LAS VEGAS -- Joe Maddon will be managing by the book next year, and the book is 鈥淢anaging Millennials for Dummies.鈥�
The Chicago Cubs manager will head to spring training just after his 65th birthday, a generation or two removed from his players and entering the final season of his contract.
鈥淵ou always think this 'for dummies' thing is really rudimentary written - it's really well written and it's really well researched,鈥� he said Tuesday at the winter meetings. 鈥淚'm learning about traditionalists, baby boomers, the Xers and then millennials. I'm really starting to understand this a little bit better.鈥�
Maddon has spent more than four decades as a baseball manager, coach and scout. After brief managing stints with the California Angels in 1996 and '99, he led the Tampa Bay Rays from 2006-14 and then the Cubs since 2015. In his second season, he helped Chicago to its first World Series title since 19008.
鈥淲hether anybody here agrees or disagrees with the generation and how they process things doesn't matter, because that's the way it is,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd if that's the way it is, just like my dad, that generation thought we were a bunch of babies, the boomers. The traditionalists thought they're all soft. And then you think the Xers are soft. The Xers think the millennials are soft. It doesn't matter. You have to figure out how to communicate and extract the best out of this group and make sure that you're always on the same page.鈥�
In addition to the 鈥淢anaging Millennials鈥� book by Hannah L. Ubl, Lisa X. Walden and Debra Arbit, Maddon has been studying 鈥淎ntisocial Media: How Facebook Disconnects Us and Undermines Democracy,鈥� written by Siva Vaidhyanathan.
鈥淵ou have to make your adjustments. And that's what I'm working on right now is to understand better how I could better serve these guys,鈥� Maddon said.
Maddon claimed he doesn't mind Cubs president Theo Epstein has not given him a new deal.
鈥淭heo and I have had some really good conversations. I totally understand where he's coming from. I am not offended,鈥� Maddon said. 鈥淚f you have a lot of self-confidence, things like that should do not bother you - and I do. I'm going to do my job like you've always seen me do my job. I might alter it a little bit regarding getting out on the field a little bit more often. What we've done over the last four years I feel pretty good about, feel strongly about. Let's just win the World Series and see how that all plays out.鈥�
Maddon hopes to remain as Cubs manager beyond 2019.
鈥淭he concept that Theo and I have any kind of a disengagement or a lack of philosophical sameness is untrue,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e have great conversations. And we're definitely almost a 100 per cent on the same page all the time.鈥�
