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3 Chicago Tribune ChicagoSports Section3 THE EPSTEIN ERA BEGINS Hungry for Cubs? Catch up on the Cubs with our Side app for the iPhone and Android. Download it at chicago tribune.com/cubsapp GET OUR NEWSLETTER: Sign up to receive the Cubs coverage in your inbox twice a week at chicago tribune.com/cubsnewsletter MESA, Ariz. Though the previous administration selected them, the chance to be part of a new administration trying to snap a 103-year World Series title drought remains appetizing to several Cubs prospects in the Arizona Fall League. Trey is trying to keep things in perspective after hearing reports he could be traded to the Red Sox as compensation for them allowing general manager Theo Epstein to head up the baseball operations. really out of my McNutt said Wednesday before the Mesa Solar game.

up to the front office. their decision- making, not mine. So going to pitch for either the Cubs or the Red Sox. And still a job. still trying to get to the big leagues.

nothing I can do about it. Just keep McNutt, made a quick climb from being a 32nd- round pick in the 2009 draft. He was 5-6 with a 4.55 ERAfor Double-A Tennessee, but Baseball America ranked him as the No. 3 prospect entering the season. nice to be wanted, very said McNutt, who has allowed 13 hits in nine innings for Mesa.

nice that my name came up, that (the Red Sox) wanted me. like to stay with the Cubs. I like the coaches, I like the organization. Ilike everything here. out of my Pitchers Chris Carpenter, Andrew Cashner and McNutt concurthat in their best interest to make afavorable impression on a new regime as they continue to develop under the current player development staff.

They admitted they followed ballyhooed hiring and the compensation saga. that say not following it are probably lying to said Carpenter, who struck out three in two innings against Scottsdale on Wednesday and has 14 strikeouts in 9 2 3 innings. you that goes over there, then you. So not something been worrying about or thinking about. But, yeah, you know going on.

as you should. Playing for the Cubs, you should follow going on. one of those Cashner, who is recovering from a right rotator cuff injury and a minor oblique pull, looks forward to being part of a new foundation. He says not overly consumed with who might leave as compensation for Epstein. read all Cashner said.

leave that to Twitter THE PROSPECTS Pitchers try to stick to business Talented trio working in Mesa aware of talk By Mark Gonzales Tribune reporter Roy Smalley Jr. perhaps best known as the predecessor of future Ernie Banks died Saturdayat 85 outside of Tucson, Ariz. Signed by the Cubs at 17, Smalley served a year in World War II and played in the minors before becoming the shortstop from 1948 to After Banks was signed in September 1953, Smalley was traded to the Milwaukee Braves shortly before the 1954 season. He was the father of Roy Smalley III, whose 13-year major league career included part of 1984 with the White Sox. Known as a slick fielder during Golden Era, Smalley married the sister of future big league manager Gene Mauchin 1950, by far his best season in the major leagues.

He hit 21 home runs and drove in 85 runs that year, but he also struck out a league-high 114 times and was charged with 51 errors. While he played a small part in actual Cubs history, he did gain fame for relinquishing his job to Banks at the end of 1953 and for a colorful and eventful career that included what then was called the World That came in 1958while playing for Mauch for the Triple-A Minneapolis Millers.That team played in Havana with new Cuban dictator Fidel Castro in attendance. was a bizarre Smalley told the Green Valley (Ariz.) News long after he had retired. in Havana there were armed troops. Castro had seized power.

When the Great Bearded One made an appearance in our dugout, he was accompa- nied by machine-gun-toting men. won the game when a base hit sent the runner home. He tripped rounding third and spent the rest of his journey to the plate scrambling on all fours. No one really knows if he made it because, by then, our team and the umpires had left the Since 2004, he had lived in south of Tucson. Twitter ROY SMALLEY JR.

1926-2011 Former Cub relinquished shortstop job to Banks By Dave van Dyck Tribune reporter Smalley 5 Outfielder Tyler Colvin (left) had only 26 at-bats in Septemberafter general manager Jim Hendry traded Fukudome and said Colvin would get a chance to be a regular. Once Hendry was fired, Colvin basically was buried on the bench and is an unknown commodity heading into 2012. always tough when not Colvin said at end. got my at-bats whenever someone needed a break, and that was it. just be ready for next 6 Carlos meltdown and threat of retirementin early August ended his season prematurely.

Quade left Zambrano in the game to take a pounding to try to save his bullpen. Zambrano decided to take himself out by getting ejected for throwing at Chipper Jones, then walked out of the clubhouse without telling his manager. 7 When catcher Geovany Soto went on the disabled list in May, Quade gave Triple-A Iowa call-up WelingtonCastillo 13 at-bats while playing backup Koyie Hill almost exclusively. It started a trend in which minor league call-ups sat on the bench while Quade stuck with veterans. Alfonso Soriano hit .219 in the second half but started almost every game.

8 Carlos Marmol led the NL with 10 blown saves and had the worst savepercentage but he never was removed from the closerrole for more than a couple of days to on his Would Quade recommend the Cubs stick with Marmol or suggest Epstein try to move him? 9 Ryan Dempster, Matt Garza and Zambrano all had moments in which they seemed to question authority, either in the dugout, on the mound or at the plate. When asked once about something his manager had said, Zambrano replied: Whether Quade could handle modern-day players was debated all season. Ryan Dempster was one of three starters who seemed to question manager Mike authority during a tumultuous 2011season. TRIBUNE PHOTOS Evidence piles up Laying out the facts 2011 season as Cubs manager By Paul Sullivan Tribune reporter asked not to comment until the World Series ends. In the meantime, Epstein and Hoyer will meet this week in Chicago with Cubs manager Mike Quade to determine his future.

Oneri Fleitaand Tim Wilken will remain in their current positions with the Cubs, with Fleita staying as player personnel and Wilken as scouting director. But both now will report to McLeod. The Padres had no problem letting the two front-office executives go, with Josh Byrnes ready to move up to GM. Negotiations for compensation went smoothly, and the Padres will receive a player to be named, a low-level minor leaguer, for Hoyer and McLeod. Cubs Chairman Tom Ricketts and Padres Vice Chairman and CEO Jeff Mooradhave a good relationship and there were no problems in the dealings, as there have been with the Red Sox-Cubs compensation talks for Epstein, which are ongoing.

The Epstein, Hoyer and grew up together in the Red Sox front office, where they contributed to World Series championships in 2004 and Hoyer left for the PadresGM job in 2009, replacing Kevin Towers and helping to build a club that won 90 games in 2010 and lost out to the Giants for the NLWest title on the final day. Low-key free-agent signings such as Jon Torrealbaand Jerry Hairston Jr. were instrumental in the success in 2010, along with Adrian hitting. But Hoyer then was forced to trade Gonzalez, whom the Padres could not afford to keep on a long-term deal. Gonzalez wound up going to the Red Sox for several prospects, and the Padres fell back to earth with 91 losses in 2011.

When Epstein briefly left the Red Sox job in 2005, Hoyer was named co-GM and helped swing adeal that brought in Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell, two vital cogs in their championship. The Red Sox gave up prized prospect Hanley Ramirez, who became an All-Star shortstop with the Marlins. McLeod spent six years in the Red Sox scouting department under Epstein before joining Hoyer with the Padres as assistant GM in 2009. In Boston, drafts included Dustin Ellsbury and Clay Buchholz. Epstein said Tuesday he will depend on his underlings to help him build the Cubs into a first-class organizationand that he be an autocrat who makes all the decisions himself.

have a ton of work to he said. ready for it, but the more impact front-office personnel we have, the more impact scouts we have, more impact field staff we have, the better and maybe the quicker for getting this thing Epstein said the GM would into helping to run the major league team, day-to-day, and still ultimately run the baseball operations department. But it will ultimately free me up to more big-picture (decisions), free me up to get in the trenches, doing the work in scouting and player development to build that foundation for sustained success that we talked Padres execs come to Cubs Continuedfrom Page1 1 Cubs starters finished last in the National League with a 4.79 earned-run average. Not much Quade could do about that, though his penchant for sticking with starters mighthave contributed to them getting hit hard in their final innings. 2 Starlin Castro finished fifth in the league with a .370 on-base percentage in the leadoff spot.

Quade use him regularly in thatspot until Kosuke Fukudome was traded to the Indians at the end of July. 3 Quade tied a Cubsrecord with seven ejections, most of which were merited. He also had a memorable moment in which he argued during a rain delay that the game should continue despite a downpour. early-season criticisms of umpires appear to help him much. 4 First baseman Carlos Pena hit .133 against left- handed pitching, worst in the National League, with a .260 on-base percentage.

Quade kept Pena in the role full-time instead of platooning him with Jeff Baker, who hit .314 against lefties with a .349 OBP. The Cubs kept Pena instead of trading him to a contender, so first baseman Bryan LaHair received only seven at-bats at first upon being called up, playing mainly in right field. with the Rays, who have been frustrated with poor attendance and lagging revenue while captive to a Tropicana Field lease that runs through 2027. the last six years it has been a phenomenal working Friedman said after the season ended. would expect and assume going to work together for a long Oh, yeah, then why is he dabbling with the Angels? Has Raysowner Stuart Sternberg privately told his staff he would understand if they wanted to look for greener pastures? Cubs incumbent Mike Quade is the only manager Epstein will comment on, beyond confirming that Ryne Sandberg impressed him while he was conducting a search for a Triple-A manager last year and understands good The Cubs are not conducting a managerial search at this time as still in the picture to return in 2012 for the second season ofhis two-year contract.

Whether Quade returns might hinge as much on situation as on what Epstein thinks after he gets to know Quade. highly unlikely going to start a long-term partnership with a manager he inherited from Jim Hendry, but Quade potentially could be a bridge to Maddon or someone else, including former Red Sox manager Terry Francona. Bruce Bochy, who led the Giants to a championship in 2010, is in the same position as Maddon a potential free agent after next season. And overlook that a little time away from baseball could reinvigorate Francona and allow Epstein a chance to consider him for the Cubs under a fresh light, not in the fallout of the Red Septemberthat set in motion the chain of events that eventually led Epstein to Chicago. Then John Farrell, the former Red Sox pitching coach who managed the Blue Jays last year.

Ben Cherington, replacement in Boston, would love to get him out of his commitment in Toronto, but not happening. off limits after signing a three-year deal through 2013. There has been some talk about Bud Black following Padres GM Jed Hoyer to Chicago, but that seems as unlikely as Farrell departing. Black had the Padres on the verge of making the playoffs in 2010, and in the middle of that season he signed a contract extension that runs through with options for and But back to Maddon. Would he come to the Cubs? And if achance that intrigues him how could it not be with Epstein having access to Tom checkbook could the presence of Dave Martinez accelerate the timetable? Martinez, bench coach, was considered by the White Sox and is currently a possibility for the Red Sox.

He is alongtime resident of Safety Harbor, in the Tampa Bay area, and would be an excellent successor for Maddon. If the Rays figure they are going to lose Maddon after next season, they want to lose Martinez too. possible Friedman could step in and give Maddon a chance to talk to Epstein, although in that scenario the Cubs better be prepared to give up one of their biggest assets Starlin Castro? get Maddon out of the remaining year on his deal. While a reunion with Sandberg has sentimental appeal, how good would Cubs fans feel if they somehow wound up with Epstein as the GM and Maddon as the manager? Being asked to give up Castro should be a deal breaker. But what if Maddon could land in the lap, compensation- free, after 2012? a scenario in whichkeeping Quade for a year could make more sense than going with someone like Sandberg, unless Epstein is totally convinced his guy.

Epstein talk publicly on this subject, but you can bet he and his just-officially-named top assistants, Jed Hoyer and Jason McLeod, are spending more time on it than anything else. Twitter Maddon in sights? Continuedfrom Page1 Product: CTBroadsheet PubDate: 10-27-2011 Zone: ALL Edition: HD Page: SPORTS3-3 User: ewatson Time: Color:.