Theo Epstein to Step Down as Cubs’ President of Baseball Operations

Chicago Cubs President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein will step down from his role with the team later this week and leave the organization, the club announced Tuesday.

Epstein, who guided the Cubs to the 2016 World Series championship and oversaw a massive overhaul in the team’s baseball operations department, will officially step down on Friday, the team said in a press release.

According to the Cubs, General Manager Jed Hoyer will take over the role as the new president of baseball operations.

Source: Theo Epstein intends to take the upcoming season off. He’s not resigning in order to pursue a position with the Mets or Phillies. @MLBNetwork @MLB

— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) November 17, 2020

Theo Epstein would be perfect for Steve Cohen’s Mets

There usually is a new-owner syndrome to spend money immediately to make a mark, so do you — for example — think the agents for J.T. Realmuto, George Springer and other high-end players will wait to see what Cohen wants to do with his $14 billion even if a GM is not hired until, say, mid-November or not?

So the only question is: Does Cohen want Van Wagenen? If not, he could look into New York or New York-area-raised Mets fans like him, such as Indians GM Mike Chernoff (his first baseball job was as a $50-a-week Mets intern), Rangers GM Jon Daniels and Brewers GM David Stearns. All are qualified, with Stearns (who previously worked for the Mets) particularly intriguing and attractive.

Cohen’s hedge fund is facing a gender-discrimination suit, and to counter perceptions maybe he would like to hire the first female head of baseball operations. Yankees assistant GM Jean Afterman has never shown the desire for such a job, but if she did, this would not be a token. She is tough, smart and would have credentials as good or better than someone like Tellem.

IT’S THE CUBS’ WORLD NOW

Not to spoil the ending, but:

But the Cardinals aren’t doomed. They still have a solid lineup, a solid rotation and a solid bullpen, and you’d have to think they’ll add somebody. But for years, some fans have claimed, wrongly, that Cardinals-Cubs isn’t a real rivalry because the Cards have always been so much better than the Cubs. This, not coincidentally, is the same thing Yankees fans used to say about the Red Sox, before Epstein took over there as well. Now, some have said, in the wake of the Cubs’ signing of Heyward, that this ratchets up the rivalry.

But if anything, I believe it dampens it. Even before Friday, the Cubs were a better team than the Cardinals in just about every way. Now that the Cubs took the Cardinals’ best player, the gap between these teams have widened. If anyone needs to prove this is a rivalry, it’s the fading Cardinals.