Ricketts’ Frugality Could Push Hoyer Away After 2025 Season
The Cubs quickly pivoted to Justin Turner after failing to land Alex Bregman, which led to a near-immediate response on social media that the two are similar hitters. Turner is not Bregman, but if you need something to feel good about, the veteran infielder reportedly shunned more lucrative offers to sign with the Cubs. I guess he bought into the rhetoric of Tom Ricketts, who stated the other day that playing for Chicago’s North Side Baseballers is a “privilege.”
What in the name of Andre Dawson is going on here?
Perhaps that was a subtle dig at Bregman, who did take the best offer, or posturing ahead of any extension talks with Justin Steele and Kyle Tucker. Jed Hoyer cited the club’s budget when asked about the failed Bregman bid. Turner accepted Chicago’s one-year offer at $6 million because of the appeal of playing at Wrigley Field. and because his wife is from nearby Chesterton, IN. Hoyer sounded very much like a runner-up when discussing Turner, who is too old to play third base except during dire emergencies.
“You always wanna add guys that have taken the biggest at-bats in the game.”
Jed Hoyer on the Cubs’ reported addition of Justin Turner. pic.twitter.com/HsEAACidbW
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) February 18, 2025
Hoyer is in the final year of his contract, and the stress is a bit more obvious than he’ll admit. I often wonder if he wants to return to Chicago after this season. His hands seem tied no matter what he wants to do and it’s almost like Ricketts is forcing an eventual breakup. Shadev Sharma of The Athletic didn’t mince words in a recent podcast when discussing ownership’s stifling frugality.
“How about you give [the front office] the money to act like a big market team,” Sharma said. “It’s sad that we have to listen to this. There’s a reason Theo Epstein left. There’s a reason they weren’t adding after they added Yu Darvish. And suddenly, they’re just not this big market team that can go and spend and act like the Chicago Cubs.
“The NL Central cannot compete financially [with the Cubs]. They can compete in other ways. And now you’re not giving [the team] that full advantage, and you’re handcuffing this front office. And thankfully I feel like I’m seeing some people more and more talk about how this is mostly on ownership. Act like a big market team. Stop with this nonsense. It’s a joke.”
I’ll add that the Cubs have an immense financial advantage over the other NL Central teams that may be the biggest divisional gap in spendable revenues of any US-based professional sports league. Chicago’s luxury tax payroll is expected to be around $217 million, and Hoyer has indicated that the budget for baseball operations is probably maxed out (the first luxury tax threshold is $241 million if you’re unaware). The Cardinals’ payroll is about $136 million, at least until they trade Nolan Arenado. The Reds and Brewers are on track to spend about $109 million, while the Pirates have approximately $81 million in salary obligations.
Hoyer pushed for Bregman despite qualifying offer restrictions and potential CBT penalties, which is telling. The All-Star third baseman would have made the Cubs a much better team, particularly on defense, where playoff games are usually won or lost. Despite a down season offensively in 2024, his bat would have added tremendous depth to the team’s lineup. Hoyer’s refusal to be a stooge for Ricketts is much more notable, however.
“I realize [Bregman] is a financial stretch above our budget,” he said. “But I also realize this is the moment to do it.”
Chicago’s unwillingness to compete for the best players is puzzling and it is drawing attention at the national level. Ken Rosenthal and Buster Olney have recently ripped into Ricketts, and Scott Boras made an obvious insinuation, too.
“It’s not [a] small market-large market [argument],” Boras said. “How much of your revenues are you spending on a 40-man roster to show your fans you’re committed? What are the principal problems of a CBA negotiation They’re always based upon; we have to understand that owners are talking about what they have,” he continued. “Revenue definition is a monster. What we’re talking about here is how we define revenue, and it’s a broad issue.”
The @BernsyHarris crew believes Tom Ricketts is off-base to call real estate holdings in Wrigleyville an investment in the Cubs while simultaneously lamenting that he’s barely breaking even when he looks at finances through a baseball-only lens.
Listen: https://t.co/GcYTGGQp3b pic.twitter.com/p7AXo2S1pw
— 670 The Score (@670TheScore) February 18, 2025
The superagent was referring to team owners manipulating baseball’s financial system to separate personal earnings from team revenue. Some organizations invest in businesses and real estate opportunities near their stadiums, using loans or debt-to-equity strategies to inflate personal wealth. The Ricketts family, for example, owns the Zachary Hotel, Gallagher Way, and several Wrigleyville rooftops. According to Ricketts, the Cubs are an isolated entity, a business venture with the singular goal of breaking even.
“They think somehow we have all these dollars that the Dodgers have or the Mets have or the Yankees have, and we just keep it, which isn’t true at all,” Ricketts said last month when asked what he would say to fans demanding that the team spend more. “What happens is we try to break even every year, and that’s about it.”
Hoyer sounded a lot like Epstein before he bolted when he started the offseason by saying he would have some tough decisions to make this winter. Chicago subsequently traded Cody Bellinger for Cody Poteet and salary relief and Isaac Paredes and Cam Smith for Tucker. Hoyer came up short in bids for Rōki Sasaki and Tanner Scott before whiffing on Bregman despite a surplus in funds gained in the Bellinger trade. One would think Hoyer believed he would be able to add more talent if not for Ricketts’ heavy hand.
Despite those constraints, the president of baseball operations had his best offseason yet. Though the Cubs are favored to win the division, they still trail National League powerhouses in Los Angeles, New York, and Atlanta. That means the Cubs will have to outperform projections to make a deep playoff run this season. Regardless, Hoyer and Ricketts do not appear close to renegotiating a contract.
The good news is that Hoyer’s prospect pipeline will be the determining factor in this year’s success or failure. Pete Crow-Armstrong looks primed for a breakout, and the world is Matt Shaw‘s oyster. Ben Brown, Cade Horton, Porter Hodge, Alexander Canario, Kevin Alcántara, and possibly Owen Caissie will contribute this year. I’ve been down on Hoyer all winter, but I’d love to see him win a championship leveraging the farm system he built and leave on top. That’d be a tough act for any new Cubs executive to follow, especially if the intent is to let Tucker walk after this season.