CINCINNATI — As the Cubs prepared to take the field Wednesday, Jim Hendry was in Arizona bearing down on Day 3 of baseball's amateur draft with as much intensity as he had brought to the conference room more than 30 hours earlier when the Cubs made their first pick. Jim Hendry忙著選秀 Like Ryan Dempster, the starter who ended an eight-game losing streak after almost being scratched warming up for the start, he was trying to make the most of a difficult situation. He understands his days as the Cubs' general manager could be coming to an end but operates on a business-as-usual basis. 飯碗要摔破囉 That means he does not talk about himself and his situation more than he absolutely must. 莫再提 莫再講 "People don't believe me, but I don't worry about that,'' he said when asked if he's concerned about losing his job. "I'll leave that up to what (Chairman) Tom Ricketts thinks is best for the club.'' 炒魷魚很好吃 In baseball, you usually can see the end coming, whether it's for a player, manager or executive. It was a relief for almost everyone, not a surprise, when Lou Piniella opted to resign last August. His team was in freefall, having lost 20 of 24, and a feeling of defeat had taken hold on the franchise. 天下無不散的筵席 That feeling has returned over the last couple of weeks. Recurring mistakes, a run of injuries and a lack of timely hitting have buried first-year manager Mike Quade under a 24-36 record, and both the schedule and the public outcry for change are unrelenting. 痛痛害人不淺 Something has to give, and probably soon, even if the calls for an organizational clean sweep have yet to penetrate the clubhouse doors. 風雨欲來風滿樓 "We have selective ears and vision,'' said first baseman Carlos Pena, whose two-run homer off Bronson Arroyo triggered the 4-1 victory over the Reds. "We have the parental controls on (for) the televisions in the clubhouse. We only choose to focus on the things that concern us. Everything else, we ignore.'' 潘納:這是什麼爛八卦？ Hendry would not talk about a situation that is in the control of ownership and perhaps President Crane Kenney. But the decisions that need to be made over the next few weeks will go a long way in shaping what happens next fall when the Cubs clear as much as $50 million off the payroll and can begin to address their roster issues seriously. ONLY YOU 可以陪我去西天取經 Will Hendry still be in place next month to bring his ideas about midseason trades to Ricketts? Or will Ricketts move decisively to add fresh brainpower? A mess at this time a year ago, the Diamondbacks fired Josh Byrnes on July 1 and would hire Kevin Towers as his full-time successor in September. That process triggered the unexpected turnaround that has the Diamondbacks in contention, and is a reasonable model for Ricketts to follow. 前車之鑑 But Hendry is hardly the only question Ricketts has to answer. There's also the issue of what to do with Kenney, who more than Hendry has overseen the Cubs' rapid descent. 共同正犯如何論處？ The tipping point came on Nov. 20, 2007, when John McDonough left to take over the Blackhawks. Kenney's duties were expanded and the organization has regressed steadily since then, with the sale of the team from Tribune Co. to Ricketts blurring the lines of accountability. 人禍 Ricketts knows this. Will he allow Kenney to shape the next move? Or will Kenney be the next move? 火人的S O P Without Kenney in place, Ricketts might be able to convince soon-to-be Hall of Famer Pat Gillick to take on one more challenge. Hiring Gillick would be the best move he should make, in part because Gillick would retain scouting director Tim Wilken, arguably the organization's biggest asset. But hiring a young, proven architect like the Rays' Andrew Friedman (free to leave after the season) has its own appeal. 橫刀奪愛才是愛 Some potential candidates long have been working behind the scenes to try to grab Hendry's office. The Cubs easily could wind up with one of them or another happy-to-be-there GM with Kenney involved in the process. But could they get around his negative image to raid the Red Sox's talent pool for Allard Baird or Ben Cherington or find a way to finesse Ned Colletti away from the Dodgers? 科科提!?!?你一定是在說笑 Ricketts respects Hendry and believes the organization is making progress below the surface. But how much longer can he continue to ignore a disenchanted fan base and the National League Central standings? 臥薪嘗膽 毋忘在莒 As was true for Piniella early last season, a change at the top feels inevitable. 改變 不負責任大意亂翻流 -- 推 zaipinl:千萬爛約何時了 小熊知多少 07/28 08:43 推 ss555136:經理昨夜又發瘋 裸照全被人握在手中 07/28 10:19 推 shiyhsien:小熊球迷應猶在 只是沒期待 07/28 11:07 推 roverchi:問君能有幾多酬 恰似一將蠢水向東流 07/28 11:20 J i m H e n d r y S u c k s ! --

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