According to Brian Hanley on the radio this morning (though we’re still waiting on confirmation from the Cubs), Chicago Cubs’ interim GM (and assistant GM) Randy Bush has been let go. He was signed at least through 2012, and will be given a severance package in lieu of returning to the team.
This kind of turnover was to be expected once the Cubs got Theo Epstein in place as President of Baseball Operations, and Jed Hoyer in place as General Manager.
Bush served as the team’s interim GM after Jim Hendry was fired in August, but Owner and Chairman Tom Ricketts was up front with Bush from the beginning that he would not be considered as a full-time replacement for Hendry. Bush had been with the Cubs since 2005, and had been an assistant GM since 2006.
Keep in mind, Bush may not have wanted to stay in Chicago with the organizational changes, and this may be an agreed-upon resolution, which will allow Bush to seek out employment in 2012, rather than languishing with the Cubs.
Hopefully some members of the Hendry regime remain in place – beyond Oneri Fleita and Tim Wilken (who’s spot is now precarious, with Jason McLeod effectively taking his job) – because, while we may not love everything Hendry was doing, institutional memory is important. You also risk “culture clash” if there is too much turnover too fast. I’m just thinking out loud.
UPDATE: Gordon Wittenmyer is disputing Brian Hanley’s report, and instead cites sources who say Bush is going to work for the Cubs in 2012.
Wow!
I actually liked Randy. I’m guessing he wants to explore other options. Good luck Randy!
P.S. Take your buddy Quade with you.
Bush. The GM who did nothing after taking over for Hendry and who helped create the mess Epstein inherits. The spin doctors may commence.
What?
yup… i was just thinking this morning.. when is this gonna happen?
It will be interesting to see if the Cubs hire an asst. GM now and if so, who?
McLeod has the asst. GM title already.
He is the Senior Vice President of Scouting and Minor league development or something like that. Asst. GM is not his title technically.
Also with how this is shaping up I expect at least one more of Theo’s guys to be involved.
Yup, you are right, my mistake.
Or multiple Assistant GMs. Here’s hoping they do.
A completely cleaned house may not be the worse thing. Kind of like stripping a house to its frame and foundation and rebuilding it the right way (maybe Holmes on Homes – Cubs Edition). Sometime organizational memory is not a good thing. I too am just thinking aloud.
Stop thinking out loud. Its too much noise.
Actually, culture clash occurs when you don’t change personnel but bring in a few at the top and keep the rest. However, it generally occurs when the old was already pretty successful, which this old group can’t claim. I’ll let the new group do it their way.
I’m thinking of the dozens and dozens of scouts and administrative personnel, the vast majority of which will be staying – but if everyone at the top changes, there you go. Clash.
Institutional memory is only good if it is positive and willing to embrace a new vision (right or wrong) I have seen this on a smaller scale in the Army. While I was in SF there would be personel change over and there would definately be ego clashes. Good memory needs to be flexible and humble no matter where you are. If is is not, it can be a cancer and needs to be removed ASAP.
WSCR Update Randy Bush will not be let go will work this year with Cubs.
Crazy. Well good for Randy?
Wittenmyer may have provided a useful blip of info, but he’s still a pasty douche.
I know every team is different, but what duties did the assistant GM actually perform under Hendry? What can we expect the duties to be of a future assistant GM(s) under Epstein/Hoyer?
It really does have a huge range of possibilities. I’m going to write a post once all this has shaken out trying to answer just that question (who does what?). But I think, for now, the answer is: the assistant GM helps perform the functional tasks laid out by (and to) the GM. That could mean working with scouts on a project. It could mean talking to other teams about a trade. It could mean heading up a research team in advance of the Rule 5 Draft. And so on.
Cool, thanks. I now remember you saying in another post that you were going to write the organizational breakdown of who does what. Looking forward to it.
[...] manager Randy Bush would be leaving the Chicago Cubs’ organization, but that report was quickly refuted. Still, it might be a tricky fit to have Bush return to his old job (assistant GM), given his time [...]