Rickets gives Fleita 4-year extension

Magnetic Curses · September 4, 2011

can i at least be ragin' anus?

Hairyducked Idiot · September 4, 2011

No.

September 4, 2011

Your contention is that developing pitching is really important as if we should assume that the Cubs have been really stellar at that under Fleita. Truth is...they haven't been. Randy Wells as the only SP with a decent season or two over the past five+ years isn't particularly impressive (Fleita wasn't in place yet for Z, so he doesn't get credit there).

Developing a pen in house is nice, but Wood doesn't count for Fleita and I'm pretty sure Marmol and Marshall were developed (or mostly developed) before Fleita got promoted. So we're basing your argument for the Cubs being good at developing pitchers on Samardzija and Russell? Forgive me for not being overly impressed with that track record.

Wait what?

The kid was throwing his fastball 85-90 mph with extraordinary movement, and looked effortless doing so. Cubs scout Alberto Rondon was the first to recognize Carlos as a prime prospect. Oneri Fleita, head of the team's Latin American academies, agreed

http://www.jockbio.com/Bios/Zambrano/Zambrano_bio.html

Who does he get credit for? Anyone who failed or can be knocked like a Shark or Russell (who are both promising in their own right)?

Fleita has been with the Cubs a long time, and he's got the reputation as being the best talent evaluator in the organization. No that hasn't laid the riches upon us like the Super Team they woulda/coulda/shoulda been last decade, but that doesn't mean they had no intention of keeping him. They'd be foolish not to keep him, as they'd then be forced to look for a new GM plus a new Fleita, all based on a perception in philosophy and a little aggravation over losing. Not worth it.

I'm really not sure what the big deal is...Or why there's an assumption of incompetence on anyone who worked under the Tribune's later days with Hendry as GM. Yes, the organization has been in a bad ways the past couple of years, mostly through the failures of the big league teams. Big deal, stuff happens, and they're moving on. Hell, they've been moving on. Choosing to keep the guy who's long been the most praised talent evaluator in the organization isn't something I'm going to lose sleep over. The new GM will figure some way to cope, as there's much bigger issues to go after (like the big league club, the hole at 1B and in the rotation, and 40+ million off the books).

1) Fleita was involved in the scouting of Z, but not the development. That's the position he's in now as head of player development. I'm not sure why that difference is hard to grasp.

2) Wilken has the best reputation as a talent evaluator. Fleita's is good, but not as good. That said, it's largely irrelevant when discussing someone whose title is head of player development.

3) You still haven't provided any evidence of Fleita's competence except a tallest midget argument, but I've provided plenty of reasons to doubt it. Care to offer some decent evidence of Fleita's competence in player development? If not, I can't find any reason to be happy with this decision.

idakepps · September 4, 2011

Is it normal for a new GM to also bring in a new VP of Player Personnel? Personally I would think it would be pretty hard to take over a team in October and November and have to immediately make decisions regarding the 40 man roster, etc with a completely new front office that doesn't have a lot knowledge about the players in the system. If I were starting as the GM I would want to be able to have some key people still in place from the previous regime at least for the first year and then start making decisions about who is worth keeping and who needs to go after I have had time to evaluate how everyone does their jobs. He is already going to have to probably find a new manager and possibly scouting director if Wilkens leaves so I would think he would appreciate at least some continuity while he gets his feet wet.

Right, and so Oneri like Hendry is probably under contract for another year. So you give Oneri a year to see if you can work together and if you don't, you let his contract run out and bring in someone else.

Now, you don't. Now you have a guy with (at best) a debatable track record, the #2 person in the former regime's organization locked in for 4 years before you even got your job. It doesn't matter if you want to hire a farm director or not....Ricketts has already done it.

Oneri's natural next step is a GM job. VP of Player Personnel with the Cubs is just a code word for "Big #2, glorified farm director." So again, if Ricketts is so enamored with the job that Oneri has done, why doesn't he just make him the new GM?

idakepps · September 4, 2011

Here's a couple major leaguers Oneri developed....until he cut them:

Erik Hamren

Casey McGehee

TruffleShuffle · September 4, 2011

if the cubs think starlin castro is so great, why don't they just make him team president?

KingKongvs.Godzilla · September 4, 2011

1) Fleita was involved in the scouting of Z, but not the development. That's the position he's in now as head of player development. I'm not sure why that difference is hard to grasp.

2) Wilken has the best reputation as a talent evaluator. Fleita's is good, but not as good. That said, it's largely irrelevant when discussing someone whose title is head of player development.

3) You still haven't provided any evidence of Fleita's competence except a tallest midget argument, but I've provided plenty of reasons to doubt it. Care to offer some decent evidence of Fleita's competence in player development? If not, I can't find any reason to be happy with this decision.

1 - You're talking about a coach. He's a FO guy. He hasn't been a coach since the mid-90's. Scouting has been his big job, and he's been involved in some good ones for the Cubs.

2 - Before Wilken there was Fleita, who had that rep and has been touted by the organization and others for a while now. He's VP of Player Personnel right now in the minors, what that entitles I do not know but I like the farm system more than most. He's played the part of manager, scout, and director of Latin America operations from '97-'08 as well as player development from '00-'08 for the organization. The Cubs put alot on him, and apparently they're of the opinion that he's done well. Either way, I like the kind of players the Cubs have been bringing in talent I like recently. The last batch of hitting prospects sucked at making contact from Patterson to Patterson to Dopirak to Harvey to Pie. These guys have better discipline, better ability to put the bat on the ball, and generally aren't absolutely crushed by a breaking ball. This is progress, and it's progress that Fleita has most likely been heavily involved in.

3 - You really haven't presented any evidence for me to refute? I just hear that he's terrible and has a terrible philosophy.

TruffleShuffle · September 4, 2011

3 - You really haven't presented any evidence for me to refute? I just hear that he's terrible and has a terrible philosophy.

Hunsicker did the majority of the "minors" stuff.... he sure took Hendry to the wood shed last January, though. This is the first time the Cubs made a splash in the draft since the Prior signing. Was it just the ownership's lack of committing resources to signing bonuses that's been the system's problem, or were Fieta and/or Wilkens the problem? It would be interesting to know what Ricketts thinks about that.

==============================================

TRN: One thing I have noticed about the Cubs Player Development Dept that does not reflect favorably on Oneri Fleita is the apparent disinterest in using technology to help assess player development.

For example, most every other team out here has a qualified tech-geek in charge of video-recording the pitchers and the hitters at Minor League Camp, Extended Spring Training, AZL, and Instructs, but the Cubs only do it occasionally (they were video-recording Hayden Simpson a couple of weeks ago), and when they do employ video, it's usually done by one of the minor league pitchers equipped with a camera phone.

A coach from one of the other teams thought that was a real hoot.

Also, several teams out here use a system where the pitcher "charting" the game from behind home plate inputs the pitch-by-pitch information (type of pitch, velocity, outcome) directly into a lap-top using software that is specifically designed to analyze the pitcher's outing, and the Player Development staff can immediately access the info from anywhere in the world.

The Cubs pitchers keep pitching charts by hand (pencil & paper).

Isuppose it depends on who your manager is, and who your front office is. I came up in the Cubs system, and they’re probably not as involved in the statistics side of the game as some other organizations. It still is important to me to get on base, even though (laughs) there were some guys who, all they cared about was my average.

Keri: Were they telling you, “be aggressive, be aggressive, swing, swing, swing?”

Fuld: Yeah, I definitely got a lot of that sort of instruction. It’s frustrating, but it’s reality. You have to please your boss before anybody else. That’s one of the things I’m actually looking forward to in going to the Rays, is maybe a little more advanced thinking when it comes to the numbers of baseball.

iowa cubs - 16th out of 16 teams in walks drawn (431 - top team has drawn 631)

tennessee smokies - 10th out of 10 teams in walks drawn (442 - top team has drawn 566)

daytona cubs - 9th out of 12 teams in walks drawn (375 - top team has drawn 513; bottom team 354)

peoria chiefs - 16th out of 16 teams in walks drawn (350 - top team has drawn 544)

boise hawks - 2nd out of 8 teams in walks drawn (292 - top team has drawn 370; bottom team 218)

arizona league cubs - 13th out of 13 teams in walks drawn (164 - top team has drawn 244)

Cubfanintheknow · September 4, 2011

3 - You really haven't presented any evidence for me to refute? I just hear that he's terrible and has a terrible philosophy.

Hunsicker did the majority of the "minors" stuff.... he sure took Hendry to the wood shed last January, though. This is the first time the Cubs made a splash in the draft since the Prior signing. Was it just the ownership's lack of committing resources to signing bonuses that's been the system's problem, or were Fieta and/or Wilkens the problem? It would be interesting to know what Ricketts thinks about that.

==============================================

TRN: One thing I have noticed about the Cubs Player Development Dept that does not reflect favorably on Oneri Fleita is the apparent disinterest in using technology to help assess player development.

For example, most every other team out here has a qualified tech-geek in charge of video-recording the pitchers and the hitters at Minor League Camp, Extended Spring Training, AZL, and Instructs, but the Cubs only do it occasionally (they were video-recording Hayden Simpson a couple of weeks ago), and when they do employ video, it's usually done by one of the minor league pitchers equipped with a camera phone.

A coach from one of the other teams thought that was a real hoot.

Also, several teams out here use a system where the pitcher "charting" the game from behind home plate inputs the pitch-by-pitch information (type of pitch, velocity, outcome) directly into a lap-top using software that is specifically designed to analyze the pitcher's outing, and the Player Development staff can immediately access the info from anywhere in the world.

The Cubs pitchers keep pitching charts by hand (pencil & paper).

Isuppose it depends on who your manager is, and who your front office is. I came up in the Cubs system, and they’re probably not as involved in the statistics side of the game as some other organizations. It still is important to me to get on base, even though (laughs) there were some guys who, all they cared about was my average.

Keri: Were they telling you, “be aggressive, be aggressive, swing, swing, swing?”

Fuld: Yeah, I definitely got a lot of that sort of instruction. It’s frustrating, but it’s reality. You have to please your boss before anybody else. That’s one of the things I’m actually looking forward to in going to the Rays, is maybe a little more advanced thinking when it comes to the numbers of baseball.

iowa cubs - 16th out of 16 teams in walks drawn (431 - top team has drawn 631)
tennessee smokies - 10th out of 10 teams in walks drawn (442 - top team has drawn 566)
daytona cubs - 9th out of 12 teams in walks drawn (375 - top team has drawn 513; bottom team 354)
peoria chiefs - 16th out of 16 teams in walks drawn (350 - top team has drawn 544)
boise hawks - 2nd out of 8 teams in walks drawn (292 - top team has drawn 370; bottom team 218)
arizona league cubs - 13th out of 13 teams in walks drawn (164 - top team has drawn 244)

Sad statistics, for sure.

But there's a very good possibility the first conversation between the new GM and Flieta goes something like this.

New GM: "Oneri, we're going to have a different approach to our player development. From here on out we're going to teach the values of patience, plate discipline and walks."

First possibility:

Flieta: "Sir, yes sir!"

Second possibility:

Flieta: "I quit."

UK1679666180 · September 4, 2011

I don't really care about the inane quotes in the press.

What I care about is:
the general lack of players exceeding expectations from their draft status
Far too many players failing to live up to their draft expectations
The apparent disdain for the use of technology within the organization in evaluating players and directing their development
Some differences in philosophy in when to promote various players
"Camp Colvin" simply highlights the general lack of attention to strength and conditioning training within the organization
It is certainly possible that all of the above was driven by Hendry. It's certainly possible that a new GM can fix the above issues, along with installing an approach-driven hitting development throughout the system.

But I don't see the need to give Fleita a four year extension based on past results. I had anticipated Fleita and Wilken sticking around for a year as the new guy picked his own people. A four year extension is ridiculous, though.

This is my take. With everyone else likely coming back, they could afford promoting someone from within. I feel bad for the next GM who might have to dance around Flieta. Hopefully, there's still a demand in Det. After next year.

Little Slide Rooter · September 4, 2011

Here's a couple major leaguers Oneri developed....until he cut them:

Erik Hamren

Casey McGehee

Have to give him a mulligan on McGhee. He's a guy who never showed any kind of indication he'd ever be anything. It's not like he was a top prospect we gave up on. Besides, he seems to be turning back to a pumpkin.

Illini Iceman · September 4, 2011

Is it normal for a new GM to also bring in a new VP of Player Personnel? Personally I would think it would be pretty hard to take over a team in October and November and have to immediately make decisions regarding the 40 man roster, etc with a completely new front office that doesn't have a lot knowledge about the players in the system. If I were starting as the GM I would want to be able to have some key people still in place from the previous regime at least for the first year and then start making decisions about who is worth keeping and who needs to go after I have had time to evaluate how everyone does their jobs. He is already going to have to probably find a new manager and possibly scouting director if Wilkens leaves so I would think he would appreciate at least some continuity while he gets his feet wet.

Right, and so Oneri like Hendry is probably under contract for another year. So you give Oneri a year to see if you can work together and if you don't, you let his contract run out and bring in someone else.

Now, you don't. Now you have a guy with (at best) a debatable track record, the #2 person in the former regime's organization locked in for 4 years before you even got your job. It doesn't matter if you want to hire a farm director or not....Ricketts has already done it.

Oneri's natural next step is a GM job. VP of Player Personnel with the Cubs is just a code word for "Big #2, glorified farm director." So again, if Ricketts is so enamored with the job that Oneri has done, why doesn't he just make him the new GM?

Indications are that the Tigers were about to sign him away from the Cubs (and if that is possible his contract must have been expiring, not sure where this could be confirmed) and if so it seems that if Ricketts didn't want to take the chance of losing him the 1 year option wasn't going to be acceptable to Fleita. Personally I think Fleita's knowledge of the system and personnel will be an asset to the new GM. If he proves to not be willing or able to adjust to the new organizational philosophy I am pretty sure the GM will have the authority to go another direction and demote him to another role or just work out a settlement agreement.

And just because Ricketts seems to like the job he has done in the current postion doesn't logically mean he should want him as the GM.

KingKongvs.Godzilla · September 4, 2011

But there's a very good possibility the first conversation between the new GM and Flieta goes something like this.

New GM: "Oneri, we're going to have a different approach to our player development. From here on out we're going to teach the values of patience, plate discipline and walks."

First possibility:

Flieta: "Sir, yes sir!"

Second possibility:

Flieta: "I quit."

Third possibility:

Fleita: "WOW! That's GROUNDBREAKING! No WONDER you're the GM!"

GM: "Er-well see about a decade ago people decided that walks are the shyte. You need to tell your guys that, since CLEARLY the Cubs hated and denounced walks before I got here with my shining beacon of knowledge."

Fleita: "WOW! Groundbreaking! You must be real smart and read books and do maths and stuff or sumpin! Let me chisel in your order onto this stone tablet that the Cubs use in place of computers. How should we go about making our system more patient?"

GM: "Well we could draft guys who walk more."

Fleita: Is there a set percentage I should be looking for or...are we going arbitrary with it???

GM: "Well you know, patience. Just make sure they have patience."

Fleita: "What about the res-...isn't there more to...I mean this isn't well defined as...."

GM: "G'DAMMIT we need WALKS, damn you."

Fleita: "Groundbreaking! You're like the GM who wrote MoneyBalls!! You've got revolutionary vision!" *eats a mothball and slinks away hunched over carrying his stone computer and chisel*

99% of this guy's problem is that he was here with the old regime, and since he's the biggest name left he's been chosen to embody all the problems of the past. Meh.

September 4, 2011

99% of his problem is that the Cubs are far, far worse at developing talent than they should be and he's been in charge.

He's no scapegoat. He's part of the ineptitude that has brought the Cubs to this point. I'm not sure why Ricketts extended his contract.

KingKongvs.Godzilla · September 4, 2011

Hunsicker did the majority of the "minors" stuff.... he sure took Hendry to the wood shed last January, though. This is the first time the Cubs made a splash in the draft since the Prior signing. Was it just the ownership's lack of committing resources to signing bonuses that's been the system's problem, or were Fieta and/or Wilkens the problem? It would be interesting to know what Ricketts thinks about that.

Is this serious? It's easier to have a good draft when there's 10+ million to spend on it. That's the splash they're talking about. What do Fleita and Wilken have to do with bonuses? And obviously Ricketts thinks its a good idea to invest in amateur talent right now.
TRN: One thing I have noticed about the Cubs Player Development Dept that does not reflect favorably on Oneri Fleita is the apparent disinterest in using technology to help assess player development.

For example, most every other team out here has a qualified tech-geek in charge of video-recording the pitchers and the hitters at Minor League Camp, Extended Spring Training, AZL, and Instructs, but the Cubs only do it occasionally (they were video-recording Hayden Simpson a couple of weeks ago), and when they do employ video, it's usually done by one of the minor league pitchers equipped with a camera phone.

A coach from one of the other teams thought that was a real hoot.

Also, several teams out here use a system where the pitcher "charting" the game from behind home plate inputs the pitch-by-pitch information (type of pitch, velocity, outcome) directly into a lap-top using software that is specifically designed to analyze the pitcher's outing, and the Player Development staff can immediately access the info from anywhere in the world.

The Cubs pitchers keep pitching charts by hand (pencil & paper).

I'm not saying this particular situation didn't happen at all. OTOH, why would, should, or could I possibly care to believe that the Cubs shoot the majority of their pitching video (as the article seems to imply) with a cell phone camera? Seriously I know the organization has an absolutely garbage reputation when it comes to tech and stats, but who's actually going to believe they're so adverse to it that the only way they analyze players is through paper and pencil + camera phone?

Isuppose it depends on who your manager is, and who your front office is. I came up in the Cubs system, and they’re probably not as involved in the statistics side of the game as some other organizations. It still is important to me to get on base, even though (laughs) there were some guys who, all they cared about was my average.

Keri: Were they telling you, “be aggressive, be aggressive, swing, swing, swing?”

Fuld: Yeah, I definitely got a lot of that sort of instruction. It’s frustrating, but it’s reality. You have to please your boss before anybody else. That’s one of the things I’m actually looking forward to in going to the Rays, is maybe a little more advanced thinking when it comes to the numbers of baseball.

Yet Sam Fuld still drew his fair share of walks here anyway. It's as if the player he naturally is at the plate took over anyway, despite the Cubs' efforts to beat it out of him. Strange.

iowa cubs - 16th out of 16 teams in walks drawn (431 - top team has drawn 631)
tennessee smokies - 10th out of 10 teams in walks drawn (442 - top team has drawn 566)
daytona cubs - 9th out of 12 teams in walks drawn (375 - top team has drawn 513; bottom team 354)
peoria chiefs - 16th out of 16 teams in walks drawn (350 - top team has drawn 544)
boise hawks - 2nd out of 8 teams in walks drawn (292 - top team has drawn 370; bottom team 218)
arizona league cubs - 13th out of 13 teams in walks drawn (164 - top team has drawn 244)

Last year the Iowa Cubs were 6th.

Last year the Smokies were 7th, and first in OBP.

Not so much for Daytona.

Poria was 11th last year.

Not a good year for Boise.

AZL Cubs iunno I'm lazy.

I'm not sure what these actually conclude anyway. The Cubs have individuals who take their walks and hit (Brett Jackson comes to mind instantly, Flaherty), individuals who take their walks but aren't overly impressive as hitters so far (Matt Cerda, who I like more than most fits here), guys who hit and don't walk alot (LeMahieu, Vitters), and guys who don't do much of either. You can do this for many farm systems, most (all?) of which can be accused of not being patient enough.

davearm2 · September 4, 2011

3) You still haven't provided any evidence of Fleita's competence except a tallest midget argument, but I've provided plenty of reasons to doubt it. Care to offer some decent evidence of Fleita's competence in player development? If not, I can't find any reason to be happy with this decision.

Curious what you'd say to the following hypothesis. Let me say up front that I don't necessarily buy into it, but it's surely plausible. It goes like this.

Fleita is the person in charge of implementing the GM's master plan for player development. Fleita doesn't create the plan, he just carries it out. He's the caretaker... the middle-man between the GM and the minor league coaches.

Put a new GM in place, with a new set of parameters and ideals and points of emphasis, and Fleita and his coaching staff will adapt their methods and approach to fit the new organizational player-development blueprint.

Of course a natural outcome, if you believe this theory has merit, is that Fleita very well may have done things much differently if he was left to his own devices, rather than taking his marching orders from Hendry. We really can't know for sure.

Personally I think it's much more likely that the Cubs' player-dev system is an amalgamation of Hendry's and Fleita's philosophies. But the notion that Hendry was the mastermind, and Fleita the lieutenant, surely could be accurate.

KingKongvs.Godzilla · September 4, 2011

99% of his problem is that the Cubs are far, far worse at developing talent than they should be and he's been in charge.

He's no scapegoat. He's part of the ineptitude that has brought the Cubs to this point. I'm not sure why Ricketts extended his contract.

Should be according to....?

He's playing the scapegoat right now, as it seems anyone of significance who worked with Hendry is going to be (except Wilken who seems to have a force field shielding him).

He's also been a very big part in the good things the Cubs have pulled, and is probably a major player in the quiet rising of the farm system going ignored right now (no one will notice until it's fully bloomed and in your face anyway).

Little Slide Rooter · September 4, 2011

99% of his problem is that the Cubs are far, far worse at developing talent than they should be and he's been in charge.

He's no scapegoat. He's part of the ineptitude that has brought the Cubs to this point. I'm not sure why Ricketts extended his contract.

It also goes beyond FLeita. He/s been here for 7 years, I believe, and for years before that, pretty much all of our top prospects have ended up fizzling, be it once they hit the majors or if they never made it that far. Looking at the latest crop, starting with Castro, Soto, ,and Barney who have all had some degree of big league success, as well as the likes of Cashner, The Jacksons, LeMahieu, Flaherty, McNutt, Vitters, Szczur, Whitenack, Struck, Beliveau, Lake, and multiple others in the lower levels, there are a lot of guys who the jury is still very much out on, and of course the '10-'11 draft crop. I think this latest group will determine his future, and the next 4 years seems like a good time frame to decide how this group turns out. However, on the other hand, considering the lack of success in the previous groups of prospects and the potential of the current crop, could it be a better idea to put the future development of our prospects in someone elses hands?

KingCubsFan · September 4, 2011

This doesn't really make sense. But Ricketts spent over a week following the minor leagues with Fleita, so he must have heard something he liked. I doubt Ricketts would have been so quick to retain Fleita if he was decrying the use of technology and advanced statistics throughout the trip, given Ricketts' comments when he fired Hendry.

dew1679666265 · September 4, 2011

Is Fleita involved in the actual teaching process for players throughout the system or is he just kind of a manager and organizer - a guy who puts the current philosophy in motion but isn't specifically involved in the actual development process? If he's a good manager and organizer, then davearm2's scenario could be even more plausible. Basically, Ricketts may see Fleita as good at organizing and managing each level of the system and good at implementing a philosophy. If Oneri is very good at all of his job requirements other than having an up to date philosophy, it could be that Ricketts believes Oneri will adapt to a new philosophy brought in by whoever the new GM is - which he'll have to since he's a subordinate.

Even if all that is accurate, I still don't like Ricketts extending subordinates to the GM before the GM is chosen, but this doesn't necessarily mean there's going to be a perpetuation of all that was wrong with the Cubs' minor league system under Hendry. I'd hope the GM would still have the authority to make the changes he feels are necessary technically and philosophically to the farm system and it'd be up to Fleita to implement those changes.

September 4, 2011

I suppose I can buy the line of thinking that Ricketts:

1) valued Fleita's knowledge of the system for a new gm to have as a resource

2) didn't want to force a new gm to fill that position with so many other things to address

3) gave Fleita 4 years to convince him to stay on instead of taking another offer, in order to preserve 1 and 2

That said, it's still a confusing decision. Fleita has not done a good job, but I can see Ricketts thinking that all well regarded baseball guys are the same and mistakenly vouching for him. I don't think it's an impediment to getting a strong gm, and I have confidence right now that the new guy will have the authority to keep or dump the fleita's and wilken's of the organization as he sees fit.

September 4, 2011

Should be according to....?

A results oriented reality. By any measure the Cubs have been terrible at developing talent during his tenure.

I'm not sure what you are trying to say so we'll have to agree to disagree, I guess.

BearClaw · September 4, 2011

Ridiculous amounts of money spent each season, by all teams in the draft. Why not spend some of it in this manner:

A small group of players remain for Fall Instructional for whatever reason, and the others sent home to do their own thing. Why not send every player for more instruction regardless of level, draft slot, or prospect status.

A small group of players attend Camp Colvin? Why not everyone? I bet we can agree that each player in the system can use development of tools, fundamentals, and physical conditioning.

Each player should be evaluated on all these aspects and work with the organization on the things needing improvement, i.e routing of flyballs, off the line speed, adding muscle, hitting, etc.

Run it like the business it is. Keep your employees together, train them, provide resources and guidance, then assign them, see how they perfom and developed, results become more important since you trained them. Then you have a better view of your organization.

Edited September 4, 2011 by BearClaw

Backtobanks · September 4, 2011

Is Fleita involved in the actual teaching process for players throughout the system or is he just kind of a manager and organizer - a guy who puts the current philosophy in motion but isn't specifically involved in the actual development process? If he's a good manager and organizer, then davearm2's scenario could be even more plausible. Basically, Ricketts may see Fleita as good at organizing and managing each level of the system and good at implementing a philosophy. If Oneri is very good at all of his job requirements other than having an up to date philosophy, it could be that Ricketts believes Oneri will adapt to a new philosophy brought in by whoever the new GM is - which he'll have to since he's a subordinate.

Even if all that is accurate, I still don't like Ricketts extending subordinates to the GM before the GM is chosen, but this doesn't necessarily mean there's going to be a perpetuation of all that was wrong with the Cubs' minor league system under Hendry. I'd hope the GM would still have the authority to make the changes he feels are necessary technically and philosophically to the farm system and it'd be up to Fleita to implement those changes.

While reading all of these posts, I thought the same thing. Is the lack of walks something to blame on Fleita or the hitting coaches? I'm not saying he's done a great job, but it doesn't sound like we're all on the same page as to what his exact duties are.

BearClaw · September 4, 2011

I still don't understand this odd fascination with WALKS.

Isn't something like "stop swinging at bad pitches" really what is desired?

Most walks are the result of poor command by the pitcher, not the uncanny eye of the hitter.

Most walks are gifts, NOT EARNED

Rickets gives Fleita 4-year extension

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