Cubs Coaching Staff Breakdown

The Cubs have announced their full coaching staff from the 2012 season. Here is a breakdown of the coaches that will serve on the staff, lead by manager Dale Sveum.

Rudy Jaramillo, Hitting Coach
Jaramillo returns to finish out his contract as the Cubs hitting coach. So far his expertise has not been beneficial the Cubs offensive production has declined since he took over for the 2010 season. However, the player seem to respect Jaramillo and maybe he can finally figure out to increase the production of the Cub hitters.

Chris Bosio, Pitching Coach
Bosio will take over for Mark Riggins as the Cubs pitching coach next season. He is an ex big league pitcher who played for the Brewers and Mariners from 1986 to 1996. He has been the Brewers pitching coach each of the last two seasons and also served pitching coach for Lou Piniella's Tampa Bay Rays in 2003.

Jamie Quirk, Bench Coach
Jamie Quirk will be Sveum's right hand man on the bench this season. Quirk played for 11 different teams during a long big league career as a catcher. He was the Rockies bench coach from 2003 to 2008 before spending the last three seasons as the Astros bullpen coach.

Pat Listach, Third Base Coach
Listach remains on the Cubs staff, but moves from bench coach to third base coach. He will still play an important role, both in his decision making at third and his instruction for Cubs players.

Dave McKay, First Base Coach
McKay played infield for the Twins, Blue Jays and A's before starting his coaching career with Oakland in 1988. He moved to St. Louis in 1996, where he worked for Tony LaRussa until the end of this season. McKay should provide some insight as he takes over for fan favorite Bobby Dernier.

Lester Strode, Bullpen Coach
Strode is now the longest tenure Cubs coach. He has been a fixture in the Cubs pen since 2007.

Mike Borzello, Staff Assistant
Borzello is a former minor league catcher in the Cardinals system who never made it above Class A. He worked under Joe Torre as a bullpen catcher from 1996-2011 with the Yankees and Dodgers. Hopefully he has learned something working for one of the best. Borzello will work with catchers and be involved in advanced scouting.

Franklin Font, Staff Assistant
This year the Cubs will have two "special assistants" as Font also joins the staff. He has been in the organization as a roving infield instructor at the minor league level for 17 seasons. Font will coach the Cubs infielders and serve as an assistant to Jaramillo. In recent years the Cubs have had just one extra assistant- Dave Keller (2011), Matt Sinatro (2010), Ivan DeJesus (2007-2009) and Sonny Jackson (2003-2006).

It should be an interesting year with lots of new faces on both the staff and the field.

Coaching Staff Decisions

Now that Dale Sveum is in place as the manager of the Chicago Cubs, it is time to starting figuring out the rest of the Cubs coaching staff. The team announced today that Rudy Jaramillo will return as its hitting coach. Jaramillo is entering the final year of his three year contract.

Sveum is also slated to meet with the two other coaches that are under contract, Lester Strode and Pat Listach. Most likely Bobby Dernier, Ivan DeJesus, Dave Keller and Mark Riggins will not return. In fact, Dernier and DeJesus have already been informed that they will not be back for next season.

Sveum is going to conduct interviews for his own pitching coach and bench coach jobs. Listach could return to the staff in a different role.

Sveum already has a list of candidates that will be interviewed for the job of pitching coach. He is looking to bring in someone who is very close to him as the bench coach. Mark Riggins spoke to Sveum over the weekend. The two are expected to talk again soon.

The full coaching staff should be in place sometime in the next few weeks. That's it for now, but I'll keep you posted!

Do the Cubs Need to Make a Change on Their Coaching Staff?

Many times, when your team has one of the worst records in the league, a change on the coaching staff is considered. Improvements are rarely seen based on a tweak on the staff, but management likes to send the message to the team that losing will not be tolerated. So the question is, should the Cubs fire of their coaches?

Mike Quade is in his first year as the manager of the Cubs, as are many of the assistant coaches. Q has made some questionable decisions, but I don't think many people expected the Cubs to contend this year anyway. At this point, I think it would be best to stick it out with Quade for at least the rest of the season.

The two coaches that most often take the blame for their team's struggles are the pitching coach and the hitting coach. Pitching coach Mark Riggins is in his first year, so it may be too soon to pull the plug on him. However, I doubt that guys like Carlos Zambrano, Matt Garza, Carlos Marmol, Kerry Wood and Ryan Dempster truly have that much respect for the longtime minor league coach. Riggins main job is to work with younger hurler such as the currently disabled Andrew Cashner, Chris Carpenter, Marcos Mateo and even Randy Wells or Jeff Samardzija. None of those guys have performed particularly well and I haven't heard anyone rave about Riggins. None the less, I'd stick with him for at least the duration of 2012.

Rudy Jaramillo is supposed to be a hitting guru. However, he has failed to help the Cubs offense. The hitters continue to scuffle in Jaramillo's second year on the job. If you're going to make a move just for the sake of making a move, I'd fire Rudy. The Cubs could bring Jim Riggleman on the staff to take his place or promote Dave Keller to interim hitting coach and then hire someone else at the end of the year.

Pat Listach might have been a mistake as Q's bench coach. Mike could have used an ex-big league manager at his side. If the Cubs hadn't been so rude to Alan Trammell, keeping him on would have been a good move. This is another place that Riggleman could take over. Rarely is a bench coach fired in the middle of the season.

Ivan DeJesus has made some poor decisions in the third base coaching box this season. Coaching third is a very difficult job. For next year, the Cubs may consider swapping DeJesus and Listach. Pat did a solid job coaching third for the Washington Nationals and DeJesus is familiar with a assistant coaching role in the dugout. I do think Ivan is an asset to the staff, but he has struggled a bit as the third base coach.

Thoughts?

Getting Set for Camp Quade

First of all, I apologize for the lack of posting during the second half of this week. Things have returned to normal and we should be able to be a regular posting schedule leading up to the start of Spring Training. Don't look now, but we are only 2 days away from pitchers and catchers reporting! Infact, many Cubs players are already in camp.

Let's catch up on the latest from Mesa and more!

• The Cubs regular season TV broadcast schedule has been released. Opening Day on April 1 against the Pirates will be on WGN!
• Bench coach Pat Listach will plan and run the day-to-day activities during Cubs camp, starting with the first workout next Monday.
• Bruce Miles reports that Mike Quade and Jim Hendry will meet with the media on Sunday (tomorrow).
• Brett Jackson does not have a good chance to make the club out of Spring Training, but he could get an opportunity later in the season.
• Bleed Cubbie Blue has had an in depth interview series with Tom Ricketts: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3.
• Buster Olney reports that if Albert Pujols becomes a free agent, the Cubs could be the top bidders for him.
• HoHoKam Park public address announcer Tim Sheridan has been blogging daily from Mesa.
• Jeff Samardzija will not compete for a spot in the rotation. His only chance to make the team will be in relief, according to ESPN Chicago.
• Bruce Levine previewed the Cubs pitching staff on his blog. The fourth and fifth spots in the rotation are up for grabs with Carlos Silva, Randy Wells, Todd Wellemyer, Braden Looper, Casey Coleman, Andrew Cashner and James Russell all battling for them.
• Both Chris Carpenter and Jay Jackson will get long looks this spring.
• Levine also previewed the Cubs infield. During Spring Training, Blake DeWitt, Darwin Barney, Jeff Baker and Augie Ojeda will all see time at second base. The Cubs would love for DeWitt to win the job outright. Ojeda and Barney will battle for a roster spot.
• It doesn't sound like Levine thinks that Max Ramirez or Welington Castillo will have a shot to challenge Koyie Hill for the backup catcher's job.
• Guys that have already reported to Mesa include Carlos Marmol, Marlon Byrd, John Grabow, Carlos Zambrano, Steve Clevenger, Ryan Dempster, Tyler Colvin, Matt Garza and Casey Coleman.

That's it for now, but I'll keep you posted with all the news out of Arizona this weekend.

Getting to Know the Cubs: Pat Listach

Let us go back to our "Getting to Know the Cubs" series by learning a little bit more about the new bench coach for the Chicago Cubs.

Full Name: Patrick Alan Listach

Birthday: September 12

Age: 43

Position (during career): shortstop

College: Arizona State

Drafted: 5th round in 1988 by the Brewers

Teams: Brewers ('92-'96) and Astros ('97)

Career Stats: .251 AVG, 5 HR, 143 RBIs

Minor League Coaching (Cubs' chain): manager at AA ('06-'07) and Triple-A Iowa ('08)

Big League Coaching: Washington Nationals third base coach (2009-2010)

Awards: 1992 Rookie of the Year, 2008 PCL Manager of the Year

Cubs Bench Coaches of the last 10 Years

Alan Trammell: 2007-2010

Dick Pole: 2003-2006

Rene Lachemann: 2000-2002

Welcome back to the organization!

Breaking News: Pat Listach Named Cubs Bench Coach

According to several big league sources Pat Listach will serve as the Cubs bench coach in 2011. An official announcement is expected after the World Series. Listach managed in the Cubs system for four years including 2008 when he was named the PCL Manager of the Year.

Pat left the organization for a job on the Washington Nationals staff as their third base coach in 2009. After two years in DC he will come back to the Cubs to coach under Mike Quade on the big league staff.

Listach will replace Alan Trammell, who left to join Kirk Gibson in Arizona. The 2011 Cubs coaching staff is now just about complete. It is possible that Quade will add one more guy to serve as his special assistant, a role Ivan DeJesus ('07-'09) and Matt Sinatro ('10) filled under Lo Piniella.

In other news, the Cubs announced a few tweaks to the 40-man roster last week. They have added catcher Robinson Chirinos to the roster and outrighted outfielder Jim Adduci.

Carrie Muskat answered her inbox questions today on Cubs.com. Here's the recap:

• Carlos Marmol's strikeout average of 15.9 per 9 innings set a record for relievers.
• Micah Hoffpauir's status will be discussed this week at the organizational meetings in Mesa.
• If Aramis Ramirez wants a contract in 2012, he'll have to bounce back this coming season.
• Carrie likes the idea of Starlin Castro as the lead-off hitter. Castro enjoys being at the top of the order and is one of the fastest guys on the club.

It's going to be a big week for the Chicago Cubs with the organizational meetings underway in Mesa. Tomorrow a vote will take place to determine the future of Cubs Spring Training. I'll keep you posted with all the news out of the Valley of the Sun all week long!

Breaking News: Trammell and Sinatro Out, Other Coaches Return

Alan Trammell, who has spent the last three years as the bench coach for the Chicago Cubs, will join Kirk Gibson's staff with the Arizona Diamond Backs. Gibson was Trammell's bench coach in Detroit and now the roles will be switched with the D'backs.

The Cubs will have a spot to fill on Mike Quade's coaching staff with Tram's departure. Alan was expected to be a candidate to replace Lou Piniella at the helm but he did not receive much consideration from the organization.

The first two candidate that come to mind to fill the void are Ryne Sandberg and Pat Listach. Both ideas have been shot down by the Chicago media today. ESPN reports that Sandberg has been offered his job back at Triple-A Iowa, but he will not be invited to be on the big league staff.

Bruce Levine writes that Listach is expected to return to Washington. He will be retained by the Nats and most likely will not join another staff unless it is a managerial offer. Listach managed the Iowa Cubs for several years before becoming the third base coach in DC.

Paul Sullivan tweets that the rest of the Cubs coaching staff (besides Lou's buddy Matt Sinatro) will return. It was already announced that Lester Strode, Rudy Jaramillo, and Larry Rothschild would return. If Sullivan's tweet is correct, it appears that Ivan DeJesus and Bobby Dernier will be retained as well. DeJesus could serve as the team's bench coach or stay at third base.

The full coaching staff is expected to be announced before the organizational meetings, which take place the first week of November in Mesa.

In other news, the Cubs outrighted right hander Jeff Gray to Triple-A, which opens up another space on the 40-man roster. Gray worked in seven games for the Cubs in 2010.

Ben Maller says that the Cubs are interested in signing Adam Dunn for 3 years, $40 million.

Weekend Quick Hits: Reaction on Quade

News and Notes after the Hiring of Quade

• Lester Strode, Larry Rothschild, and Rudy Jaramillo are expected to be apart of Mike Quade's staff next year.
• The futures of Alan Trammell, Ivan DeJesus, and Bobby Dernier are up in the air.
• Pat Listach could end up in Chicago if he does not get the gig as the Brewers manager.
• The Chicago Tribune reports that Ryne Sandberg is welcome to return as the manager of the Iowa Cubs if he chooses to.
• Ted Lilly inked with the Dodgers last week.

Jim Hendry joined Waddle & Silvy on Thursday:

• Hendry said he enjoyed the search for the manager.
• He had plenty of time to get really deep into a lot of things.
• The Ricketts family allowed him to do it the way he wanted to.
• Quade would still have been a candidate even if he didn't have to take over for Lou.
• There were some situations earlier in the year with Piniella's family and he almost left but wanted to stick it out as long as he could.
• The job Mike did down the stretch certainly strengthened his case.
• Ryne Sandberg is a terrific guy. He is probably a better person than he was player according to Jim. Ryno earned the right to be a finalist for the manager's job.
• Sandberg is disappointed he didn't get the job, but he is not angry at Hendry or Ricketts.
• Hendry feels strongly that the Cubs made the right decision.
• Ryno did nothing wrong in four years in the minor league system. He doesn't think more experience would have made a difference. Mike Quade just strictly earned this job.
• It is a given that Sandberg is welcome back to Iowa. Hendry would love to have him back in Iowa.
• Ryno has every right to do what he wants to do. There will be some private conversations between Hendry and Sandberg.
• Jim is encouraged by the fact that a lot of the team's young players got a lot better over the final six weeks.
• The team would like to think that they have a lot more guys coming from the system.
• Carlos Zambrano has a no trade clause so he will be back. The Cubs are hopeful that he has grown and learned from his mistakes. He is not the young flame-thrower that he used to be, but he had a very good last two months.

That's it for now, but I'll keep you posted!

Series Preview: Cubs VS Nationals

The Chicago Cubs will look to rebound after an embarrassing 16-5 defeat in Sunday's rubber match against the Braves. The Boys in Blue are now 51-74, 21.5 game behind the first place Reds. A new era of Cubs baseball begins with this series in Washington D.C.

Lou Piniella announced before yesterday's game that it would be his last as a big league manager. Sweet Lou had to step down earlier than expected in order to tend to his sick mother in Tampa, FL. He said it would be unfair to continue to leave the team and come back, so since it was his last year anyways he went ahead and stepped down.

Lou had a fantastic managerial career but he did not go out the way he had hoped. Third base coach Mike Quade will have a tall task ahead as he takes over as skipper for at least the rest of 2010. All eyes will be on the dugout tonight the new interim becomes the 51st manager in the history of the Chicago Cubs.

Quade and Ryne Sandberg are the two candidates that Jim Hendry has announced for the 2011 opening. Bench coach Alan Trammell will not receive consideration and will most likely leave the team after this season. Ivan DeJesus, who was the Cubs first base coach, will take over Quade's job at third for the rest of the year. Bruce Levine reported last night that minor league roving instructor Bobby Dernier will join the team as the first base coach, but that has not yet been confirmed. Matt Sinatro is also a candidate to take over at first for now.

The Washington Nationals are not in much better shape than the Cubs. They are 53-71 going into this set. The Nats had a decent first half, but they've gone down hill since and now reside in the basement of the NL East. They are 20 games behind the first place Braves.

Washington was blanked in the final game against the Phillies on Sunday 6-0. Ex-Cubs manager Jim Riggleman has not been able to get the job done this season. Third base coach Pat Listach will also receive a lot of attention from the media during this series. He is a former Cubs minor league manager at Triple-A Iowa and has expressed interesting in coming in as Lou's successor next season.

After the Cubs leave town at head for Cincinnati, the St. Louis Cardinals will come to Nationals Park looking to regain the top spot in the Central. This is the Cubs first trip to our nation's capital of the year, but they did host the Nats back in April. The Boys in Blue won the first game, but Washington battled back to win the next two.

Young phenom Stephen Strasburgh will not pitch in this series, but the Cubs will see a familiar face in Jason Marquis on Wednesday. Washington first baseman and free agent to be Adam Dunn could receive a look from the scouts in this set, as the Cubs could be looking for a new first baseman this winter.

Unless of coarse, Jim Hendry is happy with Tyler Colvin's play at first. Colvin sat out most of the weekend at Wrigley in order to take grounders at first base and is expected to debut there during this series. However, Colvin is in tonight's early lineup in right field.

Perhaps Quade and his staff were not happy with Tyler's play at first, because Micah Hoffpauir has been called up for tonight's game, according to a tweet from Gordon Wittenmyer. Geovany Soto is also expected to be activated from the disabled list and in the starting nine tonight. The club will have to make two corresponding moves, so most likely Sam Fuld and Welington Castillo are both headed back to Triple-A without getting much of a chance during there time with the team.

Perhaps the Cubs will pull off an Oriole-like win streak under a new skipper.

Let's just go get a win!

Mid-Week Quick Hits: Piniella, Zambrano, Rumors, & More

• Former AAA-Iowa manager and current Nationals coach Pat Listach has interest in managing the Cubs next season according to Bill Ladson.
• Tom Ricketts announced during the press conference yesterday that Jim Hendry will be the Cubs GM going into the 2011 season.
• The USA Today tossed out a few new possible replacements in Ted Simmons and Bobby Valentine.
• Number 1 draft pick Hayden Simpson is not expected to play this summer. He's battling mononucleosis.
• Carlos Zambrano retired the side in order in a rehab inning with the Mesa Cubs. Jeff Gray, who is rehabbing from a groin injury, pitched the first inning of the game against the AZL Royals.
• Zambrano will pitch at AAA-Iowa tomorrow night and rejoin the team by the end of next week according to Carrie Muskat.
• Patrick Mooney of CSN Chicago reports that John Grabow, who is out with a knee injury, will begin throwing off the mound soon and will need a rehab assignment before being activated.
• Bruce Levine reports that Lou Piniella would like to stay in baseball as a consultant with either the Cubs or Yankees.
• Bruce's list of possible replacements includes the regulars plus Greg Maddux.
• Ryan Theriot wants to win, and he wants to do it in a Cubs uniform.
• ESPN says that the Tigers have some level of interest in Ted Lilly, who is available.
• Levine thinks that the Yankees could join the hunt for Lilly that already includes the Tigers, Twins, Mets, and Dodgers.

That's it for now, but I'll keep you posted on Everything Cubs as always!