From the Chicago Tribune’s Paul Sullivan :
Chicago Cubs reliever Scott Eyre (above) on Sunday accused the Chicago Tribune of hurting the team’s ability to play by focusing on Dusty Baker’s job status instead of the game.”I think if we keep playing the way we played this series, and if everyone would stop talking about Dusty’s job, we could all play and relax a little more,” Eyre said. “If something happens, it happens, but if everyone would stop talking about it, maybe it would take pressure off of everyone else.
“It’s every conversation, and (we) as players are getting tired of hearing about it.”
Eyre claimed general manager Jim Hendry “already came out and said (Baker is) not in danger of losing his job, so stop talking about it. I’m tired of answering questions about it, honestly. . . . That’s all anyone wants to talk about. I went on a radio show, and that’s all they wanted to talk about. As players, the only control we have over whether a manager is here or not is to play.
“So we’ll just keep playing as hard as we can, and hopefully keep winning, like we did this series. We played well this series, against a team that’s very good at home.”
Hendry has not said Baker isn’t in danger of losing his job. Hendry invited speculation by saying Baker, his coaching staff and players will be evaluated during the four-day All-Star break.
Replies Ben Schwartz,
Don’t know if I agree with my fellow Cub fans at Cubnet that it won’t be easy to fire Baker with the team doing so well in Milwaukee this week. Beating Milwaukee isn™t exactly like sweeping the Cards in April. The Cubs do have major moves in mind (a possible Maddux trade, totally overshadowed by the Baker speculation) and the sniping from both sides of the Tribco corporate mouth leaves the question in the air. I™d like to see Baker get to manage with his full team ” but when is that day ever going to get here? It really isn™t all his fault, but we also aren™t winning.