NEWSLETTER
Hold onto your butts.
According to two sources cited by the Boston Herald, current Boston Red Sox General Manager Theo Epstein is close to jumping ship in favor of the Chicago Cubs.
The sources say a number of things:
(1) A deal is very close, and likely to be announced within the next 24 to 48 hours;
(2) Epstein is believed to be receiving “powers greater than he has in Boston;”
(3) One hangup in the deal has been Boston ownership’s efforts to keep Epstein; and
(4) Another hangup has been the amount of/type of compensation going back to Boston should Epstein decide to leave for the Cubs. The sources could not say whether the compensation would be a player, money, or both.
In any event, one of the sources said “this is going to be resolved very soon.”
I’d say you can set your phasers to “excited.” Keep in mind, these are still “rumors” (though they comport with everything else we’ve heard and everything the logical centers of our brains tell us), and anything could happen. Indeed, the compensation piece could still derail things. It’s going to be a crazy week.
As I said: hold onto your butts.
(Plug: And “like” Bleacher Nation on Facebook and follow it on Twitter to get the latest.)
UPDATE: Peter Gammons, still considered a Boston insider, just tweeted to Paul Sullivan, “It could happen, but reports are far ahead of decisions,” implying that, while things are close, it could still go either way.
