Cubs President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein is "stepping down" on Friday and will be succeeded by GM Jed Hoyer. Epstein spent nine years at the helm of the Cubs, "spearheading a rebuilding effort that resulted in five postseason appearances and a World Series title" in '16. Epstein in a statement said, "I believe this is the right decision for me even if it’s a difficult one. And now is the right time rather than a year from now. The organization faces a number of decisions this winter that carry long-term consequences; those types of decisions are best made by someone who will be here for a long period rather than just one more year." Epstein did "not reveal his post-Cubs plans, but has said in the past that he would be interested in the ownership of a team" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 11/17).

Baseball HOFer Ken Griffey Jr. and his family have joined the Sounders ownership group. The ownership stake, which the club declined to share, was finalized in early ‘20 before the coronavirus pandemic. Griffey in a statement said, “We know how much this club means to Sounders fans, and for us, this comes back to the city where it all started for our family. We are joining a first-class organization, and we are so proud to give back to the city we love. To the Seattle Sounders community: We are inspired to become part of what you have created." Kraken CEO Tod Leiweke and his wife, Tara, also joined the Sounders’ ownership in ‘20.

The Washington Football Team has hired former Roc Nation and Telemundo CFO Greg Resh to the same position, continuing the front office makeover under new team President Jason Wright. Resh, who will report to Wright, will be asked to “help lead the modernization of the front office and franchise,” according to a team statement. He most recently worked at Sontiq, a Maryland-based digital identity protection firm where he held both CFO and COO titles. He replaces Stephen Choi, who had been with the team since March '09, with the last four years as CFO.

Resh is the fourth key hire made by Wright since August, including senior VP/Media Julie Donaldson, Senior VP/External Engagements & Communications Julie Andreeff Jensen and Chief People Officer Andre Chambers. The team did not use a search firm in hiring Resh.

Gatorade today signed golfer Matthew Wolff to its "endorsement roster." He will be featured in an "ad campaign for one of Gatorade’s newest brands, Bolt24, coming out next month." Wolff will join Tiger Woods as the "only golfers Gatorade has ever used in its marketing." Wolff’s unconventional swing has "drawn attention in the past, but it is his play at 2020's biggest events that has opened eyes." He finished in the top four in back-to-back majors, including a runner-up performance at the U.S. Open (FORBES.com, 11/17).

Speedway Motorsports has assigned longtime employee Bryan Hammond to the new role of Exec Dir of the NASCAR race weekend at Circuit of the Americas. NASCAR is heading to the Austin-based road course next May for the first time as part of a unique arrangement whereby SM will rent the track from the independently owned COTA and fully promote the race, with SM then getting to keep ticket revenue and TV money. The track operator is now announcing that Hammond will be the exec who will head up those efforts and interface with the local community. Hammond, who will relocate from Charlotte to Austin next month, has been with SM since ’03 and he will continue serving in his prior role, Exec Dir of Partnerships & Entertainment, in addition to this new one. 

SM Chief Strategy Officer Mike Burch said, “We felt it was important to have one of our top partnership executives on site both at the facility and in the community as we create an event unlike any seen before in the Austin region. Bryan is a Speedway Motorsports veteran with a history of exceptional production, both in service to our marketing partners and event management for our pre-race shows. Collaborating with people and companies is his strength, and we know he’ll be the perfect connection on our behalf in Austin with the people and partners we’ll need to get ready for a spectacular event in May.”

NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum said he was not concerned about the low ratings for the NBA Finals this year because “if you look across all of sports, including this weekend’s Masters, we’re seeing record declines across the board in all of sports." Appearing on CNBC's "Squawk on the Street" today, Tatum said, "With the calendar the way that it is, we’re playing during a time that people aren’t accustomed to watching the NBA." But Tatum noted, “We are looking forward to getting back on our normal cadence and our normal schedule of playing, starting the season in October, which is why this season we wanted to get started in December and end in July so that we can get back on our normal cadence" (“Squawk on the Street,” CNBC, 11/17).

USA Track & Field today formally announced its $100,000 sponsorship from Elk Grove Village. USATF won an RFP process in July; USA Wrestling and USA Triathlon finished second and third, receiving smaller sponsorship deals from the village. The partnership will include Elk Grove ads during USATF broadcasts on NBC and NBC Sports Network across a six-month period as well as branding at track and field competitions in the lead-up to the Tokyo Games. USATF Olympic athletes will also lead a RunJumpThrow community event in Elk Grove, and the NGB will involve village officials in a three-part business-to-business speaker series. Elk Grove has been advised on its sports sponsorships by marketing firm 4FRONT.

Vistaprint signed a multiyear partnership with the Celtics making it the exclusive marketing and design partner of the team. The Vistaprint logo will appear in team colors on the front left shoulder of the Celtics’ game jerseys beginning with the '20-21 season (Celtics).

Sportsbook operator PointsBet launched in Colorado today, the fifth state for an Australian company that has made Denver its U.S. base of operations and prepped the market through sponsorships with Kroenke Sports & Entertainment and the Univ. of Colorado (Bill King, THE DAILY).

The NLL announced Panther City Lacrosse Club as the name of league's 14th franchise. It will begin play at Dickies Arena in Ft. Worth beginning with the '21-22 season. Meanwhile, the NLL New York Riptide will return to MSG Networks for the '21 season for its nine-game schedule (THE DAILY).

The NHL Panthers are expected to name Brett Peterson an Assistant GM, a move "believed to make the 39-year-old the first Black person to hold such a high-ranking team executive position in NHL history" (BOSTON GLOBE, 11/17). 

Clippers F Kawhi Leonard has joined the board of energy drink X2 Performance (X2 Performance).

FC Barcelona and Danone North America signed a partnership that will run for three years through June '23. It is the first U.S. regional partner for the club’s N.Y. office, which means the deal is focused on engaging American fans exclusively (FC Barcelona).

"My job was to think about how we could reignite the brand and really kind of just come back stronger than ever and be the Puma that we wanted to be. And a lot of that had to do with really refocusing on sports in general and saying, let's recognize the fact that we are a sporting goods brand, or sports brand inherently" -- Puma Global Dir of Brand & Marketing Adam Petrick, on the brand's resurgence in basketball (WASHINGTON POST, 11/17).

"Even millionaires (around the league) looked at that and said, ‘Wow, that is a lot of money to turn down.’ But it goes back to the discussion that we have had multiple times about big contracts, about super max contracts, because remember it’s not just money that keeps people in a market. He has to clearly be quite unhappy” -- ESPN’s Malika Andrews, on Rockets G James Harden declining a two-year, $103M contract extension from the Rockets (“SportsCenter,” ESPN, 11/17).

“This is good for him. Pay attention to not what’s on your phone, but who’s in your phone. Sometimes you have to disassociate yourself from the social media apps and just focus on what’s important” -- ESPN’s David Jacoby, on Lakers F Kyle Kuzma deactivating his Twitter account (“Jalen & Jacoby,” ESPN, 11/17).

Sources: NBA players must return to their team’s market no later than Nov. 30 to begin coronavirus testing and can begin individual workouts from Dec. 1-5 after three negative PCR tests.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) November 17, 2020

Ole Miss head coach Kermit Davis has tested positive for COVID-19, per release.

— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) November 17, 2020

When I'm an NBA GM, I will trade for good players who can help my team instead of imaginary ones in from distant future who may or may not be able to do anything.

— Rohan Nadkarni (@RohanNadkarni) November 17, 2020

I asked Theo if he'd buy Miller Lites for fans, a la Jon Lester. He said after the pandemic ends, any Cubs fan that bumps into him at a bar gets a free beer. "Until Jed wins a World Series, then it's on him."

— jon greenberg (@jon_greenberg) November 17, 2020

Arte Moreno wouldn’t say what he sees for the #Angels payroll this year, but he did say “it’s not going down.”

— Jeff Fletcher (@JeffFletcherOCR) November 17, 2020

If you see a tweet we will not want to miss, send it to us at editorial@sportsbusinessdaily.com.

Heavy hearts at practice today, surrounded by family fortunate to have known @eiufbstrength.

"There was a spirit and a passion inside that man, that is now part of your spirit." - @coachfitz51 pic.twitter.com/SdwpCtogGX

— Northwestern Football (@NUFBFamily) November 17, 2020

WWE HOFer Amy Dumas and UFC fighter Tatiana Suarez will appear on ABC's "The Bachelorette" at 8:00pm ET.

$525,802,524 -- Pennsylvania's record sports betting handle for the month of October. That is more than double the handle the state saw in October '19 (Pennsylvania Gaming).