The Athletics have widened their search for a new front office leader, and the latest stop on that tour has taken them to Boston.
According to Over-Slot Baseball’s Joe Doyle, the A’s have interviewed Red Sox assistant general managers Mike Groopman and Taylor Smith for their GM vacancy. MassLive.com’s Sean McAdam reported that the club is holding these early conversations over video call, with in-person interviews coming later as the field gets trimmed down.
That puts Groopman and Smith in a group that also includes former Nationals president of baseball operations Mike Rizzo and Athletics assistant GM Billy Owens, the only candidates publicly known to have interviewed so far. Former Astros GM James Click is also viewed as “ a serious candidate ” and is believed to have already spoken with the A’s as well. Dan Feinstein, formerly an Athletics assistant GM, has been serving as interim general manager since David Forst was let go in early August.
As Doyle noted, “the Athletics are casting a wide net” - and the names attached to the search make that pretty clear. The known pool features two World Series-winning GMs and three executives who have not yet run a big league front office.
Groopman and Smith are two of four assistant GMs working under chief baseball officer Craig Breslow in Boston. Raquel Ferreira and Eddie Romero also hold the title of executive VP, while Groopman and Smith are senior VPs. That distinction likely reflects tenure, since Ferreira and Romero have been in the Red Sox organization for decades, while Groopman and Smith are newer arrivals.
Groopman is in his fifth season with Boston and already got a look for the CBO job in 2023 before Breslow was hired. Before joining the Red Sox, he spent four years in the Brewers’ front office as director of international scouting, and before that he logged a decade with the Royals in a range of roles.
He’s also credited with helping build Kansas City’s analytics department. More recently, Groopman played a notable part in Boston’s trade for Garrett Crochet, with his friendship with White Sox GM Chris Getz reportedly helping the sides reach an agreement.
Smith’s path to Boston took a different route. As Groopman shifted away from a more analytics-centered role with the Red Sox, Boston brought in Smith in November 2024.
Smith had spent parts of seven seasons with the Rays after joining their research and development group straight out of college. By 2024, he was Tampa’s director of predictive modeling.
The A’s have long been tied to the analytics movement because of their “Moneyball” era teams, but this search could point toward a front office reset with a fresh approach to player development. Timing matters, too. The club will play in Sacramento for one final season before its new ballpark in Las Vegas is set for Opening Day 2028, and the next GM or president of baseball operations will have to manage the roster through that transition.
Getting pitching lined up for 2027 would be a useful step, but whoever gets the job will also have to adapt the roster once the Vegas park is open and the team can see how it plays for pitchers and hitters alike.
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