NEWS: Jed Hoyer Agrees to Extension with Cubs

[Connor McConnor]

21 minutes ago, Wilson A2000 said:

Was wondering the same thing too. 670 the Score hosts wondered aloud if this makes Jed more or less willing to make a big splash at the deadline.

The article pointed out this angle:

"Not only are his incentives and the team's no longer misaligned, but he can now avoid having any negotiating partner try to use his own contract status as leverage against him. If Hoyer (as, based on his personality, we might well imagine he would) would feel unduly guilty about trading a haul of prospects for a high-impact, short-term piece, that internal conflict is now resolved, too"

[JHBulls]

Good, good! 

Now let’s make some trades, Jed. 

[Rcal10]

1 hour ago, Irrelevant Dude said:

I'm probably reading more into this than what is actually there... but is it possible the Cubs announced this now to give Jed a bit more leverage going into the next 3 days of trade negotiations?

I think it is absolutely easier for him to maneuver now. I said that when it was suggested he would sign an extension at the ASB. Trades will be easier and so will negotiations with Tucker and PCA. They know the guy is here for a bit. I know Jed gets cut down by fans that honestly are pretty unfair about where they place blame. People suggesting he has more assets don’t want to hear that Ricketts doesn’t allow him to use the assets the large market teams should use. They just want to bitch about Jed. Sure, he makes mistakes. But he does way more right than wrong. And complaining he hasn’t made the playoffs since he got here is not seeing what he had to do when he started, and what TR allows him to do. The Cubs were not going to get anyone better, who would go along with Ricketts plans. I am glad they signed him. 

[cubfansince77]

Some really good posts in this thread and since joining this board I've kinda seen the light with regard to Jed and the job he's done. He's been solid overall and the biggest complaint I have (Schwarber all day long) really wasn't his call from everything I can tell. Seriously doubt he wanted to break up the '16 core but decisions that big weren't his to make quite obviously. 

I guess TR had a come to Jesus moment and decided to sign him before the deadline to free Jed up in terms of potential deal making. Certainly won't hurt his leverage and hopefully will help it. Now get it done man: 1 starter, 1 reliever and 1 good bench option. 

[Rcal10]

20 minutes ago, cubfansince77 said:

Some really good posts in this thread and since joining this board I've kinda seen the light with regard to Jed and the job he's done. He's been solid overall and the biggest complaint I have (Schwarber all day long) really wasn't his call from everything I can tell. Seriously doubt he wanted to break up the '16 core but decisions that big weren't his to make quite obviously. 

I guess TR had a come to Jesus moment and decided to sign him before the deadline to free Jed up in terms of potential deal making. Certainly won't hurt his leverage and hopefully will help it. Now get it done man: 1 starter, 1 reliever and 1 good bench option. 

Or two starting pitchers and the one get better because Horton moves to the pen.🤷

[Jfoley89]

I'm rather meh overall.  Jed's FO hasn't received a single top 10 vote by baseball executives in the last 2 years according to executives, and is one of only 8 teams to receive no votes.  That being said, he's fine enough.  It was pretty disappointing this was the deadline news, but it fits the general Cubs vibe of the last few years.  We didn't spend money on the team or players, but we got a great manager and invested off the field. 

Venting aside, he doesn't horribly mismanage the team and he's had some wins building this team.  He seems to struggle with internal scouting and valuing our own guys, but Busch and Tucker have been great for the Cubs. 

[sweetpeteman]

This is a good move that solidifies the during office, allowing them to make the necessary moves to better the team. 

 

Or

This is a crap move that locks the a Cubs to a mediocre front office. Tucker will walk this year and the Cubs will go back to 83 wins a year.

 

I reserve the right to delete the wrong take.

[Wilson A2000]

16 minutes ago, Jfoley89 said:

I'm rather meh overall.  Jed's FO hasn't received a single top 10 vote by baseball executives in the last 2 years according to executives, and is one of only 8 teams to receive no votes.  That being said, he's fine enough.  It was pretty disappointing this was the deadline news, but it fits the general Cubs vibe of the last few years.  We didn't spend money on the team or players, but we got a great manager and invested off the field. 

Venting aside, he doesn't horribly mismanage the team and he's had some wins building this team.  He seems to struggle with internal scouting and valuing our own guys, but Busch and Tucker have been great for the Cubs. 

If Jed is above average to good, why do his fellow GMs think he is bottom of the barrel? 

[Irrelevant Dude]

Just now, Wilson A2000 said:

If Jed is above average to good, why do his fellow GMs think he is bottom of the barrel? 

Are GM's really ranking other GM's?

[Jason Ross]

Just now, Wilson A2000 said:

If Jed is above average to good, why do his fellow GMs think he is bottom of the barrel? 

Many of the best baseball writers cannot get the HoF correct literally year over year. 

I'm not super worried about how the rest of the front office community feels. Superlatives are cool talking points, but I sincerely hope no MLB organization is using them as a barometer. 

[Jason Ross]

Just now, Irrelevant Dude said:

Are GM's really ranking other GM's?

There was an anonymous vote that the Athletic published the last few years.

[Ding Dong Johnson]

1 minute ago, Irrelevant Dude said:

Are GM's really ranking other GM's?

Yes

[chibears55]

2 hours ago, Irrelevant Dude said:

I'm probably reading more into this than what is actually there... but is it possible the Cubs announced this now to give Jed a bit more leverage going into the next 3 days of trade negotiations?

This is good to show stability in the organization now.

This also could be a precursor to getting an extension done with Tucker and possibly PCA but mainly Tucker now, and getting him signed now could allow Jed to move outfield prospects in trades.

Who knows maybe Tucker said he wouldn't negotiate with them without having stability in the FO first, now they do. 🤷‍♂️

[Derwood]

If Theo was making the moves when Hoyer was the GM, and Hoyer is making the moves when Hawkins is the GM, then what exactly does a Cubs' GM do?

[Irrelevant Dude]

3 minutes ago, Derwood said:

If Theo was making the moves when Hoyer was the GM, and Hoyer is making the moves when Hawkins is the GM, then what exactly does a Cubs' GM do?

I'm guessing a lot of legwork.  "I'll pass you off to my assistant now to finalize the details."

[Jason Ross]

22 minutes ago, Derwood said:

If Theo was making the moves when Hoyer was the GM, and Hoyer is making the moves when Hawkins is the GM, then what exactly does a Cubs' GM do?

Teams have reshuffled the titles that people hold to help hire people from other orgs. Teams won't let FO personnel interview for lateral positions, but have to allow a step up, so teams started to move the powers that we traditionally associate with "General Manager" to "Vice President of Baseball Operations" a position "above" that of the GM. The same is true for "General Manager" and "Assistant General Manager". Carter Hawkins was not the General Manager in Cleveland, but was an assistant GM. By offering him a "promotion" the Cubs were able to bypass any block the Guardians might have by offering him a lateral move. 

So look at it as being another strong voice in the room, bringing ideas, being a sounding board, doing their own analysis, etc. They're just second in command, the titles are different, but the structure is essentially the same.

[Bertz]

13 hours ago, Wilson A2000 said:

If Jed is above average to good, why do his fellow GMs think he is bottom of the barrel? 

I don't think "not top 10" is anywhere close to "bottom of the barrel"?

Edited July 29, 2025 by Bertz
Whoops

[Derwood]

[Rcal10]

Looks like if anything happens it will happen on Thursday. The issue I have with this is with the Cubs supposedly eyeing controlled pitchers, there really isn’t a reason whoever they are talking to needs to come down on their ask. If they don’t get it they can just keep the pitcher. A rental is different. Trade him or lose him next year. More urgency to move that guy. I am beginning to think Cubs end up with one pitcher who is a MOR starter and hopefully a bench bat. Maybe something like Kelly and Urias. Which doesn’t move the needle much for me. Maybe also a middle relief pitcher or Iglesias. 

Edited July 29, 2025 by Rcal10

[SparkMark1]

So the DO know how to do contract extensions!

[gflore34]

18 minutes ago, Rcal10 said:

Looks like if anything happens it will happen on Thursday. The issue I have with this is with the Cubs supposedly eyeing controlled pitchers, there really isn’t a reason whoever they are talking to needs to come down on their ask. If they don’t get it they can just keep the pitcher. A rental is different. Trade him or lose him next year. More urgency to move that guy. I am beginning to think Cubs end up with one pitcher who is a MOR starter and hopefully a bench bat. Maybe something like Kelly and Ortiz. Which doesn’t move the needle much for me. Maybe also a middle relief pitcher or Iglesias. 

Was thinking along the same lines, why not go rentals?  Kelly, Soroka, Castro will not cost any of the top prospects and improve the Cubs chances, seems like a win-win to me.

[Brian707]

14 hours ago, Derwood said:

If Theo was making the moves when Hoyer was the GM, and Hoyer is making the moves when Hawkins is the GM, then what exactly does a Cubs' GM do?

[Rcal10]

30 minutes ago, gflore34 said:

Was thinking along the same lines, why not go rentals?  Kelly, Soroka, Castro will not cost any of the top prospects and improve the Cubs chances, seems like a win-win to me.

To be clear, I wouldn’t be happy with one rental pitcher and Urias. Now if they did add Iglesias and instead of Urias it was Castro, it is ok. But even then, I would hope for a second pitcher. Kelly, Soroka, Castro and Iglesias would be a fine deadline upgrade. All rentals. But with other teams wanting people too, they still might cost more than we think. 

[squally1313]

30 minutes ago, Rcal10 said:

To be clear, I wouldn’t be happy with one rental pitcher and Urias. Now if they did add Iglesias and instead of Urias it was Castro, it is ok. But even then, I would hope for a second pitcher. Kelly, Soroka, Castro and Iglesias would be a fine deadline upgrade. All rentals. But with other teams wanting people too, they still might cost more than we think. 

To clarify, which Urias are we talking about here?

[chibears55]

59 minutes ago, Brian707 said:

The paperwork and tough interviews 🤷‍♂️🤣