I remember when Lou Piniella was in the broadcast booth in 2006, providing color commentary for an ESPN game of the week. He seemed relaxed, comfortable and totally enjoying the experience. One of his colleagues asked Lou if he missed being a manager. "Nope," said Piniella. "I'm enjoying my experience broadcasting and I can see myself doing this for a while."

Fat chance! One look at Lou and you knew he belonged back in the dugout. When the voices from the Windy City came calling, Sweet Lou was all ears.

Signing a contract with the Chicago Cubs was probably the wisest move Piniella made. Chicago is a far cry from Tampa Bay. The Cubs have a chance to put a winning product on the field again and Lou is the warrior the team needs leading the battle cry.

The Cubs' front office didn't stop with the Piniella signing. The goal was to bring some proven commodities to the team, like Alfonse Soriano, Ted Lilly and now, Steve Traschel, to complement established Cubbies like Derek Lee, Aramis Ramirez and Carlos Zambrano.

Lou Piniella appears to be a "control freak." A case in point was the fight between ace pitcher Carlos Zambrano and catcher Michael Barrett earlier this season. He stepped into the fracas, calmed the tensions and stressed the point that teams can't divide, but must unify. When tensions between Zambrano and Barrett didn't simmer completely, Piniella agreed to move Barrett out of Chicago.

For the first time in several seasons, there is a winning attitude among the Chicago Cubs. Lou has the guys believing in themselves and thinking they are good enough to win the National League Central Division. Down the homestretch, the Cubs are in a battle to the finish with the Brewers and Cardinals.

The race will be tight and will come down to the final weekend. The pesky Brewers and Cardinals will fade at the end and the Cubs will claim the division. Lou Piniella will have played a monumental roll in the outcome.

Learn more about this author, David Skolnik.
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