Levine: Big '12-Year-Old' Joe Maddon Works Wonders With Players
By Bruce Levine--
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The pressure never exceeds the pleasure when Cubs manager Joe Maddon is in charge of "Fun Town."
Every kid remembers the fun and good times of being a preteen and having a blast with your neighborhood crew or day camp bunch. Fast forward to adult life, and Maddon, for one, has never forgotten how the impact of a good time and getting the best work day out of people go hand and hand.
A successful manager of the human spirit is what Maddon would be happy to be known as. Countless times in his two-year run as the Cubs manager, Maddon has related baseball stories of doom and gloom that he saw in person throughout his 40-year career.
During these entertaining lectures, Maddon delved into the negative vibe that overzealous baseball men have brought to the work place. As he witnessed in so doing, these drill instructor types left a long trail of failure on many different fronts.
Maddon manages his players and supports his staff as someone who understands the moment and strives to doing something productive with it. His road trip themes for the traveling party have become legendary in the time he has managed. The latest group outfitting will be on display with NBA-type track suits being the standard apparel that players must wear on the plane and to and from the game on the Cubs' upcoming nine-game road trip.
The young boy full of life in Maddon is always present under a controlled and accomplished facade.
"That is the 12-year-old in me, man," Maddon said about his spirited approach. "I hope I never grow up. First of all, we are out playing a game. Too many people consider this a life-and-death moment. It is not. So I don't ever want our guys to feel that way. I want them to go out there, play the game and not to be afraid of making mistakes. I want them to have joy when showing up to the ballpark."
Maddon has seen the dark side of panic-stricken baseball men who make their players show up five hours before a game for extra drills and spend countless hours worrying about what may or may not happen that next day.
"Anxiety lives in the future," Maddon said. "I have been around situations in the past where it was not fun coming to the ballpark. That is wrong. That is absolutely wrong. More often than not, that was created by the people in charge and not the players themselves. For me, to be responsible, in that room, for anybody not wanting to come to the ballpark would be awful."
Maddon has a message for any aspiring baseball man or, for that matter, any person in charge of handling group productivity.
"At the end of the day, I have only done well when I have had a good time doing what I am doing," Maddon said. "If it were drudgery or always expecting a negative outcome, why would you do it? Do something else, man. So, yes, I want to be 12. I want them to feel like they are the best team in Little League. Let's go out and get some ice cream and pizza after the game. That is great. Nothing should change from the time you are 12 until the time you are doing this. Nothing really should. This is a game, so let's play it like one."
That's spoken like the most mature 12-year-old in baseball.
Bruce Levine covers the Cubs and White Sox for 670 The Score and CBSChicago.com. Follow him on Twitter @MLBBruceLevine.
