NL Central

The time is right; the demand is optimum.

With the apparent need for pitching in the Brew City already amassing to an extraordinary level this offseason, GM Doug Melvin needs to pull the trigger on a premier pitcher worthy of complementing an already explosive offense.

This time it's official. Mike Quade is the manager, not interim manager, of the Chicago Cubs.

With the announcement of Mike Quade as the new manager of the Chicago Cubs, the organization has finally done the impossible. They have taken away all hope from fans of the team and the promise of "Wait Until Next Year."

Most of us already assumed it would never happen in our lifetimes, but they just hammered the final nail in the coffin for fans of the North Side ballclub.

The announcement today that Mike Quade would return as Cubs manager and be given a two year contract with a team option for a third year, is not all that surprising. But it is disappointing.

While the reports are saying that Quade has had the interim label removed from his title, in essence any coach or manager in every sport is interim. They are all hired to be fired. Heck, truth be told, as humans we are all interim.

The Chicago Cubs have hired Mike Quade as permanent manager for 2011 and beyond, and have officially removed his interim tag from 2010.

He did a fantastic job in his short time as skipper in Chicago, and deserved this opportunity after a long career in the minors.

Did he deserve the spot over Cubs hero and fan favorite Ryne Sandberg, however? Many fans may disagree, much like the dispute in New York over Don Mattingly's prospects of managing before Joe Girardi's eventual hire.

The Chicago Cubs have named Mike Quade their manager and signed him to a two-year contract, according to the Chicago Tribune. Quade returns to the Cubs dugout full-time after going 24-13 as interim manager of the team following manager Lou Piniella's retirement in August.

Reports are in that the Chicago Cubs have taken off the interim tag from manager Mike Quade.  Quade, the 53-year-old manager who has been serving as interim manager since the retirement of Lou Piniella after the season, is finally getting his shot at managing the big leagues.

The cubs reportedly signed Quade to a two-year deal with a club option for the 2013 season, according to ESPN.

It has been a while since I last penned an article here on the great B/R, so I felt like I owed it to the readers here to break away from the old and bring in the new.

That included a completely new persona, which was to be named Tecumseh's Alcove (I am a history major after all), but it is a lot harder to create a profile here nowadays, so what was the point when I have old reliable sitting around?

It will be a great homecoming for Pat Listach on Tuesday.

The former Brewer and Astro was informed late last week that Doug Melvin asked the Washington Nationals for an interview for the managerial position, according to MLB.com and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Listach was currently beginning a managerial assignment for a Puerto Rican winter ball league, but had to change plans quickly to head back to Wisconsin. He will be meeting with Doug Melvin on Tuesday for an interview.

There has been talk in the past few weeks about what the Cincinnati Reds will do with Orlando Cabrera, who they hold a $4 million mutual option on for 2011.  Will they exercise that option or will they let him walk, turning the keys over to Paul Janish?