Jed Hoyer has been with the Chicago Cubs organization since 2011. 

He first joined the club as an Executive Vice President/General Manager. Hoyer was basically Theo Epstein’s right-hand man from 2011 to 2020. He worked hand-in-hand with him before Epstein stepped down as the Cubs president of baseball operations after the 2020 season. 

That’s when Hoyer earned the title. He officially took over that role on November 17, 2020, and has been the top guy in charge for the past five years. Hoyer also recently signed an extension to remain with the Cubs last season. 

However, things haven’t been perfect since Hoyer took over as the president of baseball operations. The 52-year-old has made some mistakes while in charge. 

So, let’s dive into Hoyer’s three worst moves in this role. 

When Hoyer took over as president of baseball operations on November 17, 2020, he had to quickly make a decision regarding Kyle Schwarber. Hoyer eventually decided to non-tender Schwarber, meaning the slugger was set to hit free agency. 

Looking back at that decision, that was easily Hoyer’s worst move. He not only got rid of the Cubs' best power hitter, but he let him walk for nothing. The North Siders didn’t get anything for a player who just hit 38 home runs in his last full season in 2019. 

Years later, Hoyer has admitted that letting Schwarber walk is his biggest regret. He went on the REKAP podcast this offseason and revealed that getting rid of the slugger was a massive mistake.  

No one faults Hoyer for making a big-time move last offseason. He acquired superstar slugger Kyle Tucker in exchange for prospect Cam Smith, third baseman Isaac Paredes, and right-handed pitcher Hayden Wesneski. 

However, trading for Tucker didn’t really make much sense unless the Cubs were going to extend him. Since Tucker wound up leaving in free agency, Hoyer essentially traded three solid players for a one-year rental. 

That’s why this was one of Hoyer’s worst moves as the Cubs president of baseball operations. He tried to go all-in and make a splash in the offseason, but didn’t follow up on that at the 2025 trade deadline. This trade was basically a waste and cost the team a top prospect in Smith. 

The Cubs knew what they were doing when they traded away Cody Bellinger for practically nothing last offseason. Hoyer traded away Bellinger to the New York Yankees in exchange for right-handed pitcher Cody Poteet. 

The Cubs needed to get rid of Bellinger's contract, so they basically sold him for cheap. But the left-handed slugger was actually a solid contributor for the North Siders in both 2023 and 2024. Selling him for nothing to get off that contract was a bad move by the front office. 

Chicago obviously traded Bellinger after acquiring Tucker from the Astros. Bellinger, though, would have made last year’s Cubs team much more dangerous. Just look at what he did in 2025. He hit .272 with 29 home runs and 98 RBI across 152 games for the Yankees.