The Chicago Cubs officially named former Tampa Bay Rays manager Joe Maddon as their skipper Monday and fans are going a little gonzo over it.
The Chicago Cubs hired Joe Maddon to be their new manager on Monday and Las Vegas, well, noticed.
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to ESPN.com, Maddon’s hiring sparked a flurry of wagers on the Cubs to win the World Series in 2015.
According to online sportsbook Bovada.lv, the Cubbies were a 50/1 shot on Thursday. Those odds have been pushed down to 20/1 with the arrival of Maddon from the Tampa Bay Rays.
“The movement of the Cubs World Series odds based on the hiring of a manager is unprecedented,” said Kevin Bradley, Bovada’s manager. “We feel like the impact of manager or head coach is felt the least in Major League Baseball.
“There are a few coaches in sports that would move the needle in terms of odds, such as Bill Belichick or Gregg Popovich, but rarely are the best coaches free agents and they tend to stay with a franchise where they have a great relationship with the owner.”
Bradley said moving odds based on a managerial hiring is unusual, but became necessary with the flurry of money coming in on the North Siders.
“They are already a huge liability,” Bradley said. “They have taken four times more money than any other team.”
Maddon is recognized as a terrific manager—unconventional, yes, but terrific.
But Cubs fans might want to dial back the hysteria at least a bit.
For a cautionary tale, one should remember the story of Hall of Fame left-hander Warren Spahn and Hall of Fame manager Casey Stengel.
Spahn pitched for Stengel in 1942 with the Boston Braves and again with the New York Mets in 1965. In between those two stints, Stengel had won 10 American League pennants and seven World Series titles during 12 years managing the New York Yankees.
This caused Spahn to famously quip (per the Society for American Baseball Research):
“I’m the only guy to play for Casey Stengel before and after he was a genius.”
Food for thought in Wrigleyville.
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