Jason Kanzler Named Cubs' Director of Player Development

Michael Schwab of The Juice Box Journal substack, a site that covers the Houston Astros, tweeted that "Jason Kanzler is joining the Chicago Cubs as their Director of Player Development."  

Kanzler has spent the past two seasons as a hitting coach with the Houston Astros. 

A native of upstate New York, Kanzler went to the University of Buffalo to play baseball. He was a three-year starter who really hit well over his final two seasons. He showed off his ability to fill a box score, with extra-base hits, stolen bases, some homers, and a powerful arm. He was a two-time collegiate Gold Glove center fielder. 

The Minnesota Twins used their 20th-round draft pick in 2013 to select Kanzler. In 2014, he split the season between Low-A Cedar Rapids and High-A Fort Myers and hit a combined .282/.344/.444, with 11 doubles, 9 triples, 12 home runs, and 27 stolen bases. He had a huge home run to help lead the Miracle to the 2014 Florida State League championship. 

After being released following the 2015 season, Kanzler became a teacher. He coached in the Cape Cod League. Then he joined the Astros organization and had coaching and coordinator positions in the minor leagues. For the past three years, he has been a hitting coach in the big leagues for the Houston Astros. 

Now, Kanzler will lead player development for the Chicago Cubs. The title is impressive, and the responsibilities are a bit daunting. Ultimately, this person is responsible for the development of every minor leaguer in the organization, from the minor-league veterans in Triple A to the new players in the rookie leagues. He will also be responsible for hiring and firing coaches and coordinators, as well as budgeting for the technology and the analytics and the videographers and everything that brings together a minor-league system. 

In addition, Ryan Otero has been named the organization's Director of Pitching, a job previously held by Craig Breslow. Otero is an internal promotion, who has steadily advanced during his six-plus years with the organization, and will be tasked with carrying forward the good work Breslow was doing for the organization.

More On Jason Kanzler
- Kernels' Jason Kanzler Keeps Proving Himself - Steve Buhr (6/17/14)
- Twins Hangouts Interview with Jason Kanzler - Seth Stohs/Jeremy Nygaard (10/14/14) 

Great discussion on his big home run in the FSL championship, playing in cold weather, and his legendary mustache! He talked about playing alongside Byron Buxton in the outfield and playing for Doug Mientkiewicz. The below interview is really interesting, to hear Kanzler talk about his minor-league career and development. 

What do you think of these hires? Let's discuss them, while we wait for the team to complement behind-the-scenes changes with on-field talent infusions.

Interested in learning more about the Chicago Cubs' top prospects? Check out our comprehensive top prospects list that includes up-to-date stats, articles and videos about every prospect, scouting reports, and more!