Before the Boston Red Sox hired Craig Breslow as the new Chief Baseball Officer last fall, there was talk of Theo Epstein returning to take the job.
Given that the Red Sox have finished last in the American League East in three of the last four years, fans were certainly clamoring for Epstein's return. And while the return didn't happen in that position, the former Sox GM is returning to the Red Sox in a new capacity, as announced on Friday.
Per Jeff Passan of ESPN:
Theo Epstein is returning to the Boston Red Sox. He'll join Fenway Sports Group as a senior adviser, and while he won't be in charge of personnel decisions, his voice should carry enormous weight as the Red Sox figure out how to get back into contention in the brutal AL East.
A few things to consider:
1) The thing that Passan's tweet doesn't mention is that Epstein is also getting an ownership stake in the Fenway Sports Group.
Per NESN:
Epstein, who spent nine seasons as the organization’s general manager, is returning to the Red Sox by taking part ownership of Fenway Sports Group. He will join in the role of senior advisor, FSG announced Friday morning.
This means that Epstein has a financial stake in all of FSG's properties including the Red Sox, Pittsburgh Penguins and Liverpool FC.
2) While Epstein isn't a decision-maker for the Red Sox, the hope is that of all FSG's holdings, he may be the most invested in the Red Sox' success, leading him to spend a little extra attention toward the team that fans feel has been neglected by ownership.
Epstein was named the Red Sox general manager in 2002 and held the position until after the 2011 season, winning two World Series titles. He then went to the Cubs, winning a title in 2016 and then worked for Major League Baseball, helping implement some of the new rules we saw in 2023.
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