Yankees Throw Cold Water On Cubs' Girardi Wishes

By Chuck Sudo in News on Oct 3, 2013 3:26PM

New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi. (Image credit: Amy Sussman/Getty Images)

Cross Joe Girardi off the Cubs wish list to replace Dale Sveum as manager, at least for the time being.

Girardi is under contract with the New York Yankees until Oct. 31 and the Cubs would need to obtain permission from the Yankees if they wish to talk to him about replacing Sveum before then. Yankees GM Brian Cashman won’t say whether the Cubs have asked to speak with Girardi but a source told the New York Daily News Cashman wouldn’t grant the Cubs permission while the Yankees work on a new deal with Girardi’s agent, Steve Mandell.

It’s believed Girardi would likely return to the Yankees with a three-year deal worth $12-$15 million, but he does have options if talks with the ballclub break down. The Cubs are looking to make a splash with their new manager in an attempt to stop a steady decline in attendance as the team continues its rebuilding process and to show fans the rebuilding plan is on the right track.

Girardi, a Peoria native and Northwestern graduate who began his playing career with the Cubs, has the pedigree and resume to bring fans back to Wrigley Field but his connections to the Yankees run deeper. Girardi’s family has firm roots in New York and his father died last year, leaving him with fewer roots in the Chicago area. “There’s not as much there as there used to be,” Girardi said last weekend.

Other options for Giradi, according to the Daily News, include replacing Tim McCarver as lead color analyst for Fox Sports baseball broadcasts, although he wouldn’t make near the money he would if he returned to the Yankees.