The Chicago Cubs sat in their third base dugout on Monday night, watching the Philadelphia Phillies celebrate their division championship after an outclassing of execution. It’s what the expectations and projections called for the Cubs to do in the 2024 season. President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer was supposed to open the metaphorical competitive window. Instead, they’ll keep everything closed as frustrations mount and overflow from the clubhouse.
Hoyer has been under fire for the lack of production and star power the roster he constructed provided. As the numbers were crunched, reality sat in. To meet the above expectations, this roster would have to have individual career years simultaneously. Now, Hoyer has to respond to some internal frustrations that are being shared.
Last week, Craig Counsell gave an honest assessment of how he feels the Cubs as an organization is in comparison to the team he abandoned, the Milwaukee Brewers. In short, he said the Cubs should be winning ninety-plus games a year and winning division titles. He also said there is still a hefty, hefty, hefty gap between them and the Brewers that needs to be closed.
Starting pitcher Jameson Taillon echoed Counsell’s thoughts on the floor being a ninety-win season in Chicago. Taillon added that he wants the Cubs and Wrigley Field to be a road trip that other teams fear and do not enjoy. He was calling for a change in narrative.
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Jed Hoyer responded to comments about the quest for 90 wins and the gap between the Cubs and the Brewers. He did so in the only way he knew how. He patted himself on the back and said all the same things.
“‘That is the goal,’ Hoyer said. ‘And we talk about a gap, I think that we’ve come a long way. I feel really good about the position we’re in, but there’s still a gap. That last stretch, that’s what we have to make up.'”
Jed Hoyer on the gap between the Cubs and the Brewers, via Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun Times
Jed Hoyer’s Response To Cubs’ Expectations Doesn’t Help
Via Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times, Jed Hoyer spoke on manager Craig Counsell’s comments last week about the team needing to consistently win 90 games. Hoyer agreed that should be the goal but patted himself on the back for the strides made in “closing the gap.”
As for winning 90 games a year, Hoyer said they’ll approach the future with the intent of not just winning 90 games one season but building a structure that can handle it consistently. He believes Counsell’s added perspective and competitiveness to the table will help the Cubs “close the gap.”
This all sounds great and promising. But there are two loud, apparent problems with the talk already being received from Jed Hoyer. First, it’s all been heard before. The Cubs have not made the playoffs in a full season since 2018. They’ve not one a playoff game since 2017. Nothing has changed.
Second, this “gap” being referenced was created by Jed Hoyer. He’s giving himself credit for attempting to fill a hole he dug himself.
There’s still a week of baseball for the Cubs and then a month of playoffs for the league. November seems so far away. However, hopes of this offseason being different on the North Side of Chicago are already dwindling.
