Cubs fire Rick Renteria, opening job for Joe Maddon

The Cubs have fired manager Rick Renteria, according to the Chicago Tribune’s Mark Gonzales. In all likelihood, this move was made to open up the spot for free agent manager Joe Maddon. While the Cubs denied the rumors that they had to come to an agreement with Maddon on Wednesday, letting Renteria go is a clear sign that this is happening in Chicago.

Renteria replaced fired manager Dale Sveum less than a year ago, with the Cubs signing him to a multi-year deal in early November of 2013. The team paid Sveum what remained of his contract during 2014, and they’ll once again pay two managers at the same time once they make the Maddon hiring official.

It’s difficult to blame Renteria for anything that went awry during his short time at the head of the Cubs. He was hired to handle the team during their rebuilding process, and the expectation was that he would eventually grow into the manager the Cubs needed for a playoff run in the same way the team he was in charge of would. Instead, Maddon opted out of his gig with the Rays out of nowhere, and the Cubs’ desire for something with more experience -- who is also widely considered the best manager in the game -- cost Renteria his job.

He’ll still collect a paycheck, at least, and there will be other jobs available to him. And hey, maybe this will end up being a good thing for his career: no one has won anything with the Cubs for well over a century now, anyway.

The Cubs sent out a press release about Renteria’s dismissal, in which they state that “[Renteria] deserved better.” Probably true, Cubs!