Chicago Cubs: Jed Hoyer is poaching talent from top-tier organizations

The rest of the league had seemingly left the Chicago Cubs organization in the dust in recent years – and now is the time for them to make up lost ground.

Regardless of how much recent contenders have spent on payroll, one thing has remained constant: a dedication to scouting and developing homegrown talent to round out a roster. While the previous core was mainly developed from within, the Cubs struggled to develop depth and pitching talent for pretty much the entire decade. Now, Jed Hoyer is trying to adapt by bringing in members of baseball’s best organizations to help catch up and get the club back on track.

Hoyer had a tall task of working his first year as President of Baseball Operations in 2021 with a lame duck core, tight budget, “meh” at best farm system and no GM as his right-hand man. Since the 2021 season ended, Hoyer has quickly assembled a solidified structure of command beneath him, while also filling in key holes in other areas.

It began with the hiring of new GM Carter Hawkins in mid-October, who had previously worked in various roles with Cleveland. Last week the Cubs hired former Astros research and development director Ehsan Bokhari as an Assistant GM, who will work alongside Jeff Greenberg and Craig Breslow. It was just announced Monday that the Cubs hired their new hitting coach in former Tampa Bay Rays minor league hitting coordinator Greg Brown. We cannot fail to mention an under-the-radar hire in former Brewers scout Pete Vuckovich Jr.

See a pattern with where these guys hail from? Indians, Astros, Brewers, Rays? All teams that have had recent success of scouting, developing and winning. The Rays have had a top-tier farm system for years, which has led them to four straight winning seasons, three straight postseasons and a pennant in 2020. The Astros are in the World Series (without trashcans) and made the ALCS five years running with their core of players. Milwaukee has been a force since 2018 and have developed pitching masterfully. The Indians (or Guardians) also have a knack for developing talent.

Chicago Cubs: Using new members to carry out modern baseball philosophies

The Cubs have a deep system and will want to mold what they have, as well as identify and bring in appropriate talent to make the team better as fast as possible. While Chicago has failed at a number of recent reclamation or plug-in projects, other teams have been successful at it.

Want a good example? Look at the Brewers. They developed their fireballing pitching staff from within, and have plugged in the right guys around them. David Stearns and his staff did not have to break the bank doing so. Identifying the likes of Willy Adames, Omar Narvaez, Rowdy Tellez, Avisail Garcia and making it work is not just a shot in the dark.

I probably do not need to mention Tampa Bay, as their reputation of scouting and developing is extraordinary. Look at the results of trading away Chris Archer and Jose Martinez alone. Those trades have resulted in Tyler Glasnow, Austin Meadows, Shane Baz and Randy Arozarena. Again, not just random guys they pick off a list. Those players are scouted and evaluated carefully. The team that is consistently at the bottom of the list in payroll is one of the most successful teams in baseball.

Sure, I could go on, but the point is clear. The Cubs organization needs to thrive at scouting and developing and they have brought in some great minds from great organizations to help do so. It shows Hoyer and Co. understand what works today. These hires will hopefully be a big payoff for Chicago as we enter a new era.