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The Colorado Rockies are 37-64 and on pace for a 103 loss season, eight games worse than the franchise's worst mark. In response, the Rockies are making a change in their front office, though the specifics of the move seem to inspire more questions than answers.
After rumors spread last night that Dan O'Dowd was reassigned persisted into the morning,Troy Renck batted away the smoke to get the details of the front office shift. Here is what we know:
- Dan O'Dowd was not fired.
- Dan O'Dowd will remain the Rockies general manager by name.
- Dan O'Dowd will still oversee all baseball operations, trades, free agents, waiver claims and other player acquisitions.
Now for the changes:
- Dan O'Dowd will be shifting his focus to the minor leagues and player development.
- Bill Geivett has been named Senior Vice President of Major League Operations,continuing his rise in the organization. Geivett will work closely with Jim Tracy but will still answer to Dan O'Dowd.
As Dave Cameron has already pointed out, those responsibilities seem backwards to the traditional position titles.
"With his extensive experience in professional baseball both on the field and in the front office, Bill Geivett is the perfect fit for this new position," said Rockies Owner CEO Dick Monfort in a team press release today. "We are constantly looking for ways to improve our organization, and we feel that Bill's influence and leadership on a daily basis is an important addition to our Major League club."
Geivett was hired in November 2000 and spent four years as the Rockies' Player Personnel Director. He was promoted to Assistant General Manager in 2005 and added "Senior Vice President of Scouting and Player Development" to his title in January 2011. He was a finalist for the vacant Houston Astros General Manager position in the 2011-12 offseason that was filled by Jeff Luhnow.
In short, Geivett has a glowing resume as a prospective General Manager, and he is essentially getting more on-the-job training for the position. Just as the dual pitching coach arrangement with Bo McLaughlin and Jim Wright seems unstable, this dual general manager position is unlikely to carry over into 2013. While Dan O'Dowd still holds all power in the front office for now, this maneuver seems to be a set-up to eventually handing the torch to Geivett in the offseason.
There will be a press conference at 3:50 PM with both Dan O'Dowd and Bill Geivett scheduled to speak. Hopefully, more details will be revealed then.