Follow our new Twitter account for real-time updates and in-depth analysis of all things Chicago Cubs.
Don’t worry, I had to google Tommy Hottovy too and guess what he actually makes sense as the next pitching coach for the Cubs.
On Tuesday, the Cubs announced that Jim Hickey wouldn’t be returning in 2019 as the team’s pitching coach, stepping down after one year in Chicago because of personal reasons. Almost immediately former Red Sox manager John Farrell was linked to the Cubs and at the surface it makes some sense as he has history with Theo Epstein.
However, ESPN’s Jesse Rogers, who first reported three weeks ago that Hickey wouldn’t come back, said on Wednesday that fans should expect the Cubs to promote someone from within the organization to become the new pitching coach.
So, that means guys like Farrell and Bryan Price, former Reds manager, won’t be considered as the Chicago Tribune’s Mark Gonzales suggested.
Follow our new Twitter account for real-time updates and in-depth analysis of all things Chicago Cubs.
You’re definitely wondering, who is Tommy Hottovy and why does he make sense as the next Cubs pitching coach?
On ESPN, @ESPNChiCubs says Cubs run prevention coordinator Tommy Hottovy is someone to watch for Cubs pitching coach. He knows the pitchers very well, they work with him already, so there could definitely be some sense there.
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) November 21, 2018
Rogers brought him up as a possible candidate and when you search his name you find out that he’s a scouting coordinator for the Cubs. More specifically his role is “run prevention coordinator.”
Meaningless title? Not so fast. Turns out that Hottovy actually does a lot of behind the scenes stuff, working closely with Mike Borzello, who coaches the catchers.
Fangraphs wrote about Hottovy and his position with the Cubs back in 2015. Here’s some insight on what he does.
“I do most everything in house, and I’m with the team all the time – home and on the road. Occasionally I will work from the clubhouse, but I’m usually scouting from the stands or from up in the booth, to get more of an aerial view. I’m double-checking to make sure we’re in the places we need to be, and that we’re attacking hitters according to the game plan we came up with.
“We’ve got our traditional advance scouts out there watching the teams we’re going to play. I do more advancing with data and video work while helping the staff with in-game strategy and coordinating with our advance scouts on what they are seeing.”
Hottovy was a fourth round pick in the 2004 MLB draft by the Red Sox and spent almost all of his pro career in the minors. The lefty finally made his MLB debut in 2011, but only pitched in 17 games in the majors in 2011-12. After the Royals traded him to the Rangers, he was released and then he joined the Blue Jays organization. Hottovy spent 2013 at Double-A and Triple-A and in the offseason he made one last attempt to keep his pitching career going, signing a minor league deal with the Cubs.
Unfortunately, Hottovy injured his shoulder in spring training and although he rehabbed all summer long, his playing career was over. However, he wasn’t away from baseball for long.
“I took the online Sabermetrics 101 course from Boston University. I was a finance major with an economics minor at Wichita State, so I have a numbers background. I wanted to refresh my statistics knowledge, and the sabermetrics course, which is obviously about baseball, helped with that.
“I started talking to teams. I told Theo (Epstein) and (Director of Video and Advance Scouting) Kyle Evans what I was interested in, and once we signed Joe Maddon, we discussed how the whole dynamic may work. They were in and we kind of ran with it. Nate Halm, who’s been here for a few years, took on the hitting side of our process. I think we’ve formed a really good rapport with the coaching staff and players.”
He’s been working for the Cubs since 2014, so Hottovy is familiar with current pitching staff. He’s young, only 37-years-old, so he should be able to relate to this generation of players and he’s also a Theo guy. Epstein’s the one who drafted Hottovy in 2004 with the Red Sox.
Plus, if you factor in that Joe Maddon enters 2019 as a lame duck manager and it’s already Thanksgiving, the Cubs may not have the chance to hire a veteran pitching coach, or interview a coach from another team at this point in the offseason.
Think about it, if you’re a veteran coach, would you want to come to the Cubs not knowing if you’re going to be around for more than one year, as the manager’s future isn’t known either?
And the Cubs have a pitching staff with plenty of experience. It’s not like Hottovy would be taking over a group of young pitchers, who still need to develop.
So, you may have never heard of Tommy Hottovy before today, but you might be seeing a lot of him soon.
