In a much-anticipated move, Rockies general manager Bill Schmidt resigned on Wednesday. Now, there are looming questions. Who will replace Schmidt? Will the Rockies buck tradition and look outside the organization for their next GM or president of baseball operations?
“I think we need a new set of eyeballs,” Rockies co-owner Charlie Monfort told The Denver Post in June.
His older brother, Dick, the club’s co-owner, chairman, CEO, and ultimate decision-maker, agreed — to an extent.
Rockies GM Bill Schmidt steps down as team looks for new direction after dreadful season
“That’s not only Charlie’s opinion, it’s the public’s in general, and I get it,” Dick Monfort told The Post. “There is a criticism, which is fair, that we are very loyal, insular, and we promote from within.”
However, Dick also noted, as others have, that fielding a winning baseball at altitude in Denver is difficult.
“We have this dynamic of playing somewhere where nobody else plays,” he said. “It’s easier for an outsider to say, ‘Well, I would do this, or I would have done that.’ This is a tough place to play. It has its little intricacies that other places don’t.
“But I agree that what has gone on over the last few years is not representative of what we want. I think there are a lot of reasons for that. But it probably is time to have somebody who has a fresh opinion, a fresh set of eyes.”
Following is a list of possible candidates to replace Schmidt to head baseball operations:
• Thad Levine: He served in Colorado’s front office from 1999 to 2005 before becoming assistant GM of the Rangers and then GM and senior vice president of the Twins. He left the Twins after the 2024 season. During his eight years in Minnesota, the Twins won three AL Central titles and earned four postseason berths.
• Andy McKay: He’s worked in the Mariners’ front office since 2015, where he’s served under GM/president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto. In December 2024, McKay was promoted to vice president and assistant GM. McKay was the Rockies’ peak performance coordinator for the minor league system from 2012 to 2015. Dipoto worked briefly in the Rockies’ front office after he retired as a Rockies reliever in 2001.
• Jon Daniels: When he became the Rangers’ GM in 2005 at age 28, he was the youngest GM in baseball history. The Rangers won the AL West four times under Daniels (2010-11, ’15-16), and they reached the World Series in 2010 and ’11, losing to the Giants and Cardinals. Daniels ran the Rangers’ front office for 17 seasons until he was fired in 2022. Since then, he’s been a special assistant with the Tampa Bay Rays.
• Dayton Moore: Currently a senior advisor of baseball operations with the Rangers, Moore was the architect of the Royals’ championship runs a decade ago. Under his leadership, the Royals made the World Series in 2014 and returned to the Fall Classic in 2015, winning the championship. The Royals fired Moore near the end of the 2022 season. He was promoted to president of baseball operations on Sept. 14, 2021, after spending the previous 15 seasons as the Royals’ GM. The Rockies were reportedly interested in hiring Moore in some capacity in 2023, but the move did not materialize.
• Billy Eppler: The former Mets GM joined the Brewers as a special adviser for scouting and baseball operations during spring training. Eppler was suspended in 2024 after a Major League Baseball investigation concluded he directed Mets staff to fabricate injuries to create open roster spots. He resigned as the Mets’ general manager in October 2023 amid that investigation, three days after owner Steve Cohen hired David Stearns as president of baseball operations. Eppler joined the Mets in November 2021 after working as the Angels’ general manager from 2015 to 2020. The Rockies hired Eppler as a scout in 2000. After the 2004 season, he was hired to scout for the Yankees.
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