Tuesday night, the baseball world was distracted from the playoffs by multiple reports that Red Sox GM Theo Epstein was about to leave the team and take a similar position with the Chicago Cubs.

Today, Boston radio station WEEI reports that a deal may be in place for Epstein:

WEEI’s John Dennis reported Wednesday morning that Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein has agreed with the Cubs on a five-year deal worth more than $15 million.

According to Dennis’ sources, the Red Sox granted the Cubs permission to talk with Epstein late last week. The deal is expected to be finalized by the end of this week, following negotiations for compensation with the Red Sox, who have Epstein under contract for one more season.

Other reports indicate that Epstein would be given the title “President of Baseball Operations”, with current team president Crane Kenney shifting to become “President of Business Operations”.

As always, we await further developments.