain that the best thing would be for Baker and Hendry to go. I have no confidence and no faith in either of the two, and I suspect as long as Hendry is the one (along with the current Cub scouts, something he's also responsible for) responsible for constructing teams, we won't be contenders.

 

Hendry will be gone if the losing continues, but he's safe through next year. So give him a chance to hire a new guy and make it work, if it doesn't, they're all out in a top to bottom house cleaning.

[bleedcubbieblue]

I still maintain that the best thing would be for Baker and Hendry to go. I have no confidence and no faith in either of the two, and I suspect as long as Hendry is the one (along with the current Cub scouts, something he's also responsible for) responsible for constructing teams, we won't be contenders.

 

Hendry will be gone if the losing continues, but he's safe through next year. So give him a chance to hire a new guy and make it work, if it doesn't, they're all out in a top to bottom house cleaning.

 

Not sure, MacPhail has always come out smelling like a rose, I think upper management likes him, and he has gotten a lot of projects the Cubune wanted done, accomplished, this last year, getting those bleachers expanded. While their record is not good, I think Andy will still be safe. I also think he got those luxury boxes done a while back, although I could be wrong about that, but Andy is a good "yes" man.

 

BCB

[dalgreen]

I still maintain that the best thing would be for Baker and Hendry to go. I have no confidence and no faith in either of the two, and I suspect as long as Hendry is the one (along with the current Cub scouts, something he's also responsible for) responsible for constructing teams, we won't be contenders.

 

Hendry will be gone if the losing continues, but he's safe through next year.

 

Just a reminder to everyone, Ed Lynch wasn't fired he resigned, and he was worse than Hendry And it was the second time he offered his resignation before MacPhail finally accepted it. I apologize for the pessimism, but I think Hendry is safe until he's ready to go.

[Jazz]

i am honestly hoping that our interim manager after dusty this year leads this team to over .500 forcing JH's hand to hire him full time. Von Joshua anyone?

[Big Fergie J]

I'm not a fan of Jimy Williams at all.

 

Much of his success can be attributed to his association with Bobby Cox.

 

When he was fired from the Blue Jays in 1989 (I think) Cox gave him the 3rd Base Coach job in Atlanta where he stayed until getting the Red Sox job in 1996 (I think).

 

IIRC, one of his big problems is communication with the players. He does not handle the media well. I believe in Boston and in Houston he lost the respect of the players because he was deemed as not always being up front with them.

 

FWIW, he always looks like he has a bag of s*** in his mouth or like someone ran over his dog.

 

I would not be a supporter of this hire at all.

[Dirt Dog Sparly]

Jimy Williams took over after Leyland left Pitt. The Pirates were already bad and went right over the cliff. Not much Williams could do with that lineup but he never really did alot with what he had. Did the same with Houston although the personel were much better than what he had in Pitt. From what I gather he is a good "baseball" guy but is very average across the board. I get the impression that he would be very good with a veteran team that all you had to do was write out a lineup card and sit back. You know, alot like Baker.

[bleedcubbieblue]

Just a reminder to everyone, Ed Lynch wasn't fired he resigned, and he was worse than Hendry

 

Not so sure about that, and I think it is still to be determined. You have to take each of the tenures as a whole, and take a look at the total body of work for each, and Hendry's is not over. Right now, Hendry is making Lynch look like a genius, or at least in my mind, I think there was a lot more payroll restrictions on Lynch as compared to Hendry. No way did Lynch ever have as much talent on his teams as Hendry did when he first took over, and over the course of the last 3 years, what has happened to this team is incredible.

 

BCB

[goonys evil twin]

I still maintain that the best thing would be for Baker and Hendry to go. I have no confidence and no faith in either of the two, and I suspect as long as Hendry is the one (along with the current Cub scouts, something he's also responsible for) responsible for constructing teams, we won't be contenders.

 

Hendry will be gone if the losing continues, but he's safe through next year. So give him a chance to hire a new guy and make it work, if it doesn't, they're all out in a top to bottom house cleaning.

 

Not sure, MacPhail has always come out smelling like a rose, I think upper management likes him, and he has gotten a lot of projects the Cubune wanted done, accomplished, this last year, getting those bleachers expanded. While their record is not good, I think Andy will still be safe. I also think he got those luxury boxes done a while back, although I could be wrong about that, but Andy is a good "yes" man.

 

BCB

 

I'm not sure Andy is going to be a longterm member of this organization. He's been here 12 years and that is an incredibly long amount of time for any executive. He could be in the commisioner's office by 2008, or he could be hired by the next prospective buyer looking for some MLB insider to help guide his purchase. Plus, the ownership situation is still very much in doubt, given the TRB's recent woes.

 

I don't think Hendry will be here in 2009, and I wouldn't be surprised if he's gone before 2008, unless fortunes change drastically.

[CuseCubFan69]

...Really though, Can someone give me the rundown on Jimy Williams? Why is he good/bad?

 

Well...he likes fountain drinks instead of soda/pop out of a bottle or can and eats with a spoon....very seldom does he use a fork. His wifes name is Sally and he has 3 children, Ren, Stimpy and Snow. He hates good byes and cries while watching soap opera's. He drives a 2002 Mercury Sable and lives in Georgia.

 

I don't know anything about his managing abilities.

 

 

OK...I do. He's a hard nosed dude that won't take no guff from no one. He has pretty much won every where he's gone except for his stay at Houston. He's old school and will match up with Hendry/Hughes very well IMO. In other words...Hendry should be unemployed sometime in 2007.