Is this 1998? Cubs Interested in Raul Ibanez
Hold onto your seats! I’ve been called an idiot, been criticized for clickbait, told I’m too much of a know-it-all. But, I’m just writing the news I see and hear and offering my opine afterward. Well, and a little before and after.
Guess what folks – I’m going to continue to do so as long as I want to write articles on the Chicago Cubs. And this article is about the potential Cubs interest in Raul Ibanez.
Raul Ibañez, long viewed as a candidate for the #SFGiants managerial vacancy, will be considered by the #Cubs, as well. Has big-market experience as a player, front-office background with #Dodgers, and is an exceptional communicator in English and Spanish. @MLBNetwork @MLB
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) September 30, 2019
Now, I will say that I haven’t really followed Ibanez since he stopped playing baseball. I do know that I always thought he was a wildly underappreciated and underrated player when he played. I sort of remember him being a surprise name in the vacancy that Joe Maddon left in Tampa Bay. While reading Phillies Nation, I learned that he has since been very hesitant in adding his name to any managerial search.
Ibanez is currently the special advisor to the President of Baseball Operations, Andrew Friedman in Los Angeles. The Dodgers are also one of the most analytical organizations in baseball, which would lend some credence to the Cubs interest in Ibanez. During Theo Epstein’s hour and 20-minute press conference with Chicago media, one thing he drove home when asked about a new manager was the need for accountability and creating a clubhouse/team culture.
In refreshing myself on Ibanez, he was always considered one of the games best clubhouse guys, and his leadership is something that kept him in the game until he was 42-years-old.
From the rumors that are out there, the San Francisco Giants are most interested in Ibanez, and if the Phillies relieve Gabe Kapler of his duties he could come back to Philadelphia. However, Theo did mention that there was someone on a current staff of a team in the playoffs that was on their broad list of managerial candidates.
Could that have been Ibanez?
