NEWSLETTER
As we discussed recently in the context of now-former Red Sox GM Ben Cherington, the Chicago Cubs’ front office was prohibited from poaching Red Sox employees from 2012-2014 as part of the agreement that (eventually) finalized the deal that brought Theo Epstein to Chicago as the new President of Baseball Operations.
Since that agreement ended last year, and since the Red Sox front office is going through a significant transition, it’s fair to wonder whether some familiar (to the Cubs’ men in charge, anyway) faces could be coming over from Boston.
And, sure enough:
Pro scouting director Jared Porter, responsible for Eduardo Rodriguez, to the Cubs may be the beginning of the flight from the Red Sox.
— Peter Gammons (@pgammo) August 29, 2015
Looks like Red Sox are losing director of pro scouting Jared Porter to the Cubs.
— Nick Cafardo (@nickcafardo) August 29, 2015
LRT: Dombrowski mentioned one executive had received a promotion from another organization. Now we know it's Jared Porter to the Cubs.
— Tim Britton (@TimBritton) August 29, 2015
Dombrowski also said that move "was in place before I even started."
— Tim Britton (@TimBritton) August 29, 2015
So, it looks like the Cubs may have been working on bringing in Porter even before the Red Sox added Dave Dombrowski as their new top baseball man, though it’s also possible everyone knew upheaval was on the horizon and the moves are not entirely disconnected.
As for Porter, I’ll have more on him when it’s clear just what role he’ll be taking. The Cubs presently have a very well-regarded director of pro scouting in Joe Bohringer, but, then, if Porter is getting a promotion to come to the Cubs, he’d be at some level above that role anyway.
To be sure, the Porter move has not yet been confirmed or announced by the Cubs.
Porter has worked in the Red Sox organization since 2004, overlapping for many years with Epstein’s, Jed Hoyer’s, and Jason McLeod’s time there. He is apparently well-liked:
The brain drain begins. Porter's very good and scouts there loved working for him. https://t.co/ST1KEifDjt
— keithlaw (@keithlaw) August 29, 2015
You can read more on Porter here in an alumni profile, and it sounds like he’s a rising star. Given the potential that the Cubs could lose a guy or two in the coming years – it’s just the way things work when you’ve build a front office full of bright minds – bringing in Porter seems like a great move.
I look forward to learning more about him and about his role with the Cubs.
