Red Sox News & Links: Theo Epstein Isn’t Walking Through That Door . . . Or Is He?!?!

Let the rumors start swirlin’! Now that the Chaim Bloom Era has come to an end, Red Sox Nation is ready to move on and start speculating about who the next boss might be (jk: we’re going to keep arguing about Chaim for the next several months years). For obvious if not necessarily compelling reasons, Theo Epstein is the name that has been mentioned the most. Sam Kennedy was asked directly about Theo yesterday and responded thusly: “I can rule out Theo Epstein as a candidate for one of these two positions” (the two positions being Chief Baseball Officer and General Manager.) So I guess that’s a no, but also, we can all agree that’s a really weird way of phrasing the denial, right? Moreover, it’s generally been understood that, should Theo return to a team, he would likely do so not as a traditional GM, but as a part-owner who would take on a more holistic role. So. . . did Sam Kennedy actually deny anything, then? Am I just reading too much into things because I miss Theo so much? We’ll know soon enough. (Emma Healy, Boston Globe)

What about you, Alex Cora, would you like to be the next Chief Baseball Officer? He didn’t seem to rule it out when asked, though, honestly, he didn’t seem to say anything remotely clear at all. (Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald)

But then again, maybe we’re looking in the wrong place if we’re so focused on the CBO. Maybe the bigger issue is ownership. (Keith Law, The Athletic)

After all, at least some people are concerned that the apparent see-sawing in strategy from John Henry is going to make it harder to find a successor. (Sean McAdam, MassLive)

But someone is going to take the job. Among the names being tossed out are James Click of the Astros, Brian Sabean, and former oft-injured infielder Tim Naehring, who now works for Brian Cashman and the Yankees. (Sean McAdam, MassLive)