Cubs News: Joe Maddon on his job status: 'I'm very optimistic about the future.' |
CHICAGO — Chicago Cubs manager
Joe Maddon's tenure at the helm of the North Siders may soon come to a close. Maddon has been somewhat on the hot seat dating all the way back to last fall, when the Cubs struggled down the stretch and lost in the National League Wild Card Game. However, with the Cubs having now lost seven in a row to essentially play themselves out of postseason contention, Maddon's proverbial seat is scorching. The Cubs are set to be eliminated from playoff contention any day now, which would cap off a season of bitter disappointment in Wrigleyville.
Maddon appeared as a guest on 670 The Score's Laurence Holmes Show on Wednesday and made some fairly interesting remarks regarding his job status, with the veteran skipper saying, "It's not just a one-sided decision. We'll make that decision over the next couple days, and we'll move on from there. But I'm very pragmatic. I'm very optimistic. And so I'll just leave it at that. I'm very optimistic right now. I'm very optimistic about the future." As far as the reference to Maddon's future with the club not being a "one-sided decision," there is no clear-cut explanation for what connotes. However, it makes it seem as though the 65-year-old Maddon, whose contract is set to expire once the Cubs' season ends, might agree to mutually part ways with the Cubs and take on a new opportunity elsewhere. However, Maddon replied with an emphatic "of course" when asked about whether or not he was hoping to remain with the Cubs in the future, but he proceeded to imply that he and the Cubs' front office might be at an impasse that is impossible to work around. "I mean, that's what I signed up for in the beginning," Maddon said when questioned about potentially managing the Cubs for as long as the organization will have him. "It's always what the intention was, to stay for a really long time. Of course, that's still a possibility. But going through the entire season, you get to this point of the year, and it's really a two-way street. It works on both sides. It's an organizational philosophy, what they're looking for, and it's also a personal philosophy, what I'm looking for. It's not unilateral. It's a bilateral discussion and a conclusion to be reached." It will not be surprising in the least if, once the regular season concludes, Maddon announces that he will not be returning to the Cubs. Although Cubs management was not keen on offering Maddon a contract extension last offseason, Maddon has hinted that he was not particularly interested in signing one anyway. While Maddon, who has managed the Cubs since 2015 and led the team to a World Series title in 2016, will shoulder a lot of the blame for the Cubs' 2019 downfall, the Cubs' front-office mavens, Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer, are certainly at fault, as well. Therefore, Maddon might gladly accept the Cubs not retaining his services.
