A's part ways with longtime GM David Forst ahead of Las Vegas move

The Athletics and general manager David Forst mutually agreed to part ways on Friday, ending what has been a nearly 30-year relationship between him and the team.

Forst joined the organization in 2000 and eventually worked his way up to the general manager role.

He replaced Billy Beane in 2015 and had held that position ever since.

Now the search begins for a new general manager that will attempt to build the team into a winner as it prepares for its move to Las Vegas over the next couple of years.

David Forst, A's agree to part ways

According to ESPN's Aiden Gonzalez, Forst was never expected to join the team in Vegas but was at least going to maintain the role over the next year-plus while the team makes its temporary home in Sacramento.

But something apparently changed, and it's almost certainly the lack of results on the field.

The A's have taken a massive step backward this season and entered play on Friday with a 45-70 record and have been one of the worst teams in baseball. 

The A's made the playoffs three times under Frost's leadership between 2018 and 2020, but have not been back since.

They are working on their fifth-consecutive losing season with a roster that is still badly flawed and filled with holes.

Even if Forst was not anticipating making the move to Vegas, it at least makes sense for the Athletics to get out in front of a change now in the hopes that a new general manager can start building something before the move is completed.

There is going to be immense pressure for the A's to win following the move, and things are simply not progressing toward that right now. It makes no sense to keep letting the wrong person make moves, potentially setting the franchise back even further if they're not going to be there in a couple of years anyway. 

The A's are expected to begin play in Vegas for the 2028 season.