Cubs To Name Wally Hayward Marketing Chief

Thanks to BCB reader eths who posted this information in this FanShot late last night; I wanted to post additional information on the front page.

Wally Hayward, according to Phil Rosenthal's Tribune article, founded the Relay Worldwide agency (WARNING: link plays video without permission) and was involved in the Chicago 2016 bid, is, like his new boss Tom Ricketts, a Cubs fan:

A lifelong Cubs fan, Hayward is acutely aware of the sensitivities involved in trying to cash in on Wrigley Field and its association with the Cubs. But he also understands the equally unique opportunities that exist because of the passion that drives fans to be so reverent of those properties.

"If this was just selling regular signs at another club and the sales inventory, that wouldn't have appealed to me," said Hayward, 41, who grew up in the Chicago area and is a 1990 graduate of Northwestern University. "The thing that gets me excited under the new ownership, with the Ricketts family, is the entrepreneurial feel and startup mentality of looking at all of our assets and what we can do differently to change the game on and off the field for the Cubs and create the ultimate experience here at Wrigley Field."

Cubs marketing under Tribune Co. ownership had its ups and downs. John McDonough, who had the title for years before being named team president, was responsible for such things as the Cubs Convention and some hugely popular gameday giveaways.

But the team's television commercials were, to be charitable, old-fashioned, especially in comparison to this:

Let's hope Hayward can help bring the team into the 21st Century, and perhaps also help to bring more money (that, presumably, can be spent on team payroll) into the coffers at Clark & Addison.