Any chance Hendry would grade himself like Bowden?

[katway]

The GM of the Washington Nationals, Jim Bowden, writes a column for the Washington Examiner newspaper. In today's column, Jim Bowden grades himself rather candidly with respect to trades, the draft, etc. It's an interesting and refreshing read because it's rare to see a GM openly critique the job he has done. See http://www.dcexaminer.com/articles/2005/09/29//columns_sports/jim_bowden/001_col_bowden.txt

 

Just wondering if Hendry would ever be so candid and if the Tribune company would ever allow it? The answer, IMO, is clearly no, but it would be interesting to see what he would say.

[CuseCubFan69]

I think Mr. Hendry is hiding in a camouflauge suit by the ivy right now.

[Chris]

I think Mr. Hendry is hiding in a camouflauge suit by the ivy right now.

 

That would be funny to see!

[JC]

I noticed he didn't critique his free agent signings. Those would have been the toughest to defend.

[RynoRules]

The GM of the Washington Nationals, Jim Bowden, writes a column for the Washington Examiner newspaper. In today's column, Jim Bowden grades himself rather candidly with respect to trades, the draft, etc. It's an interesting and refreshing read because it's rare to see a GM openly critique the job he has done. See http://www.dcexaminer.com/articles/2005/09/29//columns_sports/jim_bowden/001_col_bowden.txt

 

Just wondering if Hendry would ever be so candid and if the Tribune company would ever allow it? The answer, IMO, is clearly no, but it would be interesting to see what he would say.

 

Candid? He spent the whole article blowing sunshine up his own posterior.

 

The only trade he'd take back is the Ohka trade, but he basicaly blames its result on injuries, implying that it was beyond his control (sound like someone else we know?).

[Transmogrified Tiger]

I noticed he didn't critique his free agent signings. Those would have been the toughest to defend.

 

That would be fun reading. Bowden is very bad at his job.

[MeatampPotatoesMan]

The GM of the Washington Nationals, Jim Bowden, writes a column for the Washington Examiner newspaper. In today's column, Jim Bowden grades himself rather candidly with respect to trades, the draft, etc. It's an interesting and refreshing read because it's rare to see a GM openly critique the job he has done. See http://www.dcexaminer.com/articles/2005/09/29//columns_sports/jim_bowden/001_col_bowden.txt

 

Just wondering if Hendry would ever be so candid and if the Tribune company would ever allow it? The answer, IMO, is clearly no, but it would be interesting to see what he would say.

 

Candid? He spent the whole article blowing sunshine up his own posterior.

 

The only trade he'd take back is the Ohka trade, but he basicaly blames its result on injuries, implying that it was beyond his control (sound like someone else we know?).

 

that was my take on Bowden's response as well.

[UMFan83]

Does he mention Christian Guzman?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Didn't think so.

[cubweiser03]

Does he mention Christian Guzman?

 

Didn't think so.

 

Nor the Vinny Castilla 2 year contract.

[imb]

They should let me write an article about Bowden.

[ToupeeOnFire]

How’d the Cubs’ GM do?

Jim Hendry (special to NSBB)

 

http://chicago.comcastsportsnet.com/images/content/cubs/hendry22.jpg

 

Fans often come up to me and ask how difficult is it to be general manager of the Chicago Cubs, particularly when you are under a constant microscope - what, with the vultures in the press breathing down your neck, ingrates on internet message boards questioning your every move, and that good for nothing Jay Mariotti being Jay Mariotti - but I like to think I can hang.

 

Nobody likes to be criticized in their job. When the team is doing well most fans are supportive, but when the team is in stinksville you better batten down the hatches and run to the hills! One minute they want to have your babies, the next they want drag you out into a forest, strip you down to your Sunday's best, tie you up by your feet and hang you upside down to a tree limb, all the while pelting you with pine cones, hurling verbal taunts and reciting dirty limericks. That's not anybody's idea of fun, but I knew what I was getting into when I took this job.

 

It helps that we have a great manager who captains this erstwhile ship and endures the slings and arrows so that I don't have to. Wait, scratch that last part. I’m not suggesting that I purposefully hired a rotten manager who’d make questionable moves in order to deflect the heat off of yours truly. That’d be absurd…ABSURD. I truly believe that Dusty Baker is the right manager for this team or my name isn’t James F. Hendry. Stop looking at me like that. [Can we remove this paragraph in the final edit?]

 

Anyhoo, to make a long story short, the ad wizards at northsidebaseball.com asked me to write a self-assessment of my performance, and being the reticent, self-effacing individual that I am, I obliged.

 

Trades:

 

Sammy Sosa for Jerry Hairston Jr., Mike Fontenot and David Carouthers

 

Hah! See, you all were criticizing me for trading roid boy for three non-descripts. Well, who got the last laugh buddy boy! So what that David Carouthers retired after the trade was made. You know what? I knew Carouthers was going to retire and I made the trade anyway! Hah…hah hah. I am crazy like that. Have you seen Sosa’s stats? Jerry Hairston has pretty much given us what we expected, even if he steals bases as if he were National League umpire Larry Poncino and has all the grace in center as a bagful of ferrets. The only unfortunate thing about this trade is the Amber Alert that we had to issue for Mike Fontenot late in the season. I blame Dusty.

 

Kyle Farnsworth for Bo Flowers

 

Look, you know as well as I did that as soon as we traded away that drunken sod Farnsworth away, he was going to turn into the modern reincarnation of Rob Dibble. You knew that, I knew that, the whole flippin’ world knew that. We just got tired of finding him passed out in a puddle of his own vomit and having to wake him up for bullpen sessions. We did get Roberto Novoa and some minor leaguer by the name of Dinty Moore or something. But the centerpiece of this trade was Bo Flowers. I’m telling you, that Flowers kid is ready to bloom in ’06.

 

I know, I know. Mac Daddy (Cub president Andy MacPhail) doesn’t laugh at that joke either.

 

Latroy Hawkins for Jerome Williams and David Aardsma

 

Mea culpa. I screwed the pooch with Hawkins. Bigtime. Look, I’m not afraid to admit when I am wrong. Like that time I traded for that Andy Pratt guy. Everybody else saw a guy who had more wild pitches than strike outs, I saw a diamond in the rough. So I was wrong. What ya gonna do, sue me? The important thing is, I’m not afraid to take chances. That is why they call me the ‘gunslinger’, or at least my wife does, or at least I wish she did, because that would be a cool nickname to have.

 

Jason Dubois for Jody Gerut for Matt Lawton for Justin Berg

 

I would like to say that when I first traded Dubois for Jody Gerut that it was my intention all along for it to be the initial step in an elaborate chain of events that would eventually net us Justin Berg. I would like to say that, but I won’t, because I know I would never get away with it, even if it were true, which I’m not saying was, but I am not denying wasn’t. Lawton had a good clubhouse presence for the two and a half weeks he was here, but he stunk up the bathrooms and didn’t get along with Macias.

 

Draft:

 

Confession time: we general managers don’t know anymore than you do whether player so-and-so is going to be the next big thing or the next big bust, we go on instinct. Now let me assuage some fears. The Cub organization has made some doozy picks over the years (Earl Cunningham, Ty Griffin, Ben Christiansen, Luis Montanez, to name a few), but I can say with 100% truthfulness that I wasn’t responsible for any of them. So before you go off comparing our first round pick, Mark Pawelek, to Lance Dickson, realize who you are dealing with (they don’t call me the ‘gunslinger’ for nothin’).

 

Anyways, we like this Pawelek kid. The scouting reports were pretty glowing about him. He’s got plus stuff: a plus fastball, a plus slider, a double plus curveball, and a plus change. Combine that with plus size and plus make-up and we think he is going to be a big plus for this organization. The only minus is that he was only a high schooler, so he lacks plus experience. But when the only minus about a pitcher is that he lacks experience, overall that’s a big plus.

 

As for the rest of the draft, we like our haul. But between you and me – and let’s be honest here – by the time we get past the 10th round we stop paying attention. Hell, just for giggles, we let Darren Baker make all the picks starting with round 25. It was great fun and a good time was had by all. Next year, we’re thinking of letting team director of media relations Sharon Pannazzo make some of the picks. Wouldn’t that be a hoot.