It looks like the Padres are going to announce Jed Hoyer, (soon to be) former Red Sox Assistant General Manager, as the new GM later today.
Hoyer graduated from Wesleyan University, where he played baseball for four years. After that, he worked in the admissions office for his alma mater and Kenyon College, and also was an assistant coach at Wesleyan for two years. He joined the Red Sox in 2002 as an intern and quickly moved up the organizational depth chart. When Theo Epstein briefly left the Red Sox in late 2005, Hoyer had already built up enough trust with the Boston higher-ups to be named co-GM.
What we’re getting here, in baseball terms, is an elite prospect. In contrast, Towers was the wily veteran. He had a long track record, we knew his tendencies, we knew he was capable of handling the responsibilities that came with the GM gig (and doing a pretty good job at it, too).
With Hoyer, we simply don’t know as much. We don’t really have a track record to go by because, except for a few months, Jed Hoyer hasn’t been in this situation. He hasn’t ran the show. At the same time, we know enough about Hoyer to be excited about his arrival. We know he’s smart. We know he’s quickly moved up the ranks of one of the better organizations in baseball. He appears to be a guy that not only values scouting and stats, but wants as much information that’s attainable before making any decision.
What I also like about the move is that it shows Jeff Moorad is going to go out and get what he wants. He’s not going to dance around it. Let’s face it, Moorad’s vision, whatever it is, is going to shape this organization. He wanted someone who would adopt a more “strategic approach” in the draft, and I think he got him.
I don’t know about you, but I’m looking forward to following the Hoyer era in San Diego. No, it won’t be easy to out-do what Kevin Towers did with the Padres, but I think it’s time for something different. Like with the acquisition of any prospect on the field, there’s a high risk, high reward component here, no doubt. Hoyer could be the next Billy Beane or Theo Epstein, or things could get ugly fast. But if Moorad and company have done their homework, I think we’ll be looking back on this day as a great one in Padres’ history.
Posted by Myron on October 26, 2009 at 2:20 am
Knew I read this at some point, but forgot about it:
http://baseballanalysts.com/archives/2007/02/a_chat_with_red_1.php
Excellent Hoyer interview.
Posted by ejf on October 26, 2009 at 2:29 am
Red Sox fan here: I think you guys will like Hoyer. We did, not least of all for his role in keeping the front office from going to hell in a handbasket when Theo went on “vacation.” Very sharp guy and from all accounts a great person. Hopefully the media will be able to get past the fact that he looks too young to drink long enough to give him a fair shot.
Posted by Myron on October 26, 2009 at 9:56 am
Great point. Here’s a sample of what could be to come, especially if things don’t start off great:
http://insidethepadres.blogspot.com/2009/10/still-appears-doogie-howser-might.html
Geez, he hasn’t even been officially hired yet, and we’re getting this stuff. Hopefully he doesn’t get the treatment DePodesta got in LA.
I used to be a big fan of the Red Sox, and still follow them pretty closely. But not close enough to know a whole lot about Hoyer, other than the basic stuff.
ejf, did he have a lot of interactions with the media? If so, how did he handle it? I think that will be a big part of his success in San Diego, and whether or not the media and fans warm up to him.
Posted by sdpads1 on October 26, 2009 at 12:01 pm
Looking back on what Byrnes has done in Arizona makes me a bit skeptical regarding Hoyer but at the same time I am interested to see what he will do here. Moorad loooooooves Josh Byrnes. That’s all he talked about when I met with him. In fact I think if he had the opportunity to hire Byrnes he would have hired him over anyone else but since he can’t he’ll go with the next best thing another Boston Asst. GM.
Posted by Myron on October 26, 2009 at 2:20 pm
Good points, SDPads.
I’m also a bit concerned about how much Moorad wants to be involved in baseball operations. From what I’ve gathered, reading various blogs and message boards, he was very involved in some of the moves in Arizona.
Posted by ejf on October 26, 2009 at 8:44 pm
Myron,
We didn’t see much of him publicly until late 2005, but he was more available to the media after that and seemed to handle them very well (and the Boston media are not easy). A lot of us thought he and Ben Cherington were hung out to dry in the ‘05 offseason, but they both did well with an awkward situation. I have seen him give 3 or 4 press conferences and several other interviews and he has always been well-spoken, pretty direct in his answers, and shows evidence of having a sense of humor.
DePodesta’s treatment in LA was also the result of having no interpersonal skills whatsoever. From the gushing comments I’ve read from those who have worked with Jed and how popular he seemed to be inside the organization, I can’t imagine that’ll be a problem for him. Moorad is another matter; having dealt with Larry Lucchino for his entire career should help, but Moorad strikes me as a dumber, cheaper version of LL. Or at least the version of LL the Red Sox have.
Posted by Myron on October 26, 2009 at 11:26 pm
Thanks for the input, ejf. All of that sounds very good regarding Hoyer.
I’m already looking forward to this offseason.