Athletics Hire Taylor Smith As President Of Baseball Ops
MLB Trade Rumors • • sports
Key Points:
- Taylor Smith has been named president of baseball operations for the Oakland Athletics, succeeding longtime GM David Forst who departed in August.
- Smith, 31, was previously an assistant GM with the Boston Red Sox and has a strong analytics background, having started his career with the Tampa Bay Rays.
- The Athletics conducted a broad search, considering candidates such as Phillies executive Sam Fuld, Cubs assistant GM Jared Banner, and Cardinals assistant GM Rob Cerfolio before selecting Smith.
- Forst had been with the A’s since 2000 and served as GM from 2015, overseeing a period of playoff appearances but no advancement beyond the ALDS.
- The A’s have struggled recently, finishing near the bottom of the AL West and dealing with significant injuries in 2026, but Smith inherits a core of players with long-term contracts as the team prepares to relocate to Las Vegas in 2028.
