The Detroit Tigers named Jeff Greenberg as the franchise’s 20th general manager on Thursday.
Greenberg, 37, spent 11 seasons in the Chicago Cubs organization — the last three as assistant general manager — before working the last 16 months as an associate GM with the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks.
The Tigers (71-81 entering Thursday), who are about to miss the playoffs for the ninth straight season, have been without a GM since firing Al Avila in August 2022.
Greenberg will report to Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris, whose time with the Cubs (2012-19) overlapped with Greenberg.
“I’m thrilled to add an executive of Jeff’s quality to our baseball operations leadership team,” Harris said. “Throughout this search, it was important for me to find someone who can fit seamlessly into the culture we’re building here.
“I also wanted to bring in someone with a fresh perspective and new ideas that could challenge us on a daily basis and make us all better as we strive towards our goal of bringing postseason baseball back to Detroit.”
In his most recent role with the Blackhawks, Greenberg worked across all functions of hockey operations, including scouting, development and coaching.
“It’s an extraordinary honor to take on this role with one of the most historic franchises in Major League Baseball,” Greenberg said. “Throughout my conversations with Scott, (owner) Chris Ilitch and the rest of the team with the Tigers, it became clear that this organization is headed in a great direction with an incredible culture of development and innovation that I’m excited to be part of.
“Another constant message in those conversations was that Tigers fans want to see winning baseball deep into October. I’m excited to get to work with our front office on offseason and longer-term plans to make that our reality.”
Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson offered the following statement:
“We will miss Jeff’s expertise and appreciate the contributions he made to the Blackhawks. We all wish him and his family the best in this incredible opportunity with the Detroit Tigers. Our Hockey Operations department is full of talented leaders and I have full confidence in that team to continue working towards our goals of sustained success. Off the ice, the processes and systems are in place to develop our team on the ice. I look forward to continuing that journey with our group.”
Before his time in Chicago, Greenberg was an intern with the Pittsburgh Pirates (2006, 2008), Arizona Diamondbacks (2010) and Major League Baseball (2009-11).
–Field Level Media