Workout day interview: Cubs’ Joe Maddon

Q. If Lester pitches again, probably David Ross would be his catcher, but it seems like Willson’s going to catch the majority or maybe all of the rest of the games.

JOE MADDON: Yep.

Q. Talk about why you have the confidence in him and just about how he’s developed.

JOE MADDON: You saw it last night. I mean, he played really well once again. Didn’t have his hits, but still worked good at-bats, did a great job of receiving. I loved — I heard there was some concern about his trips to the mound, but they were absolutely necessary. There’s times the trips to the mound are necessary. It’s about strategy. Sometimes pitchers get off course, and he’s really good at following a game plan, so I loved his trips to the mound last night, actually. I didn’t like them, I loved them. So I didn’t think he wasted any energy with any of that stuff. And if you knew what we were doing and how this thing was all being processed out, you would have supported his trips to the mound.

So anyway, he did all of that, he’s a first-year player that gets it. He plays with enthusiasm and passion. I know it actually comes through the TV monitors or screens, too. I’m certain of that. But I was really pleased with his performance last night in its entirety.

Q. Do you have an update on Schwarber, and what are the pros and cons if he is cleared letting him play out in the field?

JOE MADDON: I haven’t. I just got here (laughing). Really, I tried to sleep as long as I could. But I haven’t. I haven’t. I’m going to talk to Theo shortly. I don’t know exactly where it is medically yet. I don’t. I’ll find out more once we get done with this, go back in the office, and hopefully get a chance to visit with Theo and Jed, et cetera.

But honestly, that’s all I know right now, and if you see him out there taking fly balls, that means we probably got the go ahead to try it, otherwise it’s probably been put on hold.

Q. For you, what makes Wrigley Field special? And how is it distinctive from, let’s say, Fenway or any of the other special stadiums you’ve been through to the years?

JOE MADDON: Two things: The neighborhood concept. I know where Fenway is, but it doesn’t really feel necessarily like it’s in a neighborhood like this place does.

That and this is so enveloping. The fact that the bleachers come all the way around. When you’re out there, everybody’s watching and they’re watching you very closely. They’re very close to you. That is a big part of it.

Beyond that, again, I know Fenway’s got the wall, but we’ve got ivy on our walls, and actually it’s Boston Ivy. How ironic is that? We have the ivy on the walls that turns colors during the course of the year. It starts out as a vine of sorts, and then it becomes this really magnificent green wall.

Then, again, just the structure of the stadium, and then our fans. I’m not denigrating anybody else’s fans right now, not at all. Our fans have been there through thick and thin, and they’ve hung in there really well. And when you interact with them, they’re just here to support their Cubs. I don’t get any grinding of axes and whatever. They’ve been very supportive of us, at least for the two years I’ve been here. That’s what I’ve recognized.

But I think it really sets it apart. I remember going to Shibe Park, Connie Mack, when I was a kid with my dad and my mom. I felt more neighborhood-esque. And I like the idea, and I love the new downtown ballparks. I love when the venue is situated in a vibrant part of the urban setting. I think that really matters a lot, and I think obviously that it can help reestablish an urban setting in a particular market.

But it’s all of that. And then I drive down Clark every day from Downtown, and as you get closer, you see all the venues that support all this, and also the people milling around. Anyplace I’ve been I haven’t seen that with any ballpark to that level. So its enormity in its entirety, it’s just different, but to have actual living spaces surrounding the ballpark is pretty cool.

Q. I know on the field your mantra is “In the moment and not to get too far ahead,” but you’re also a man that appreciates history and the settings here. Can you appreciate the magnitude of tomorrow night in the first World Series game here?

JOE MADDON: Absolutely. I’m not even thinking — the other day you hear after we win the game in Cleveland or last night, whenever that was, that it was the first World Series victory for the Cubs in 71 years. I don’t even think about that stuff. But that did make me think about what you’re talking about right now, the first World Series game here in a while.

Last year was significant when I didn’t even realize we had never beaten the Cardinals in a playoff game. So we win this series against the Cardinals here. That was pretty outstanding.

Had a tough run against the Mets. Then you come back this year and beat two really good teams to get to this juncture. I mean, the Giants, especially this time of the year, and the Dodgers really built for this time of the year. To be able to get through them, to get to this moment, and then have your fans have the opportunity to witness a World Series game here. Yeah, not lost on me whatsoever.

It’s going to be an absolute blast. Beanie’s (Albina) coming in. My kids are coming. Everybody’s coming in. It’s going to be great. So I know that people have been waiting for this for a long time are going to savor it, and hopefully on our part we can do something to really make it even better.

Q. Sticking on the Wrigley theme, do you have a favorite place in the ballpark? Also, any thoughts on the bullpen’s no longer being down the line after this weekend?

JOE MADDON: My favorite place in the ballpark is the last seat that I can see from standing in the dugout out in the right field corner. I’ve never even been there yet, but I love that that seat is filled every night. I think that is outstanding. So I glommed onto that last year at some point in the season. I think it was early on. But I’m looking up, the way it curves out up there, and you see the rooftops behind it, but there is somebody sitting in that farthest seat; that’s outstanding.

Regarding the mounds on the field, that’s something that the folks that are putting this all together …

continue reading in source mlb.mlb.com