It's Time Chicago Cubs Ownership Puts Jed Hoyer on Hot Seat After Latest Failure

After this disappointing season, it's time that Jed Hoyer starts feeling some pressure from the Chicago Cubs ownership group.

Chicago Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer answers questions from the media during the MLB GM Meetings at The Conrad Las Vegas / Lucas Peltier-USA TODAY Sports

Going back to this past offseason, the Chicago Cubs were coming off a disappointing result when they squandered their late Wild Card lead and were left out of the playoffs once again. Injuries to the bullpen was a major reason for their ultimate collapse, and it seemed like that would be a prime area the organization would look to upgrade before embarking on the 2024 campaign.

With some high-profile players on the open market, or seemingly made available via trade, there was some hope the Cubs would be aggressive in the winter and put together a roster that would compete for the division title and get back into the playoffs.

Handing Craig Counsell the most lucrative managerial deal in Major League Baseball history signaled they might be headed in that direction, especially after they fired David Ross to get this done.

Chairman Tom Ricketts and president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer proclaimed they would put together a contending team, giving fans hope that after a few years of watching other teams play fall baseball, they would be able to watch their own chase a championship.

Instead, they saw supposed target after target wind up with other franchises as Chicago was one of the last clubs around the league to make an offseason addition.

Upgrades at third base, in the bullpen, and at first base, which seemed like obvious areas they would address, remained unresolved.

When it was all said and done, the Cubs added Shota Imanaga, the second-best international pitcher, MIchael Busch, and unproven product in the MLB, Yency Almonte, veteran reliever Hector Neris, and Cody Bellinger after the prolonged saga seemed like neither party was interested in a reunion.

Considering that Juan Soto was traded, Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto were free agents, and Pete Alonso was reportedly being shopped for the right price, the result of Chicago's winter felt like a letdown, especially when Matt Chapman and Blake Snell signed team-friendly deals late in the process.

Imanaga has been way better than advertised and Busch looks like a piece of the future, but Almonte is out for the year, Neris has been a rollercoaster despite his solid numbers, and Bellinger has taken a step back.

Ultimately, the roster construction is a major reason why the Cubs are likely going to be sellers and miss the playoffs for the fourth season in a row.

Yes, injuries have plagued this team throughout the year, but that falls on the front office too.

And ultimately, the buck stops with Hoyer.

Since taking over his current position on November 17, 2020 following the resignation of Theo Epstein, the high-profile executive has failed to put together a contending team and make the playoffs a single time.

He should be commended for rebuilding their farm system and turning it into one of the best in baseball, but should Chicago really be a franchise that misses out on postseason baseball for four seasons?

No.

It's time the Cubs start putting some real pressure on Hoyer, especially after this latest failure.

This team was expected to compete for the NL Central title, and instead, they are tied for last in the division, sitting five games under .500 through 103 contests played.

That comes after he proclaimed he was building a contender.

Yes, ownership has done him no favors by capping the payroll before they go into the luxury tax, but that isn't an excuse for poor roster construction.

Bullpen was an issue everyone in Chicago knew was present on this team, especially after that was the reason why they missed out on the postseason in 2023. He should have been way more aggressive in solidifying that unit when there were so many upgrades available.

Third base has been a disaster like many expected as Christopher Morel has shown no ability to consistently play that position.

So with the Cubs now expected to start trading away some pieces at this upcoming deadline, it seems like they are still a few years away from truly contending for a championship.

Hoyer's contract is up after 2025.

He should not be the person in charge of leading this franchise back to prominence based on his track record.