Cubs Hire World Series Champion David Ross As Manager to Three-Year Deal

The Chicago Cubs are hiring former catcher David Ross as their next manager despite no managerial experience.

Jon Durr-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Cubs have named former catcher and 2016 World Series champion David Ross as the team's next manager. The team announced the contract is a three-year deal with a club option for 2023.

The deal was first reported to David Kaplan of ESPN Chicago and Jon Heyman of MLB Network. The Cubs will introduce Ross as the team's new manager at a press conference on Monday.

Ross's name was one of the first to be considered after the Cubs parted ways with Joe Maddon after five seasons. Maddon led the team to its first World Series title in 108 years and finished with a 471–339 record. The Cubs missed the postseason this year for the first time in five seasons before general manager Theo Epstein decided it was time to move on. Last week, Maddon was named the Angels' new manager.

Ross has no managerial experience but has served as a special adviser to the Cubs since retiring after the World Series victory. He was a Cubs fan favorite for clubhouse leadership, which was capped by a Game 7 home run off Indians reliever Andrew Miller. Ross has also been working as an analyst for ESPN.

“Rossy is a very attractive candidate, and he’s going to be evaluated on the merits for what he can bring to the table as a major-league manager, given his skills, given his experiences, given his worldview, given what he knows about winning," Epstein said in late September.

The Cubs also considered Houston Astros bench coach Joe Espada, former Phillies manager Gabe Kapler, former Yankees manager Joe Girardi and Cubs bench coach Mark Loretta for the job.