Red Sox hire Craig Breslow as new chief baseball officer

The Boston Red Sox handed the leadership of the front office over to one of their alumni.

Craig Breslow, who pitched for the team in 2006 and from 2012-2015, accepted the team's offer to become the chief baseball officer, the team announced Wednesday.

"I am humbled by the opportunity to lead baseball operations and to work alongside so many talented people. ... I know firsthand how special winning in Boston is, and I look forward to once again experiencing that passion and success with our fans," Breslow said in a statement.

The 43-year-old spent the last five seasons working various roles in the Chicago Cubs front office. He most recently served as the team's assistant general manager and vice president of pitching.

"We feel strongly that Craig is the right person at the right time to lead our baseball department. Craig's understanding of the game is remarkable," Red Sox owner John Henry said in a press release. "What convinced us to bring him aboard in this capacity was his highly strategic philosophy and his grasp of what it takes operationally in today's evolving game to excel at the highest level in player acquisition, development, and execution at the major-league level."

The Red Sox fired chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom in September after three seasons. Boston has missed the postseason in each of the last two years and only has one playoff berth in the last five seasons.