WATCH: Jon Lester, Anthony Rizzo discuss possibility of David Ross managing Cubs |
ST. LOUIS — In the world of professional sports, news is not dwelled on for very long, making it understandable that, on Sunday, the media asked multiple Chicago Cubs players to give their takes on who the Cubs' next manager could be. While the players were addressing reporters concerning the news that Cubs manager Joe Maddon would be moving on following Sunday's season finale, former Cubs catcher and team leader David Ross was brought up.
Ross played for the Cubs in 2015 and 2016, serving as a valuable contributor for the 2016 squad that won the World Series, and is now an MLB analyst and broadcaster for ESPN. Although Ross has no major-league coaching experience, he has been mentioned in numerous reports surrounding potential candidates for replacing Maddon, which the press members present at Busch Stadium for the Cubs' season finale versus the St. Louis Cardinals were interested in discussing. As a result, Cubs starting pitcher Jon Lester and Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo, both of whom are close friends with Ross, were asked about the possibility of being managed by their former teammate. While Rizzo described Ross as one of his biggest mentors in the game of baseball, he said that he did not know which direction the Cubs organization was planning to go in. Rizzo on David Ross possibly replacing Joe. pic.twitter.com/HO09sNyRx7 Rizzo did claim that he felt like Ross managing the Cubs could definitely work out, but he added that he expected the search for the Cubs' new manager to be "a zoo." Lester echoed that sentiment and said that he talks to Ross "as a friend," implying that it would definitely be rather unique if one of his closest former teammates suddenly became his boss. Jon Lester weighs in on what it would be like if his friend & former teammate David Ross takes over for Joe Maddon as manager Lester on Ross’ candidacy: “ I talk to him as my friend, not as my boss.” In a recent radio interview, Ross supported Maddon and opined that the Cubs would be foolish to move on from him. Ross also stated that he was flattered by being mentioned in managing rumors but added that he had not seriously processed getting into coaching in the immediate future. Cubs President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein told reporters on Sunday that a large-scale managing search will begin once the regular season concludes, so there are certain to be many more candidates added to the fray in the coming days. It was a honor having the opportunity to play for Joe Maddon and winning a Championship with him during one of the greatest runs in the history of the Chicago Cubs. I learned a tremendous amount from him and wish him continued success in this game. pic.twitter.com/xr0OLFSTiZ
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