It's Theo Epstein Taking A Flamethrower To Bob Nightengale

I'm sure USA Today's Bob Nightengale has some good sources, but boy did he really lose credibility (well more so because it's already low) with his laughably bad report about Joe Maddon possibly being on the hot seat with the Cubs. In case you missed it, here's Nightengale citing "several MLB executives," who believe Maddon's future with the Cubs is tenuous.

Joe Maddon helped lead the Chicago Cubs to the Holy Grail of sports, with a consistent level of success they haven’t seen in a century, but there are whispers his job could be in jeopardy if they don’t play deep into October. ... Maddon wants to continue managing, but if the Cubs fail to make the playoffs, or go out quickly, his fate is tenuous, several baseball executives told USA TODAY on the condition of anonymity. The executives did not want to speak publicly about Maddon's situation.

Joe Maddon was on 670 The Score Tuesday and he sounded pretty pissed off about the article. He said it meant nothing and flat out called it dumb. https://www.sportsmockery.com/2018/08/cubs-manager-joe-maddon-roasts-bob-nightengale-over-latest-report/

Theo Epstein addressed the bogus report on Wednesday and said the following. Via The Athletic.

“Joe is a terrific leader and partner, and we are thrilled with his job performance the last four years,” Epstein wrote in a text message. “Since 2015 the Cubs have the most regular season wins and the most postseason wins in all of baseball; it’s hard to have a better track record than that. “Joe is under contract through 2019, and he is clearly in good standing with the organization. We are focused on trying to win another championship and will not address Joe’s contract status until there is reason to do so.”

Epstein then appeared on 670 The Score on Thursday and was once again asked indirectly about Nightengale's report, but the question was more about the narrative and speculation about Maddon's job security with the Cubs that the article created. Theo Epstein is not here for the bullshit. Via 670 The Score.

"It’s over," Epstein said on the Bernstein & McKnight Show on 670 The Score on Thursday afternoon. "We’re not the type of organization to let the tail wag the dog. A national writer comes in, misrepresents the situation and then we have to address it because it’s threatening to become some sort of controversy – OK, that’s fine. But then once we’ve addressed it, it’s over. There is nothing here. "To refresh the background, we spent and I spent an awful lot of personal and organization capital at great risk to bring Joe in following the 2014 season. Of all the people in baseball, he was our single choice to run the team. And we brought him in, and it’s gone extraordinarily well. Relationships are great, results are great. The contract has been great for Joe, it’s been great for us. Things couldn’t be better. So just because someone comes in from the outside and misrepresents the situation doesn’t mean it has to be an ongoing narrative. It’s done."

I said it since the story first came out Monday, as a Cubs fan you should feel really happy that whoever those MLB executives who believe Maddon's future with the Cubs could be in jeopardy if they don't make a deep postseason run aren't the ones making decisions for the Cubs. Just how stupid are those execs? Anyway, Epstein went on and said this report has simply been annoying because it's completely made up. You can listen to the entire interview here.