CHICAGO (670 The Score) – Carter Hawkins is known in baseball circles for having a keen eye for talent, and upon being introduced as the 16th general manager in Cubs franchise history Monday, it was clear what his mandate is.
Keep finding that talent and then nurture it to great success.
"I spent a lot of the summer trying to hammer down what area I wanted the person I hired to be strong in," president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said Monday at Hawkins' introductory press conference. "A big part of it, I realized, was about someone who was strong in player development. I believe we have a really good front office. We believe that player development will be the key to our next wave of success over the next three to five years."
The Cubs' main weakness since the Hoyer-Theo Epstein regime took over in late 2011 has been finding and developing strong pitching, particularly in the starting rotation. That's part of what made the 37-year-old Hawkins an attractive candidate, as he spent the last 14 years working for a Cleveland organization that has done a strong job of identifying and developing pitching talent.
Hawkins had been an assistant general manager for Cleveland for the past five years. In the 2021 amateur draft, the organization selected pitchers with 19 of its 21 picks.
"It begins with the thought of where we are and where we want to go?" Hawkins said. "We are in the where are we mode. So I will be talking to all our front office people all the time. I will be talking to Jed all of the time. We need to assess these things in order to build plans for the future. It will be hands-on (for me) from the standpoint of learning. But it will always be a team effort as far as implementing things and getting them done."
Hoyer and the Cubs officially hired Hawkins last week after the organization left its general manager position unfilled during the 2021 season. Hoyer didn't fill the post because the COVID-19 pandemic prevented him from spending time with candidates in person.
Once Hoyer got to picking the brains of those around MLB, Hawkins' name kept coming up, and their visions meshed as they spent time together in the interview process. Already, Hawkins has been talking with Cubs manager David Ross as the organization looks to move forward after a disappointing 71-91 season.
"I certainly knew of him before we started this process," Hawkins said. "I know how highly Jed and the organization think of him. I had a chance to have a few phone calls with him recently and had a couple of meetings with him. He seems really open-minded and growth-minded. He really wants to get this thing right to help this organization grow. He really wants to keep learning himself, and that's the kind of mindset that leads to success."
Bruce Levine covers the Cubs and White Sox for 670 The Score. Follow him on Twitter @MLBBruceLevine.
