Hall of Fame Inductees
Jed Hoyer earned his first national recognition in the sports field as an outstanding player on the only Cardinal Baseball team ever to play in the NCAA Division III World Series. Jed was a history major at Wesleyan, a DKE brother, and a senior admission interviewer. His baseball career under Coach Peter “Kosty” Kostacoupoulos was marked by the variety of positions he played and the consistency of his excellence in each role, on offense and defense.
Jed’s cumulative batting average was .364. That includes a .424 average in his junior year, when at different times he played shortstop, left field, and catcher, showing defensive prowess in all those positions. As a pitcher, he amassed a 2.46 ERA and set team records for most saves in a season (7) and in a career (11). On one notable day, he started and won both halves of a doubleheader against Williams. He was the closer when Wesleyan won the NCAA New England Regional. Jed was co-captain of the team in his senior year and finished with an 18-11-1 overall record. The Cardinals won four consecutive Little Three Championships in the years that Jed played on the team.
In Jed’s junior year in 1994, Wesleyan advanced to the finals of the NCAA Division III World Series, where they were defeated in the deciding game by defending national champions Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Jed won the Walter MacNaughten Award for outstanding baseball achievement and the Carl Ahrens Memorial Award for outstanding contributions to men’s athletics. He also played ball in the prestigious Cape Cod League.
Following graduation, Jed stayed out of sports for a few years, but he soon was drawn back to baseball. As Assistant General Manager for the Boston Red Sox in 2004, he was a leading force when the team won their first World Series title in 86 years (and won the Series again in 2007). In 2009–11, Jed went to the San Diego Padres and as General Manager rebuilt their farm system. Since 2011 Jed has been Executive VP and General Manager of the Chicago Cubs. Partnering with Cubs President Theo Epstein, as he had in Boston, Jed worked to build the team that in 2016 won the Cubs’ first World Series title since 1908.
