“We saw it as a unique opportunity and faced a clear dilemma: be loyal to Rick or be loyal to the organization. In this business of trying to win a world championship for the first time in 107 years, the organization has priority over any one individual. We decided to pursue Joe.” – THEO EPSTEIN, explaining manager Rick Renteria’s dismissal.The Cubs dismissed the first-year manager Rick Renteria (73-89) with two years remaining on his contract. Chicago GM Theo Epstein believes the first-year skipper “deserved to come back for another season,” but opted to replace him with the well-respected field boss, who recently became a free agent after leading the low-payroll Rays to the postseason four times in his nine-year tenure with Tampa Bay.

On October 31, 2014 — “We saw it as a unique opportunity and faced a clear dilemma: be loyal to Rick or be loyal to the organization. In this business of trying to win a world championship for the first time in 107 years, the organization has priority over any one individual. We decided to pursue Joe.” – THEO EPSTEIN, explaining manager Rick Renteria’s dismissal.The Cubs dismissed the first-year manager Rick Renteria (73-89) with two years remaining on his contract. Chicago GM Theo Epstein believes the first-year skipper “deserved to come back for another season,” but opted to replace him with opening a spot for hiring Joe Maddon who recently became a free agent after leading the low-payroll Rays to the postseason four times in his nine-year tenure with Tampa Bay.