Josh Byrnes Likely To Join Epstein In Chicago

Even though there has been no official announcement, Theo Epstein may already be starting to run the daily baseball operations of the Cubs’. While the official announcement likely will not come until the Cubs and Red Sox have agreed on the compensation terms, Epstein will likely begin to conduct business as the president of baseball operations/ general manager of the Cubs.

One of the first orders or business for Epstein will be filling the rest of the positions in the front office. While Epstein hoped to bring some of his Boston colleagues with him, it appears more likely that Epstein will reach out to executives that he once worked with while with the Red Sox organization. One name to watch is Josh Byrnes, who is currently the vice president of baseball operations for the San Diego Padres. Tom Krasovic, who covers the Padres, tweeted that there is a good chance that Byrnes will join Epstein in Chicago.

Byrnes has been connected to the Cubs organization since reports surfaced early on during the baseball season that representatives from the Ricketts’ family reached out to Byrnes in some capacity. Just the mention of Byrnes’ name generates an unwarranted reaction from fans of the Arizona Diamondbacks. While general manager of the Diamondbacks, Byrnes made the decision to fire Bob Melvin as manager and replace him with A.J. Hinch. It would seem that D’backs fans allowed that poor decision by Byrnes to blur their vision and forget about the overall success that Byrnes’ had with the Diamondbacks. Byrnes’ is one of the underlying reasons why the Diamondbacks propelled to the National League West division crown.

In addition when you look at the role that Byrnes will fill in the Cubs’ front office, he will likely thrive in that position. Byrnes will likely be tasked with player development, and Byrnes played a vital role in developing the farm systems’ of the Diamondbacks, Padres, as well as the Red Sox and Colorado Rockies.

This is likely going to be the one of the biggest beneficiaries of Epstein running the Cubs’ baseball operations. Epstein’s reputation around the baseball industry speaks for it’s self, and that is why many highly touted assistants may have an eye on joining the Cubs’ organization with Epstein now in place.With Epstein now the front-man in the Cubs’ baseball operations, there will be a new philosophy implemented in the front office.