2/27/2001 4:58 pm ET

Cubs look to Mueller for stability at third
.974 fielding percentage led NL third baseman in 2000

By Heather Reader, Cubs.com

Bill Mueller joined the Cubs looking to experience a little history repeating.

"In '97, when I was with the Giants, they had just come off the '96 season where they finished in last place," the new Cubs third baseman said. "The Giants then in '97 brought in six or seven new guys and I was one of them and we went from last to first that year. So that's my attitude coming over here. Maybe I've been conditioned that way but that's the approach that I take; that it's possible."

The St. Louis native was drafted by the Giants in the 15th round of the 1993 draft and remained in that organization until last Nov. 19, when he was traded to the Cubs for relief pitcher Tim Worrell. This spring training has been one of changes and adjustments.

"The first thing you go through is the fear of the unknown," said Mueller, who signed a two-year contract with the Cubs on Jan. 2. "Coming to a new team for the first time in your career but that's kind of subsided and you make friends and get to know the system and get to know the staff and the manager a little bit more each day and it becomes more familiar and more fun."

One of the unknowns was his new manager, Don Baylor, who is in his second season with the North Siders. While Mueller (pronounced MILL-er) knew the name, he didn't know what to expect, which is just the way he wanted it.

"I hadn't really heard a lot about Don," Muller said. "And I think that that was kind of good because I wanted to make my own opinion and judgment from working with him personally. I didn't want to be influenced, and thus far, it's been very positive, and I'm very excited to play for him."

The hot corner has been met with less than tepid results ever since Ron Santo vacated the position in 1973. From that time until now, 88 players have filled the position including about a half-dozen players last year. Recognizing the problem, Cubs President and CEO and GM Andy MacPhail and assistant GM Jim Hendry set out to find a solution during the past off-season.

"Andy and I had spent a lot of time making that a priority starting at the end of July or the beginning of August last year that we knew we really needed to solidify the third-base position during the off season," Hendry said. "Bill is a guy that we always liked and there was a time about a year ago that we inquired about Bill. He brings a lot to the table.

"He's not the proto-type power corner guy, but we haven't played that well defensively over there in the last few years and we felt that that was a priority to solidify the defense and strengthen the pitching. Bill is a target guy. Andy went to the GM meetings in Florida back in early November, and he immediately sat down with the Giants and started making inquiries about Bill."

One of his first engagements as a Cub was to participate on the Cubs Caravan that traveled around Illinois. On one of the long trips to the next stop, Santo's name was invoked, but it didn't even bring a flicker of recognition to Mueller's blue eyes.

"I didn't really know of him," Mueller said. "I greatly respect the people before me, but I'm not going to dwell on it. It's not a part of what's going to help me go out there to help this team and perform. I'm going to worry about the things that are positive and the things that I can focus on like hard work and my attitude and worry about the things that I can control. I really can't change the past and all I can do is worry about what's ahead of me and go out and play."

A couple of reasons probably why Mueller caught the Cubs eye was his .974 fielding percentage-which lead all NL third basemen-and his career highs in homers (10), runs scored (97) and doubles (29). Mueller believes appearing 153 games-the most of his career-added to boost his numbers.

"It definitely helps being an everyday player," the 5-10, 180-pounder said. "You can talk to anybody and when they're coming off the bench and they're not in the everyday lineup, it's a very difficult job and the people who can do it successfully are few and far between because it's so tough. I learned how tough it can be just a little bit platooning when I was with the Giants. How tough it is to play two days and then sit a day or two days and then play again. You just get out of the rhythm of the game sometimes. I guess the thing that I do recall the most is that you try to get all of your base hits in one day, where if you're an everyday guy the next day you go three-for-three but the following day you go 0-for-two. But it's not like your trying to get seven base hits in four at-bats when you're coming off the bench or platooning. You just try too hard sometimes when you're not an everyday guy."

His desire to play everyday fits with Baylor's game plan, who phoned the 30-year-old as soon as the trade was completed.

"I called him that day," Baylor said. "He wasn't as shocked as maybe he would be because he said that every year he would go to spring training and they would always talk about training him. And then it finally happened. He was somewhat surprised. You hear it for four years and you become immune to it. I just told him that I finally have a third baseman that I can play everyday. I like my position guys go play everyday. I don't like platoon situations unless I really have to or you get into a situation like we have with [Matt] Stairs and [Ron] Coomer. You have two quality guys who are pretty good players."

"I know that in the past when he finally became an everyday player like last year, that that is the only way to play him. I asked him why be a switch hitter if you're not going to play everyday."

Some things that don't show up on the scorecard, but count sometimes just as much, are another reason why Mueller now a North Sider.

"He's a guy that never says a whole lot, but just plays," Baylor said. "And those guys you like. You just know that he's a warrior. I talked to Dusty [shortly after the trade] and he was heartbroken. He said that, "You're going to like this guy." He's just a quality individual. And those are the guys that you try to collect-good players who are quality individuals."

"He's a solid guy, a quality make-up guy who's a winner," Hendry said. "He wants to win games and I would say that he is better than his numbers. He'll help our pitching staff by playing good defense, and he can handle a bat. He's a potential high-average guy. He's not a high-power guy, but can hit No. 2 in the lineup, if Don chooses to hit him two. He's a good guy to hit behind EY (Eric Young), a hit and run guy that can handle a bat and move runners over and get bunts down."

"You'd like to have the combination. Not that everybody fits into the mold that you have to be a certain kind of person as well as a certain kind of player, but it sure does help if you have a guy, as Bill is, that puts the winning of the ballclub ahead of himself."

The switch-hitter has undergone many changes in the past few months-being traded from the organization that drafted him, moving to a new city and getting engaged.

"The move went pretty good," Mueller said, who will be married this Nov. 24. "[Amy and I] are learning the city a little bit. Everything's in walking distance and or a cab ride away. It actually snowed six out of the 10 days that we were there, so it was pretty nice. I grew up with the seasons, so I enjoy it, because it doesn't hang around forever."

"I give her a lot of credit. She's very positive about everything and we're very excited. And it's not only us telling ourselves inside that the move is a good thing and it's going good, but others around us are always telling us Chicago's a great city and there are great summers and you're going to love Chicago. It's more the people around us that have been talking very highly of the city."

He also welcomes calling Wrigley Field home and playing in front of seats that are more often filled than not.

"Playing in 3COM ballpark, you're playing in front of sometimes 8,000 people and it just doesn't make for that type of atmosphere that you see in other ballparks," Mueller said. "Sometimes you yearn to have an atmosphere like Wrigley because the game is that much more fun when you have all of those people out there everyday. With the day games at Wrigley it's just going to be that much nicer because you can go home and spend sometime with your family and have more of a routine than when you have a couple of day games and then a couple of night games. You have a routine with the Cubs."

The only thing that seems to have taken some getting used to for this born and raised Cardinal fan was the blue-hued Cubs uniform.

"The blue is growing on me a little bit," Mueller said. "It'll be fun going back to St. Louis. It will be great to be hated.