Chicago Cubs Rumors: David Ross to get an extension following the season

It looks like Chicago Cubs manager David Ross will avoid lame duck status next season, with Bruce Levine reporting the team is planning on offering him an extension in the coming weeks.

“He is already an excellent manager, and I think he can be someone really special in the job,” Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said. “I think talking about David or the other people in our front office will be more appropriate next week after the season concludes.”

To say Ross’ first two seasons as the helm have been less than ideal is putting things mildly. Last year, spring training was halted and the season put on hold until late in the summer due to COVID-19. When play resumed, the Cubs got off to a scorching 13-3 start, enough to coast to the NL Central crown before making a quick exit in the postseason to the upstart Miami Marlins.

This season, Ross watched his former teammates Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo and Javier Baez all get traded at the July 30 deadline – leaving the roster in shambles and slamming the door shut on that core. Down the stretch, the Chicago skipper has pieced it together on a daily basis, doing his part to uncover some guys who could have value moving forward.

This isn’t an extension that came to fruition because of the team’s win-loss record. Sure, the team won the division last year, but this year has been wildly disappointing, with the Cubs turning in not one, but two double-digit losing streaks. This scrappy bunch has shown plenty of fight though, especially here in September, going 9-10 heading into Friday night’s matchup with St. Louis.

That ability to take a punch and keep rolling is something Ross embodied as a player and, now, brings to the dugout as a manager. He recently said he is planning on spending plenty of time down in Arizona this offseason, as he continues to integrate himself fully into the processes driving player development.

Chicago Cubs clearly have plenty of confidence in David Ross as manager

A 101-111 mark isn’t anything to write home about. But Hoyer has his feet under him more, nearly one year into his role leading baseball ops. Ross is a week or so away from wrapping up his first full 162-game season as a big league manager and the future is the focus here.

If the Cubs fail to drastically improve the roster this winter, without an extension, you can imagine the rampant speculation that would swirl around Ross’ job status next season should the club struggle. An extension, whenever it is announced, eliminates that uncertainty and allows both Ross and the front office to focus on what matters most: developing the next sustainable winner on the North Side.