Bruce Levine had a rough night on Monday. The longtime Cubs reporter for Marquee Sports Network and 670 The Score meant to send a private message to someone on the coaching staff. Instead, he posted it publicly on X. And it wasn’t exactly a compliment for the team’s front office.
The post, which Levine quickly deleted, praised the coaching staff for getting Chicago to 54-42 at the All-Star break. But then it took a shot at the guys running the show upstairs. Specifically, Levine referenced “twinkle dee and twinkle dum” — widely understood to be president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer and general manager Carter Hawkins — and warned they might “sell you guys out like the 2025.”
That last bit is interesting. It seems to reference last year’s trade deadline, when the Cubs won 92 games and made the NLDS but got bounced by the Brewers in five. There was frustration then about how aggressive the front office was willing to be. Levine’s message suggests that frustration hasn’t fully faded.
The apology and the response
Levine apologized to both Hoyer and Hawkins on Tuesday. The Cubs confirmed to the Chicago Sun-Times that they accepted. A team spokesperson told reporter Jeff Agrest: “Bruce has apologized to Jed and Carter, and they’ve accepted his apology. We’ve moved on, and we’re focused on an exciting second half of the season.”
That’s the public line, anyway. And honestly, it’s probably the right one. The Cubs are in a solid spot — 12 games over .500, five back of Milwaukee in the NL Central. They look like real contenders again. The last thing the organization needs is a public spat with a reporter who covers them every day.
Awkward timing
But the timing here is a little uncomfortable. The trade deadline is coming up fast, and everyone’s watching to see if Hoyer and Hawkins will be more aggressive than they were last year. Now there’s this lingering question: does the guy who covers the team for the flagship network think they’re going to screw it up again?
Levine covers the Cubs full-time. He’s at games, in the clubhouse, talking to players and staff. For him to be that blunt in what he thought was a private note suggests some real skepticism about the front office’s approach. That’s not necessarily wrong — reporters have opinions — but accidentally airing it like that doesn’t do much for his credibility with the people he needs access to.
The Cubs moved on fast as an organization. That’s smart. But the rest of us still get to talk about it. And with the deadline two weeks away, the temperature on Hoyer and Hawkins is going to keep rising regardless.
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