Chicago Cubs: Is Brandon Hyde on the move? If so who replaces?

Last winter, Joe Maddon saw his right-hand man, Dave Martinez, leave. Now, 12 months later, his new bench coach, Brandon Hyde, could be on the move, as well.

Following the 2017 campaign, the Chicago Cubs lost bench coach Dave Martinez to the Washington Nationals. For years, Martinez had been mentioned as a candidate for various managerial roles throughout the league. But last year, he finally got his chance to take the helm of a big league ball club.

With the postseason still in-action, current Chicago bench coach Brandon Hyde has reportedly interviewed with multiple teams – including the Minnesota Twins, Texas Rangers and Los Angeles Angels. Early indications seem to suggest he has a decent shot at landing one of said gigs.

So, let’s assume he gets his chance to manage a Major League club. Where will the Cubs turn for their third bench coach in as many years under manager Joe Maddon? Thankfully, the pool is deep – and whoever lands said job may very well be auditioning for Maddon’s job if things go south in 2019.

Chicago Cubs: Will the Cubs tap Farrell as team’s number two?

Former Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays skipper and current ESPN analyst John Farrell is a possibility to replace Brandon Hyde should the latter depart. Farrell has a 586-548 record in seven seasons as a big league skipper.

That, of course, includes a 97-win season in 2013 with the Red Sox, leading the club to another World Series crown, sweeping the Colorado Rockies in the Fall Classic.

Some forget that before he was a manager, Farrell was a pitching coach. This may allow him to work alongside pitching coach Jim Hickey in efforts to get Tyler Chatwood and Yu Darvish back on-track next year.

His immense experience makes him a logical choice – but the Cubs may choose to look outside the San Diego and Boston circles they so often dip back into when looking to fill vacancies.

Chicago Cubs: A fan favorite with ties to the current clubhouse

If it was up to the fan base, I’m almost positive they’d hire former World Series champion David Ross. “Grandpa Rossy” is and will forever be a fan favorite. Of late, he’s been mentioned as candidate for the Minnesota Twins managerial vacancy, but it’s hard to imagine him passing up the chance to return to Chicago.

Of course, that also depends on his personal motivations. He retired looking forward to spending more time with his family – and he may not be ready to return to the grind of a big league lifestyle just yet. a

Ross would be a great fit on the Cubs’ bench. He holds longstanding ties to a majority of the players on the roster. Obviously, he’s someone that seemingly everyone can get along with. As a former catcher, he may very well prove to be the next Mike Scioscia or Mike Matheny. Both of these men, of course, are former catchers who’ve been successful as big league skippers.

Chicago Cubs: Could they take the former Twins skipper?

Paul Molitor is another big name to watch out for if Brandon Hyde goes elsewhere.

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In a somewhat surprising move, the Twins relived Molitor of his duties at the end of the season, just one year removed from leading the Twins to an  85-win season and a postseason berth.

Those efforts netted Molitor 2017 AL Manager of the Year honors.

The Hall of Famer would be a great fit for the Cubs. Given the team’s offensive woes last year, bringing in a bench coach who himself collected 3,319 knocks in his career seems like a pretty good place to start.

The fact of the matter is the Cubs couldn’t hit large chunks of the season, including pretty much all September. This culminated in the Cubs squandering their division lead and, eventually, falling in the Wild Card game to the Colorado Rockies.

Molitor could serve as a second hitting coach to go along with newly-hired Anthony Iapoce.