I have looked forward to this day for quite some time. We are only one week away from the start of baseball season and I get to talk about my second favorite human, manager of the Chicago Cubs, Sweet Lou Piniella.

After the Cubs disastrous 2006 season, General Manager Jim Hendry knew he had to make a change. Hendry opted not to renew then manager Dusty Baker’s contract and instead shifted his attention to Lou Piniella. Even though Hendry interviewed former Cubs catcher and Marlins manager Joe Girardi, as well as Cubs broadcaster and World Series winning manager Bob Brenly, it was apparent Piniella was the top target.

In October 2006, Sweet Lou agreed to become the manager of the Cubs and signed a three year deal. Piniella’s last managerial stop was for Tampa Bay and obviously did not go too well. He then spent a season in the announcing booth for Fox Sports Baseball. There were many who questioned whether or not Piniella still had the fire, intensity, or desire to manage. However, Sweet Lou wasted no time in displaying all of the above.

After an opening day loss to the RedLegs, the Cubs were up by several runs with then closer Ryan Dempster on the mound. Dempster was not throwing strikes and walked several batters, which prompted Piniella to make a trip to the hill. After a brief one sided conversation, Dempster got it together and the game was over.

The Cubs started off poorly in Piniella’s first season and tension was mounting. It all came to a head during the infamous Carlos Zambrano/Michael Barrett scuffle in the dugout. The next day, Lou decided it was time to take the pressure off.

During the 7th inning of a June series against the Braves, former Cubs outfielder Angel Pagan was thrown out at third base while attempting to advance of a passed ball. Piniella, who admitted after the game was going to get thrown out even if Pagan was ruled safe, stormed out of the dugout and proceeded to get ejected in a matter of seconds. The Sweet One threw his hat to the ground, kicked his hat into the outfield, as well as kicking dirt on umpire Mark Wegner.

As he walked off the field, the Wrigley Field faithful gave him a standing ovation. His display wasn’t a simple tantrum over a perceived missed call, it was a statement of his frustration with how the Cubs were playing. Piniella was suspended for five games, but the Cubs went 4-1 during that stretch and went on a run the rest of the season. The Cubs ended up winning the National League Central title and reached the postseason.

After being swept by the Diamondbacks in the National League Division Series, the anticipation for 2008 was palpable. The Cubs went from 66-96 in 2006 to 87-77 in 2007. Kingdom Cub saw the drastic improvement of play by their squad and could not wait to see a full season of it.

The Cubs got off to a much better start in 2008 and coasted to the National League Central title finishing with the National League’s best record at 97-64. The only real disappointment during Piniella’s tenure in Chicago has to be postseason performance. The Cubs are an appalling 0-6 during postseason play under Sweet Lou. Piniella admitted prior to the opening of 2009 Spring Training he will be looking at different ways to prepare his club for the postseason next time around.

All in all, Sweet Lou has produced back to back National League Central titles, hilarious press conferences in which he pauses for seemingly minutes while in the middle of answering questions, and fantastic facial expressions like this one.

Lou Piniella has proved during his time in Chicago he can still manage. He won the 2008 National League Manager of the Year award and in 2009 looks to get over the hump in the postseason. Lou Piniella is a great manager and we are lucky to have him sitting on the throne for Kingdom Cub.

Rolf’s 2009 prophecy for Sweet Lou Piniella – Hilariousness and a 93-69 record. MARK IT DOWN!!!!