Winds Of Change Once Again In Chicago Cubs Front Office

Wednesday is proving to be another important day for the Chicago Cubs and the direction of the organization. We already know that Oneri Fleita has been fired from the organization and will no longer serve as the vice president of player personnel. But, that was not the only change that the Cubs made to their front office on Wednesday.

Here is a list of the front office changes that the Cubs made on Wednesday:

Ari Kaplan, who was hired by Cubs’ chairman Tom Ricketts as the manager of statistical analysis, has been relieved from that position and will now serve as consultant to the new front office. Kaplan will no longer have an office at the Cubs’ headquarters. On top of the Fleita firing, this is another sign that Ricketts is not going to stand in the way of Cubs’ President Theo Epstein making changes to the personnel within the team’s front office.

The Cubs have eliminated the position of manager of baseball information which was held by Chuck Wasserstrom. Wasserstrom, a 25 year career veteran, is believed to have been loyal to the Cubs during his time with the organization. Wasserstrom will not be retained by the Chicago Cubs.

The Cubs are also looking for a new position for Scott Nelson, who previously held the role of director of player operations.

The moves that the Cubs made within their front office on Wednesday should be an indicator that Epstein is continuing his efforts to bring in his own guys. With that said, I would keep an eye on the Boston Red Sox and San Diego Padres’ front offices. I expect that Jaron Madison, who was hired last week as the team’s new scouting director from the San Diego Padres’ front office, will be the first of a handful of former Red Sox and Padres’ officials to join the Cubs’ front office within the coming months.