Littlefield joins Cubs' scouting ranks

Former Pirates general manager Dave Littlefield has joined the Cubs as a professional scout reporting to general manager Jim Hendry.

"We are extraordinarily pleased to add someone of Dave Littlefield's caliber," said Hendry. "He will add valuable perspective and another experienced voice to our baseball operations department."

Littlefield has spent nearly 20 seasons in front offices of major league clubs, most recently as general manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Prior to joining the Pirates on July 13, 2001, Littlefield was the assistant general manager to Dave Dombrowski with the Florida Marlins.

Littlefield, 47, began his Major League Baseball career with three seasons in the Detroit Tigers organization as an area scout and East Coast scouting supervisor before joining the Montreal Expos in 1991. Within the Expos system, Littlefield climbed to director of player development, a position he held for his final three seasons with the organization before joining the Marlins in 1998.

Upon joining the Pirates, Littlefield led a system that was named the 2002 Organization of the Year after the Pirates showed a 10-game improvement at the major league level from 2001 while their minor league clubs combined for 399 wins.

Dave, his wife, Joanna, and their two children reside in Pittsburgh.