Jim Hendry Needs a Gut Transplant

I love baseball, but as a Cub fan, I sometimes look forward to the off-season to give my ulcer a rest. Yesterday, though, I was reminded that the Cubs are just as bad for my health away from the field as they are when they're blowing a four-run lead in the bottom of the ninth.

Ever since Lou Piniella retired, I was hoping the Cubs would reward Ryne Sandberg for his 28 years of dedication to the team by naming him the next manager. When Ryno wanted to manage after Dusty Baker was shown the door at the end of 2006, he was told he needed to have experience to be considered, so he went and toiled in the minor leagues for three years, showing that he can do the job -- making the playoffs two years in a row and winning the Manager of the Year this past year. But again, Ryne was rejected in favor of Mike Quade, of course the cheapest option available to the Cubs.

On announcing the decision to hire Quade over Sandberg, Hendry said that it was a "gut decision." Looking back at Hendry's history with the team, here are some other decisions his "gut" made for him:

- His gut decided that it was a good idea to sign Alfonso Soriano, a player who was clearly beyond his prime, to an 8-year, $136 million deal.

- Hendry's gut also thought it would be swell to sign Kosuke Fukudome for $48 million.

- His gut had another stroke of genius when it convinced Jim to sign Milton Bradley for $30 million over three years, when there were four or five other right fielders available who were better, signed for less money with other teams, and didn't have the baggage that everyone knew Bradley had when he came to the team.

The Cubs are going to be rebuilding for years thanks to these bonehead moves by Hendry, and Ryno would have been the right guy for the job, as he has managed many, if not all of the minor leaguers who will be coming up to play for the Cubs.

Hopefully, Quade does a good job, but judging on Hendry's track record, he'll be a miserable failure. Fortunately, the Cubs won't have a multi-million dollar contract to swallow if they can him before his contract ends.

Jim Hendry, you suck!

RoadRage