Baseball’s golden boy won’t be returning to Beantown.
Red Sox CEO Sam Kennedy shot down the possibility of a reunion with Theo Epstein in Boston after the franchise fired chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom on Thursday.
“I know there’s speculation, there’s professional history, there’s an even longer personal history, but I can rule out Theo Epstein as a candidate for one of these two positions,” Kennedy said during a press conference, according to the Boston Globe.
Epstein, 49, famously led the Red Sox to World Series titles in 2004 and 2007 as general manager of the team.
The legendary MLB executive left the Red Sox in 2011 to become president of baseball operations for the Cubs.
In 2016, Epstein won a third World Series title with the Cubs, ending a 107-year championship drought of their own, before departing in 2020.
Epstein now works as a consultant for MLB’s Commissioner’s office.
The Mets briefly flirted with the idea of hiring Epstein as the team’s president of baseball operations after the 2021 season, but he and owner Steven Cohen agreed that the pairing wouldn’t be the right fit.
The Red Sox will instead turn their eye toward other candidates after axing Bloom following four mostly disappointing seasons under his leadership.
Although they made an ALCS appearance in 2021, the Red Sox finished last in the AL East in both the COVID-shortened 2020 season (24-36) and in 2022 (78-84).
Bloom’s tenure never seemed to shake off the 2020 sting of trading Mookie Betts, who has continued his All-Star ways with the Dodgers.
Heading into the nightcap Thursday’s doubleheader, the Red Sox were 74-72, barely above the AL East basement and seven games behind Seattle for the final wild card spot.
“While parting ways is not taken lightly, today signals a new direction for our club,” Red Sox owner John Henry said in a statement Thursday. “Our organization has significant expectations on the field and while Chaim’s efforts in revitalizing our baseball infrastructure have helped set the stage for the future, we will today begin a search for new leadership.
“Everyone who knows Chaim has a deep appreciation and respect for the kind of person he is. His time with us will always be marked by his professionalism, integrity, and an unwavering respect for our club and its legacy.”