The Cubs have promoted vice president of player development Jared Banner to assistant general manager, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN (X link). Chicago lost one of their previous AGMs, Craig Breslow, when he was hired as chief baseball officer of the Red Sox a month ago.
Banner had been in charge of the farm system for the past two seasons. He has spent three years in the Chicago front office altogether. The Amherst graduate previously worked with the Red Sox and Mets. The Cubs have a strong farm system headlined by young center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong and recent first-round draftees Cade Horton and Matt Shaw. Baseball America ranked Chicago’s minor league pipeline sixth in MLB in August.
The promotion pushes Banner alongside Ehsan Bokhari as assistant GMs in the Wrigley Field offices. President of baseball operations Jed Hoyer is the lead decision-maker, while GM Carter Hawkins is in his third offseason as Hoyer’s top lieutenant.
I’ve been waiting on this news! Whew!
You wouldn’t like his brother, Bruce, when he’s angry…
Or his grandfather, John. He knows nothing….nothing!
Or his cousin, Rex, who knows the beer baron is out there. And he’ll find him…
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A banner day.