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CHICAGO -- As the storylines start to unfold regarding the Chicago Cubs' managerial position, there's at least one thing we know about free-agent-to-be manager, Joe Girardi: The New York Yankees want him back. And, according to Yankees general manager Brian Cashman, Girardi might feel the same.

"Yeah, I think he likes it here," Cashman said in a news conference Tuesday. "If you're good at what you do, you'll have opportunities to stay. He's definitely going to have that. We're going to give him a real good reason to stay. He's earned that."

Cashman said he talked to Girardi on Monday over coffee and planned to meet with his agent, Chicagoan Steve Mandell, on Wednesday. Girardi is under contract with the Yankees until the end of this month, which means the Cubs would need permission from the Yankees to discuss their opening -- at least during October -- after firing Dale Sveum on Monday. Cashman was asked if the Cubs had called yet.

"Not able to say, but he is under contract and we have an interest in trying to keep him," he said. "Joe has been consistent since we've had him here."

But we've only heard from Cashman as Giardi hasn't spoken publicly since the season ended for the Yankees on Sunday. The Yankees understand their manager might be in high demand.

"I can't speak to other opportunities," Cashman said. "We can't control what other options may be out there. If you're good at what you do, people are going to have interest."

On Monday, Cubs president Theo Epstein said he would look "first and foremost" at people with managerial experience. If Girardi re-signs with the Yankees, Epstein's options turn to a manager under contract with a team -- which would take a trade to pry away -- or one who has been let go recently, like former Mariners skipper Eric Wedge. Or one who has been out of the managerial game for some time.

But Epstein didn't rule out a rookie manager again. In lieu of experience, the ideal candidate would have to show signs of being great leader, in whatever baseball capacity they've been involved. The Cubs undoubtedly gave some insight into this when they hired Sveum in the first place, before the 2012 season. They interviewed several other candidates.
Here's an update on where some of those names are now:

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CHICAGO -- The firing of Dale Sveum had very little to do with what the former Chicago Cubs manager did wrong.

Sveum and his bosses knew when he was hired that the team would be varying degrees of bad for three or four seasons. The player development plan in the mid-to-lower minor leagues seems to be moving along nicely. A group of projected impact players might be making its way to Wrigley Field by the end of the 2014 season.

What president of baseball operations Theo Epstein desires in a manager is a stronger presence, a persona that will push his office and owner Tom Ricketts toward a championship mentality in a shorter period time than was initially planned. Epstein and Co. are held captive by a depleted baseball revenue stream. Money for the baseball operation will be limited for another three years due to a covenant agreement in the sale language of the team to the Ricketts family.

Simply put, Cubs ownership will need to be more creative in finding revenue within the business. That will be the only way they will convince a manager like Joe Girardi to come on board.

Epstein has watched with interest as his former manager with the Boston Red Sox, Terry Francona, pushes a morbidly drab Cleveland Indians organization to new heights in 2013. By insisting on some offensive help if he decided to take the job, Francona used the clout of his well-heeled résumé to leverage a commitment to win now.

Epstein knows that the plan to renovate Wrigley Field and add important revenue streams for his baseball program have fallen hopelessly behind for now. That knowledge pushes his creative and competitive nature to find a quicker route to success. What would be a smarter avenue to that goal than hiring Girardi?

This Girardi plan will also get the full endorsement of the business office, led by president Crane Kenney. Kenney is the mastermind of the renovation of Wrigley. He needs a bit more time to set his revenue plan into high gear. With the WGN TV and radio rights coming up for renewal after 2014, the team does not yet see the windfall billions coming its way until after 2018. The Cubs have lost close to 700,000 tickets sold per season since 2008. At this point, they need to stop the decline of season-ticket sales. The "Girardi factor" directs a way for season-ticket holders to see a direct path to championship baseball coming back to the north side of Chicago.

Girardi fits into all the criteria that Epstein is looking for in a manager. "The job will require someone who is dynamic," Epstein said on Monday. "It will require tremendous creativity to tackle the issues. I think we will find that in the next manager. It requires tremendous energy, and part of the reason we are here today is that we decided the job requires some change."

Girardi fits the bill in all of those areas. He would bring a world championship aura back to Chicago after winning as a player and as a manager in New York. Epstein went as far as to say that the future manager of the Cubs must at least understand the culture of "Cub Nation" before being considered for the gig. “Candidates who have the Cub experience in their background will have the built-in advantage of knowing the marketplace and the franchise," Epstein said. "[That candidate] might be better equipped in that one area to deal with that gauntlet that, at times, can be managing the Cubs. Yes, I think it helps [to have a Cubs background], [but] is it a prerequisite or does it mean it can‘t be repaired if you haven’t been through here? No.

"There is a bit more of an adjustment period when you have not been through here, as I have discovered when you come from the outside.”

CHICAGO -- With manager Dale Sveum's firing official after two years and 197 losses, the Chicago Cubs are on the lookout for a new skipper to command a sinking ship.

Who doesn't want to lose 90-plus games in Cubby blue while answering questions about minor leaguers?

Joe Girardi, who is under contract with the New York Yankees until Nov. 1, is the top name on this new prospect list, for good reason. The former Cub and Northwestern graduate is not only a fan favorite but also a savvy manager known for his organizational skills and devotion to his famous binder, his baseball bible of trends and statistics.

The question is: What kind of team would Girardi get? It would be foolish of him to take this job if it's the same one Sveum left.

In Sveum's short tenure, the Cubs were not built to win. It would be wrong to say they were tanking for draft picks and international spending dollars, but there was little focus on the major league product. The attendance, which dipped to a 15-year low, showed that.

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HOUSTON -- Joe Girardi is unsure if he will return as the New York Yankees manager in 2014.

"I haven't really made up my mind," Girardi said during his nearly 30-minute state-of-the-season news conference before the Yankees' final game against the Houston Astros.

Girardi, who turns 49 next month, said he'll make his decision after consulting with his wife and three children, who are 14, 11 and 7.

Girardi, who reportedly made $3 million this season, said finances will have "zero" to do with his decision. He also played down the idea that he would want to leave for his hometown Chicago Cubs, if manager Dale Sveum were let go. Girardi said his wife and kids are very happy in Westchester, N.Y. His family ties to Chicago -- with both his parents having passed away -- are not as strong anymore. Plus, he hasn't lived there since 2006.

"So there's not as much there as there used to be," Girardi said.

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CHICAGO -- What the Chicago Cubs front office, led By Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer, is doing with Dale Sveum and the coaching staff is not out of the ordinary. Epstein and Co. are interested in hiring the best baseball players and instructors to attain their future goals. Just as they look to sign or acquire the top young players, so will they pursue the best free agent managers and coaches.

Epstein and Hoyer like most of what Sveum and his staff have done in his two years on the job. Despite their warm and fuzzy feelings for Sveum and his coaches, it’s wise to investigate accomplished free-agent managers like Joe Girardi.

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EVANSTON, Ill. -- New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi knows how hard it is to run a team, especially one as storied as his former team, the Chicago Cubs. That's why he is hoping for the best for new Cubs skipper Dale Sveum.

"I had a chance to know Dale a little bit, not a lot," Girardi told ESPNChicago.com as he watched the Michigan St.-Northwestern football game on Saturday afternoon. "And obviously, he's had a number of jobs, whether it's been a third base coach in Boston or hitting coach in Milwaukee, and he's been around the game a long time and he's a guy that has prepared himself for this opportunity and I'm happy for him."

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CHICAGO -- Why didn't Chicago Cubs general manager Jim Hendry wait for the New York Yankees' season to end to gauge the interest of Joe Girardi in returning to Chicago?

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CHICAGO -- Chicago Cubs general manager Jim Hendry sat down with Triple-A Iowa manager Ryne Sandberg for a formal interview on Wednesday in Arizona.

Hendry, who traveled to Arizona to talk to the Cubs Hall of Famer, had dinner with Sandberg on Tuesday night. The plan for Wednesday's interview was to have a more lengthy and pointed discussion surrounding the manager job.

Although there is no clear-cut favorite for the job, Sandberg, like interim manager Mike Quade, will get serious consideration from Hendry before he makes the final choice to present to Chairman of the Board Tom Ricketts for final approval sometime in mid- to late-October.

Sandberg, who was named the Pacific Coast League manager of the year in 2010, has managed four years in the organization: two at Class A Peoria and one year at Double-A Tennessee before spending this season in Triple-A Iowa.

Hendry, known for his thoroughness in hiring his two previous managers (Dusty Baker in 2002 and Lou Piniella in 2006), interviewed Quade and Sandberg before hiring Piniella. At that time, Hendry encouraged Sandberg to get more experience by managing in the minor leagues. The GM eventually offered the Peoria job to Sandberg, which he accepted.

Quade has more than 1,200 minor-league victories as manager. ESPNChicago.com has learned that former Mariners manager Wakamatsu has been added to the list of prospective interviews by the Cubs. Included on that list is Washington coach Pat Listach, Cubs broadcaster Bob Brenly, former Arizona Diamondbacks and Seattle Mariners manager Bob Melvin and Quade.

Former Cleveland Indians manager Eric Wedge is the only other known candidate to have a formal interview up until Sandberg's meeting with Hendry.

Yankees manager Joe Girardi remains a wild card in the mix. Girardi is under contract with New York until the season ends. It is unlikely the Cubs will be able to interview Girardi before the Yankees are eliminated from the playoffs or eventually win the World Series.

As long as New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi is perceived to be available, the Cubs manager search will continue on its uncertain pattern.

Girardi’s friends and confidants feel that the 46-year-old former Cubs, Yankees and Cardinals catcher could be happy staying in New York, or taking the ultimate challenge of the Cubs managing job.

Cubs general manger Jim Hendry has a short list of potential candidates, starting with Cubs Triple-A manager Ryne Sandberg, former Indians manager Eric Wedge, former Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez and interim Cubs manager Mike Quade.

Quade has impressed Hendry with the job he’s done by keeping veterans and rookies focused on working hard and wining ballgames in a lost season. However, evaluating players and team personnel during September is difficult for any baseball executive.

Quade has managed 2,500 games in the minors, which makes him as qualified as any of the other candidates, except for Girardi, who after only a few seasons has established himself as among the brightest and most astute managers in the game. Winning a World Series last year with the Yankees in only his second year on the job is no small accomplishment, even with the vast resources and superstar players. The Yankees hadn’t won a title in nine years before Girardi guided the Yankes past the Phillies last fall.

As far as paying for a manager, Girardi would be the most expensive of the group. The Peoria native already is making $2.5 million in the last year of his deal with New York.

Hendry has been working hard in his conversations with potential candidates, and with people who know the top choices for the job.

Approaching Girardi is next to impossible until the Yankees’ season concludes. Baseball’s tampering rules prohibit teams from approaching employees for other clubs under contract. Fines and sanctions would prohibit anything that direct from happening.

Girardi’s complete focus is on his team’s pursuit of back-to-back work championships, however baseball’s underground information network will continue to have Girardi right at the top of the club’s list until Hendry makes his final choice.

Before Monday night's game in Toronto, Yankees manager Joe Girardi tried to squelch the talk of him going to Chicago to manage the Cubs next season, but he didn't completely rule out the scenario.

"I'm sure I'm going be asked that a lot now that [Piniella's] stepped down,'' Girardi said. "My focus is here. I have a responsibility to the organization and to the guys in that clubhouse and that's where my focus is. I'm very happy here, you know what? Great working relationship here with everyone involved and I'm very happy here."

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New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi admitted growing up as a Chicago Cubs fan in Peoria, Ill., but he said he won't let his expiring contract and the impending opening for a Cubs manager become a distraction.

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