One month has passed since the Boston Red Sox fired chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom as he neared the end of a fourth season in the role.
“While parting ways is not taken lightly, today signals a new direction for our club,” Red Sox principal owner John Henry said in a statement at the time.
“Our organization has significant expectations on the field and while Chaim’s efforts in revitalizing our baseball infrastructure have helped set the stage for the future, we will today begin a search for new leadership. Everyone who knows Chaim has a deep appreciation and respect for the kind of person he is.
“His time with us will always be marked by his professionalism, integrity, and an unwavering respect for our club and its legacy.”
According to Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com, the Red Sox have discussed potentially hiring Los Angeles Dodgers senior vice president of baseball operations Josh Byrnes:
Boston has had internal discussions about interviewing Dodgers executive Josh Byrnes, a former Theo Epstein lieutenant, according to multiple sources.
Meanwhile, Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes is an executive who may have already rejected interest to join the Red Sox front office:
Other names mentioned by industry types include Phillies GM Sam Fuld, Dodgers GM Brandon Gomes, former Astros GM James Click (now a VP of baseball strategy for Toronto), former Rangers GM Jon Daniels (now a senior adviser for the Rays) and former Red Sox pitcher Craig Breslow (now a Cubs assistant GM), though those are the types of candidates believed to be declining Boston’s overtures.
He reportedly was a top candidate for the position but remains with the Dodgers front office.
Byrnes just completed his eighth season with the Dodgers organization, where he supervises the club’s scouting and player development. He previously served as executive vice president and general manager for the Arizona Diamondbacks from 2005-10 and San Diego Padres from 2011-14.
Byrnes has been a popular name for teams looking to fill vacancies in their respective front offices over recent years and among other potential roles, was a candidate to become New York Mets president of baseball operations in 2021.
In 2020, Byrnes was said to be one of the favorites to land the Philadelphia Phillies’ president of baseball operations job before he withdrew his name from consideration and decided to stay with the Dodgers.
Gomes was promoted to the role of Dodgers general manager in January 2022. That came after the position remained vacant for three seasons in the time since Farhan Zaidi left his Dodgers GM role to become San Francisco Giants president of baseball operations in November 2018.
Gomes joined the Dodgers in November 2016 as pitching coordinator of performance, and his focus was on assisting Minor League pitchers. He was promoted to director of player development in December 2017, filling a void that was created when the Philadelphia Phillies hired Gabe Kapler as manager.
The Dodgers then promoted Gomes to vice president and assistant general manager in March 2019. The Dodgers reportedly denied the Mets permission to interview Gomes for their general manager vacancy shortly before announcing his promtion.
Dodgers and Red Sox connections
If Byrnes or Gomes were to get hired as Red Sox chief baseball officer, it would add another layer to an already-extensive history of connections between Boston and the Dodgers.
Most notably is the blockbuster trade from August 2012 that sent Josh Beckett, Carl Crawford, Adrián González and Nick Punto to the Dodgers.
Manager Dave Roberts is of course a Red Sox World Series hero, and Joe Kelly, J.D. Martinez, Justin Turner and Kenley Jansen are among those who have played for both franchises.
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