Eric Hosmer is an All-Star, a World Series champion, a four-time Gold Glove Award winner, and a Silver Slugger at first base.
Most of those accomplishments (all, in reality) came before 2018, when he signed an eight-year, $144 million deal with the San Diego Padres.
Fast forward to Friday, and three organizations have rejected him since last year: the Padres, the Boston Red Sox, and now the Chicago Cubs, who designated him for assignment on Friday.
He is now removed from the active roster and will likely hit the market and look for another team.
Fans have reacted to the news on Twitter, as expected.
Some of them were really harsh:
Hey Cubs fans! What was your favorite “ground ball to second base” during the Eric Hosmer era???
— Tyler (@TeddyFreddy270) May 19, 2023
The pleas have been partially answered with Eric Hosmer getting designated for assignment. Now if we can just get Ross to stop putting Nick Madrigal in the lineup, that’d be great pic.twitter.com/AZ15yzmYP6
— Rich Eberwein (@Rich_Ebs) May 19, 2023
Crazy thing is someone is definitely going to add Eric Hosmer
— Matt T (@mdthompFWFB) May 19, 2023
Others were classy, though:
I admit I was wrong. Maybe I fall prey to hope as well. Eric Hosmer was awesome to have in KC for those Royals glory years. 🖖
— John Hanley (@JohnJHanley) May 19, 2023
The reality is that the Cubs couldn’t afford to have Hosmer in the lineup with Matt Mervis up, and since there is no real offensive or defensive value there, the best course of action was letting him go and give him a chance to try and sign with a team in which he could play a bit more.
Finding that team, however, could be challenging since Hosmer hasn’t been a comfortably above-average hitter since 2020.
He was sporting a .610 OPS this season, with two home runs in 100 plate appearances.
It’s sad to see how far he has fallen, but he did win that World Series with the Royals as a major contributor.
For him, however, it’s time to start again, in new surroundings.
He should be able to find a team that gives him a minor league contract.
NEXT:
The Cubs Make A Shocking Eric Hosmer Decision
