Cubs searching outside the organization for their new general manager

Jed Hoyer is making the right call looking for a fresh take in the next Cubs GM.

There were some who wondered if a Jason McLeod or Dan Kantrovitz would get a chance to grab the GM job under recently-promoted Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer’s front office. But early indications are that the next general manager will come from outside the organization.

Of course, Hoyer held the role under Theo Epstein in Chicago for nearly a decade before the latter’s abrupt departure in November. The two had long-standing ties going back to their days in Boston, so one wonders if Hoyer will look for someone he has an existing relationship with to try and replicate the relationship he enjoyed with Epstein.

More from Cubbies Crib

• Cubs should keep close eye on non-tender candidate Cody Bellinger
• Cubs starting pitching has been thriving on the North Side
• Make no mistake: the Cubs are very much about power hitters
• Cubs are giving pitcher Javier Assad a deserved shot
• Cubs: It’s time to start thinking about potential September call-ups

Some names that come to mind include Josh Byrnes, the Dodgers’ VP of Baseball Ops who is reportedly in the running for the top job in Philadelphia, and Arizona front office members Jared Porter and Amiel Sawdaye, both of whom have been oft-mentioned for vacancies this offseason.

“I really do value fresh ideas and new ideas. I think that’s important,” Hoyer told MLB.com. “As I mentioned, continuity’s a wonderful thing, but I think sometimes bringing some people in from the outside can really [be a] benefit. So I will be doing a search for the general manager.”

You have to respect Hoyer for making this decision. Sticking with an internal candidate would have been the easier route, for sure. But if we’ve learned anything in recent years, it’s that this organization needs a fresh perspective – one willing to make unpopular observations and work to improve a team that failed to deliver on its dynastic hype from five years ago.

“I think that that’s part of the beauty of going outside the organization,” Hoyer said. “I kind of encourage that and I think, for me, the most important thing I’m going to be trying to find is a sense of trust. That’s probably part of the relationship with Theo that I value on top of everything else, is that these are high-pressure jobs and you make a lot of tough decisions, and things are going to go wrong. And I think you have to know that that person is with you 100 percent and that there’s no dividing the two of you.

The next week alone could transform the roster massive fashion. Dec. 2 marks the annual non-tender deadline and the Cubs are expected to let several players go, including outfielder and former first-rounder Albert Almora.

That same date holds significance in the fact Hoyer might look to put together trades that would send Kyle Schwarber and Kris Bryant to new clubs for the 2021 season, thus changing the entire look and feel of the offense and shedding a considerable chunk of payroll simultaneously.

For now, it appears Hoyer will call the shots and take his time in finding the right man to succeed him as the team’s general manager. Regardless of who he taps for the role, it’ll be nice to get a fresh set of eyes on the organization as we move toward the next era on the North Side.