Executive Access is running a series of throwback episodes from 2017, including this week’s episode featuring Cubs executive vice president/general manager Jed Hoyer and D-backs executive vice president/general manager Mike Hazen.

For a pair of kids raised in New England, the chance to work for the Red Sox was a dream come true. Little did Jed Hoyer and Mike Hazen know it would be just one stop in their impressive baseball journeys.

Hoyer was 28 years old when he landed an internship with the Red Sox, joining the club in 2002. Hired shortly after an ownership change that saw John Henry, Tom Werner and Larry Lucchino assume control, Hoyer was one of a number of bright, young minds whose goal was to turn around a Boston club that appeared to be headed in the wrong direction.

It was a front-office reboot of sorts, one which Pirates GM Ben Cherington -- who was also part of that group -- once compared to a startup company.

“At the time, 2001 had been a really ugly season [or] chapter for the Red Sox: A very negative clubhouse, and the overall vibe around the team was not positive,” Hoyer said on Executive Access. “I don’t think it was a destination at that point, so I think at that moment, it did [feel like a startup]. It had been a relatively small front office; front offices were smaller then, and the Red Sox had a small front office even by industry standards at that point.

“I’ve always said, to me, one of the best things that happened to my career was simply being hired by the Red Sox. There was opportunity everywhere because it had been such a small front office. People that were titled ‘interns’ were forced to do so many things that were above our experience level, because we didn’t have a lot of people.”

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Like virtually everybody else there, Hoyer saw an opportunity for advancement. At the end of his internship, Hoyer was hired as an assistant to Theo Epstein, serving as one of the Red Sox GM’s trusted lieutenants during the historic 2004 season. What was it like for the New Hampshire native to be a part of the front office that helped bring the "Curse of the Bambino" to an end?

“Obviously, it was incredible,” Hoyer said, "growing up in that area, knowing how much it meant not just to Boston or Massachusetts, but the entire region. That’s one thing that’s really cool about working for a truly regional team. Anywhere you go all over New England, there are Red Sox hats. It was wild.

“Being from New England, watching ’86, seeing how people believed it could never happen and watching us lose a 5-2 lead in Game 7 the year before to the Yankees, it was an incredible experience.”

While Hoyer was soaking in the first Red Sox championship since 1918, Hazen, who grew up in a Boston suburb, was working his way up through the Indians' front office under Mark Shapiro. Having climbed from intern to assistant director of player development, Hazen joined Epstein’s Red Sox front office in 2006 as Boston’s director of player development.

“When the Red Sox called, I remember Mark calling me in. We were in a hotel in downtown Cleveland having these leadership meetings, and he said, ‘Look, the Red Sox want to interview you for the farm director job,’” Hazen said. “He said, ‘If they offer you the job, you’ve got to go. I’d love to keep you here, you have a job here, but if they offer you the job, you’ve got to go. You’ve got to take this opportunity, you’ve got to take this responsibility, you’ve got to take this step. Don’t just stay here because this is what’s comfortable.’

“I’ve always remembered that, being pushed into that challenge, which I probably wasn’t ready for. ... Being able to go home was phenomenal -- the team I grew up watching my entire life with my dad. It was a great opportunity.”

Hazen joked that he didn’t have any idea what he was getting into when he accepted the job, though working in Epstein’s front office proved to be a life-changing experience. Like Epstein, Cherington and Hoyer, the New England-born Hazen got to taste the champagne following a Red Sox World Series title when Boston won another championship in 2007.

For Hazen, the selfless attitude of every member of that front office was his biggest takeaway from his time in the offices at Fenway Park.

“The best part about that group -- and I can say this, and I’m sure it happens in other places -- but from my perspective, nobody wanted Theo’s job,” Hazen said. “Nobody wanted Jed’s job. Nobody wanted Ben’s job. Everybody had a job to do, and everybody just kind of kept doing it. That’s kind of the culture that Theo created: Everyone being part of the team felt valued as part of the team.”

Epstein’s front office produced a wealth of executive talent, as Hoyer, Hazen and Cherington were among those to move on for prominent positions with other organizations. Hoyer and Jason McLeod rejoined Epstein with the Cubs, while Hazen now runs the show in Arizona with the help of assistant GMs Jared Porter and Amiel Sawdaye, two more former Boston front-office execs.

Could this group someday reunite to form a front-office superteam? Never say never.

“I’ll never forget having worked with that group of people,” Hazen said. “Maybe the band will get back together someday when we’re all old and decrepit, but it was such a blast. That’s all because of Theo and what he created there. It was so much fun coming to work. It was crazy. It got crazy sometimes -- I can’t tell you any of those stories -- but it was a great place to be. We had some ups and we had some downs; the ups in Boston are great and the downs in Boston are tough, just like they are in some other places. It was a great place to be.”

Listen to both interviews on Executive Access, available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Play, Art 19 or wherever you get your podcasts.