A's Name Taylor Smith Head of Baseball Operations

LAS VEGAS — The A's have named Taylor Smith President of Baseball Operations, placing him in charge of the Club’s baseball strategy and operations as the organization prepares for its move to Las Vegas in 2028. Smith spent the last two seasons as Senior Vice President and Assistant General Manager for the Red Sox after spending seven seasons with the Tampa Bay Rays.

During his time with the Red Sox, Smith oversaw the organization’s baseball research and development efforts, including analytics, sciences, systems, and technology. He also led the department’s collaboration with the player acquisitions, development, and baseball operations groups.  

“The Athletics changed the way baseball thinks about building a team, and their pioneering work during the Moneyball era opened the door to my own career in the game,” Smith said. “It's an honor to build on that legacy as we work to create the next great A's team, build on our foundation for sustained success, and prepare for our new home in Las Vegas.”

“I couldn't be more excited about Taylor as our President of Baseball Operations,” said A’s owner John Fisher. “He is one of the brightest minds in the game today. We conducted a very thorough search for our new baseball leadership, and Taylor stood out for his acute understanding of the game, especially in the areas of measuring player performance and player development.

We have a strong core of returning players, including Nick Kurtz, Brent Rooker, Shea Langeliers, Lawrence Butler, Tyler Soderstrom, Jacob Wilson, and Henry Bolte, as well as a lot of great talent in our farm system. With Taylor's leadership and the talent already in our organization, we believe we have all the pieces in place to build a consistently competitive and winning team.”

Smith, 31, grew up in Woodstock, Georgia, and graduated from the University of Georgia with joint bachelor’s and master’s degrees in statistics as well as a bachelor’s degree in mathematics. He began his career as an intern in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ research and development department before joining Tampa Bay in 2018 as a research and development analyst, focused on the amateur draft and player valuation. He was promoted to lead analyst in 2021 before being named the Director of Predictive Modeling in 2022. In that role, he oversaw the organization’s player valuation models and provided leadership and oversight to the research and development staff. He joined the Boston Red Sox in 2024.  

“It's exciting to welcome Taylor to the Athletics as the new President of Baseball Operations,” said A’s senior advisor Billy Beane. “He is a smart, creative baseball mind with the leadership skills to build a cutting-edge, winning organization that our fans can be proud of for years to come. I couldn't be more excited about the A's future.”