I (heart) Pete Mackanin

6 weeks removed from pleading to Bob Castellini (via my blog, which he of course reads daily) not to hire Pete Mackanin full-time, I regretfully must admit that I think Pete is The Man. I understand wanting to get the hotshot prospect (Girardi) or the proven winner (LaRussa), but he has this team playing differently and I see no reason why he couldn't keep it up. With the same roster that Baseball Guy couldn't win with, Pete has the team playing some good ball.

Plus, he's incredibly witty and sarcastic and media-savvy, which makes for great soundbites and stories. He's the anti-Krivsky/Narron/Miley/Boone. Seems like every day, there's a nice tidbit that makes me chuckle, such as this conversation between Pete and Junior, about how Junior was put in a difficult situation, pinch-hitting against a tough Milwaukee lefty:

Griffey: "How could you do that?"
Mackanin: "Who's the best player on the team?"
Griffey: "Me."
Mackanin: "Then shut up."

(Sidenote: I hope either the Cincinnati Enquirer or Dayton Daily News makes a move to hire the soon-to-be-defunct Cincinnati Post's Reds writer C Trent Rosecrans. Sports writing in this town is lame. Hal McCoy is long past his prime and John Fay brings nothing to the table. Rosecrans is awesome, and I hope he gets a Reds gig here in town for next year.)