He doesn't hate pitchers, though he does get in their face every once in a while. And though Piniella does take his job seriously, he still maintains a self-deprecating sense of humor, as he proved in Pittsburgh when he went out to the mound to talk to Ted Lilly, only to be told his zipper was open. "I was surprised he mentioned it," Lilly said.
So what have we learned so far? "He's pretty serious and intense," Lilly said. "Especially when we're not playing well.
It's still a little early to say, but he's different. He has his own personality and his own style." As the Cubs wrap up the first round of the City Series, here are a few things we know about Life with Lou: No doghouse rule: "I'll give people many, many chances," Piniella said in March.
"No doghouses." Piniella has lived up to that credo. Even though he hasn't gotten the performances he would like out of relievers Scott Eyre and Bob Howry, he has continued to give them chances to get their act together, and he praised Eyre after a scoreless inning of relief in mop-up duty Tuesday night in New York.
Players' manager: The way to get along with Piniella is simple, according to San Diego outfielder Mike Cameron. "Get there, play baseball as hard as you can and don't ever let him see you with your head down," said Cameron, who played for Piniella in Seattle. The Cubs have held their heads up despite inconsistent play in the first 1 1/2 months of the season and Piniella has been appreciative of the effort, if not the outcome.
"The big thing with managing here is being able to get along with people," Piniella said. "It's a people business. If I was a player, I would enjoy playing for me.
I'm going to back them. I don't criticize them in public. But you are accountable.
" Base-throwing 101: When Piniella signed with the Cubs, the first thing everyone latched onto was his reputation for picking up a base and hurling it into the outfield. "I've done that twice," Piniella said, protesting the rap. Piniella has not only refrained from throwing a base, he has yet to add to his 57 career ejections.
He has had a couple of tunnel incidents with umpires at Wrigley Field, one in which he defended hitting coach Gerald Perry. It was suggested to club President John McDonough that the Cubs should build an underground tunnel from the field to the umpires' room to avoid future incidents. So far no tunnel has been necessary.
Mr. Malaprop: Like 1960s-era comedian Norm Crosby, Piniella is the current king of the malaprop. He mispronounced Eyre's name so often (it's pronounced air, not ire) that some thought he was making a statement, much like when former Bears coach Mike Ditka called Richard Dent "Robert.
" That was not the case, and Piniella has used the correct version lately. Piniella also has used the word "ivory" when referring to the Wrigley Field ivy, but no one has corrected him. Lively art of conversation: Piniella likes to go out to the mound to talk with his pitchers, a job pitching coach Larry Rothschild traditionally did the previous five years.
Whether he's barking at them or simply encouraging them to be more aggressive, the end result is usually categorized as a "nice conversation." Lip-readers may believe otherwise. Dissing the dungeon: Piniella seems more relaxed conducting interviews in his office than in the Wrigley Field interview room that former manager Dusty Baker nicknamed "the Dungeon.
" The Cubs marketing department prefers the manager conduct most of his press briefings in the room so their Web site gets free advertising on TV because it appears on the backdrop behind the podium. "It's a long walk down there," Piniella said, referring to the trip from his office. Media-friendly: Piniella's one flare-up with a reporter in Chicago after being asked a question he already had answered during a postgame news conference was replayed incessantly on ESPN and sports-talk radio.
For the most part Piniella has been friendly and accommodating, particularly on the road when no cameras or microphones are in his face. Piniella does like to keep everyone guessing on his lineups and moves and often answers questions with a statement, letting reporters speculate on his next move. As Bob Hope's theme song said, he sometimes can be a headache, but he never is a bore.
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