SEVIERVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Ryne Sandberg’s goal is the same now as it was in 1978: Get to the majors.

He was 18 then and trying to prove himself as a player. Now the Hall of Fame second baseman is back where he started, trying to prove himself as a manager.

“I think the goal of anyone in the minor leagues — you hope — is to get to the majors,” Sandberg told The Associated Press.

Twelve years after retiring from the Chicago Cubs, Sandberg remains in the organization as manager of the Double-A Tennessee Smokies. He got that job after two years with the Class A Peoria Chiefs.

Sandberg had other ideas at first. When Dusty Baker’s contract as Cubs manager wasn’t renewed after a 66-96 season in 2006, Sandberg approached general manager Jim Hendry about the position. Hendry wanted someone with major league experience. He found that in Lou Piniella but knew he couldn’t outright dismiss a Cubs legend.

Sandberg set the record for home runs by a second baseman — eventually broken by Jeff Kent — with 277. He still holds the career fielding percentage record at second of .989.

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His only coaching experience in the decade since his retirement had been as an instructor for Chicago’s spring training staff in Arizona, where he was also busy getting his five children through high school and college.

“I said, ‘If you want to really do it the right way you’re going to have to go down to the minor leagues and grind it out,'” Hendry recalled. “I think he appreciated my honesty, though I’m sure it wasn’t everything he wanted to hear that night.”

The only manager spot available was at Peoria, a job Hendry said would “let us find out and let him find out if this is what he wants to do or not.” Hendry and Oneri Fleita, the Cubs vice president for player development, wondered how someone of Sandberg’s stature would put up with long bus trips and small crowds. There’s no other Hall of Famer now managing in the minors.

Sandberg took to the job and realized he had a lot to learn.

“It all started with just watching the game from a different perspective than what I did since 1978 as a player playing the middle infield,” he said. “It’s completely different. It’s watching the whole field. It’s positioning the outfielders, working with the catcher to shut down the opposing running game. It’s working the lineup. All the things to run the game.”

Sandberg is 49 and reserved by nature. But as he grew more comfortable in the dugout, he became more vocal. He was thrown out of only one game as a player but was tossed from 13 in two seasons with Peoria. He’s been booted from six games with the Smokies and suspended once for “accidentally bumping an umpire.”

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He demands his players be on time and give full effort. He’s led the Smokies from the middle of their division during the first half of the season to the top of the standings. Hendry calls that the sign of a good manager.

The players like Sandberg because he knows the game and keeps things relaxed on the field.

“When you have a coach that’s played as long as he has, he doesn’t forget what it’s like to be a player,” said Doug Deeds, a 28-year-old outfielder. “It’s pretty easy to play for a guy like that, and I think sometimes you can get the best out of your players when you’re like that.”

The Smokies have promoted their Hall of Famer with “Ryno” billboards around eastern Tennessee and Sandberg T-shirts and bobbleheads. Attendance is up slightly, and Sandberg spends a lot of time at home and away games signing autographs.

“It’s hard not to notice all the No. 23 jerseys in the stands,” Smokies general manager Brian Cox said.

How long Sandberg will make his summer home in Tennessee remains to be seen. Neither Hendry nor Fleita has promised Sandberg a move up the organizational ladder.

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Hendry recognizes Sandberg deserves a shot at a managing in the majors but realizes he might get that chance with another team.

“I would leave that totally up to him,” Hendry said. “I would think if that happened outside of our organization, he’d have to take it. I certainly would never discourage him. Sometimes timing in life is everything.”

Sandberg won’t say if the Cubs are the only team he’ll manage. But he knows there are only 30 managing jobs in the majors.

For now, though, he simply tries to learn something new every day, just as he did when he was hitting home runs and turning double plays.

“The way I was a player was I focused on that day and I focused on what I needed to do that day,” Sandberg said. “I didn’t try to look too far in the future as a player, and I don’t think I’m doing that as a manager, either.”


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