Lou Piniella said he wasn’t dropping any hints about a contract extension Monday, but admitted he’d be open to discussing one.
It was a change of course for the Cubs manager, who said after being hired in October 2006 that this contract would be his last one, and he’d be done with managing after the 2009 season.
But in a group interview before Monday’s 6-5 win over Seattle, Piniella was asked how much longer he wanted to manage.
“We’ll see,” he said. “There’s no timetable. This will be my last job, though, I can tell you that. Maybe a little consulting job somewhere, but outside of that, this will be it, managing-wise.”
Asked later if that meant he was open for an extension beyond the ’09 season, Piniella hedged.
“I didn’t say anything,” he said. “All I’m saying is I’ve got this year and next year — nothing more, nothing less. As long as I’m enjoying it and as long as the club is playing well and the ownership group here is satisfied, I’m open for discussion.
“But I’m not looking ahead. No, I’m looking to this year and with this year’s team and doing the best I can, and next year will take care of itself.”
Cubs Chairman Crane Kenney must first decide on whether to extend general manager Jim Hendry’s contract. With the team up for sale, it’s unlikely an extension would be offered before the new owner is decided, which probably won’t happen until after the season. Hendry has an option for ’09, but any new owner would have the right to bring in his own GM.
“I love working with Lou and obviously my relationship with him is outstanding,” Hendry said. “I enjoy being the GM with him as manager, but moving forward, we don’t know who will own the club when Lou’s contract is up after ’09.”
Piniella will be managing the Cubs in ’09 no matter who owns the team, but now he seems willing to go beyond his three-year commitment.
He said two weeks ago he has “mellowed” over the years, though that wasn’t apparent on Saturday when he said the Cubs should let Jason Marquis go if he wants to play elsewhere. Piniella apologized for the remark on Sunday, admitting he was wrong to fly off the handle.
But that kind of reaction is exactly what has made Piniella an endearing figure to so many fans. Seattle writers recalled a similar blow-up during Piniella’s first spring training with the Mariners.
Piniella spotted a Wiffle Ball game going on in a field, and instructed the bus driver to pull over. He then turned his cap backward and told his players that he was going to have the team go challenge the kids to a game because he wanted to see if the Mariners could finally win one. After making his point, Piniella sat back down and told the bus driver to continue driving.
Piniella quickly won over fans in Seattle, and has done likewise in Chicago.
“It was a little different here in Chicago than what I expected,” Piniella said. “Very media intense. Getting used to the schedule at Wrigley Field — a lot of day games, the passion of our Cubs fans is something to see. Wrigley Field in itself is an education.
“You think of Wrigley Field as a home-run hitters ballpark with high-scoring games. In retrospect, you play a lot of low-scoring games and the wind blew in a lot last year. It’s like playing the British Open.”
Piniella has grown more comfortable in Chicago after a rocky start. Early in his first season, he seemed upset with the constant questioning about Cubs mistakes, and even blew off the media after a couple of tough losses.
But Piniella now appears to enjoy the fact that every move he makes will be analyzed to death.
A Seattle reporter asked Piniella if managing in Chicago is any different than managing in New York.
“It was so long ago since I’ve been in New York, but Chicago is a media town,” he replied. “They know their baseball there.
“They like to talk baseball, and when things are going well they want to know why, and when things aren’t going well, they want to know why also. But it’s getting like that almost anywhere.”
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Warm thoughts
27 DAYS UNTIL CUBS, SOX SEASON OPENERS
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psullivan@tribune.com
