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Theo Epstein

MLB Names Theo Epstein Consultant To Commissioner’s Office

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Major League Baseball announced today that former Red Sox general manager and Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein has joined the commissioner’s office as a consultant to Rob Manfred. Specifically, Epstein will focus his efforts on “on-field matters,” including (but presumably not limited to) the effects that proposed rule changes would bring about. Bruce Levine of 670 The Score first reported (via Twitter) that Epstein, who stepped down from his post with the Cubs earlier this winter, would be named to the new post. Epstein turned away interest from other clubs who had interest in hiring him for a new baseball operations jobs.

Theo Epstein | Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports

“Theo is one of the most accomplished and thoughtful people in our sport,” commissioner Manfred said in a statement announcing the news. “I am grateful that he has accepted our invitation to complement our ongoing efforts and provide his insights on making the best game in the world even better for the next generation of fans.”

From the moment Epstein stepped down from his position with the Cubs, there’s been speculation about him eventually taking a position with the league. Epstein acknowledged at the time that he had played an inadvertent role in damaging the sport’s aesthetic by helping to pioneer an analytics push that has curbed in-game action. He’s also often been an advocate for expanding the reach and appeal of the game. Some have suggested that Epstein himself may even be an eventual successor for Manfred, although Manfred’s current contract runs through the 2024 season.

“It is an honor to assist the efforts by Major League Baseball and the Competition Committee to improve the on-field product, and I appreciate Commissioner Manfred asking me to be a part of these important conversations,” said Epstein in his own prepared statement. “As the game evolves, we all have an interest in ensuring the changes we see on the field make the game as entertaining and action-packed as possible for the fans, while preserving all that makes baseball so special. I look forward to working with interested parties throughout the industry to help us collectively navigate toward the very best version of our game.”

There’s no indication yet as to whether this is a temporary post or a gateway to a more permanent position within the commissioner’s office. Epstein said when he stepped away from the Cubs and rebuffed interest in new baseball ops ventures that he hoped to spend more time with his family. His status as a consultant with the league will keep him involved in the game but afford him more time at home. Presumably, given Epstein’s track record, other clubs will come calling in future offseasons whether he’s under contract or not — but his status as a consultant at least ostensibly leaves the door open for a return to a club’s front office at some point.

Latest On Phillies’ GM Search: Byrnes, Epstein

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The Phillies have shown interest in Dodgers assistant general manager Jeff Kingston for their open GM job, but they’re also eyeing another member of LA’s front office: senior vice president of baseball operations Josh Byrnes. “There are strong indications” the Phillies met with Byrnes last week, Jayson Stark of The Athletic writes.

On the other hand, Theo Epstein is not a candidate for the Philadelphia job. Owner John Middleton did reach out to Epstein, per Stark, but the former Cubs president of baseball operations informed the Phillies he isn’t interested in the position. He’s likely to take at least a year off from running a club’s front office.

The 50-year-old Byrnes joins the previously reported Michael Hill as another former GM to meet with the Phillies regarding their vacancy. Byrnes was the GM of the Diamondbacks from 2006-10, and he then led the Padres from 2011-14. Neither one of those tenures worked out as hoped for Byrnes, but he has nonetheless been a popular GM candidate around the league in recent offseasons. It helps that Byrnes has been a prominent part of the Dodgers’ front office, arguably the best in the game, for seven seasons.

Alderson On Mets’ Front Office, Rojas, Cano, Conforto

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Newly named Mets president Sandy Alderson shed some light Monday on how the club will configure its front office and its coaching staff in 2021, as Anthony DiComo of MLB.com and Tim Britton of The Athletic were among those to report. The Mets will not hire a president of baseball operations, according to Alderson, who also revealed that Luis Rojas will stay on as their manager.

There have been questions about who will run the Mets’ baseball ops since they parted ways with general manager Brodie Van Wagenen. They will name a GM to replace him, and they have already interviewed roughly a half-dozen candidates, according to Alderson (via Britton). It’s unclear which individuals are in the running to fill that role, but former Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein and current Mets senior vice president John Ricco are not among them. It’s also unknown how long the Mets plan on taking to hire a successor to Van Wagenen.

As for Rojas, he became the Mets’ manager under their prior regime, but he’s a longtime employee of the club who is familiar with Alderson from the latter’s previous run in the team’s front office. The 39-year-old managed the Mets to an underwhelming 26-34 record in 2020, but he’ll get an opportunity to right the ship next season.

Second baseman Robinson Cano was one of Rojas’ most productive players in 2020, but he won’t play next year after receiving a 162-game suspension without pay last week for performance-enhancing drugs. The Mets are not considering releasing Cano, who’s due $48MM from 2022-23, “at this point,” per Alderson (via DiComo). However, Alderson admitted that could change “down the road.”

Like Cano, outfielder Michael Conforto is facing an uncertain future with the Mets. Conforto, 27, only has one season of arbitration control left, though Alderson stated (per DiComo) that the club will approach his camp about a contract extension sometime in the coming months.

“Yes, at some point, I’m sure we will broach that topic and take their temperature, and see where those things stand,” Alderson said.

Conforto is coming off a career year in which he slashed .322/.412/.515 (157 wRC+) with nine home runs across 233 plate appearances.  Barring an extension, Conforto should make anywhere from $9MM to $13.6MM in arbitration.

Phillies Front Office Rumors: Epstein, Hill

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The Phillies have a couple of high-profile names on their list as they seek a new front office head. The club will check on Theo Epstein’s interest in becoming its next president of baseball operations, Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports. It’s also planning to interview former Marlins president of baseball operations Michael Hill, per Ken Rosenthal and Jayson Stark of The Athletic. Philadelphia’s the latest team to show interest in Hill, who previously interviewed with the Angels and Mets for prominent front office positions. However, the Angels went on to hire Perry Minasian as their GM.

Epstein may be an extreme long shot for the Phillies, as he suggested when he resigned from the Cubs on Tuesday that he’s going to take a year away from the game. From the Phillies’ perspective, though, it’s at least worth trying to coax a three-time World Series winner and a future Hall of Famer into leading its front office.

Hill had an 18-year tenure in Miami’s front office before the club parted with him in October. While there wasn’t a great deal of team success during that span, it’s hard to place much blame on Hill, who spent the majority of it working under maligned ex-owner Jeffrey Loria and was at a payroll disadvantage. To Hill’s credit, he did help build a playoff team in his final year with the Marlins. Nevertheless, that wasn’t enough to save his job.

In heading to Philadelphia, Epstein or Hill would grab the reins from current president of baseball ops Andy MacPhail, who has become a placeholder as the Phillies seek a long-term answer. MacPhail plans to retire at the end of the 2021 season at the latest, but if the Phillies are able to find someone to take over for him before then, he’s poised to step aside. He and interim GM Ned Rice are currently running the Phillies’ front office.

Theo Epstein Steps Down As Cubs President Of Baseball Operations

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1:48PM: In a press conference this afternoon, Epstein told MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian and other reporters that he “won’t be paid in 2021, which is appropriate and the right thing.”  The salary was not a “primary” factor in his decision to resign but it was “part of the equation.”  As per the reported terms of Epstein’s last contract extension, he was set to make roughly $10MM in 2021.

11:04AM: Theo Epstein has stepped down as the Cubs’ president of baseball operations, as per a team announcement.  The move is effective as of November 20.  General manager Jed Hoyer will step into Epstein’s role.

Epstein issued the following statement:

“For the rest of my life, I will cherish having been part of the great Chicago Cubs organization during this historic period.  All of the things that have made this experience so special — the fans, the players, the managers and coaches, ownership, my front office colleagues, the uniqueness of the Wrigley experience, the history — make it so tough to leave the Cubs.  But I believe this is the right decision for me even if it’s a difficult one.  And now is the right time rather than a year from now.  The organization faces a number of decisions this winter that carry long-term consequences; those types of decisions are best made by someone who will be here for a long period rather than just one more year.  Jed has earned this opportunity and is absolutely the right person to take over this baseball operation at such an important time.”

“I am grateful to everyone with the Cubs: to the Ricketts family for this opportunity as well as for their loyalty; to the fans for their support and the depth of their emotional connection with the team; and to the players, coaches, staff and my front office colleagues for their friendship, excellence and dedication to helping us accomplish our initial goals of regular October baseball and a World Championship.”

There was widespread speculation that Epstein would leave the organization after the 2021 season, when his contract was up.  (Epstein himself is on record as saying that remaining in one job for too long a period isn’t necessarily beneficial to either the employee or the team.)  Today’s news jumpstarts that timeline and removes any lingering “lame duck” feeling over the Cubs’ decision-making process this offseason and throughout 2021.

Of course, the next round of speculation immediately turned towards whether or not Epstein could be turning towards another challenge — namely the open president of baseball ops positions with the Mets or Phillies.  According to MLB Network’s Jon Morosi, however, Epstein will not be immediately taking another job and will instead take 2021 off.  Epstein confirmed the same in a letter to friends, ESPN.com’s Jeff Passan reports, saying that “Next summer will be my first in 30 years not clocking into work every day at a major league ballpark.…I do plan on having a third chapter leading a baseball organization someday, though I do not expect it to be next year.”  Despite Epstein’s declaration, 670 The Score’s Bruce Levine tweets that the Phillies are still planning to “aggressively” pursue Epstein’s services.

Since joining the Cubs in October 2011, Epstein oversaw an extensive, multi-year rebuilding process that delivered the most sustained run of success at Wrigley Field in over a century.  Over the last six seasons, the Cubs have captured three NL Central titles, reached the postseason five times, and finally ended their World Series drought by capturing the championship in 2016.

Over nine seasons in Chicago and nine seasons as the Red Sox general manager, Epstein has long since booked his ticket into Cooperstown, with three World Series titles (and two broken curses) on his resume.  Epstein is still over a month away from his 47th birthday, so there is plenty of time for him to add further chapters to his already legendary career.  As The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and Jayson Stark wrote in a piece this morning, that next step could be a CEO role with a team rather than working as a president of baseball operations, perhaps looking “to form an ownership group with like-minded people and/or longtime associates, then attempt to purchase a club.”

Hoyer’s contract was also rumored to be up after the 2021 season, but he and the Cubs are putting the finishing touches on an extension, The Athletic’s Sahadev Sharma reports.  Hoyer has been one of Epstein’s chief lieutenants for a total of 17 seasons in both Boston and Chicago, and he also has past experience running a baseball ops department when he was the Padres’ general manager in 2010-11.

With the baton officially passed, Hoyer will now be in charge of what could be a transformative offseason in Wrigleyville.  As successful as the Cubs have been under Epstein, there is also some sense of underachievement, as the team hasn’t won a playoff series since 2017.  The core group of the 2016 championship team has gotten older, more expensive through arbitration and, in some cases, less effective on the field.

The Cubs now seem open to trading from this veteran core in order to both save payroll space in the wake of pandemic-lowered revenues and to perhaps spark something of a rebuild on the fly.  In the press release, both Hoyer and team chairman Tom Ricketts used the phrase “sustained success” to describe the Cubs’ next phase, and while this offseason’s moves will ultimately tell the tale, there isn’t yet any indication that the Cubs aren’t planning to contend in 2021.

Front Office/Coaching Notes: Red Sox, Venable, Marlins, Denbo, Cubs, Epstein, Hoyer

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The Red Sox are beginning the process of bringing in candidates for their managerial opening. Cubs coach Will Venable has already come in to interview, while George Lombard of the Dodgers and Don Kelly of the Pirates are likely on the list of incoming interviewees, per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (via Twitter). Venable has been a popular managerial candidate recently. He interviewed for openings with the Astros and Giants last season, ultimately returning to the Cubs to serve as their third base coach in 2020. The former player moved back into the dugout for the 2018 season after being hired by the Cubs as a special assistant. For the Red Sox opening, however, Alex Cora continues to be seen as the favorite, though he will not be able to interview for the role until his suspension lifts after the conclusion of the World Series.

  • The Marlins are looking to hire a Team President that can complete their upper leadership group in the player ops department. That means augmenting and supplementing the work of Gary Denbo, their Director of Player Development and Scouting. Derek Jeter and Denbo are close, making it easy to presume that he could be a candidate to fill Michael Hill’s Team President role, but that’s not the case, per Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Jackson provides a quote from Jeter that shines some light on his thinking for the position, as Jeter said, “Gary has done a great job where he is right now. You look at how you build an organization; you have to have a great scouting department and a great player development department. Gary deserves a lot of credit for what we’ve been able to do to this point. Where he is right now is where he is most important.”
  • The Cubs and Theo Epstein remain aligned on the current plan for Epstein to play out the last year of his contract before likely departing after 2021. Executive VP and General Manager Jed Hoyer does not share Theo’s exit strategy, however, and it seems right now as if he’ll stay on to fully take control of the Cubs’ baseball ops department after Theo departs, writes The Athletic’s Sahadev Sharma and Patrick Mooney. Hoyer has served as Theo’s partner in the front office for many years, but Theo still steers the ship, as was the case specifically with the Cubs’ rigorous approach to COVID-19 testing this year when they were the only team in the majors without a positive test. Hoyer will preserve a healthy dose of continuity when Theo leaves, but there will be change when the buck officially stops with him.

Theo Epstein On The Value Of One-Year Deals

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Theo Epstein has been prepping the Chicago fanbase for the eventual breakup of their 2016 team for a couple of seasons now. The blockbuster hasn’t come, and most of the faces of that championship team remain. After a disappointing exit from the wild card round – they managed just one run over a two-game sweep at the hands of the Marlins – Epstein’s comments again suggest changes are coming for the Cubbies.

Nine players remain on the roster from their World Series winner, and while that may not seem like a lot, it does constitute roughly 35% of a 26-man roster. Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Javier Baez, Willson Contreras, Albert Almora, Jon Lester, Kyle Hendricks, Jason Heyward, and Kyle Schwarber represent the longest-tenured group of Chicago players. Technically, manager David Ross can count as a 10th member of their title team still hanging around the clubhouse. Ian Happ and Victor Caratini didn’t debut until 2017. Jose Quintana joined the team at the 2017 deadline. Yu Darvish signed as a free agent prior to the 2018 season.

The pillars of this Cubs’ run will dwindle further in the coming years. Architect Theo Epstein is likely to depart after next season. Lester is a free agent this winter. Almora seems to be out of chances and in need of a change of scenery. Odds favor Heyward or Hendricks to be the “last man standing” as they both have contracts that should keep them in Wrigley through 2023. Rizzo, Bryant, Baez, and Schwarber are each entering the final year of their contracts – assuming the Cubs pick up Rizzo’s $16.5MM option.

Epstein spoke about the latter group, providing typically candid analysis of not only the Cubs foursome, but more broadly about the value of one-year contracts. Per the Athletic’s Sahadev Sharma, Epstein said:

I think there are going to be certain fundamentals that are true of this winter and of this market that have been true for decades. One of those is especially relevant in our situation, a one-year deal for a really talented player is a valuable thing. That’s to our benefit both to what we can do in constructing the 2021 team and having an additional year of control on certain players and also potentially to our benefit in the trade market as we look to make some changes. I think that’s a fundamental.”

Essentially, it sounds as if Epstein’s offering a ’fear not’ for those who think the Cubs have waited too long to return anything of value for the final year of Bryant, Rizzo, Baez, and/or Schwarber. To Epstein’s point, players on one-year deals are often devalued in the public square, but there’s a lot that can be extracted from a full year. Further, the flexibility a one-year deal affords shouldn’t be discounted – perhaps especially in our current climate. The fear of losing talent to free agency is understandable, but the more difficult gaff to overcome is the presence of “the albatross,” a highly-paid player on a long-term deal who no longer contributes on the diamond. Baez’s confounding 2020 is a testament to the swings that even talented players can experience year-over-year.

The trouble for Epstein is that Chicago’s current roster is flush with semi-expensive players on short-term deals who are coming off disappointing seasons. But to Epstein’s point – those players are still valuable. Whether the Cubs keep them or trade them, there’s always an opportunity cost. Said Epstein, per Sahadev:

There’s always a trade-off of being transactional and taking some of those players away from the current group and solidifying the future. There are trade-offs and balances that you have to be mindful of. The math simply changes as you get to a point where a lot of your best players only have one year left. It becomes less appealing to continue to invest opportunity cost in simply the present.”

Epstein has hit on a similar refrain in each of the last couple of years, and some changes have been made. They hired David Ross as the manager, they refrained from big-money free agent deals since signing Darvish (with the exception of Craig Kimbrel, who has only one more guaranteed season left on his deal), and they poured considerable energy into exploring trade options and/or extensions for their stars – but they haven’t made any of those deals.

Therein lies the rub for Epstein and GM Jed Hoyer. After years of exploring their options and walking the difficult path to try and sustain contention, they’re running out of time to pull off one of those – in Epstein’s words – “impactful, significant moves.” Whether or not they’re able to consummate that brand of deal this winter may depend on whether the 29 other GMs agree with Epstein about the value of talented players one-year deals.

Of course, Mookie Betts represents the most recent superstar player to be dealt on a one-year deal, and Indians’ shortstop Francisco Lindor is among those players who could be available this winter. Both players are probably more valuable in a vacuum than any of the Cubs’ foursome. Still, the Betts deal is instructive in so far as it necessitated the Red Sox’ willingness to take a step back, even though they received a major league regular as part of their return. The Cubs also have the option of packaging a couple players in the same deal, something he’s done in the past to extract additional prospect value..

Theo Epstein Discusses Cubs’ Future

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The Cubs’ season came to an abrupt end last week, when the Marlins swept the NL Central winners in the teams’ first-round series. Despite generally strong regular-season play, the North Siders have now failed to advance to a National League Division Series in each of the past three seasons. President of baseball operations Theo Epstein discussed the organization’s outlook in an end-of-season chat with reporters this morning.

Having not quite lived up to lofty expectations in recent years, Epstein acknowledged some change this offseason “is warranted and necessary” (via Russell Dorsey of the Chicago Tribune). There’s seeming room for improvement on both sides of the ball. On the whole, Cubs’ hitters slashed just .220/.318/.387, resulting in a 91 wRC+ that ranked 21st out of the league’s 30 teams. Among everyday players, only Ian Happ and Jason Heyward performed up to or exceeded expectations. Anthony Rizzo was decent but didn’t play at his established levels, while Kris Bryant and Javier Báez scuffled through miserable seasons.

On the pitching side, Yu Darvish again cemented himself as a bona fide ace, with Kyle Hendricks continuing to shine as the #2 option. The rest of the rotation is uncertain, with José Quintana, Jon Lester and Tyler Chatwood all ticketed for free agency. 25-year-old Adbert Alzolay has the inside track on a rotation spot, Epstein confirmed (via Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune), but he admitted the front office will have to look outside the organization for additional pitching help. Whether the Cubs could make any high-priced additions isn’t clear, as Epstein said the franchise is facing a high amount of financial uncertainty in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic (Gonzales link), as is more or less true of all 30 clubs.

Being open to some changes on the roster is hardly the same as desiring massive turnover; GM Jed Hoyer made similar comments last November, but the organization had a generally quiet 2019-20 offseason. The existing core is clearly capable of making another run in the NL Central, assuming the pitching staff is bolstered in some fashion. It remains to be seen if the conditions for a more drastic shakeup present themselves.

The 46-year-old Epstein also addressed his personal future. His contract expires after the 2021 season, and he’s reportedly planning to meet one-on-one with chairman Tom Ricketts in the coming days. Epstein confirmed he’ll sit down with ownership but downplayed the meeting’s significance, calling it a customary end-of-year process. “My expectation is that I’ll be here (next season),” he told reporters (including Jordan Bastian of MLB.com).

That said, Epstein hinted at the possibility that 2021 could be his final year in Chicago. When asked about the prospect of an extension, he noted that changes after a long time spent in one place could be beneficial for both employees and the organization (via Gonzales). As Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com points out (Twitter link), that’s in line with an increasing expectation Epstein might depart at the end of his deal.

If that were to happen, Hoyer would seem an obvious candidate to take over baseball operations. Long-term front office uncertainty aside, Epstein says he’s currently “as invested in the Chicago Cubs as I was at any point in the last nine years,” (Rogers link).

NL Notes: Mets, Cubs, Theo

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We’ve already covered a handful of National League notes today. Here’s more from the Senior Circuit.

  • Like most teams, the Mets imposed pay cuts for many employees this summer in response to pandemic-driven revenue losses. However, Mets employees will receive their full salaries from November 1 onward, per Tim Healey of Newsday. Likely incoming owner Steve Cohen drove that decision. Cohen’s still awaiting formal approval from 23 of the league’s 30 owners (which he’s expected to get) before his reported $2.475 billion purchase of 95% of the franchise becomes official. He’s permitted to consult on organizational decision-making in the interim, Healey notes.
  • The Mets’ forthcoming sale also figures to bring substantial changes in personnel. Cohen has already confirmed plans to hire Sandy Alderson as team president if and when he formally takes the reins. A few potential staffers Cohen and Alderson could pursue for various roles this offseason (via Andy Martino of SNY): Nationals assistant hitting coach Pat Roessler, Athletics assistant general manager Billy Owens, and Rays special assistant Bobby Heck. Roessler was on the Mets’ coaching staff from 2015-18, overlapping with Alderson’s time as the franchise’s general manager. Owens, meanwhile, has been in the Oakland front office for nearly two decades and reportedly drew some consideration last offseason for the Giants’ GM job, which eventually went to Scott Harris.
  • On the heels of an early playoff exit, Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein plans to meet with chairman Tom Ricketts next week to discuss the club’s long-term future, per David Kaplan of NBC Sports Chicago. Epstein’s contract expires after the 2021 season, and Kaplan points out the possibility he could turn over baseball operations to general manager Jed Hoyer and look for opportunities elsewhere once his deal wraps up. Per Patrick Mooney of the Athletic, though, Epstein isn’t expected to depart the organization this winter.

Cubs Notes: Epstein, Extensions, Catchers

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Theo Epstein has largely led his clubs with positive, progressive messaging that, if anything, lands on the overly-diplomatic end of the spectrum. True to form, he and the Chicago Cubs organization are encouraging their players to speak their minds as they so choose, writes Tim Stebbins of NBC Sports. Though Epstein’s comments may come off as hollow, there’s little to suggest he’s being anything but sincere. He’s been up front about wanting to organizationally (and personally) take a long, inward look at themselves for traces of the systemic racism that’s been at the fore of the country’s cultural conversation. These comments stemmed from a tweet from Adbert Alzolay that voiced some of his concerns about camp in South Bend. That tweet, however, was deleted after some of his facts proved to be inaccurate, per The Athletic’s Sahadev Sharma. This Here’s more from Chicago…

  • Epstein more-or-less put the kibosh on any potential extensions for Chicago’s many popular, star players, per MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian. After Kris Bryant recently re-iterated his desire to stay in Chicago, it’s a little disquieting to hear Epstein so thoroughly shut down the idea of extending much-beloved Cubs like Bryant, Javier Baez, or Willson Contreras. On the other hand, it’s certainly a confusing time in baseball, and there are plenty of logistics to keep the organization busy just in trying to keep players safe and return to the game of baseball. The market for star players like Bryant and Baez could not be any more uncertain, and with at least two seasons before any of their core players reach free agency, the Cubs have the luxury of time. If nothing else, next offseason will offer a fascinating data point as Mookie Betts hits the open market. The Cubs certainly have the funds to re-up their stars, but they might just want to wait to see the going rate for a superstar in these uncertain times.
  • On the field, manager David Ross is mulling the possibility of carrying three catchers once the season starts, per Bastian (via Twitter). Given the somewhat chaotic terms of the 2020 season, it would not be surprising to see many teams go this route. For the Cubs specifically, Victor Caratini proved enough with the bat last season to get some at-bats at first base or designated hitter while Contreras continues to serve as the everyday catcher. The switch-hitting Caratini, 26, hit .266/.348/.447 across 279 plate appearances. He saw 23 starts at first base and 2 at third base to go along with 59 starts behind the plate. Josh Phegley would figure to be the third catcher. Phegley hasn’t rated all that well defensively, but the former Oakland Athletic did pop 12 homers with a .411 slugging percentage last season.
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