{"id":30726,"date":"2021-05-07T12:45:13","date_gmt":"2021-05-07T17:45:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/?p=30726"},"modified":"2021-05-07T12:45:13","modified_gmt":"2021-05-07T17:45:13","slug":"cubs-front-office-has-come-full-circle-in-player-development","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/nl-central\/cubs\/cubs-front-office-has-come-full-circle-in-player-development\/","title":{"rendered":"Cubs Front Office Has Come Full Circle in Player Development"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>In October of 2011, Theo Epstein was named President of the Chicago Cubs, who brought along Jed Hoyer as General Manager. At the time of their hiring, observers were saying that the Cubs as an organization was barren of talent. While the major league roster was aging, it did have some promising young players in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/c\/cashnan01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Andrew Cashner<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/c\/castrst01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Starlin Castro<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/s\/samarje01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Jeff Samardzija<\/a>. They also inherited a minor league system that included <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/b\/baezja01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Javier Baez<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/b\/bourju01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Justin Bour<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/c\/candeje01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Jeimer Candelario<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/c\/castiwe01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Welington Castillo<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/c\/contrwi01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Willson Contreras<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/g\/gonzama01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Marwin Gonzalez<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/l\/lemahdj01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">DJ LeMahieu<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/v\/vogelda01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Daniel Vogelbach<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"s2nPlayer k-QAI3POUjbS-1298932-9000\" data-type=\"float\"><\/div>\n<p><script type=\"text\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/embed.sendtonews.com\/player3\/embedcode.js?SC=QAI3POUjbS-1298932-9000&#038;offsetx=0&#038;offsety=0&#038;floatwidth=400&#038;floatposition=bottom-right\" data-type=\"s2nScript\"><\/script><br \/>\nThere were times that under the previous administration of GM Jim Hendry that observers would shake their heads in disbelief. There were things done with contracts and services time that were beyond belief. The minor league system consisted of shabby facilities and poor organization. Promotions from the minors seemed to play favorites rather than having players earn their way onto a roster.\u00a0 And there were concerns that the front office was more interested in bringing in players that the fans recognized than in developing their own talent.<\/p>\n<p>But Epstein and Hoyer were supposed to remedy that. There was an influx of cash into minor league scouting and instruction. It started by bringing in new minor league affiliates with better facilities. Also instituted was a &#8220;Cubs Handbook&#8221; in which all players coming into the organization would learn how to play the &#8220;Cubs Way&#8221;.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_30782\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-30782\" style=\"width: 225px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-30782\" src=\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Ian-Happ-225x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Ian-Happ-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Ian-Happ-450x600.jpg 450w, https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Ian-Happ.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-30782\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ian Happ in 2015 (photo by Tom Usiak)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>With the lack of success by the parent club, the talent started flowing in. The initial 1st round selection was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/a\/almoral01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Albert Almora<\/a> Jr. in 2012, followed by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/b\/bryankr01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Kris Bryant<\/a> in 2013; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/s\/schwaky01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Kyle Schwarber<\/a> in 2014; and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/h\/happia01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Ian Happ<\/a> in 2015. However, there were cracks showing in the armor, for those willing to look.<\/p>\n<p>Throughout 2012 to 2016, management continued to bring in &#8220;AAAA&#8221; players and aging veterans into the system at the expense of younger players. Development for players selected beyond the third round, or highly regarded international free agent players, was non-existent. It also appeared that the front office picked &#8220;favorites&#8221;. These favorites would receive promotions over other deserving prospects. The Cubs also tried to manipulate service time with Bryant in 2015. It would be something that Bryant would never forget.<\/p>\n<p>There is a saying that winning is a great deodorant. With the fortunes of the parent club improving, fans and scribes alike were willing to turn a blind eye. Then came an age-old problem for the Cubs: dealing long-term assets for short-term gains.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_30781\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-30781\" style=\"width: 225px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-30781\" src=\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Gleyber-Torres-225x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Gleyber-Torres-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Gleyber-Torres-450x600.jpg 450w, https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Gleyber-Torres.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-30781\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gleyber Torres as a Cubs prospect (photo by Tom Usiak)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In the beginning, it didn&#8217;t seem too big of a deal of the Cubs dealing Castro. Even though the return wasn&#8217;t the best, the Cubs had plenty of shortstops. But swapping <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/t\/torregl01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Gleyber Torres<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/m\/mckinbi01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Billy McKinney<\/a> for a two-month rental was next. Outfielder <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/register\/player.fcgi?id=dewees000don\">Donnie Dewees<\/a> was the next to go, followed by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/s\/solerjo01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Jorge Soler<\/a>. The following season was the two blockbuster deals in which the Cubs gave up Candelario, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/p\/paredis01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Isaac Paredes<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/c\/ceasedy01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Dylan Cease<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/j\/jimenel02.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Eloy Jimenez<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>To make matters worse, the Cubs were not even close to developing a pitching prospect.<\/p>\n<p>While the Cubs were still a contending team, they were slipping further and further away from being one of baseball&#8217;s elite.<\/p>\n<p>It was at that point the inability to develop both pitching and middle-to-late round draft selections began to show. The Cubs were solely relying on that first wave of prospects. The players became tired, and injuries were starting to creep in. The lack of depth was hurting production. And the dearth of pitching prospects meant depending on a lot of mediocrity on the major league staff.<\/p>\n<p>The Cubs tried rectifying their deficits. First, it was the pitching-heavy 2016 and 2017 drafts. Then, it was the mixture of highly touted high school players and seasoned college stars in 2018 and 2019.\u00a0 But two consistent problems were continuing: dealing for short-term gains and balking on player development.<\/p>\n<p>Despite not bringing up a pitching prospect solely developed by their system, the Cubs ended up trading highly regarded pitchers <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/h\/hatchto01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Tom Hatch<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/l\/langeal01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Alex Lange<\/a>. And when some prospects seemed ready to contribute, it was the Cubs that were not ready to give them the chance they earned.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_30783\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-30783\" style=\"width: 256px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-30783\" src=\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Nico-Hoerner-Rikk-Carlson-2-256x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"256\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Nico-Hoerner-Rikk-Carlson-2-256x300.jpg 256w, https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Nico-Hoerner-Rikk-Carlson-2-511x600.jpg 511w, https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Nico-Hoerner-Rikk-Carlson-2-768x901.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Nico-Hoerner-Rikk-Carlson-2-1309x1536.jpg 1309w, https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Nico-Hoerner-Rikk-Carlson-2-scaled.jpg 1746w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 256px) 100vw, 256px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-30783\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Nico Hoerner by Rikk Carlson<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The Cubs have several cases in point this season. The most glaring is 2018 1st round selection <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/h\/hoernni01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Nico Hoerner<\/a>. Although the middle infielder had some minor injuries in 2018 and 2019, operational needs brought him to the big leagues in September of 2019. In the epidemic-shortened 2020 season, Hoerner remained a part of the parent club. His play in the field earned Hoerner a Gold Glove nomination. Hoerner was playing well in the spring, slashing .364\/.396\/.659\/1.055 with 2 homers, 11 RBI, and 3 stolen bases. Even that inspired play wasn&#8217;t good enough; the Cubs were leaving Hoerner at the alternative training site. Rumors of service time manipulation spread. Now, Hoerner is back up and playing like he never wants to go back down.<\/p>\n<p>With Contreras thoroughly entrenched as the starting catcher, the opportunity to bring someone young to play behind him was present. The Cubs have the perfect player in PJ Higgins. A former infielder, Higgins has established himself as a top-notch defensive catcher. Yet, the Cubs continued obsessing for a veteran backup. Bringing in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/w\/wolteto01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Tony Wolters<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/l\/lobatjo01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Jose Lobaton<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/r\/rominau01.shtml\">Austin\u00a0 Romine<\/a>, the Cubs ended up snubbing their own prospect.<\/p>\n<p>And lastly, the Cubs are continuing to play around with the only pitching prospect they have brought to the majors: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/a\/alzolad01.shtml?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Adbert Alzolay<\/a>. The young right-hander actually made the opening roster in this talent-challenged staff. But Adzolay has been given the quick-hook, both in games and in his roster spot.<\/p>\n<p>Altogether, it is a familiar look to the Cubs. For those willing to see.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>In October of 2011, Theo Epstein was named President of the Chicago Cubs, who brought along Jed Hoyer as General Manager. At the time of <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/nl-central\/cubs\/cubs-front-office-has-come-full-circle-in-player-development\/\" title=\"Cubs Front Office Has Come Full Circle in Player Development\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":83,"featured_media":31152,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31,136,1457,13],"tags":[1395,965,1558,6153,722,2628,1728,6157,971,963,961,708,962,981,5130,2765,964,5131,6154,4096,5132,6156,132,3566,4045,64,3253,2806,3542,6155,3885],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Cubs Front Office Has Come Full Circle in Player Development<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Cubs correspondent Tom Usiak looks back at the last decade of player development within Chicago&#039;s front office and farm system.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/nl-central\/cubs\/cubs-front-office-has-come-full-circle-in-player-development\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Cubs Front Office Has Come Full Circle in Player Development\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Cubs correspondent Tom Usiak looks back at the last decade of player development within Chicago&#039;s front office and farm system.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/nl-central\/cubs\/cubs-front-office-has-come-full-circle-in-player-development\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"http:\/\/facebook.com\/Prospects1500\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-05-07T17:45:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/nico-hoerner-cubs.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"676\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"364\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Tom Usiak\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@The_Tom_U\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Prospects1500\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Tom Usiak\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/nl-central\/cubs\/cubs-front-office-has-come-full-circle-in-player-development\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/nl-central\/cubs\/cubs-front-office-has-come-full-circle-in-player-development\/\",\"name\":\"Cubs Front Office Has Come Full Circle in Player Development\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/nl-central\/cubs\/cubs-front-office-has-come-full-circle-in-player-development\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/nl-central\/cubs\/cubs-front-office-has-come-full-circle-in-player-development\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/nico-hoerner-cubs.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-05-07T17:45:13+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-05-07T17:45:13+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/#\/schema\/person\/c3808f3419dddb5bd88d5bde80a5f3a1\"},\"description\":\"Cubs correspondent Tom Usiak looks back at the last decade of player development within Chicago's front office and farm system.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/nl-central\/cubs\/cubs-front-office-has-come-full-circle-in-player-development\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/nl-central\/cubs\/cubs-front-office-has-come-full-circle-in-player-development\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/nl-central\/cubs\/cubs-front-office-has-come-full-circle-in-player-development\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/nico-hoerner-cubs.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.prospects1500.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/nico-hoerner-cubs.jpg\",\"width\":676,\"height\":364,\"caption\":\"Nico Hoerner, South Bend Cubs - 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