Taylor Smith named Athletics president of baseball operations

The Athletics have named Taylor Smith as their new president of baseball operations, MLB.com reported, bringing in a new voice to lead baseball operations as the organization navigates one of the more consequential rebuilding stretches in recent franchise history.

Martín Gallegos reported the appointment for MLB.com. The club has also been considering adding a general manager beneath Smith, per earlier reporting, which would give the operation a more layered decision-making architecture as it moves forward.

What happened

Smith was introduced as the Athletics' president of baseball operations, with the club expressing enthusiasm for building around the team's young core. Manager Mark Kotsay, whose position was a natural point of speculation during any leadership transition, is secure through 2028, per prior reporting — meaning Smith inherits a dugout with continuity already baked in.

The hire lands as the Athletics wrap up their final season in Sacramento, a campaign that ended at 64-98 (.395). That record represents a significant step back from the 76 wins the club posted in 2025, a decline shaped by injuries and poor pitching during what the organization has framed as a rebuilding year.

Why it matters

Leadership changes at the presidential level set the tone for everything downstream: roster construction philosophy, player development priorities, trade deadline posture, international spending, and the pace at which a rebuild is expected to mature. Smith's mandate, as described at his introduction, centers on the young core — which means the decisions that will define his tenure are less about this past season's 64 wins and more about what those younger players look like further down the road.

The timing also matters structurally. The Athletics are moving into a new chapter geographically, and the organization is being reshaped to match. Installing a president of baseball operations now, before the offseason gets fully underway, gives Smith the opportunity to shape the roster heading into what figures to be a pivotal winter.

The potential addition of a GM beneath Smith is worth watching closely. That structure — a president of baseball operations overseeing a GM — is common across the league and typically allows the president to set broader strategy while the GM handles roster management and negotiations on a more granular basis. Whether the Athletics fill that role, and who they target, will say a great deal about how Smith intends to organize the operation.

The numbers

The Athletics finished 64-98 (.395), fourth in the AL West and 17 games back of the division leader. They ranked 11th in the Wild Card standings, 20.0 games relative to the cut line, and were eliminated from both the division race and Wild Card contention. The club closed the year on a two-game losing streak.

Those numbers are the backdrop against which Smith begins his tenure — not a crisis to be managed in the moment, but a baseline from which the rebuild is expected to climb. The gap between 64 wins and playoff relevance is real, and the young core the club has emphasized will need to close a meaningful portion of it.

Where the club stands

At 64-98, the Athletics finished fourth in the AL West, 17 games behind the division leader, with a Wild Card deficit of 20.0 games. The season is over. What comes next is an offseason that Smith will now help shape from the top of the organizational chart.

The club's stated direction — building around the young core — gives Smith a clear public mandate, even if the specific moves required to execute it remain unannounced. Kotsay's contract security through 2028 provides one fixed point in an otherwise fluid offseason picture.

Is a GM coming?

Per prior reporting, the Athletics are considering adding a general manager beneath Smith, but no hire has been announced. That decision will likely be among the first significant organizational moves of the offseason, and whoever fills that role — if the club proceeds — will be Smith's primary operational partner in constructing the roster.

The structure matters because it determines accountability and communication flow. A president-GM pairing typically means the president sets the vision and the GM executes it, though the exact division of responsibilities varies by organization. Until the Athletics announce whether they are filling the GM role and who that person is, the full shape of the new operation remains incomplete.

What we don't know yet

The Athletics have not announced whether they will hire a GM, who that person might be, or what the specific roster priorities are for the offseason. Smith's introduction emphasized the young core, but the club has not detailed which players that phrase encompasses, what the payroll parameters look like, or how aggressively they intend to move in free agency or trade markets.

A week removed from the close of the Sacramento season, Max Muncy underwent knee debridement surgery for cartilage damage, per reporting, and is expected to be ready for spring training — but how he fits into the club's plans under new leadership has not been addressed publicly.

The Sacramento chapter is closing, and the next home for this franchise is on the horizon. Whether Smith's organizational construction accelerates the timeline toward competitiveness, or whether the rebuild requires more patience, is the central question that will follow him into the offseason and beyond.

What to watch

The GM search — or the decision not to conduct one — is the most immediate storyline to track. After that, offseason roster moves will begin to reveal Smith's priorities in practice rather than in introductory remarks. The young core he has been tasked with developing will be the measuring stick, and the first real test of his vision will come when the club makes its first significant personnel decisions of the winter.

Kotsay's presence through 2028 means the managerial relationship is already established. How Smith and Kotsay align on player development timelines and roster construction will shape the Athletics' competitive arc in ways that a single offseason cannot fully answer — but the direction should start to come into focus soon.