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Cubs fire manager Dale Sveum
Source: Chicago Tribune
Dale Sveum is out after two seasons as Chicago Cubs manager and the team will seek "a proven leader," president Theo Epstein said Monday.
“Today, we made the very difficult decision to relieve Dale Sveum of his duties as Cubs manager," Epstein said in a statement. "Dale has been a committed leader for this team the last two seasons, and I want to thank him for all of his dedication and hard work."
Sveum's dismissal comes 13 days after Epstein declined to give Sveum, 49, a vote of confidence despite saying there were "no alarm bells to ring" regarding the manager. Epstein said Sveum's future was part of the annual process of evaluations throughout the organization and that the manager wasn’t to be judged on wins and losses.
However, it was apparent that Epstein and his staff were disappointed with other areas in which Sveum was to be evaluated, such as the development of young players, in-game decision-making, use of the 25-man roster, the ability to “create a culture of accountability, hard work and preparation, and the ability to develop a strong trust with his players.”
Those were the categories that Sveum -- who had a year remaining on his contract -- was to be judged on, Epstein said Sept. 17 in Milwaukee.
Epstein met the media Monday and said Cubs management became concerned during the first half of this season about whether Sveum was the right fit for the job. He said they expressed their concerns to Sveum during the All-Star break in a series of meetings and outlined what improvements were needed.
Epstein said he met with Sveum "over a couple of beers" Sunday night and delivered the news of the dismissal.
Epstein said of the firing: "We needed to get it right before (the top prospects) come up."
Sveum’s firing could pave the way for the Cubs to pursue New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi, a former Cubs catcher and Northwestern graduate who remains popular in the Chicago area and could be fired as Yankees manager after a disappointing 77-85 record in 2013, their first losing season since 1992.
Epstein said "we need that spark of a winning culture." He said they would prioritize track record and find "a proven leader. .... We know what we're looking for and I think we're going to find it."
Epstein said they would begin the process of contacting candidates Tuesday and hoped to be finished by the November general managers meetings.
The Cubs also fired bench coach Jamie Quirk, pitching coach Chris Bosio and hitting coach James Rowson.
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