The Los Angeles Dodgers are reportedly going to name Farhan Zaidi as their next GM later this week, according to MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick. The hiring, coupled with the addition of Josh Byrnes as Scouting Director, will complete what has been a dramatic makeover of the team’s baseball operations over the past month.
Zaidi has spent the past ten years working in the Oakland Athletics front office. This past February he promoted to Asst. GM alongside Billy Beane after five seasons leading the team’s baseball operations. Zaidi has a strong analytics background, having attended MIT as an undergrad before earnings his doctorate in economics from UC Berkeley.
The 37 year old has experience evaluating and targeting players in the Amateur Draft, with arbitration hearings and minor league contracts, as well as working with the A’s coaching staff to better utilize data in advanced scouting reports.
Zaidi has long been well respected across the league. Mark Saxon of ESPN Los Angeles referred to a quote from Beane that appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle about Zaidi:
"He’s absolutely brilliant. He has a great qualitative mind, but also a creative mind. The ability to look at things both micro and macro is unique and Farhan could do whatever he wants to do, not just in this game, but in any sport or business. I’m more worried about losing him to Apple or Google than I am to another team."
Byrnes was formerly the GM for both the Arizona Diamondbacks and San Diego Padres after beginning his career working under Theo Epstein in Boston. His expertise has long been weighted more towards the scouting side, lending optimism to what his impact as Scouting Director could prove to be. Numerous reports have also linked former player and minor league manager Gabe Kapler to the team, for an unknown front office position. He played for Andrew Friedman in Tampa Bay.
BoSox Injection
Since Friedman was hired in mid-October by the Dodgers, the team’s completely rebuilt their front office in a rather methodical fashion – weighing heavily towards a more data-driven approach than relying on many old school scouting practices. Former GM Ned Colletti has shifted into a different role, advising Stan Kasten, while Logan White and De Jon Watson – two of the organization’s more seasoned and sought-after executives – parted for other NL West clubs in San Diego and Arizona, respectively.
This past season the Dodgers boasted an MLB-high $240 million payroll, but instead were forced to watch their division and in-state rival hold the Commissioner’s Trophy at the conclusion of the World Series. The organization has been systematically aggressive over the past month in rebuilding their office specifically hoping to remain competitive without having to sustain such a high expense each season.
It’s Moneyball’s highly calculated, smart baseball decisions meets far more realistic budgetary limitations.