Chicago Cubs: Epstein expects front office to remain intact after this season

Epstein believes front office will remain intact following this season

The current Chicago Cubs front office has taken a few years to get here, but this success has been part of the plan all along. And even before now, teams have had their eye on some of the Cubs’ personnel for their own openings. But when you’re in the process of trying to break the stigma that has resided at Wrigley since 1908? People want to see it through till the end–which could be coming sooner than we expected.

The courting of personnel had begun already as Senior Vice President of Player Development and Amateur Scouting Jason McLeod was expected to leave for a GM–decided to stay with the Cubs instead of heading for greener pastures. Theo Epstein commented on the stability he sees in the front office.

"“We have a pretty tight-knit group,” Epstein said before the Cubs played the Pirates on Tuesday. “This is a great time to be a Chicago Cub, whether you’re in uniform or in the front office.” h/t Jesse Rogers, ESPN Staff writer"

Epstein’s contract runs through 2016, and with the current direction of the Cubs is expected to get an extension sometime in the near future. But for Epstein, it’s not something that’s on his mind right now–and likely isn’t going to be anytime soon.

“It’s literally not a thought in my mind,” he said of an extension. “We’ll probably pick that up when we’re done playing whenever that is. I have no concerns … We all know this is the beginnings for this organization and we all want to see it through.”

When Theo & Co. came in, they inherited a team that was light in the farm system, loaded with bad contracts and a much older team–one that wasn’t winning games. The group has turned solid first half performances into lucrative trades that stocked the farm system. They’ve eaten some money on bad contracts and failed free agent signings, but they’ve put the success of the team at the forefront.

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Now, those stockpiled prospects have made it to Chicago in a somewhat uniform wave, and there still are more on the way. Attendance is up, which means more revenue. The video boards are up, which means more revenue. More revenue will mean more signings in the offseason to help shore up a team that won’t have very many holes in it following this season.

We’re always talking about the next “signing” that will help push the Cubs over the edge, but extending Epstein may be the single most important signing they need to have on the books. He made a gutsy–while maybe not a popular move–to fire Rick Renteria after just one season to get Joe Maddon while he was available. You don’t hear much about that anymore from the negative side, do you?

Next: Soler nearing return?