Cubs hire Piniella; A's jettison Macha

Lou Piniella yesterday finally went where his closest friends and agents thought he'd go all along -- to the Chicago Cubs as their manager.

Meanwhile, Ken Macha heard the surprising news that he had been fired as manager by A's general manager Billy Beane after the team was swept in the American League Championship Series by the Detroit Tigers.

Sources close to Piniella thought the only thing that would prevent his journey to Chicago was a possible move to the Yankees. When New York owner George Steinbrenner was convinced to retain Joe Torre by Yankees GM Brian Cashman, Piniella decided he was not going to the rebuilding Nationals, Giants, or Rangers.

Piniella, who will be introduced at a news conference today in Chicago, will receive a three-year deal with an option. The deal could be worth more than $14 million if the option is picked up, according to sources.

Sources also said Piniella will hire former Red Sox coach John McLaren as his bench coach and Larry Rothschild as pitching coach.

Macha, who led the A's to a 93-69 record this season, and went 368-280 in four seasons, had two years left on a three-year deal signed last winter. Major league sources say he could be in line for jobs in Texas and San Francisco.

The A's swept the Twins in the Division Series before losing to the Tigers, but Beane told reporters, ``Not to fault either side, but I felt a disconnect on a lot of levels. Once again, it's not to point the finger at Ken or anything like that. But the disconnect was there and it was something we needed to address as soon as possible."

Sources said Macha had problems with a few players, sometimes taking what was perceived by players, and management, as a tough approach toward injured players.

Current coaches Bob Geren and Ron Washington are candidates to replace Macha. Washington today will be the first candidate interviewed for the Rangers vacancy.

Macha was briefly out as A's manager last October. But about a week after being let go, the A's rehired him.

The Philadelphia Phillies put together an all-star coaching staff to assist oft-criticized manager Charlie Manuel. Former Red Sox manager Jimy Williams (bench coach), and two other ex-big league skippers, Art Howe (third base) and Davey Lopes (first base) each signed one-year contracts to join Manuel's staff . . . Randy St. Claire will stay on as the Nationals' pitching coach in 2007, although the rest of the coaching staff won't know its status until a new manager is hired . . . Yankees catcher Sal Fasano and infielder Nick Green opted for free agency . . . Torre, Cashman, Derek Jeter, and Jason Giambi will be among the Yankees' representatives at a memorial service today in Covina, Calif., for pitcher Cory Lidle, who died in a plane crash last week.

Dominican authorities were seeking Juan Uribe after issuing an arrest warrant for the Chicago White Sox shortstop in connection with the shooting of two men in Santo Domingo . . . Giants trainer Stan Conte has stepped down after 15 seasons with the team's medical department. Earlier this year, Conte testified before a grand jury investigating whether Barry Bonds perjured himself when he testified in 2003 in the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative steroid distribution case that he never knowingly used performance-enhancing drugs.

Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.