UPDATE: According to Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.com, Cubs bullpen coach Lester Strode and Double-A Tennessee pitching coach Dennis Lewallyn are also expected to be considered. For what it’s worth, Levine pegs Riggins as the favorite.
7:35 PM: Now that Larry Rothschild is the new pitching coach for the Yankees, Greg Maddux is the obvious sentimental choice among Cubs’ fans as a potential replacement. Just don’t expect it to actually happen.
Both Carrie Muskat of MLB.com and Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune report that Maddux, who currently works as an assistant to Cubs general manager Jim Hendry, is not considered a candidate. According to Sullivan, Maddux is not looking to get into a full-time coaching position at the moment.
With Maddux out as a possibility, Sullivan writes that minor league pitching coordinator Mark Riggins is “a leading candidate.” Riggins was credited was the development of 2008 first-round pick Andrew Cashner, who posted a 4.80 ERA and 50/30 K/BB ratio over 54 1/3 innings with the Cubs this past season. Muskat reports that Triple-A Iowa pitching coach Mike Mason is another possibility.
Hendry said that he hopes to have a new pitching coach in place shortly after the Thanksgiving holiday.
