Athletics hire Taylor Smith as president of baseball operations

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Athletics helped launch the era of analytics in sports, and by announcing Monday they hired Taylor Smith as president of baseball operations, the club added someone with experience in that area.

The 31-year-old Smith comes from the Boston Red Sox, where over the past two seasons he oversaw the organization's research department that included analytics. He also had a big role in player personnel.

“The Athletics changed the way baseball thinks about building a team, and their pioneering work during the ‘Moneyball’ era opened the door to my own career in the game,” Smith said in a statement. “It’s an honor to build on that legacy as we work to create the next great A’s team, build on our foundation for sustained success, and prepare for our new home in Las Vegas.”

The A's still have an open spot at general manager after announcing two months ago that David Forst would not return next season. Forst had been GM since 2015 and with the organization since 2000.

Changes are coming to the front office in hopes of helping the team in its final year in West Sacramento , California, before making the move to Las Vegas in time for the 2028 season.

Before his time in Boston, Taylor worked for the Tampa Bay Rays for seven seasons.

The Athletics were 64-98 this year with a young team in their second year playing at a Triple-A ballpark in West Sacramento, with assistant general manager Dan Feinstein serving as interim GM to finish the season.

“I couldn’t be more excited about Taylor as our President of Baseball Operations,” A’s owner John Fisher said in a statement. “He is one of the brightest minds in the game today. We conducted a very thorough search for our new baseball leadership, and Taylor stood out for his acute understanding of the game, especially in the areas of measuring player performance and player development.

"We have a strong core of returning players, including Nick Kurtz, Brent Rooker, Shea Langeliers, Lawrence Butler, Tyler Soderstrom, Jacob Wilson, and Henry Bolte, as well as a lot of great talent in our farm system. With Taylor’s leadership and the talent already in our organization, we believe we have all the pieces in place to build a consistently competitive and winning team.”

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