Cubs hire Cleveland's Carter Hawkins as new GM originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
Cubs president Jed Hoyer landed his general manager just in time for the heavy lifting in what promises to be one of the Cubs’ most pivotal offseasons in decades.
The Cubs announced the hiring Friday of Carter Hawkins, 37, a former Vanderbilt University catcher, who has spent his 14 years in professional baseball working for Cleveland’s front office.
Hawkins, 37, started with Cleveland as a scouting intern, eventually working his way up to assistant general manager in 2016.
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He joins a Cubs front office that has been without a GM since Hoyer left that position to replace Theo Epstein as team president last November.
Hoyer began interviewing finalists for the job over the final weeks of the season, eventually tapping a candidate with extensive experience in an organization known for developing its own players and building competitive cycles on payroll budgets that consistently ranked among the lowest third in the majors.
That included the lowest payroll in the majors this season (per spotrac.com).
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Whether that’s part of Hoyer’s “plan to spend money intelligently” as he enters a winter with huge roster holes and more payroll flexibility than the Cubs have had since 2006-07, the rebuilding task at hand is as big as it is daunting.
The Cubs have only one established, competitive big-league starting pitcher on the roster and gaping holes in every non-pitching position area except catcher.
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