Major apologies for not being more prompt on this bombshell story.
And we did start as a Boston company.
And it’s a Friday no less!
But luckily for me, nobody else did so it falls to me.
This is a major story not just for Sox fans, but for baseball as a whole.
(Insane to think it was that long ago.)
He was somebody our kids' kids would be telling their children about one day.
Three years later, it was over again.
(Just as they did to Terry Francona.
Just as they did with Jon Lester.)
Which is why this homecoming announcement today really is such a huge deal.
Which I’ll get to in a minute.
He didn’t skip a beat moving one time zone over, to the National League in Chicago.
The Cubs on the field and the park they played in were both the perfect metaphors for each other.
(I see you Alfonso Soriano).
When Epstein announced he was departing Chicago in 2020, it was like a gut-punch.
Here’s what I wrote at the time.
It’ll take a long time to come to terms with it.
Some of us, like Carl, might never be able to.
And for perfectly good reason.
Theo Epstein is quite literally a once in a lifetime baseball mind.
Guys like him don’t just come along.
They’re not groomed or trained.
you could’t practice or study 10,000 hours to be good at knowing baseball inside and out.
I don’t have to sit here and suck his dick more.
Everybody with a brain knows this.
Which makes it all the more sad.
No offense to Jed Hoyer, but nobody can fill those shoes.
Not just in terms of comparable performance.
But in terms of reassurance.
Carl, to me, is the best true baseball fan I know.
He did that for all of us.
We knew we weren’t just one injury away from 70 wins.
it’s possible for you to’t even begin to describe the change that’s had on the fanbase.
The confidence and the positive experiences and the optimism.
Everything was just an idea until Theo showed up.
We were a fucking singalong by Eddie Vedder and nothing more.
Thank you Theo for bringing with you a winning culture.
- Thank you so much for bringing the people you did with you from Boston.
From the ops and marketing and pr personnel, down to the Cubs production heads.
The Cubs went from having nothing more than an organist, (shout out Gary the G.O.A.T.)
That doesn’t happen without Theo.
- Thank you for helping guide the Wrigley transformation like you did with Fenway.
Before you Wrigley was a laughingstock.
A baseball holy ground, but a dump.
Now it’s without a doubt the greatest ballpark in the league and debatably all of sports.
It’s somehow better than Fenway now which I never would have believed ten years ago.
- I forgive you, and thank you, for trading Nomar to the Cubs.
Everytime I see a #5 Cubs jersey it brings a tear to my eye.
- Thank you for personally rehiring everybody’s friend Jeff Magee after he was foolishly let go.
Major League Baseball had a major problem, and it needed Epstein’s touch of gold for itself.
The sport was dealing with declining fan interest, attendance, and serious game time lags.
The improvements were immediate and impactful.
As he sets his sights on Fenway Park once again, let us pray for the same results.
In all honesty, I seriously thought he was waiting in the wings to become the next Commissioner.
Which was the logical next step and only mountain really left for him to climb.
But I couldn’t be happier with this news.
The Red Sox are a fucking disaster right now.
To say he was in over his head would make Lori Lightfoot overqualified.
Something Red Sox fans will NEVER get over.
Like the Patriots, the team is floundering for the first time in a long time.
It has no identity.
Theres a lot of work to be done.
(Yawn)
He will also consult on strategic growth and investment initiatives.
He will have a high-level consulting role on big-picture endeavors and major strategic initiatives for FSG.
It’s the same for Penguins GM Kyle Dubas.
Chicago’s closer and I’m home more than either of them, so maybe that works?
p.p.s.-this was laugh-out-loud funny.
funny because it’s sad/true.
(no offense to Costco of course)
p.p.s.
- never forget -
p.p.p.p.s.
- once you get Boston back on track, set your sights on Worcester and the Woo-Sox Theo.
Turn that place into a gem and thatll be a real feather in your cap.
If you need any help I am down
